We hear it everyday. School districts throughout the U.S. are removing U.S. history classes from required curriculum, reducing offerings of history classes as electives or adjusting U.S. history to focus only on the post WWII era.
Reacting to pressure to perform in STEM areas, career readiness courses and the absence of history questions from standardized tests, U.S. history courses are in decline.
With limited classroom time, educators and librarians need to be prepared to introduce well-vetted books that touch on specific historical eras or topics.A book that students read in 2019 need to be short, illustrated and focused.
Feeding one topic area will encourage self-driven exploration into others.Think about how interest into the musical Hamilton provides an opportunity to provide materials on the Founding Era.
Constant media coverage of our current President can be an opportunity to learn about the lives and times of past Presidents.
Our favorite book is from Workman Publishing called Everything You Need to Ace American History in One Big Fat Notebook.
We have generated a list of books that focus on all aspects of U.S. history. These books are topical and focused, they can be read at home and used in a classroom and are for all ages.
