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Heroes and Happenings Sixty Stories from American History Volume One
Introduce your kindergarten student to American History with this age-appropriate, richly illustrated spine. Sixty chapters, across two volumes, introduce children to a wide range of people and events. Some of them are well known, like George Washington and Thomas Jefferson. Some are far more obscure like Dave the Potter, an enslaved African American who inscribed rhymes on his pots at a time when the enslaved were forbidden from learning to read.You’ll cover several early presidents, the Declaration of Independence and the Constitution, and the American flag. You’ll learn about events in almost every one of the 50 states. You’ll learn about people from a range of religions and ethnicities, with diverse skin colors and contributions. For animal lovers, we have a chapter focused on the Pony Express.
- GenresHistoryAmerican History
164 pages, Paperback
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Displaying 1 - 12 of 12 reviews
December 12, 2025
In many ways, these are the books I have been looking for when it comes to teaching US history to my elementary-aged kids. Here are some of the reasons I liked them:
1. The stories are short enough to be easily read in one sitting, and kept my 1st-grader's attention without losing my 4th-grader's.
2. This book clearly tries (and I think succeeds) to present vignettes of major American events and notable people, while also keeping the larger narrative in mind. Sometimes chapters will include a brief summary of interim events at the beginning for context, or reference the future near the end of the chapter. It can be easy for a history book that covers centuries to become so "big picture" that there isn't much to grab on to (or on the other hand, only focus on people and lose context), so I thought a good balance was struck here.
3. Speaking of context, the author talks in the introduction about her mother's teaching style, and how interesting it can be to go on "bunny trails" to make connections between people, their surroundings, what their lives were like, and other interesting tidbits from history that help make the story richer. Nothing has to be limited to a straight narrative because so many things are interconnected. And so the author writes in a way that anticipates curiosity and questions that children might have, and includes short informational sections in each chapter to give more context to the story. In the "Dave the Potter" chapter, for example, a break in the narrative gives information about food preservation and how it has evolved over the years (because it's perfectly sensible for a child to wonder, "Why was it so important to make pots?"). There are also a few highlighted words in the text that have definitions given on the sidebars, but these "sidebar additions" are used sparingly to prevent information overload.
4. I really love that this series focuses on more than just the famous presidents that we all know about, and introduces us to a much wider range of people than I would have learned about as a kid -- women (including women in the sciences), African Americans, Native Americans, rich people, poor people, entertainers, writers, conservationists, scientists and inventors, and more. I love that a book that teaches about someone as famous and as powerful as George Washington can also have a chapter devoted to David Drake, an enslaved man that little is known about, but who found ways to insert his thoughts into his pots with little inscriptions and poems. I appreciate the diversity of the people highlighted here, and how each one can be a potential jumping-off point for further discussion and study (book suggestions are given at the end of each chapter and at the end of the book).
5. It seems like a lot of history books fall into two categories: 1) factual but dry and boring, or 2) written in a more narrative style but more likely to present a "slant" to the information. In some ways this is inescapable, and while I would rather make history interesting than boring, I do try to pay attention to what kind of slant a book may have. I honestly didn't notice much of one here, but when I did it seemed to be a perspective that took gentle note of people's hopes and desires to make their life and country better -- from colonists who resented taxation without representation, to men like Benjamin Banneker who was brave enough to directly question Thomas Jefferson about slavery, to Elizabeth Blackwell who defied social norms to become a doctor and train more women as doctors. The focus seems to be on individuals and groups of people who used their gifts and curiosity to be the best that they could, even when society was stacked against them.
On their own, these two books would make a great one-year survey of US history with some supplementation (and like I said, many resources are mentioned), but we ended up stretching them into two years with a lot of supplementation to try and cover two different grade levels.
1. The stories are short enough to be easily read in one sitting, and kept my 1st-grader's attention without losing my 4th-grader's.
2. This book clearly tries (and I think succeeds) to present vignettes of major American events and notable people, while also keeping the larger narrative in mind. Sometimes chapters will include a brief summary of interim events at the beginning for context, or reference the future near the end of the chapter. It can be easy for a history book that covers centuries to become so "big picture" that there isn't much to grab on to (or on the other hand, only focus on people and lose context), so I thought a good balance was struck here.
3. Speaking of context, the author talks in the introduction about her mother's teaching style, and how interesting it can be to go on "bunny trails" to make connections between people, their surroundings, what their lives were like, and other interesting tidbits from history that help make the story richer. Nothing has to be limited to a straight narrative because so many things are interconnected. And so the author writes in a way that anticipates curiosity and questions that children might have, and includes short informational sections in each chapter to give more context to the story. In the "Dave the Potter" chapter, for example, a break in the narrative gives information about food preservation and how it has evolved over the years (because it's perfectly sensible for a child to wonder, "Why was it so important to make pots?"). There are also a few highlighted words in the text that have definitions given on the sidebars, but these "sidebar additions" are used sparingly to prevent information overload.
4. I really love that this series focuses on more than just the famous presidents that we all know about, and introduces us to a much wider range of people than I would have learned about as a kid -- women (including women in the sciences), African Americans, Native Americans, rich people, poor people, entertainers, writers, conservationists, scientists and inventors, and more. I love that a book that teaches about someone as famous and as powerful as George Washington can also have a chapter devoted to David Drake, an enslaved man that little is known about, but who found ways to insert his thoughts into his pots with little inscriptions and poems. I appreciate the diversity of the people highlighted here, and how each one can be a potential jumping-off point for further discussion and study (book suggestions are given at the end of each chapter and at the end of the book).
5. It seems like a lot of history books fall into two categories: 1) factual but dry and boring, or 2) written in a more narrative style but more likely to present a "slant" to the information. In some ways this is inescapable, and while I would rather make history interesting than boring, I do try to pay attention to what kind of slant a book may have. I honestly didn't notice much of one here, but when I did it seemed to be a perspective that took gentle note of people's hopes and desires to make their life and country better -- from colonists who resented taxation without representation, to men like Benjamin Banneker who was brave enough to directly question Thomas Jefferson about slavery, to Elizabeth Blackwell who defied social norms to become a doctor and train more women as doctors. The focus seems to be on individuals and groups of people who used their gifts and curiosity to be the best that they could, even when society was stacked against them.
On their own, these two books would make a great one-year survey of US history with some supplementation (and like I said, many resources are mentioned), but we ended up stretching them into two years with a lot of supplementation to try and cover two different grade levels.
March 10, 2022
This is a wonderful starting point for lower elementary American history. It held the attention of my kids (ages 8/6/4) and introduced them to a variety of figures in early American history. I felt that historical information was portrayed in a way that was factual without being too emotionally heavy for the intended audience. We appreciated the suggested books for further reading and found many of them at our local library.
Looking forward to Volume 2!
Looking forward to Volume 2!
January 23, 2021
Our whole family enjoyed these vignettes of significant figures and events from early American history. This was our 1st grader's primary history text for the fall semester. He loved having his "own" history book (although we usually wound up with my 3rd grader and 4-year-old listening in). This also proved a helpful supplement for my 3rd grader, adding color and detail between chapters of his more advanced survey-level text.
The illustrations are plentiful and engaging. The writing is accessible and includes helpful definitions and text boxes throughout to expand on new vocabulary and ideas. One of my favorite features was a box at the end of each sketch/chapter with recommendations for further reading on that individual or topic at various levels.
We'll definitely use this again with our younger children.
The illustrations are plentiful and engaging. The writing is accessible and includes helpful definitions and text boxes throughout to expand on new vocabulary and ideas. One of my favorite features was a box at the end of each sketch/chapter with recommendations for further reading on that individual or topic at various levels.
We'll definitely use this again with our younger children.
April 19, 2021
TL:DR HIGHLY RECOMMENDED
This book is the first of two spines for Sonlight's K history homeschool curriculum. It introduces the child (and adult reading it!) to a variety of people and events throughout American history from Norsemen through the 18th century. Each person/event gets around 4-6 pages of summary and multiple, colorful, interesting maps and/or pictures that bring them/it to life. The icing on the cake here is the "extra" recommended books. At the end of each person/event's section, one, or often more, books for further reading are listed. I was able to get a majority of these through the local library. To make it even better, at the end of the book, there is another list of books for further reading broken down by century, but not pertaining to an individual or event that was covered in the book. All of these lists include many age appropriate picture books for use with the curriculum's recommended age range (5-6 y.o./K-1st grade); but they also include many books for use with older children (ranging from more wordy picture books to full blown chapter books and biographies). Some of these "older" books, I read to my son. But many of these, I just read for myself and learned an immense amount about American history. I, as the adult leading this study and reading these books, honestly feel like I have a better grasp on the flow of American history, and have been introduced to multiple individuals whom I don't remember learning about before.
I read this book/curriculum aloud to my 5/6 y.o. son throughout the year. There were times that the text in H&H was a bit confusing or too wordy for him to follow. In that case, I would just summarize it a bit after the paragraph/page. But he enjoyed it as a whole. And, honestly, he remembers a fair amount. This may be because we added on most of the "extra" reading books to reinforce that person/event. I plan to use the list in the back of the book for further reading during the summer, because there just wasn't time to add very many of them during the school year. If you're wanting to stretch this curriculum over 1.5 or 2 years, that would be incredibly feasible. Each person/event could easily be visited over two days instead of one. But, on the other hand, it's meant for K-1st, so a one day introduction to most of the people/events is perfectly suitable.
This book is the first of two spines for Sonlight's K history homeschool curriculum. It introduces the child (and adult reading it!) to a variety of people and events throughout American history from Norsemen through the 18th century. Each person/event gets around 4-6 pages of summary and multiple, colorful, interesting maps and/or pictures that bring them/it to life. The icing on the cake here is the "extra" recommended books. At the end of each person/event's section, one, or often more, books for further reading are listed. I was able to get a majority of these through the local library. To make it even better, at the end of the book, there is another list of books for further reading broken down by century, but not pertaining to an individual or event that was covered in the book. All of these lists include many age appropriate picture books for use with the curriculum's recommended age range (5-6 y.o./K-1st grade); but they also include many books for use with older children (ranging from more wordy picture books to full blown chapter books and biographies). Some of these "older" books, I read to my son. But many of these, I just read for myself and learned an immense amount about American history. I, as the adult leading this study and reading these books, honestly feel like I have a better grasp on the flow of American history, and have been introduced to multiple individuals whom I don't remember learning about before.
I read this book/curriculum aloud to my 5/6 y.o. son throughout the year. There were times that the text in H&H was a bit confusing or too wordy for him to follow. In that case, I would just summarize it a bit after the paragraph/page. But he enjoyed it as a whole. And, honestly, he remembers a fair amount. This may be because we added on most of the "extra" reading books to reinforce that person/event. I plan to use the list in the back of the book for further reading during the summer, because there just wasn't time to add very many of them during the school year. If you're wanting to stretch this curriculum over 1.5 or 2 years, that would be incredibly feasible. Each person/event could easily be visited over two days instead of one. But, on the other hand, it's meant for K-1st, so a one day introduction to most of the people/events is perfectly suitable.
May 13, 2021
We used Volume 1 and Volume 2 for the bulk of our Kindergarten/beginning 1st grade history learning and it was nearly perfect! We combined with many other history picture books and stories, but this is a wonderful compilation of famous people in history and served as a jumping off point for more in-depth U.S. History studies down the line. My daughter fondly remembers many of these stories, which we’ve read throughout the year and has developed a love and fascination for history!
March 8, 2022
Overall, the book was an excellent source for a starting point as a biography spine. After the completely lackluster attempt of describing the incredible Abraham Lincoln by whining that the American Civil War was ONLY based on slavery in a baseless attempt of revisionist history of the worst sort, I am disgusted. Maybe after an attempt research they could rewrite that chapter and have a factual rather than emotional biographical sketch. If you are going to teach children, you should at least provide details. American history is not all rainbows and sunshine. There were horrible men and stupid laws. There were also shining lights and amazing testimonies of hope. Lumping a section of the country as one evil is ignorant and something Sonlight Curriculum should be ashamed of, I expect much better.
April 3, 2024
A good American history "spine" for the younger elementary levels. Some of the chapters are a little bit on the longer side for the younger ages, but each chapter also ends with picture book suggestions on the topic, so you can choose to maybe replace that chapter with a more engaging picture book, or spread a certain person/event out and go deeper with the picture books. There are also extra book lists in the back of the book categorized by time period and don't pertain to the specific people or places learned about in the book.
The author includes many of the "normal" famous people, but also introduces people that I hadn't learned about when I was a kid.
The author includes many of the "normal" famous people, but also introduces people that I hadn't learned about when I was a kid.
January 18, 2021
A great collection of biographical information on Americans who shaped US history. Each one has interesting illustrations and pop outs to keep younger children's attention.
April 9, 2021
Almost 5 stars.
April 14, 2022
Great reference for various historic American figures.
May 8, 2025
Used this for 1st grade history. I appreciated how it did not shy away from difficult topics while remaining age appropriate.
April 23, 2025
Wikipedia is a source? Seriously? I use this book for Sonlight, and while well written and well informed, it does seem to be a bit too much for the recommended lower elementary grades. And of course, I was shocked to see that wikipedia was sourced so often since it is not reliable as information can be constantly edited. What a shame.
Displaying 1 - 12 of 12 reviews