Making History Cool In Your Kids’ Eyes

As you can probably tell from the rather obvious and blatant domain name (not to mention the massive logo on the home page), we live in St. Louis. It’s amazing. It really is. There is so much to do and see and explore and learn about. But despite all the hot contenders vying for the top spot of what makes this city so great, nothing beats the history of this place.

abbydaddyarch

Founded a quarter millennia ago, St. Louis, Missouri, has so much to make your jaw hit the floor. The city is absolutely riddled with caves, it’s where ice cream cones were reportedly introduced to the world, it used to be coffee’s major coffee hub, it’s home to one of America’s first skyscrapers (The Wainwright Building) and so much more. It’s a fascinating place.

The problem is, none of this stuff really appeals to a child. Sure, they may have a small interest in the drama of the past, but we live in a technological world and that means the future is far more fascinating. As my child said to me the other day, “there is a reason why our eyes are in the front of our head, dad.”

If you’re facing the same battle, don’t despair just yet because we’ve pulled together some genius ways to get your children interested in history, especially your local history. Enjoy.

1. Research To Blow Minds

We mentioned the caves that wind their way under the city, but what we didn’t mention is how these caves have been used for the 10,000 years, in which they have helped slave escape and bootleggers store their bits in hidden vaults. They were even turned into hidden taverns, underground churches, warehouses, nightclubs, roller rinks and, yes, a 300-seater theatre too. There is even rumour that one family used an underground river below their home as a swimming pool. We’re telling you this because these types of folklore stories have an incredible way of grabbing children by the brain and filling their imaginations with incredible possibilities. So, before you do anything else, do some research and, if you feel you need to, make up some stories to make it even more entertaining.

2. Bring Tech Into It

I find the iconic and futuristic arch in St Louis absolutely breathtaking, not least because the two sides had to be accurate within 1/64th of an inch during construction. That’s incredible. The problem is, my kid doesn’t really care about that sort of thing. But that all changed when we got a drone from this drone review site. It gave him an entirely new perspective, allowed him to get up close and personal with the arch and not relinquish his love for all things tech. I guess, what we did was embrace the past and the future in order to make both things work together in harmony and, wow, did it work.

3. Re-Enact The Past

We kind of get why kids may not be interested in looking at a scroll from a certain point in time that was written by someone they don’t really care about. As infuriating as it can be, it’s not as engaging as Angry Birds. However, no one can ignore the power of some kinesthetic learning. That’s the ‘learning by doing’ approach to you and me. So, with that in mind, why not take your child to a historical re-enactment day? There are many societies around the country covering all eras in history, so find a good event that’s close to where you live, take a picnic along and enjoy seeing your kids get overwhelmed by how cool history is.

This post is a collaborative effort by St. Louis Dad.

Richie

My name is Richie and I am a 40 year old father of two, a daughter and son. I am married to a beautiful woman named Destiny. She is the foundation of our family, and without her, none of this would be possible. During the day I work as a network security administrator for a local school district. At night I can be found illustrating books, working on websites, or creating music, but more than likely though I am spending time with my kids.

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