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 history—their first historical questions
are: “Where did I come from?” and “Was I always
here?” These two questions contain the two main
meanings of history: It’s the story of people and
events, and it’s the record of times past. And
because it’s to us that they address these questions, we are in the best
position to help prepare our 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 don’t “get” a lot of what they hear and see around them.
Although parents can be a positive force in helping their children develop
an interest in history, they also can undermine their children’s attitudes
by saying things such as: “History is boring,” or “I hated history class
when I was in school.” Although you can’t make your child like history,
you can encourage her1 to do so
, and you can take steps to ensure that
she learns to appreciate its value.
To begin, you can develop some of the following “history habits” that
show your child that history is important not only as a school subject but
in everyday life.
History Habits
Habits are activities that we do on a regular basis. We acquire habits by
choosing to make them a part of our life. It’s worth the time and effort to
develop good habits because they enhance our well-being. The following
history habits can enrich your life experiences and those of your child.