Historical Fiction and Its Commonplace in Classrooms

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  In Roundtable Session: Innovations and Possibilities in Social Studies Instruction

Abstract

This paper describes a nation-wide survey of 113 third- through eighth-grade teachers about their use of historical fiction. We examined the data using Schwab’s (1983) concept of curriculum commonplaces. When given a choice, teachers chose books that best enhanced subject matter instruction and found titles from colleague recommendations and award lists. We provide further analysis of three titles that give insight into what is required curriculum, how teachers engage students with the books, and how teachers connect the books to subject matter. This leaves us with further questions about which historical fiction texts have a lasting impact in classrooms.

Authors

• Annie McMahon Whitlock, Grand Valley State University

• Kristy Brugar, University of Oklahoma