Getting Your Child Excited about History

Getting Your Children Excited About History

Knowledge of history is connected to a number of other crucial skills, like reading comprehension, critical thinking, in-depth research, and more. Making your child a student of history will lead to intellectual growth and a better understanding of how the past shapes the future. But many kids, even good students, don’t find their school’s history curriculum intriguing enough, so if you want your child to develop a lifelong love of history, there are many ways to spark their interest.

Make History Relevant

The good thing about history is that there are many ways to approach the subject. Historical fiction, whether in the form of a movie, TV show, play, or book, can be a great platform for sparking your child’s curiosity about a historical period or event. If adventure stories capture your child’s imagination, they may appreciate a book or movie about the American frontier, or the Roman Empire, while romance lovers will be unable to resist novels like Wuthering Heights and Pride and Prejudice. If African-American history isn’t a big enough part of your child’s school curriculum, consider supplementing their experience with the Roots miniseries or the written works of James Baldwin and Ralph Ellison. In addition, recent films like Selma and 12 Years a Slave may be of interest to older children but be sure to consider your child’s maturity level.

Bring History Alive

Historical reenactments and plays are another great way to give your child the feeling of being transported to another time. This is especially popular with kids interested in war and conflict, as reenactments of these events can be full of excitement. If your child is a hands-on learner, take them to a museum or historical site because seeing the artifacts and places of a bygone age can help enliven abstract historical facts. Many areas of the United States have rich Native American pasts so it can be a revelation to kids to see the remnants of a culture that thrived before the arrival of European settlers.

Keep It Local

You can also do some historical research on a local level. Where did your town’s name come from? What’s the oldest house still standing in your area? Did your town produce any famous residents? The local historical society can provide answers to these questions and are almost always willing to help kids interested in their town history.

With so many avenues to approach the subject it won’t be hard to turn you child into an avid student of history. Start soon because history is being made every day!

Sources:

http://www.kidspast.com/

http://www.smithsonianeducation.org/students/explore_by_topic/history_culture.html