I found the book The American
Revolution, a History by Gordon S. Wood to be an interesting, but less
engaging book than Joy Hakim's text. The book by Wood certainly went into much
more detail than the Hakim text, but the thing that was missing for me was the
actual photo, illustration, or trivia that Hakim used. I compared the section
in Wood's text where he discussed the writing of the state constitutions. This
section was very engaging and interesting, but I felt much more connected to
the Hakim text, which shows actual pictures of the New York State Constitution
and the North Carolina Constitution, as well as important details about the
information shared.
I feel that the Wood text is much more appropriate to be
used as a background text for teachers to use to build their base knowledge on
this period in American history. The Hakim text is a book that I would actually
use with my students to show them primary sources to help them to understand
the facts that are given.
An interesting "sidebar" to the Wood text
was that while I was reading it, the movie "The Patriot" came on AMC
on cable. Of course, I just happened to be reading the Wood text and could add
commentary about Cornwallis at the end of the movie to my husband based on what
I had read.I guess the point is made that we as teachers need to build our base
knowledge about historical events. We can then help our students discern what
is fact and what is fiction in the movies and other media that they often rely
on to build their knowledge of our nation's past.
Wood's book and Hakim's book were designed for two very different audiences, as you noted. I'm glad you recognize the need to build base knowledge, from which you can draw as needed in your classroom. That was the intent of the federal grant program which is funding this program!
ReplyDelete"I feel that the Wood text is much more appropriate to be used as a background text for teachers to use to build their base knowledge on this period in American history."
ReplyDeleteI totally agree with your statement here. Knowing the more in-depth situation surrounding famous events in history can only help our storytelling in History class, but in my case, 4th graders don't necessarily need to know and remember every detail contained in the Wood text.
I am not a history major, so I found myself connecting with Hakim's writing more than Wood. I may feel differently, maybe even insulted with Hakim, if I were in the history field...who knows. But anyway, I agree with the fact that Wood does go into more detail than does Hakim. But this is what makes the world go 'round!
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