History helps us understand events of today.

Given the natural disasters going on in our world right now, not to mention the upheaval in the news all the time, reviewing 9/11 for kids who were born many years after the event is difficult. How far do I go? Elementary students are a wonderful blend of bravado and vulnerability, so I want them to understand how the 9/11 events shaped America’s history and changed how we, as Americans, view the world.  But I also don’t want to scare or distress them.

I have been covering major historical events in my classroom lately so that I can give them perspective when they hear about actions going on today. I gave them WWII in 15 minutes (seriously?) in order to try and explain the tension we are experiencing with North Korea. Kids need the background knowledge of historical events in order to try and comprehend what is happening in the world today.

That is why it is so important for my students to learn and understand the events on 9/11. An excellent tool that I use to introduce/review the events of that day is the video made by Nickelodeon on the tenth anniversary of the attacks. Journalist Linda Ellerbee narrates the sequence of events, leaving out the scariest visuals, and then young people ask questions and receive answers from historians. We then have a class discussion answering questions and correcting any misinformation that my kids may have. The video can be found at:  https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=F-dhyzaeB1Y&scrlybrkr=f9625c28

After the events on 9/11, Americans drew together as a result of this shared tragedy. If I teach this effectively, my students will realize that we need to understand that while history may explain why people act the way they act, we need to have the heart to embrace diversity in our population and stand together against injustice.