Chris Eboch on Painful Truths in # History and Historical Fiction

A class acts out a Maya sacrifice scene
from The Well of Sacrifice

Every culture throughout history had problematic aspects. No matter how much you may admire or be fascinated by an era of the past, chances are that period had a dark side. The world today is filled with sexism, racism, slavery, and violence, and the past was certainly no different. 

What should an author of historical fiction do? Are such topics suitable for children? Do they belong in the classroom?

I feel we should write and teach the truth as realistically as possible. This includes writing accurately about the horrors of the past – with some adjustments to make subjects suitable for young audiences.

The Well of Sacrifice is set in Mayan culture. The Maya used human sacrifice and bloodletting in their religious ceremonies. I portrayed these things as accurately as I could (given what we think we know), but, since this novel is for middle grade readers:

• I chose to soften the king’s bloodletting ceremony by having him pierce his tongue instead of his penis.
• I tried to show why they did these things – this was religious devotion, not random violence.
• I described the dangers involved in bloodletting, lest anyone be tempted to try it.
• I showed the risks of accepting human sacrifices – the innocent can be victims.
• The violence is disturbing, to Eveningstar (the main character) and to the reader.

The book includes other violent events as well. Eveningstar doesn’t participate in the violence; she fights it, as do other good characters:

• When slaves plan to rebel, her mother finds a peaceful way to help them escape.
• The enslaved character Small is taken into Eveningstar’s family. Some of his people have been killed by hers. Yet he helps Eveningstar, even saving her life. He shows kindness and forgiveness (and gets freedom in the end). Some young readers say he is their favorite character.
• Eveningstar tries to stop Great Skull Zero, the high priest who is trying to take over the city and sacrificing anyone who stands in the way. She notes, “Great Skull Zero had disrupted the patterns of life. He acted for his own glory, not that of the gods. He must not be allowed to become king.” Still, she never hurts anyone. She fights by finding out the truth, by telling the truth, and by staying alive despite his best efforts to destroy her.

Student projects from The Well of Sacrifice

I wasn't sure if the violence would make it too old for middle grade readers. However, the publisher tagged the book as "for ages nine and up." It's been used in many schools in the fourth grade – although I sometimes do get e-mails from teachers who are struggling to get approval from the administration or the PTA. At least I can tell them that it is being used successfully, and with great enthusiasm. In fact, I've had teachers say, "Girls love the strong heroine, and boys love the gory stuff."

Hey, whatever gets kids reading, right?

Chris Eboch taking notes
in Coba, Mexico

Get lesson plans to use with The Well of Sacrifice, The Eyes of Pharaoh, and The Genies Gift at the "For Teachers" tab on my website.

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In The Well of Sacrifice, a Mayan girl in ninth-century Guatemala rebels against the High Priest who sacrifices anyone challenging his power. Kirkus Reviews called The Well of Sacrifice, “[An] engrossing first novel….Eboch crafts an exciting narrative with a richly textured depiction of ancient Mayan society….The novel shines not only for a faithful recreation of an unfamiliar, ancient world, but also for the introduction of a brave, likable and determined heroine.”

Chris Eboch’s other novels for ages nine and up include The Eyes of Pharaoh, a mystery in ancient Egypt; The Genie’s Gift, a middle eastern fantasy; and the Haunted series, about kids who travel with a ghost hunter TV show, which starts with The Ghost on the Stairs. 

Her writing craft books include You Can Write for Children: How to Write Great Stories, Articles, and Books for Kids and Teenagers, and Advanced Plotting. Learn more at www.chriseboch.com or her Amazon page, 

Chris Eboch: Putting the Story in History

Too many students think history is dry and boring. Historical fiction can bring history to life with action, adventure, and relatable characters.

What is historical fiction?

A real setting, with characters either real or imagined. The plot may be based on real events and partially fictionalized or dramatized, or it may be entirely fictional.

What can historical fiction do?

Bring history to life. Create a vivid background and greater drama. Author Jane Yolen says, “[F]or young students, history comes alive when we concentrate on the end of the word — hiSTORY.

Historical fiction can also connect history to other fields – science (inventions, discoveries, medicine, archeology, anthropology); geography (landscape, climate, flora and fauna); environmental issues; politics; culture (foods, clothing, religious beliefs and values); language (vocabulary, foreign language); art, music and drama.

What makes good historical fiction?

• The story comes first. It's about interesting people doing challenging things in an exciting time and place.
• Details should be relevant and fit naturally into the story. The action shouldn't stop for facts.
• Historical fiction should not be an excuse to lecture within a fictional framework.
• The characters should feel real. Although specifics of religion, social structure and politics differ by time and place, people are motivated by the same basic emotions: love, fear, greed, insecurity, pride, piety, etc. After all, the seven deadly sins are thousands of years old.

Making history live

The best lessons appeal to all five senses. People learn in different ways –through reading, through hearing material allowed, and through doing activities. To get children involved in history and historical fiction, bring the lessons beyond the book(s). Field trips to actual historical sites or museums are great, but there are other options.

Find a parent who has traveled to, or is from, another country and ask them to give a talk. Or ask an expert to visit. Authors may be able to do a classroom visit, in person or via Skype. Actors can help as well – imagine someone talking about ancient Egypt while dressed as a Pharaoh!

Bring in photos or drawings, clothing, toys, and other objects. (Museums and libraries sometimes have educational packs that can be lent out.)

Have the children make posters, act out skits, and write their own stories. For my Mayan novel, The Well of Sacrifice, teachers have developed many classroom projects. (Find these in my Lesson Plans.)

• A group debate project where the students take on the roles of various characters from the book.
• Discussion questions about social roles, coming-of-age rituals, attitude towards death, and more.
• Various art projects, including comic strips, designing a monument, and drawing scenes from the book.
• Team research projects where the students find out more about the Maya.
• A persuasive letter project where the student writes as a character and tries to convince another character to do something.
• Journal questions covering topics such as “Is human sacrifice different from murder? Why or why not?”

At the end of an educational segment centered around The Well of Sacrifice, the teacher may have a party for the kids. Some parents make food appropriate for the historical time and place. The kids share their posters and present their research. They dress in costumes and act out scenes from the book. It's a great time for everyone.

Mayan Pectoral Project

The Maya wore simple clothing—loincloths and cloaks for men, and a sleeveless dress for women. Peasants may have used bark cloth, while the nobility had clothes woven from colorful dyed cotton. Both men and women wore their hair long, often braided in two or four plaits. They also wore necklaces, bracelets, and jewelry in their ears, noses and lips. The jewelry was made of bone, shell, wood or stone for poor people, and of gold or jade for the rich.

Sometimes people wore pectorals—large pendants hanging over the chest. Some were simple circles or rectangles, but others were complex. Here are some designs, taken from ancient paintings and statues. The real ones would have been even bigger—up to six inches across.

You can make your own pectoral. Use the designs here to get ideas. Cut shapes out of colored construction paper and glue or tape them together. You can also paint or draw the designs. Have fun!

— Chris Eboch, The Well of Sacrifice

Chris Eboch’s novels for ages nine and up include The Eyes of Pharaoh, a mystery in ancient Egypt; The Well of Sacrifice, a Mayan adventure; The Genie’s Gift, a middle eastern fantasy; and the Haunted series, about kids who travel with a ghost hunter TV show, which starts with The Ghost on the Stairs. Her writing craft books include You Can Write for Children: How to Write Great Stories, Articles, and Books for Kids and Teenagers, and Advanced Plotting.

Learn more at www.chriseboch.com or her Amazon page, or check out her writing tips at her Write Like a Pro! blog.

Subscribe to get posts automatically and never miss a post. You can use the Subscribe buttons to the right, or add http://madaboutmghistory.blogspot.com/ to Feedly or another reader.

Celebrate #Diversity during #HispanicHeritageMonth #HHM

September 15 through October 15 is Hispanic Heritage Month! Some 55 million people in the United States identify as Hispanic, making this the second largest ethnic group.

Why September 15 to October 15? September 15 marks the anniversary of the independence of five Latin American countries: Costa Rica, El Salvador, Guatemala, Honduras, and Nicaragua. In addition, Mexico celebrates its independence on September 16 while Chile’s anniversary is September 18.

According to the US government, “The Library of Congress, National Archives and Records Administration, National Endowment for the Humanities, National Gallery of Art, National Park Service, Smithsonian Institution and United States Holocaust Memorial Museum join in paying tribute to the generations of Hispanic Americans who have positively influenced and enriched our nation and society.”

In the Americas, many Hispanic people can trace their roots back to indigenous peoples. These include the Maya, Inca, Aztec, and others. Today’s Hispanics may also have roots in the Spanish explorers, the Africans who were brought to the New World as slaves, and of course many other cultures.

This provides teachers, librarians, homeschooling parents, and students many options for exploring Hispanic heritage in the Americas.

Middle Grade Novels and Nonfiction

Unfortunately, there aren’t many historical fiction novels about the Maya for young people. This National Geographic post only lists my novel, The Well of Sacrifice, and Seven Serpents Trilogy—Book 1, The Captive by Scott O’Dell as historical fiction for young people. It also lists a couple of travel books and titles on Mayan prophecy and myth.

Terra Experience has an extensive page of “Children’s Books on Mayan Culture, Guatemala, Southern Mexico, Nicaragua, and Latin America.” This site lists many books about current or historical Mayan people, plus Mayan legends and folk tales. Most of the books are for younger children, but picture books can work for middle grade students as well!

A Book In Time has a list of some Books on Early American Civilizations: Inca, Aztec, Mayan, & other Native Americans.

School Library Journal has a post from 2009 on The Aztecs, the Inca, and the Maya: Empires Lost & Found, with fiction and nonfiction for different grades, pus links to Museum Collections

Resources

 

To learn more about Hispanic Heritage Month, visit the following sites:

The National Education Association provides Lesson Plans, Quizzes, Activities and Background Resources for National Hispanic Heritage Month, Grades K-5.

The US government site for National Hispanic Heritage Month includes resources for teachers and a calendar of events, mainly in and around Washington DC.

The National Endowment for the Humanities has lesson plans and links to websites on the conquistadors, the gold rush, the US-Mexican War, prayer to Ricoh, and much more. A featured lesson plan is for Esperanza Rising: Learning Not to Be Afraid to Start Over (also available inSpanish).

The PBS Hispanic Heritage Month site links to episodes about famous Latinos, issues affecting immigrants, and much more.

Scholastic offers resources for celebrating the month, including information on Latinos in history and Hispanic history in the Americas. Scholastic also has Bring Hispanic Heritage Month to Life: A Collection of Resources and 24 Great Ideas for Hispanic Heritage Month.

Hispanic Heritage Month includes information on the history of the month, people, events, and fun facts.

Please add any recommended books or resources in the comments.

Subscribe to get posts automatically and never miss a post. You can use the Subscribe buttons to the right, or add http://madaboutmghistory.blogspot.com/ to Feedly or another reader.

Chris Eboch’s novels for ages nine and up include The Eyes of Pharaoh, a mystery in ancient Egypt; The Well of Sacrifice, a Mayan adventure; The Genie’s Gift, a middle eastern fantasy; and the Haunted series, about kids who travel with a ghost hunter TV show, which starts with The Ghost on the Stairs. Her writing craft books include You Can Write for Children: How to Write Great Stories, Articles, and Books for Kids and Teenagers, and Advanced Plotting. Learn more at www.chriseboch.com or her Amazon page, or check out her writing tips at her Write Like a Pro! blog.