What is the correct amount of the truth to give your young adolescent? Read A Peoples History of the United States 1492 to Present. It will open your eyes to a lot a primary source based documents that give a few examples that shed light on history from the perspective of the common man. I think that we short change students by not giving them the whole truth about the events. As was the shcok of the story of Emmit Til.

I didn't even know what a primary source document was until I got to college. I think that says something about how I was educated in the true facts of history. Primary sources are such great supplies of knowledge, yet we use textbooks instead. We need to be truthful with students. Sugar-coating only makes things more complicated later.

I agree with both of you. No candy coating. My most influential teachers taught me to question information and dig for more. I still live by these standards, and I hope to give them to my students as well. I think the tricky part is in elementary school. I mean, who wants to tell their kindergardeners that Columbus was really an ass who enslaved native tribes, and that the "Discovery of America" really never happened, as there were already functioning societies here before Spanish and English explorers came? But, thankfully, I'll be teaching high school, so I can tell them the truth about Columbus. As for the rest of you, I wonder at what age do you think it's appropriate to start revealing the dark underbelly of our history? That is, without creating students who are jaded by the shock that the first happy Pilgrim Thanksgiving, as we think of it, probably didn't quite happen that way.

I think the "candy coating" of material that happens in schools especially appilies to history classes and lessons. If a teacher decides to use one of the many American History textbooks that are offered today, in his/her class, most likely that book will never mention an opposing opinion to any given event, war, rally etc. Whatever America the coutry and the men behind this land have done, will always be presented with a positive spin. No wonder a lot of students will rate history as the most boring of all their classes and then they leave school thinking, "Oh, America, it's the greatest country and screw all those people who hate us." If you're presented with only one side of a situation, then what side is there to take, what choice do kids have if they are taught America the great, it's a country that can do no wrong. It wasn't until I read A People's History by Howard Zinn and Lies My Teacher Told Me by James Loewen (an excellent book, I suggest to any teacher no matter what grade or subject) that I became interested in history. What would be interesting is for students to have available to them another countries history text book on American history and read what that country has to say about us.

I also agree that history is written too much from the perspective of history's victors. I was one of those students who thought history was completely irrelevant to my life and therefore didn't pay much attention or care. We need to tell our students the truth or, if the truth is a little cloudy, we need to present them with several sides of the issue. Primary documents are a great way to do this. I also think historical fiction is a great way for kids to develop empathy with real historical figures. One of my fears as a new teacher will be that I am already too cynical about the history of our world and our country so I need to make sure that I also focus on true AND positive victories of the people in our history.

I agree, I believe that children should be given the truth and we shouldn't sugar coat it for them. I'm out in the schools once a week, and there was a Christopher Columbus book in the room. I was suprised when I read that he was the cause of many of the Indian deaths. Usually books don't mention the bad things that Columbus did during his time over here. From what I gathered from the book, we are coming away from sugar coating history when teaching it to children, whcih is good because they deserve the truth.