Help Kids Love History with the Miss Trimble’s Trapdoor Book Series (Giveaway)

I have always loved history. After all, history is really just hearing real-life stories! I’ve always been fascinated by how the early American settlers lived; by the building of the pyramids in Egypt; by the hardships faced by those in the Outback of Australia; and by the lives of ninjas and geishas in Japan. Unfortunately, many kids (and parents) today have a bad image of history. If it’s not taught correctly, it can seem like just a bunch of useless dates and boring facts. Therefore, it’s important to make history come alive for kids.

A book series by Lori Jordan-Rice, a former elementary school teacher, is perfect for teaching kids about history without the usual boredom. These books are so entertaining that they may even set kids down the road to being history lovers! (I think that reading Little House on the Prairie books as a child really made me interested in history.) Here’s a peek at the adventures in the first two books in the series:

Miss Trimble’s Trapdoor follows Tyler, a boy who hates school—that is, until he unlocks a secret trapdoor beneath his desk in Miss Trimble’s classroom. Tyler unexpectedly falls into a mysterious basement filled with old books and guarded by a magical talking dog named Barnabas Bailey. His new companion takes him back in time, guiding him through American history firsthand and teaching him life lessons along the way.

In the second book of the series, Miss Trimble’s Trapdoor: The Perseverance of Christopher Columbus, Tyler continues his travels through time with this trusted canine companion, Barney. As they witness Columbus as a boy, a young man, and finally sail aboard the Santa Maria with Columbus himself, Tyler realizes that even a great explorer can face setbacks before reaching his dream. He learns he has to believe in himself to achieve his goals of playing on the school basketball team and delivering an oral report on Columbus in front of the whole class.

These beautiful, illustrated, hardcover chapter books are geared toward kids from ages 6-12. Children can also go to www.MissTrimblesTrapdoor.com to write to Tyler and Barney, and access crossword puzzles and word searches, as well as kid-friendly history links. And parents can order books here, too! I’m really looking forward to future books in the series:

Miss Trimble’s Trapdoor: The Courage of the Pilgrims
Miss Trimble’s Trapdoor: The Independence of the Founding Fathers
Miss Trimble’s Trapdoor: The Adventurous Spirit of Lewis and Clark

As author David C. McCullough said: “History is a guide to navigation in perilous times. History is who we are and why we are the way we are.” It’s important for kids to learn about the past so that they can be prepared for the future. The Miss Trimble’s Trapdoor series is an excellent place to start for teaching kids about history and the lessons it has to impart.

GIVEAWAY

I have a copy of the first two books in the series, Miss Trimble’s Trapdoor and Miss Trimble’s Trapdoor: The Perseverance of Christopher Columbus, to give away to one lucky winner! To enter, leave a comment below describing an event from history that has always interested you or a history book that has impacted you. You must do this to enter the giveaway.

You can earn optional, additional entries by:

- Following Susan Heim on Parenting through Google Friend Connect. Click on the “Follow” button on the left sidebar.

- Following me on Twitter (@ParentingAuthor) and tweeting about this giveaway. Leave a comment with the URL of your tweet. You may tweet once a day. Please leave a separate comment for each tweet. (It’s easy to retweet by using the Bookmark button at the bottom of this post.)

- Putting a button for Susan Heim on Parenting on your blog (the code is in the upper right-hand column of this site) and/or a text link on your blog roll. Post a comment with your blog’s URL.

- Posting this giveaway on your blog with a link to this page. Leave a comment with a direct link to the post. (3 entries; leave a separate comment for each)

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One winner will be randomly selected from the qualified comments received by Sunday, December 6, 2009, at midnight ET. Please leave an email address on one of your comments if it’s not available on your Blogger profile. Winners must respond within 72 hours or another winner will be drawn.

CONTEST CLOSED. Congratulations to the winner, Carol M.!