September: You Are What You Read

You are what you read. Cultural, personal and local identity

To know who we are we need to know our past, where we have come from. This gives us not only a better understanding of who we are today, but also help in moving forward better prepared for our journey into the future.

Learning about history through fiction

Children can learn the facts of history from many wonderful books and websites, some of which are outlined below. But to gain an understanding and develop empathy for the people whose came before, children need to be introduced to the genre of historical fiction. Often children shy away from historical fiction linking it mistakenly with novels written in the past and therefore assuming them to be difficult to read. They need help in seeing that there are historical stories for every kind of reader, from the lover of murder mystery to those who prefer romance. There are funny stories and stories that will scare the most daring. Every type of story can be set on the stage of the past, with characters dressed in the skin of another time.

There are literally thousands of books that could be recommended and one person who does an excellent job of doing just that is the Scottish author Mary S. Moffat in her website http://www.marysmoffat.co.uk/bibliography/cont.htm. Moffat, a former teacher and school librarian, has compiled a comprehensive list of novels divided by time period and each title is annotated with long notes that help the reader to find one to suit their tastes. Whilst the focus is on the history of the British Isles, there are also books about countries that saw the British either emigrating from or immigrating to over the centuries. The list includes many recent publications but also includes many of the tried and true from earlier writers that are worth introducing to children today.

A. We Belong: Families, Communities, Neighbourhoods

Children's interest in history often begins when they look at their family and their communities, and try to unravel some of the history of the people and places closest to them. Every family and every community has stories to tell that help children to understand more about who they are and their own place in the continuing unfolding of history.

What's My Family Tree? (One Shot)
Mick Manning and Brita Granstrom
Franklin Watts
9780749639976
For younger readers this is a brilliant celebration of the family, both living and dead, and a celebration of the wonderful diversity of types of families in our world

Belonging
Ruth Nason
Evans
9780237527648
This book explores for younger readers the importance of belonging - to a family, a
community, a faith and how belonging makes them feel special.

Where You Live Series

Watts
97807496717...
A series of eight titles that include homes, schools, places of worship, shops and businesses, transportation etc. The aim is to help the younger reader to investigate more closely the world around him or her. A good way to introduce the concept of neighbourhood and community to younger readers.

The History Detective investigates local history
Martin Parsons
Wayland
9780750225854
This book shows the reader how to spot the clues to their area’s local history by learning how to 'read' old buildings, census records, and old photographs. An accessible introduction to local history.

A Street Through Time
Steve Noon and Dr Anne Millard
Dorling Kindersley
9780751355352
A beautifully illustrated account of how a riverside group of Stone Age tents develops into a modern city street. Each time period is described in minute detail showing the development of the buildings and the ways in which people lived and worked in them.

Clues from Names: Find out where names come from
Gillian Clegg
Wayland
9780750243469
What's in a name? Quite a bit of information about where people lived and what they did for a living can be shown by their names, and even in some cases reflect something of the owner's personal attributes. Place names tell much about the events that took place there. This book can help readers to begin to uncover their past by considering the names of their ancestors and the places in which they lived.

http://www.bbc.co.uk/history/familyhistory/



The internet has made researching family history much easier and one place to find out more about family research is from the BBC’s history site.

B. To be British

Today's Britain is a multicultural melange that includes elements of the cultures and histories from most of the world. Through books children can learn more about and appreciate the unique combination of influences that define today what it means to be British.

Roar, Bull, Roar!
Polly and Andrew Fusek Peters
Frances Lincoln
9781845075200
A mystery story about a family newly arrived from the Czech Republic who must try to solve secrets from the past while at the same time trying to deal with less than friendly neighbours in their new home in Shropshire.

Under the Skin
Catherine MacPhail
Barrington Stoke
9781842994535
A good read for reluctant readers that will challenge any preconceptions about asylum seekers.

All about Malorie Blackman
Shaun McCarthy
Heinemann Library
9780431179926
Focus on one of children’s favourite authors is used as a method of introducing the contributions of Britain’s ethnic minorities to younger readers.

Give Me Shelter: An Asylum Seeker Anthology
Tony Bradman
Frances Lincoln
9781845075224
A collection of stories about refugees, mainly into Britain, and the difficulties they encounter in their new lives in a new country far from their homeland. Good to use in classroom discussion.

Black and British
David Bygott
OUP
9780199133055
Winner of the TES Information Book Award when it was first published in 1992, this remains an excellent introduction to the history of the Afro-Caribbean community in Britain up to the late 1980s.

Unheard Voices: An Anthology of Stories and Poems to Commemorate the Bicentenary Anniversary of the Abolition of the Slave Trade
Malorie Blackman
Corgi Children's
9780552556002
A collection of poems and stories that could be used to start classroom discussion on Britain’s role in the Slave Trade and the consequences of that role for people on both sides of the Atlantic.

Lost for Words
Elizabeth Lutzeier
Macmillan
9780330398206
A young Bangladeshi girl arrives in London unhappy at leaving her happy home behind and unsure about how to cope in this new country where she can’t even speak the language.

Refugee Boy
Benjamin Zephaniah
Bloomsbury
9780747550860
A young Ethiopian boy finds himself abandoned on his own in London by his parents who want a better life for him away from war. An emotional and powerful book that will capture even the most reluctant readers.

Roots of the Future: Ethnic Diversity in the Making of Britain
Mayerlene Frow
Commission for Racial Equality
9781854421791
Published in 1997, this is an important book in its celebration of the contributions made to Britain by its ethnic minorities throughout its history. There is an extensive bibliography that could lead older students on to further research.