ABSTRACT
One of the most crucial challenges in teaching history to children lies in linking the subject to their prior knowledge. As we discussed in Chapter 2, people can make sense of new experiences only when they compare them to what they already know. Without such a connection, children are unlikely to understand the history they encounter at school. Yet it’s not always obvious just how to make that connection; certainly many of the topics traditionally covered in history textbooks have no clear relation to students’ own experiences, and texts rarely suggest how
such topics might be relevant. The challenge for the teacher, then, lies in deciding what aspects of important historical content match up with elements of students’ lives. Finding that link is the key to broadening students’ understanding of history beyond their own experience, and family histories provide one of the most useful ways to do that. Tina’s and Rebecca’s classes show how the lives of students’ families can introduce them to important and meaningful topics in history.
