By Lesley Barker PhD
There are too many people, too many cultures and too many
events in the earth’s past ever to do justice to teaching history. Even just to
document the three years of Jesus’ ministry in Palestine would, in the words of
the Apostle John, “if they should be
written every one, I suppose that even the world itself could not contain the
books that should be written”[1].
Of course, it is important to give our children a foundation that includes a
basic overview of the past and a more detailed timeline of the history of the
United States. This provides building blocks for them to become competent
adults who take their civic responsibilities seriously and who understand the
ideas that repeat as tropes and metaphors in our arts and literature. Besides building this general knowledge base,
teaching history or social studies is one of the most powerful ways to introduce
children to critical thinking skills.
Critical thinking skills allow us to discern between ideas
that have merit and those that are manipulative or shallow. They are the tools
we need to evaluate what is being used to persuade us to adopt a certain
position, vote for a certain candidate or buy a certain product. They give us
the ability to test our own ideas and conclusions against objective facts or
time-tested convictions. They help us defend our own positions using logic,
facts and without becoming judgmental or emotionally over-wrought.
Here are four steps that model using critical thinking
skills in the teaching of history which can be used at any grade level: 1) ask
important questions; 2) look for facts to answer the questions; 3) show proof;
and 4) communicate what you learned or concluded. Set up a new topic with a
brief introduction or by showing a picture. Then ask the student what they
already know, or think they know about the topic. Make a list of these
statements. Follow up by asking the student what new things they want to learn
about it. Keep prodding until the student has been stimulated to generate a
list of three or four questions that are essential to understanding the topic
or the person being covered. Next, help the student to brainstorm what
age-appropriate resources they can use to find the answers to their own
questions. These may include their textbooks, the internet, subject-matter
experts, visiting a museum or historic site, looking at pictures or going to a
library. Require the student to keep notes on what they discover in these
resources. They should be able to cite where they learned any one fact or
opinion. Revisit the original questions in the light of the research done and
assist the student to produce their own written, oral or creative statement to
communicate what they have learned.
The Kentucky Faith & Public History Education Project
models this inquiry process, (which, by the way, is at the core of the Kentucky
State Academic Standards for Social Studies), in our FKCC Book Series. Each
32-page easy-reader introduces one famous Kentucky Christian. Each book
portrays a team of fourth graders who must prepare a show and tell presentation
about this famous person. The team also must overcome a problem that typifies a
childhood relationship challenge which connects to the famous Kentuckian’s
biography. These high-interest books, coming soon on Amazon.com, are written at
the second to fourth grade reading level. Homeschooling parents will find these
helpful to communicate basic facts about American history while also modeling
the teaching of critical thinking skills.
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