Multi-platformed historical fiction: literacy, engagement and historical understanding

History is a strange subject to learn and to teach. The matters under study are gone and from the present we try to understand the past with incomplete and flawed sources. We cannot take our students on a field trip into the past, but we can recreate a sense of history and ignite their historical imaginations by incorporating historical fiction texts. Historical fiction, in print or on electronic devices, as well as historical themed picture books and graphic novels, feature films, computer games and virtual worlds are mechanisms through which historically based or inspired stories can now be experienced (Landsberg, 2015). These varied historical fiction texts are engaging for many students, integrate literacy practices, and can be useful vehicles for examining the nature of historical interpretation and representation in the History classroom.