We're currently in the second week of our World War 2 studies. We are using Story of the World for the basic information. We read that together, narrate, and do map work.
There are also projects which we do together. One of our favorites this week is a "rationing" experiment. Many countries instituted rationing during World War 2 as a way to distribute supplies. Rationing was a way to divide up scarce supplies and do it in a way that seemed equitable.
This week the kids were given a certain number of "ration stamps" for
-desserts
-electronics time
-other favorite "only sometimes" foods
They were also issued one brand new pencil for the week. They need to keep track of it and take care of it.
Although my kids have no idea what it's like to have true scarcity as many people experienced during times of war, they do have a little idea of what "rationing" is. For instance, they received some "magic milk straws" and some fancy truffles for Christmas. They each had a different plan for how they would "make these last".
We talked about the need, during wartime, to do things to conserve resources such as fuel oil. Some people would keep their houses much cooler than we do in order to conserve. Neither of my kids were willing to try this, although I wouldn't have minded trying it.
