Horrible+Histories

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Horrible Histories

 * Author:** Terry Deary
 * Illustrator:** Martin Brown

Emma Thomson- u3017013

//Horrible Histories// is a series of non-fiction books written by Terry Deary and illustrated by Martin Brown. They are "an energetic, surprising and unconventional take on histories most gruesome, unpleasant yet funniest moments" (ABC, n.d, pp. 1). This collection could be a fantastic way to engage students and get them interested in history as it contains all the gory bits which children find interesting.

Some of the books:
 * Terrifying Tudors
 * Dark Knights
 * The Groovy Greeks and the Rotten Romans
 * Awful Egyptians
 * Incredible Incas
 * Savage Stone Age
 * Cruel Kings and Mean Queens
 * The Angry Aztecs
 * The Frightful First World War
 * The Measly Middle Ages
 * The Smashing Saxons
 * The Stormin' Normans
 * The Vicious Vikings
 * The Barmy British Empire
 * The Woeful Second World War

//Horrible Histories// has also been made into a CCBC TV series and is available on audiotapes, CD's and audio books so they will appeal to a variety of different learning styles such as auditory and visual learners. This series would be an effective resource for teaching about some of the major events in world history and could also be a good way for students to look at the difference between fact and theories. This series could be used to teach critical analytical skills such as questioning sources, making judgements about views being expressed and how reliable the source is (Catterall, 2007). It would be a good secondary source to use a starting point of a historical study as they are "designed to get children interested in history by concentrating on the trivial, unusual, gory or unpleasant" (Wikipedia, 2010, pp.1). This is achieved through the method of storytelling which Curtis (2000) states can help students deepen their understanding of the past and should be woven through a variety of activities. //Horrible Histories// could also be used to teach about primary and secondary sources and compare them.

Using //Horrible Histories// as a resource for teaching about world events could be a springboard for other activities based on storytelling such as making a cartoon strip, role-plays and telling another version of the story. //Horrible Histories// could also be used to develop empathy as students are often hearing/seeing a story of a person which could help them understand why some things/actions may have been done. This could be used to teach about multiple perspectives "and to give students an understanding of motives and reasoning behind past actions" (Catterall, 2007, pp. 36).

//Horrible Histories// would be mainly used as a resource for year 5-6 students, however it could also be used for younger children to engage them and generate an interest in history.

//Horrible Histories// would be an effective resource to use in the Every Chance To Learn strand of **23: The student understands world issues and events.**
 * Curriculum Links**
 * **23.LC.10** ask historical questions (eg. who, what, when, where, why, how)
 * **23.EA.6** the main features of some ancient and medieval societies and their relevance for contemporary societies (eg. ancient civilisations of Greece, Egypt, Rome or China or medieval societies of England, Europe, Asia)
 * **23.EA.7** the roles of women in different societies and periods of time relating to world issues or events
 * **23.EA.12** engage in 'what if' discussions about how an issue or event might have unfolded differently if people had chosen a difference course of action

ABC (n.d). //Horrible Histories//. Retrieved June 30th 2010 from []
 * References**

ACT Department of Education and Training (2006). //Every Chance To Learn.// Canberra: ACT Government Printing

Carttell, M. (2007). History in the Primary Classroom. //Agora, 42//(1) pp. 35-37

Curtis, R. (2000). //The Importance of Telling Stories in History.// (Extract from the Journal of the History Teacher's Association of Australia) pp. 54-55. The Australian History Teacher. 27 Scholastic (n.d). //Horrible Histories.// Retrieved June 30th 2010 from, []