Chapter 4. History

Chapter 4: Teaching History to Young Children
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Upon completion of this chapter, you should be able to:

Explain what is history
Justify why children should learn history
List the techniques teachers need to consider when teaching children history

4.1 Preamble
4.2 History: Story & Time
4.3 Why Should Children Learn History?
4.4 Children Learning History
4.5 Teaching History
4.6 Some Ideas for Teaching History

SUMMARY
REFERENCES


2

This chapter will define the meaning of history, how children learn history, how to
teach history and some ideas on what to teach.

Once upon a time . . . That opening for many favorite childrens tales captures the
two main meanings of historyits the story of people and events, and its the record
of times past. (see Figure 4.1). To better understand what history is, lets look closer
at each of these two meanings.

Figure 4.1 Story and Time

STORY - Unlike studying science, we study history without being able to
directly observe eventsthey simply are no longer in our presence. Doing
history is a way of bringing the past to life, in the best tradition of the
storyteller. We do this by weaving together various pieces of information to
create a story that gives shape to an event. There are many possible stories
about the same event, and there are good storytellers and less good
storytellers. Very rarely does one story say it all or any one storyteller get it
right. A good student of history, therefore, tries to determine the true story by
looking to see if a storyteller has backed up her story with solid evidence and
facts. The history with which we are most familiar is political historythe
story of war and peace, important leaders and changes of government. But
history is more than that. Anything that has a past has a history, including
ideas, such as the idea of freedom, and cultural activities, such as music, art or
architecture.

TIME - Time in history is a kind of relationship. We can look at several
events that all happened at the same time and that together tell a story about a
particular part of the past. Or we can look at the development of an idea over
time and learn how and why it changed. We can consider the relationship
4.1 PREAMBLE

4.2 History: Story and Time

History ..
the story of people
& events
the record of times
past


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between the past and the present, or the future and the past (which is today!).
The present is the result of choices that people made and the beliefs they held
in the past.

As they prepare to study history, children first need basic knowledge about
time and its relationship to change. They need to learn the measures of time,
such as year, decade, generation and century. And they need to learn and think
about sequences of events as they occurred in time. They need to be able to
ask, About when did that happen? and to know how to find the answer.

The main focus of history is the relationship between continuity and change.
Its important, therefore, that our children understand the difference between
them. For example, the population of the Malaysia has changed greatly over
time with each waves of immigration. As new groups of immigrants entered
Malaysian society, they brought along ideas, beliefs and traditions from their
native lands. These new cultures
and traditions were woven into existing Malaysian culture, contributing to its
pattern of diversity and making our democratic system of government even
stronger.

Some educators may argue that history is not relevant today and studying history is a
waste of time. Early childhood education should focus acquisition of reading, writing
and arithmetic to prepare them for primary school. The following are some reasons
why children should learn history:
Children should learn history in order to gain understanding about the
causes behind events. Children also need to know how to put the present into
context. They cannot know where they are going unless they understand where
they have come from.

History has a role to play in teaching young Malaysians about their future
roles as members of a modern democracy.
4.3 Why Should Childen Learn History?

a) What is history?
b) What do you mean by story in history?
c) Explain the role of time in history.


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History is vital in helping students understand people and societies. The
study of history also helps give us some moral understanding and provides a
sense of personal, family and national identity.

History helps children learn how to evaluate evidence and assess widely
different interpretations of a single event. These skills can help with future
studies such as law or politics and improve an individual's analytical skills in
daily life.

Children are the leaders of the future. If they are not taught history, they would
not know how thier ancestors sacrificed themselves to build our nation and
would not value their own country. Besides, that children should know how
society has changed over time.

Children are born into history. They have no memory of it, yet they find themselves in
the middle of a story that began before they became one of its characters. Children
also want to have a place in historytheir first historical questions are: Where did I
come from? and Was I always here? These two questions contain the two main
meanings of history: Its the story of people and events, and its the record of times
past. Hence, teachers and parents play an importan role in preparing children to
achieve the lifelong task of finding their place in history by helping them learn what
shaped the world into which they were born.

Without information about their history, children dont get a lot of what they hear
and see around them. Although teacher and parents can be a positive force in helping
children develop an interest in history, they also can undermine their childrens
attitudes towards history by saying things such as: History is boring, or I hated
history class when I was in school. Although teachers and parents cant make
children like history, they can encourage children to appreciate its value.
Children have the ability to learn history. Even before they start school, children
have a strong sense of the past. They learn the language of time and change through
nursery rhymes, stories, family anecdotes and other sources. Children bring to the
4.4 Children Learning History

a) Why do you think children should learn history?
b) Suggest other reasons why children should be taught history?


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history-learning process their own social and emotional worlds, together with images
and ideas about the past. These act as filters through which new information is
sifted, and either integrated into existing frames of reference or rejected.
Children bring their own assumptions, ideas and intuitions about human
behaviour to make sense of everyday life (Lee, 1984). These ideas are the building
blocks of history learning and help children to decide what counts as significant and
useable knowledge about the past.
Some studies indicate that students reject school history, preferring family and
community stories because they perceive that the latter is more useful. Although
research shows that children can engage with history in sophisticated ways, many
carry around rigid and stereotypical ideas about the past. For example, research show
that: (Fournier & S Wineburg, 1997; Husbands & Pendry, 2000)

Children sometimes find it difficult to identify the ways in which people in
the past were similar to us;
Children conceive of the past as a story a fixed tale or body of facts;
Children construct the past as unrelated categories such as people, events,
clothing, warfare, food and so on;
Children fail to understand that different groups experienced the past
differently;
Children believe historical developments proceed in a linear and predictable
pattern; and,
Children frequently conceive of change as abrupt, rather than as continuous.

Research offers firm evidence that young children have the following capacities:

Young children are aware of the past from an early age. This is a key aspect
of developing a sense of identity, fashioned by stories and images from
childhood imagination.

Young children possess a strong sense of time and are capable of a rich
awareness of the past, provided that teaching and learning strategies encourage
them to work with sources as history mysteries, that is, as problematic
materials that pose questions about the past.

Genuine debate in small group discussions, either teacher- or student-led, is a
powerful strategy for promoting concept development. It enables children to
refine points of view and appreciate the ideas of others. In unled groups, ideas
appear to be less systematically explored and substantiated by evidence.

Introduce history studies through the familiar home, school and local area
connecting events, people and situations in the past with childrens
experiences.

Emphasise the social aspects of life in the past, rather than the political.


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Develop mental images of the past through engagement with primary sources.

Focus on stories, especially when accompanied by discussions that raise
issues of plausibility and point of view.

Target key historical concepts: change and continuity; cause and effect
/consequence; similarity and difference.

Teach explicitly about time. Initially concentrate on looking back to the
relatively recent past using oral history and photographs. Earlier periods can
be introduced effectively through stories, pictures and artefacts.

Teaching history to young childrene can be quite a challenge. Grasping the idea of the
past or a long time ago can be very difficult. Studying history is more than
memorising names and dates. Although its important for citizens to know about great
people and events, the enjoyment of history is often found in a story well told. Here
are some suggestions to make the study of history more enjoyable:

Original sources make history come alive - Reading the actual words that
changed the course of history and stories that focus on the details of time and
place helps children know that history is about real people in real places who
made real choices that had some real consequences, and that these people
could have made different choices.

Less can mean more. An old proverb tells us that, A well-formed mind is
better than a well-stuffed mind. Trying to learn the entire history of the world
is not only impossible, it discourages children and reduces their enthusiasm for
history. In-depth study of a few important events gives them a chance to
understand the many sides of a story. They can always add new facts.

4.5 Teaching History to Children

a) Some educators argue that teaching history to children is waste
of time because they do not understand history. Discuss.
b) Discuss evidence to support that children can learn history.


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History is hands-on work. Learning history is best done in the same way that
we learn to use a new language, or to play basketball: we do it as well as read
about it. Doing history means asking questions about events, people and
places; searching our towns for signs of its history; talking with others about
current events and issues; and writing our own stories about the past.

Figure 4.1 Photographs of the past can help children understand history

Show children pictures of themselves when they were a baby. Explain that
in the past they were a tiny baby. You can then explain that mum and dad used
to be babies. And grandma and grandad used to be babies. Child probably
won't immediately grasp this but it is a way to get them thinking about what
the past means (see Figure 4.1).

Children are old enough to remember events from days or weeks before.
Bring these up and mention that they happened in the past.

There aren't very many history books geared toward young children. If you do
use books or encyclopedias you could use the pictures and simplify the text
and tell it in the form of stories. Example, you can point out that in the past
people didn't have paper to write on, so they used clay tablets. Point out the
different clothing people wore in different time periods. Point out the different
weapons that they used.

Children do well to ask So what? Much that we take for granted is not so
obvious to children. We need to clarify for them the reasons we ask them to
remember certain things. They need to know why its important to get the
facts right. Encouraging children to ask, So what? can help them
understand whats worth knowingand whyand so help build critical
thinking skills. Being able to think critically prepares children to

o judge the value of historical evidence;
o judge claims about what is true or good;
o be curious enough to look further into an event or topic;


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o be skeptical enough to look for more than one account of an event or
life
o be aware that how we look at and think about things are often shaped
by our own biases and opinions.
There is no single 'best' way to teach history. Research suggests that good history
teachers know the content, use a variety of approaches, explicitly teach the skills of
historical inquiry and analysis, tailor learning opportunities to suit their students' stage
of development, and encourage deep understanding.
Activities: There is room for a range of teaching and learning activities in the
history classroom: a story well-told by the teacher, a museum display (actual
or digital), model-making, the construction of timelines, comprehension and
source analysis activities, oral history interviews, site studies, simulated
excavations, problem-solving exercises, role plays and debates. Activities like
these can be tailored to suit students' stage of development.

Approaches: Approaches to pedagogy can be teacher-centred or student
generated, inquiry based or teacher directed, completed individually, in pairs,
groups, or as a whole class, and involve digital resources to varying degrees.
The important thing is that learning activities relate to each other, encourage
historical thinking and lead to the learning goal in a coherent way.

Resources: A variety of resources should be used in the history classroom,
including documents, photographs, artefacts and people (as guest speakers or
interview subjects). Historical places make great resources: museums,
monuments and heritage sites (actual or virtual), particularly in the local area.
Film, historical fiction, works of art, history textbooks and history websites
offer a wonderful range of resources. Resources can be provided by the
teacher or students.

Putting it all together: To teach for historical understanding, teachers
need to
o become familiar with the historical content and concepts they need to
teach
o understand the skills and methods of historical inquiry
o be clear about the learning goal (knowledge and understanding and
skills)
o plan a coherent learning sequence to enable students to achieve the
learning goal
o include a variety of activities and resources appropriate for the learning
goal, learning styles and the stage of development of students.


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Our Heroes!
Heroes are everywhere. Sharing stories about them with children can help them
understand that heroes come from many different walks of life and that their
courageous acts occur in many different places and times.

What You Need
Family photographs, newspaper and pictures from books, pictures from from the
Internet of both local and national figures who have been recognized for community
service, bravery or selfless acts

What to Do
Select a photo of someone in a childs family who has an admirable quality or
who performed a courageous act. For example, a mother or father who
sacrificed so that their children could have a good education.

Discuss with the class about the qualities of heroism shown by the mother or
father courage, self-discipline, responsibility, citizenship and so forth.

Show children newspaper pictures of people (policeman, military, firefighter)
who have performed acts of courage or service to the community.

Discuss with the class about what they did and why they are considered
heroes.

Show children pictures of historical figures who have been called heroes. such
as as prime ministers (Tunku Abdul Rahman, Tun Abdul Razak Hussein, Tun
Hussein Onn).

a) Learning history is not about dates and events. Discuss.
b) How should history be taught to young children?
4.5 Some Ideas for Teaching History


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Show children pictures of sports figures who have been called heroes
(Mohktar Dahari, Dr. M. Jegathesan, Soh Chin Aun, Tan Aik Huang, N.
Arumugam, Rabuan Pit, Misbun Sidek).

Timelines
Example # 1

Understand chronological thinking through days, weeks, months, years
(calendar time)
Create a personal timeline with photographs or drawings from birth to present
Practice past, present and future time with a classroom calendar and daily
weather recording
Sequence photos of events
Pretend to be characters with events occurring over a period of tim
Example # 2
Compare children and families of today with those in the past
Recognise clothing, houses and objects from the past or from the present
Dramatize stories from history with children
Read books that are set in different periods of history
National Symbols
A country is represented by its national symbol which may be in the form of an
emblem, a flag, coat of arms, anthem or any other patriotic materials such as the
national bird, colour, animals, plants, Head of State, Fath er or Mother of the nation
and so on. The national symbols of Malaysia intend to unite people by forming visual,
verbal, or iconic representations of the national people, there values, goals, and
history. On the other hand an official national symbol needs the proper recognition of
the law of the land, which guarantees the use of the particular symbols.

Figure 4.2 National Symbols of Malaysia


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Children learn about the meaning and value of the symbols around them at an
early age.
They learn to become a responsible member of society by understanding the
meaning of national symbols which are representations of what the country
believes in.
Help children understand that national symbols stand for not only physical
objects and historical events, but also represent the thoughts, emotions and
feelings of a country and its people.
Learning about national symbols will instill a sense of patriotism and a sense
of belonging to a community.
Examples: Malaysian flag, national flower (hibiscus), National Monument,
Yang DiPertuan Agung, tiger.

a) Explain how you would teach timelines to children.
b) Explain how you would teach the national symbols of Malaysia to chidren.
c) Suggest other history topics you would teach to children.


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SUMMARY

Unlike studying science, we study history without being able to directly
observe eventsthey simply are no longer in our presence.

Time in history is a kind of relationship. We can look at several events that all
happened at the same time and that together tell a story about a particular part
of the past.

Children should learn history in order to gain understanding about the causes
behind events.

Learning history is best done in the same way that we learn to use a new
language, or to play basketball: we do it as well as read about it.
Target key historical concepts: change and continuity; cause and effect
/consequence; similarity and difference.

Focus on stories, especially when accompanied by discussions that raise issues
of plausibility and point of view.

Approaches to pedagogy can be teacher-centred or student generated, inquiry
based or teacher directed, completed individually, in pairs, groups, or as a
whole class, and involve digital resources to varying degrees.

There is room for a range of teaching and learning activities in the history
classroom.

Teach explicitly about time. Initially concentrate on looking back to the
relatively recent past using oral history and photographs. Earlier periods can
be introduced effectively through stories, pictures and artefacts.

Children do well to ask So what? Much that we take for granted is not so
obvious to children.

A variety of resources should be used in the history classroom, including
documents, photographs, artefacts and people (as guest speakers or interview
subjects).


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REFERENCES

Teaching Elementary Social Studies: Principles and Applications, by J.J Zarrillo,
2008 edition, p. 4-6.

Bredekamp, S., & C. Copple, eds. 1997. Developmentally appropriate practice in
early childhood programs. Rev. ed. Washington, DC: NAEYC.

Zarrillo, J.J. 2004. Teaching elementary social studies: Principles and applications.
2nd ed. Upper Saddle River, NJ: Prentice Ha
Lee, P. (1984), Why learn history?, in Learning History, eds AK Dickinson, PJ Lee
& PJ Rogers, Heinemann, London.

Fournier, J. & S. Wineburg (1997), Picturing the past: gender differences in the
depiction of historical figures, American Journal of Education, vol 105, no 2, pp
160185.

Husbands, C. & A Pendry 2000, Pupils perceptions and the past, in Issues in
History Teaching, eds J Arthur & R Phillips, Routledge, London.

Seixas, P. (1994), Students' understanding of historical significance, Theory and
Research in Social Education, vol 22, pp 281304.

Chapter 4. History

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