***This review of Mattie Richardson/Appaloosy Books is part of a network of reviews from the Homeschool Review Crew.***
Since we’ve started homeschooling, books have become a major part of our lives. Not to say that I haven’t always been a bookworm, but my boys, well not so much.
Read alouds though have changed everything! Our morning starts with a read aloud, and the boys now have a huge list of favorite books. Recently at the top of their list was Day and Night by author Mattie Richardson/Appaloosy Books. Day and Night is one of 4 books from Mattie Richardson’s Horses in History series.
Click the banner below to see more reviews of the Horses in History book series by fellow members of the Homeschool Review Crew.
We have been working on a unit study for the Civil War and Mattie’s book Day and Night fit perfectly with the study. What makes Day and Night (as with all 4 books in the Horses with History series) unique is that is written from the horse’s point of view.
Day and Night really put a fun twist and perspective on a huge part of America’s past. Mattie’s love of horses and research of how they were used during the war was very evident throughout all 4 books in this series.
As like all early wars, horses held important roles. Through the eyes of brother horses Tucker and Shiloh, we get to hear about training, battle plans, wins and defeats, and of course the mention of old battle stories from more experienced horses.
How to Utilize Day and Night In Your Homeschool
We utilize narration and notebooking in our homeschool journey and the kid’s enjoyed adding a notebooking page to their journals telling about an experience a horse may have had during the Civil War. If narration isn’t your thing though and you’re looking for a way to get more from the book Day and Night Mattie has you covered with an enrichment guide. The enrichment guide will guide you through the story and enable you to get the most from the book with the following points.
- Reading Comprehension
- Vocabulary
- History
- Geography
- How to create their own stories
- Living History Activities
- How soldiers lived and participated in day-to-day life
- Different elements about horsemanship, horses and their roles today and through history, and other equine-related activities
- An advanced track for older students
These books are designed for ages 8-14. They would make for pretty easy silent readers, or as we utilized them as a read-aloud to accompany our unit studies. The boys and I are really looking forward to including Dusty’s Trail as part of our western expansion unit.
Golden Sunrise will be used as a silent reader for my oldest to gain a bit more perspective into life during the early 1800s, at 92 pages this works perfectly for a silent reader. Mattie has kept her books between 60-140 pages, making for pretty quick reads.
About Author Mattie Richardson
Mattie is now known as a young author, however, when she wrote her Horses in History series she was only a teen. She has 5 books published, with her first book Appaloosy, written at age 13 and published at 16.
Find Mattie on these social channels.
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/Appaloosy7/
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/appaloosybooks/
Twitter: https://twitter.com/AppaloosyBooks
Other Books By Mattie Richardson
Find these other books by Mattie Richardson/Appaloosy Books on Amazon or Appaloosy Books website.
- Appaloosy – Follow Storm as he is captured from his rider White Feather and taken to live with white men. Will Storm and White Feather ever be reunited?
- Dusty’s Trail – Dusty enjoys his quiet life on a small a farm, but his owner Levi has other ideas. Journey along with Dusty and Levi as they deliver “Pony Mail”.
- Golden Sunrise – Cheyenne and Jared become volunteer soldiers in the emerging fight for Texas’s independence. Follow along as they meet Davy Crockett, James Bowie and help defend the Fort Alamo.
- Day and Night – Follow along with Tucker and Shiloh, two-horse brothers who are separated, as they navigate their way through the Civil War.
- The Secret of Hemlock Forrest – When Sunshine hears a strange sobbing in the woods one evening, she couldn’t help but follow the sound. What she stumbles across is something unusual; something that may even teach her a lesson about her own life…something extraordinary….
