About
Exploring World History is a one-year high school course published by Notgrass History. Notgrass describes it as covering ancient, medieval, and modern history from the perspective of faith in God and respect for His Word, with a survey of Western civilization and significant coverage of Latin America, Africa, and Asia. Part 1 surveys history from Creation to the Middle Ages and Part 2 from the Renaissance to the present, at 75 lessons each, with In Their Words, a collection of original documents, speeches, poems, and stories. Notgrass states that a student who completes the course as written can earn one year of credit in each of three high school subjects: world history, English, and Bible.
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Exploring World History is a one-year high school course from Notgrass History. Used as written, the publisher says it can earn one year of credit in each of three high school subjects: world history, English, and Bible.
Last updated: 2026-10-06 · Every Homeschool Editorial Team
At a glance
| Method | Literature-based / narrative lessons / primary-source reader |
| Worldview | Christian; the publisher states it has no formal statement of faith and no denominational bias or agenda |
| Grades | High school, grades 9-12 |
| Formats | Printed books (Part 1, Part 2, In Their Words, Student Review Pack, Literature Package) and a PDF digital download |
| Cost tier | Standard |
| Parent intensity | 3 |
| ESA-common | Notgrass lists purchasing instructions for several state funding programs |
| Accredited | Not stated on the publisher's pages |
| Publication history | Notgrass History began developing curriculum in 1999; Exploring World History first edition 2004, current 3rd edition 2014 |
| Website | notgrass.com |
Our scoreboard (1-5)
Who the publisher is
Notgrass History states that it exists to glorify God by producing materials centered in His Word that help parents train their children to honor God with heart, soul, and mind. The About page, signed by Ray and Charlene Notgrass, says they began homeschooling in 1990 and that in 1999 they began to develop Bible-based, easy-to-use homeschool curriculum. The same page describes Ray Notgrass as the president of the publishing company and a lead curriculum author, and Charlene Notgrass as overseeing curriculum development and as a lead curriculum author.
Notgrass sells courses for elementary (grades 1-4), middle school (grades 5-8), and high school (grades 9-12). The curriculum page lists the high school courses as Exploring America, Exploring Economics, Exploring Government, Exploring World Geography, and Exploring World History. Notgrass says each course stands alone and may be taken in any order within its level. Exploring World History is credited to Ray Notgrass in the publisher's course description, and the Part 1 title page reads Ray Notgrass with Charlene Notgrass and John Notgrass. The current third edition is dated 2014; the editions list shows earlier editions from 2008 and 2004. The Contact page lists a toll-free phone line with weekday hours, a text number, an email address, and a mailing address in Cookeville, Tennessee.
Notgrass says all of its curriculum is written from a clearly Christian perspective and includes Scripture quotations connected to the topics studied. Its statement of faith page says Notgrass has no formal statement of faith and does not promote one particular creed or confession, believes in the inspiration and authority of the Bible, and has no denominational bias or agenda. The course introduction says the course emphasizes the Bible a great deal, especially in the first half, and that it seeks to present a fair analysis of church history, highlighting various people, viewpoints, and denominations. Notgrass generally quotes the New American Standard Bible and says families may use the translation of their choice for activities and assignments.
The core pedagogy
In Exploring World History the student reads daily lessons; the course page describes 30 units of five lessons each. The Curriculum Package contains Part 1 (Creation through the Middle Ages, the first semester), Part 2 (the Renaissance to the present, the second semester), and In Their Words, a collection of original documents, speeches, poems, and stories from world history. The course page lists each part as 75 lessons. The Student Review Pack (Student Review, Quiz and Exam Book, and Guide for Parents and Answer Key) and a Literature Package of twelve fiction and nonfiction titles are separate products; the Bundle includes all three packages.
The course has 30 units of five lessons each and can be completed in one year at one lesson per day for 150 days. The course page adds that each unit has an introduction with a summary, a list of lessons, Bible memory work, books required for that unit, and suggested writing assignments and hands-on projects. Notgrass describes the content as ancient, medieval, and modern history from the perspective of faith in God, a survey of Western civilization with significant coverage of Latin America, Africa, and Asia. Its scope and sequence page calls it a survey of the political, cultural, and religious history of the world, with a focus on how Bible history connects to ancient civilizations and developments in church history.
Signature mechanics: (1) Three credits from one course. The publisher says that if the course is used as written, a student can earn one year of credit in world history, English, and Bible, and that the course is flexible enough to adjust the assignments. Per the course page, the world history credit involves the lessons, the primary source documents in In Their Words, a history quiz every unit, and a history exam every five units; the English credit involves a project each unit, the poems and short stories in In Their Words, the assigned literature and literary analysis, questions on each book, and a literature exam every five units; and the Bible credit involves reading large portions of the Bible, a Bible study lesson each unit, documents from church history in In Their Words, review questions, and a Bible exam every five units. (2) Student-directed reading. The publisher says the student can read the daily lessons and follow the instructions independently, and that the parent can be involved as much or as little as desired. (3) Primary sources inside the daily assignments. The course introduction lists In Their Words assignments alongside the Bible and literature assignments for each lesson. (4) Ways to evaluate the course before buying. Notgrass provides a table of contents and introduction, a video walkthrough, and a virtual look inside each book, and says its curriculum is self-contained.
A day in the life
The course introduction tells the student to complete the following each day: read the lesson for the day; complete the Bible, In Their Words, and literature assignments listed for that lesson; complete the assignments in the optional Student Review, if used; and work on Bible memorization and the unit project. On the first day of a unit, the parent and student read the unit introduction and choose a project from three options, which always include a writing assignment; on the last day the student recites or writes the memory work and completes the project. Notgrass recommends choosing the writing assignment as the project at least six times during the course. On workload, the Curriculum Package page says that, depending on how fast a student reads and how much time goes to the unit projects, a student may need an average of two to three hours for each daily lesson.
Notgrass says the course is flexible and that assignments can be adjusted to fit a student's schedule and needs, and that a different book can be substituted if the student has already read one of the assigned literature titles. The Guide for Parents and Answer Key gives suggestions on grading, notes on the literature, and the answers to the review questions, quizzes, and exams, and the answer key is also available as a free download.
What they do exceptionally well
A single schedule for three subjects. The publisher designs the course so that world history, English, and Bible are covered by one set of daily assignments, with a history quiz each unit and an exam every five units in each of the three subjects. For a family that needs all three subjects for a high school student and wants one plan, the design is stated plainly and the credit requirements are listed on the publisher's pages.
Primary sources and literature inside the lessons. In Their Words is assigned as part of the daily work, and the Literature Package lists twelve titles with the units in which they are read, including works by Henty, Shakespeare, Dickens, Orwell, and C. S. Lewis. Notgrass says the books may be available from a local library, or can be purchased individually.
Minimal parent preparation. Notgrass describes the course as open-and-go, requiring minimal parent prep, usable with one child or several together, and lists no teacher's manual needed on its home page.
A stated approach to church history and denominations. The course introduction says the authors have sought a fair analysis of church history that highlights various people, viewpoints, and denominations, and invites families to discuss and search the Scriptures together when something differs from what they believe. The statement of faith page says Notgrass has no denominational bias or agenda.
What they do poorly
Review material and literature are sold separately. Notgrass says the Curriculum Package does not include any review or test material or the recommended literature. The quizzes, exams, and literary analysis are in the Student Review Pack, and the assigned literature is in the Literature Package.
Bible study is part of the course design. The course introduction says the authors emphasize the Bible a great deal, especially in the first half of the course, and that the Bible is central to their understanding of world history. A Bible credit, a Bible memory passage each unit, and Bible study lessons are part of the schedule, and Notgrass says the assignments can be adjusted.
Not designated as AP or honors. Notgrass says it has not been officially designated as an AP course by the College Board, that honors designation is the parent's or school's decision, and that it did not design its curriculum to align with any state or private standards, such as Common Core or College Board AP standards.
A substantial daily time estimate. The Curriculum Package page estimates an average of two to three hours for each daily lesson, depending on how fast the student reads and how much time goes to the unit projects.
Who it fits / who it doesn't
Pick Exploring World History if: you want one course to cover world history, English, and Bible on one schedule; you have a student who can read the daily lessons and follow instructions independently; you want original documents and twelve assigned literature titles built into the daily work; you want a Christian worldview with Bible study built in, from a publisher that states no denominational bias or agenda; you want phone, text, and email support from the publisher.
Skip Exploring World History if: you want a world history course without integrated Bible study and Christian worldview framing; you need a course officially designated AP or honors; you want a course aligned to state or College Board standards; you want history, English, and Bible taught as separate subjects with separate materials; your student is outside grades 9-12, since Notgrass generally advises against using a course outside its stated level.
Cost honest assessment
Prices displayed on shop.notgrass.com on October 5, 2026: the Exploring World History Bundle (3rd Edition) is $263.00 and includes the Curriculum Package, Literature Package, and Student Review Pack. Sold separately, the Curriculum Package (Part 1, Part 2, and In Their Words) is $125.00, the Literature Package is $131.00, and the Student Review Pack is $20.00. Part 1 and Part 2 are $50.00 each and In Their Words is $40.00. The PDF digital download is $145.00; the page says printing is permitted for the purchaser's household only and that refunds are not available on digital purchases.
The Student Review Pack includes a Student Review Book and a consumable Quiz and Exam Book; Notgrass says students write in the Quiz and Exam Book and that extra copies can be bought for additional students. The Guide for Parents and Answer Key is available as a free download. Notgrass says it keeps its prices low all year rather than running sales and sells scratch-and-dent copies and older editions at a discount.
Notgrass lists each component of its course separately, so a family can price only the parts it needs. A family buying the Curriculum Package and the Student Review Pack without the Literature Package pays $125.00 plus $20.00; a family buying the Bundle pays $263.00.
ESA eligibility notes
Notgrass says it takes no position for or against state funding programs. Its State Funding page lists purchasing instructions for programs in Alabama, Arkansas, Arizona, Florida, Georgia, Idaho, Indiana, Missouri, Montana, North Carolina, South Carolina, Texas, Utah, West Virginia, and Wyoming. Its state pages say Notgrass History is registered as a vendor in Alabama's CHOOSE, the Arizona Empowerment Scholarship Account, Arkansas Education Freedom Accounts, Florida Step Up for Students, the Georgia Promise Scholarship, the Indiana Education Scholarship Account, North Carolina Education Student Accounts, the South Carolina Education Scholarship Trust Fund, Texas Education Freedom Accounts, and Utah Fits All. The Idaho page says that program is closed to new applications. The Montana page describes a reimbursement program for children with disabilities, and the West Virginia page describes ordering with a browser extension. Program rules differ by state, so families should read the Notgrass page for their state and confirm with the program before ordering.
Alternatives
- Sonlight History/Bible/Literature, a family would pick Sonlight over Notgrass for a program organized around a reading list of thirty-plus real books per year.
- BJU Press World History, a family would pick BJU over Notgrass for a traditional textbook-and-test high school format with optional video instruction.
- Mystery of History (Volume IV), a family would pick Mystery of History over Notgrass for a modular, chronologically organized course that can be adapted across multiple grade levels.
Signature products
- Exploring World History Part 1 and Part 2 (75 lessons each)
- In Their Words (original documents, speeches, poems, and stories)
- Literature package (12 titles)
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