A random rant about elementary school history textbook

Parent Cafe
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<p>I have observed that there is a lot of local history that doesn’t get taught, and that could be a gold mine both for getting kids interested in history, and for giving them a sense of pride in place.</p>

<p>Every county has, if nothing else, a few roadside historical markers commemorating some major or minor event. That’s only one starting point for relating to the larger picture–the events that seem so far away (in time as well as space) to kids.</p>

<p>It seems they would learn more by doing projects on local history–how to research, draw conclusions from primary documents, interview subjects, etc. Of course, that would require some work on the part of the teachers. And the parents.</p>

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<p>What is the deal with “state history”? Neither I, nor my kids, ever had any of that, except as supplementary matierial in a regular American history course. My kids learned a fair amount of local history (I didn’t), but it was stuff like the local Indian tribes, which immigrant groups came here, the local history of the Underground Railroad, etc. Plus, a lot of Revolutionary War - era stuff IS local history in Philadelphia, so maybe it gets double-counted.</p>

<p>There was some really good juvenile historical fiction about Central Pennsylvania that they read (not for school). And Mason & Dixon and The Cheyneysville Incident. That’s about it for state history. (N.B.: They were not in public school before high school.)</p>

<p>It kind of infuriates me that state education regulators are mandating state history as a year-long curriculum topic. I’m all for using local resources to teach kids what ground-level history is, and also to give them a sense of pride and understanding about where they are growing up. But a year of state history? What a profligate waste of time!</p>

<p>By the way, I don’t think anyone can blame NCLB for this, except to the extent that, by not making history one of the areas on which schools are evaluated, it invites states and schools to de-emphasize it.</p>

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<p>JHS–I disagree with state history being a “waste of time.” Maybe it depends on what state you’re in? ;)</p>

<p>My kids went to a private school from K-8, and had state history in 4th grade. Then in 5th grade there was US history, and in conjunction with that, each child was assigned a state to research, do a 3D project, and/or a state outline with major cities, tourist highlights, crops/industry, etc. Those were a lot of fun. </p>

<p>Plus they learned the “Fifty Nifty United States” song. :)</p>

<p>So much depends on the teacher.</p>

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<p>There are so many aspects of education that are falling by the wayside in this new era of “testing”. Schools are being forced to teach to THE test rather than provide an education anymore. This is the end result of the NCLB, which in ways, has all the best intent in the world, in actual practice has reduced alot of “educational” aspects that don’t fit the “ideal” of what education is supposed to be. To find time to teach to the test, SD have reduced or eliminated aspects of the education process that in the long run, will shortchange our society. </p>

<p>I know some of you will find this totally silly because it doesn’t “fit” your idea of education but the reduction of things like… (early years)</p>

<p>recess
art
music
social studies
sciences
show n tell
lunch
free time…</p>

<p>whose reduction timewise are reducing the overall quality of education today’s child receives. We have so focused in reading, writing and math at the expense of these other aspects that school is not becoming a joyful place, but a jobsite for workers, not creators. </p>

<p>I know there will some who chime right in and spout “well we are behind the rest of the world… yada yada”. What fails with me in this arguement is simply we are not here to create 4th graders who score higher in math than Finland (no offense Finland) we are here to create innovators and creators who minds are given a variety of stimulus from different sources to spur creativity and innovation. And yes, things like recess, show and tell, early sciences and social studies get the pilot light lit. </p>

<p>Hope ya all understand my point.</p>

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<p>OP, are you in Texas by any chance? Texas school kids spend all of 4th AND 7th grades on Texas history! By the time our kids hit high school, they have had one year of World History, one year of US History and TWO years of Texas history!!!</p>

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<p>missypie, TX is a big state :)</p>

<p>Opie, bravo! A standing ovation from another parent here who is sick of NCLB, WASL, Culminating Project and Core Plus cr@p!</p>

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<p>OP is back. I like the conversation here!</p>

<p>I don’t have any issues with the state history curriculum itself; there is a social studies component in the curriculum for that grade, too. My beef is with the textbook itself, which is new. I think it is very important to model good writing for students. Yes, the text should hold the students’ interest. It should be grade-level in terms of the reading level. However, students need to have good writing modeled for them … and this text is NOT “good writing.” There is a time & place for certain types of writing. History texts with conversational, “dumbed down” writing, grammatical errors, and iffy word choice do not set the stage for students to understand what their own writing should look like. There are different ways to write, depending on the purpose. I maintain that a history text is not a Junie B. Jones book … it shouldn’t sound like one. I wouldn’t want my fourth grader writing a history report like it was a journal entry, so it follows that I want my fourth grader to have an appropriate history text to use as a model.</p>

<p>Unfortunately, circumstances prevented me from doing more than jotting a few notes down to share … I had a boy in class whose mom (once again) failed to give him his meds before school and couldn’t be bothered to leave her bed when called & asked to bring it to school for him. He spent his day barking, yelling out, jumping on kids, running around the room … I won’t go into the sad details, but suffice it to say that the only “extra” time I had was the 1/2 hour lunch respite I got (he ate in the office). </p>

<p>Here are a few things I was able to find:</p>

<p>An average of 2 exclamation points per page. Gosh, history is exciting (!).</p>

<p>Improper punctuation throughout. Three examples: 1) No one was killed though. 2) President Jackson said that foolishness must stop! 3) How fast could people travel? This is what early settlers said. (Note: this sentence & sentence fragment were followed by more sentences, and eventually by the table to which I assume “this” refers)</p>

<p>“Dumbed down” explanations: 1) Michigan sent soldiers to Toledo to keep it for Michigan. There were a few fights. A few people who were for Ohio were kidnapped. No one was killed though. This argument with Ohio was known as the Toledo War. (Note from me: words are beautiful. Even 4th graders deserve to read well written text. “Keep it for MI”?? “people who were for Ohio”???) 2) You know the tribes did not get a good deal with their land. (Note: I do?) 3) The President says who is in charge. The President might not be in touch with happenings in the wilderness. </p>

<p>Iffy word choice: 1) Michigan made over 2000 cars. (Note from me: Michigan didn’t make anything. And wouldn’t “more than” be more appropriate here? “Over” was used in this manner … well, … over and over) 2) “Well,” (Note: this word starts way too many sentences in the text) 3) Detroit stayed the capital until 1847. (Note: stayed??)</p>

<p>There was a highlighted box with population info. The first column was the year, the second was the population. The third was … I’m not quite sure, since there were no headings … but for each year, it read “more or less.” It was ridiculous. Had they headed the first column “Year” and the second “Approximate population,” the third would have been unnecessary. While it wasn’t wrong, it was not a good example of how to present info.</p>

<p>Maybe I am just a cranky old woman. However, this text just really rubbed me the wrong way.</p>

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<p>I think you’ve made your point beautifully, not crabbily. Thanks for the show-and-tell. </p>

<p>Perhaps the students will take their cue from barking boy, who demonstrated higher order critical thinking skills than the textbook authors you cited. </p>

<p>Just make sure they pay you for today, okay?</p>

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<p>Barking Boy’s mom couldn’t be bothered to give him his meds… so the school is supposed to deal with it, and somehow teach all the other kids in the class too. I work in a school, and it kills me to see kids who are sent to school day after day with no lunch, no lunch money, and no parent/guardian willing to fill out the forms to qualify for free lunch. But the cafeteria is supposed to break even financially, and if the kids don’t learn of course its the teachers’ fault!</p>

<p>We had state history in 5th grade in NJ. It was kind of neat because we had local field trips, NJ had lots of Revolutionary War sites. My kids in Mass never had a year of state history. My son’s 4th grade went to the Freedom Trail in Boston twice; daughter’s class never went because field trip funding was cut. We live 1/2 hour from Minuteman National Park (battle of Lexington & Concord) but neither of my kids has been there (and yes, I tried to take them over the summer but they didn’t want to go). Both kids went to Plimouth Plantation in 3rd grade - that was an excellent trip. </p>

<p>HS in Mass - 9th grade is World History, 10th & 11th are US History.</p>

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<p>“You guys” are stimulating my memory now. WHen I was in Sixth Grade, Hawaii and Alaska became states, so we studied them ceaselessly. Our teacher was publicly upset that prayer was removed from the public schools that year, so she may have needed some filler material, not to implode. </p>

<p>I can’t recall which grade was for Maryland history, but I can sing all the verses of “Baltimore, where Calvert Flourished” along with “Maryland, My Maryland.” I still enjoy orioles and black-eyed susans.</p>

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<p>I think it’s amazing how different school districts can be in the same state. I live just over an hour from JHS and I know our kids have PA state history for a year and have had for at least 10 years. It’s a great year - they go to a one-room school house about two miles from the elementary school and have a whole day taught as it used to be there, including recess. Afterwards they walk back to their elementary school on the country roads. There are many 60 year olds that actually attended the one room school house and one or two of them stop by. When my youngest son’s class visited the teacher gave me the key and I got there ahead of them and made sure the outhouses were spider free and had toilet paper and then I rang the school bell as the kids approached.</p>

<p>In the Spring they do a field trip to Harrisburg and get a tour of the capital building with a local State Representative. For some reason they go to Philadelphia in 5th grade, but I can’t remember how they justify that curriculum-wise. A year is pretty excessive but I think they cover local and state. I remember getting Delaware history when I was a girl growing up there.</p>

<p>Opie, you said that the textbooks are not picked out by teachers. That’s not true in our school district. I happen to know that the teachers do pick out the school books here. They do it on a rotating basis every so many years. I remember because the middle school teacher was not on the selection committee and she was pretty ticked off that the High School teachers picked out books that she had to teach from and she didn’t like it.</p>

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<p>Our district has teachers on the textbook selection committee, but I wouldn’t be surprised if the process is influenced by factors other than simple teacher committee preference. Our state testing system is a sore subject for many teachers and parents, and I suspect the MI history textbook may contain particular info that satisfies the state test. In other words, just as the curriculum becomes driven by the test, so too might the textbook selection (allowing a particular textbook to be chosen because it addresses specific test areas, albeit poorly).</p>

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<p>"Opie, you said that the textbooks are not picked out by teachers. That’s not true in our school district. I happen to know that the teachers do pick out the school books here. They do it on a rotating basis every so many years. I remember because the middle school teacher was not on the selection committee and she was pretty ticked off that the High School teachers picked out books that she had to teach from and she didn’t like it. "</p>

<p>It will depend of course on your district and how they shape policy on such things. In mine at that time, they didn’t want educator imput. Warden and inmates situation… it changed or was changed by the voters who grew tired of the nonsense. New admin works pretty well with educators and by god, they even ask my opinion once in a while… scary thought isn’t it? ;)</p>

<p>As the saying goes “your mileage will vary…” cheers.</p>

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<p>Every state I’ve lived in teaches state history in the 4th grade (and often again in the 8th grade). And I moved during the 4th grade myself back in the day. I got part of California history and part of New Mexico history. I can still remember the periods of California history: The Indian Period, the Mission Period, the Ranchero Period, The Gold Rush, and Statehood.</p>

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<p>^I’ve never learned state history. I lived in California for 8th grade and Connecticut for 4th.</p>

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<p>I think part of the point of teaching state history is just to learn about how to study history. It’s not so much the facts, as the idea that it can be done hands-on and hopefully will get students more interested in the past. If they’ve gone to a local museum, or visited a local historical site, then when they study national/world history, they’ll have some idea of the techniques historians use, or at least the idea that history is REAL. Our elem kids go to the town cemetary, which dates back to colonial days, and do tracings of headstones. I think it shows kids that these people they are reading about really lived, and the things they are studying really happened to real people. The kids are always shocked/saddened to see how many children’s graves there are - a great opportunity to talk about vaccines, advances in medicine, etc.</p>

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<p>Interesting thread…I hadn’t checked it until just now. These discussions always blow my mind and make me incredibly glad to have grown up where I did. Stories of my public elementary school (which wasn’t the most privileged school in the area) actually hold the attention of my 22-year old friends, who can’t always fathom the offerings.</p>

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<p>Agreed. I had Minnesota History in 6th grade, and this was certainly a product, if not the original intent of the class. The learning process is different when it’s personalized. I remember in US history, I’d always check the index to see where my state was mentioned, and y’know, I felt left out! As a kid who wasn’t from a state that dominates the textbooks, this was a great way to grab my attention. Not only did we learn the history of our state, but we sort of “catapulted” into related topics (map-reading, for example), which helped fill the time.</p>

<p>FYI, I did move right after 6th grade. My sister had California history in 4th grade, so I never took it. I think that nearly every kid who goes through California’s public school system has to do a mission project, and wow…I went to college with kids who still talked about theirs!!! Meanwhile, I’m still clueless about much of California’s history (the stuff that doesn’t make it into the US textbooks, anyway), but in middle school, I enjoyed wowing my friends with a remarkably in-depth knowledge of iron ore, the Sioux, and Scandinavian immigration :wink: </p>

<p>My sister and I were in elementary school at the same time, but I did K-6 in one state while she did the majority of her years elsewhere. The differences…wow. And I know they can be incredible just from district to district. Knowing that I came through the system pretty successfully, but not terribly long ago, I really am curious re: what my elementary textbooks must have been like! I want to believe they were wonderful, but I have no real reason to do so…</p>

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<p>This is correct. A California family that has say four kids will end up with four model mission displays stored in the closet or garage. There are companies who make model mission kits (like model airplane kits that boys used to assemble) solely to serve the huge market of California fourth graders.</p>

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<p>Student615, I look at today’s textbooks in terms of what my teenage kids had just a few years ago … because I most certainly cannot remember much about my own! :slight_smile: I DO remember “Pimwee of the Amazon Rainforest” from 6th grade. Did anyone else here get to know Pimwee way back when?</p>

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<p>No, but I remember Nik and Arluk from the Arctic and Bogana and Wana from somewhere else, maybe the rain forest. The only thing we learned about ancient Greece was the 3 kinds of columns. My World History teacher in 10th grade spent 7/8ths of the year talking about England and the rest of it talking about mutton production in Australia. Ninth grade was a fairly decent US history year. My best history year, also in MN, was state history in 6th grade. Did you make a Minnesota scrapbook, Student615?</p>

<p>Kelsmom those texbook exerpts are dreadful. Thankfully, my son got a good history education in his VT public schools.</p>