I feel that the real story of Columbus is crucial to teach to young students. The “real” story of what occurred is brutal and gory, and although we don’t necessarily have to present young children with the tragic details of the bloodshed and harsh mistreatment that the Natives faced, there is no reason to sugarcoat the narrative. That can possibly hurt the students in the long run. We can start by discussing trade and the culture and we can gradually ease into the annihilation and destruction of American Indians as they grow and mature. Hiding the truth from these children can potentially be detrimental to society because we are supposed to learn from our past. How can we possibly learn from our ugly past if we are not aware of it?
I began learning the “truth” about Columbus when I was about 8 and I was able to handle it but unfortunately, many parents do not want to expose their children to the brutality that occurred throughout history. And I say “truth” with quotation marks around it because, like we discussed in class, there is not just one way that history has happened; there are many accounts and perspectives of past events, not just one. History may cause us to feel uneasy but we have to become comfortable with being uncomfortable.
afthomas June 13, 2018
I agree completely with this statement. Teaching kids in school the sugar coated version early on does no help and is not necessary. If schools should introduce the idea and get into more details as children get older, just as they do with teaching about the holocaust. Yes, It may be uncomfortable for people to admit that we weren’t always the great hero we would like to think of but teaching our history and learning from it is the way to ensure that it does not repeat itself. The key is to gradually introduce the truth about our history, not traumatize young children of our past like a bad horror movie. The only reason we do this approach with the holocaust is because we make the US out to be the hero in that scenario.
inieland June 16, 2018
It is a very important piece of information in the book. A lot of people don’t usually want to admit that people can do terrible things. Even more so when it is someone from your past. I hope that we can educate people with the information that we know happened. But people love to hide information for the “protection” of children not realizing that children usually can tell if something is wrong. More openness on the subject of Columbus and the colonization of America would be very appreciated in American History Classes for young children and maybe eventually the elimination of the Columbus Day.