In the typical American high school, 9th-grade history students are expected to dive into the historical content, grapple with complex ideas, and engage in deep inquiry. But teenage students often lack the historical knowledge such tasks require. If you haven’t learned much about the Civil War, for example, you won’t be ready to discuss whether the Compromise of 1877 was a fair deal.

That’s one of the challenges described by this episode’s guest, Ebony McKiver, a curriculum expert and former high-school history teacher and state social studies lead. In her high-school history classroom, she recalls, “we were trying to keep pace with the scope and sequence and teach content that was actually going to be new for students, [but] we were actually spending a lot of time revisiting old, previous content that students should have had.” 

The missing link? “Better history curriculum for our elementary students.” 

Young students love history, which has a “natural lens of storytelling,” she notes. Strong history instruction is coherent and chronological instead of “one-off facts about important people and events.” It deserves more time during the school day and can be paired with English Language Arts (ELA).

“Historical thinking skills and literacy skills are two sides of the same coin,” she says. “If we truly want stronger readers, we need ELA and social studies to work together at every level.”

McKiver offers examples of states developing curricula: Louisiana, Massachusetts, Georgia, and Utah. She describes visiting a Louisiana classroom where an ELA lesson “had students that were building timelines and analyzing decisions made by leaders like George Washington.”

“It is proof that when you prioritize social studies and you work intentionally with other content areas, especially ELA, all students no matter their age, are capable of engaging deeply, mastering historical content, and also applying historical thinking skills.”

This podcast is produced by the Knowledge Matters Campaign and StandardsWork, on behalf of the History Matters Campaign. Follow the History Matters Campaign on Instagram, Facebook and Twitter/X. Search #historymatters to join the conversation.

Production by Tressa Versteeg. Original music and sound engineering by Aidan Shea.