The power of adding narratives to one's studies, not just to history, is that it enables us to rad and think like historians and see how the past effected those who came before and those who will come after us. Having a single story is a dangerous territory to travel. For too often we do not stopped to think of how our version of someone's life or and event could be skewed or only part of what makes them who they truly are. For example, often Elementary Teachers teach about Christopher Columbus because there is a holiday with no school attached to it. I feel like a single story is taught about the explorations of Columbus, especially with younger children. I was once guilty of this too. It wan't until our district became more diversified and I was corresponding with parents about the month and mentioned there was no school in observance of Columbus Day. A vocal parent responded, I sure hope you are teaching what REALLY happened in our history. At first I was taken aback. Then I read the book Encounter to my class which was told from the point of view of a native boy whose life was changed drastically after the explorers came to his village. It was a beautifully told story, but one that my students had not heard before. The discussion that followed was fantastic and I realized that by not sharing this book or the view points of the same events from multiple perspectives leads to a single minded interpretation of history. I feel like by adding narratives to history lessons not only adds excitement and interest for students and teachers alike, but also allows students to see the connection to their own lives and how the past directly effects their future.
