| Abstract: | This paper is in three sections. The introduction explores the close relationship between literacy and history. It claims that the process of historical investigation and the resolution of an enquiry involves a full range of textual genres, both in terms of the sources investigated and the communication of findings. It concludes that the National Literacy Strategy strengthens the link between literacy and history. The second section is a report of an action research based case-study of a class of seven and eight year old history detectives undertaking an investigation into evidence about a body found in a bog. The final part of the paper discusses what the teaching involved, including an analysis of the reading strategies. The discussion includes a reading framework, textbreaker and a literacy octangle. Textbreaker helps the teacher plan and develop pupils’ reading of difficult and challenging texts. The octangle reflects the Brunerian idea that different modes of knowledge representation and transformation deepen and extend pupil understanding. |
