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Textbook Reflection: Informational, Persuasive, & Narrative Text
Gracie Frame
School of Education, Liberty University
EDUC 322: Teaching Elementary and Middle School Social Studies
Professor Triggs
September 18, 2023
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Textbook Reflection: Informational, Persuasive, & Narrative Text
Part A – Textbook Information
1.
It is vital that textbook information is used by itself and paired with other resources such
as supplemental videos, projects, and activities to keep students interested in the work and strive
toward the targeted learning goals (Maxim, 2018). A beneficial activity supporting this would be
having students choose one of their favorite people from history and locate a biography of that
person. The teacher can help the students by locating images of the person and videos that
describe important events in their lives. To make the activity even more engaging, the teacher
can print off a picture of their chosen person and have the students come to school dressed as
their characters. The teacher can provide discussion questions and allow the students to act as
their characters during the discussion.
2.
Personal narratives allow students to feel connected to an experience or event that has
happened in the past (Maxim, 2018). Personal narratives are precious in the classroom because
they allow students to have a deeper understanding and relationship with events and people from
history. This literature is not only necessary in the classroom, but it is also beneficial because it
intrigues students and allows them to connect their own lives and others throughout history.
Pieces of literature such as letters, diaries, and interviews allow students to connect literature to
real-world incidents, which allows students to see the importance of informational text. When
students realize they can connect informational text to everyday instances, they will desire to
learn more from them.
3.
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Using resources is one of the best ways to help students better understand the world
around them. Rather than providing students with just facts, it is essential to provide other
resources that they can see, hear, or touch to deepen their understanding (Maxim, 2018). It is
easier for the teacher to create an engaged classroom when he or she provides students with
artifacts and primary and secondary sources to create activities and discussions. These resources
allow students to see that there is meaning to the information that they are learning. When
students have the option to analyze these resources, they strengthen their foundation to build new
information and discussion.
Part B – Biblical Worldview
For this section, I would like to look at question two from a biblical perspective. The
Bible is the first thing that comes to mind when using personal narratives to connect students and
history. The Bible contains stories, letters, and poems from people from different walks of life.
There are examples of what to be and what not to be like. God knew the heartache and difficulty
we would face in this life, so he prepared a guide for us with examples of others who struggled
with some of the same issues.
A verse that comes to mind is Ecclesiastes 3:1, which says, “To everything there is a
season, and a time to every purpose under the heaven” (KJV, 1611). The verse holds so much
value as it reminds us that God has a plan for everything we go through. At the time, I am sure
the people in the Bible did not understand why they were going through the valleys that they
were going through at the time. However, we can fast forward a couple of thousands of years and
see that God had a plan because we are learning how to make it through our struggles from the
literature about different individuals in the Bible. Not only do the personal narratives of the Bible
give us hope, but they show us just how powerful our God is. Without these pieces of literature,
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we would not have a clue of just how miraculous God works in our lives, even when we do not
understand the purpose of it.
