Mapping Selected Filipino Historical Children’s Books in the Elementary Social Studies Curriculum

Nikolee Marie Azucena Serafico-Reyes

doi:10.17509/historia.v9i1.96198

Mapping Selected Filipino Historical Children’s Books in the Elementary Social Studies Curriculum

Nikolee Marie Azucena Serafico-Reyes

Abstract

Elementary Social Studies teachers face persistent limitations in accessing narrative-oriented instructional materials, despite evidence that narrative approaches support student engagement and historical understanding. Addressing this gap, the present study examines the potential of Filipino-written historical children’s books as alternative instructional resources for elementary Philippine History. The study aims to analyze and visualize the alignment of selected Filipino historical children’s books with the current Philippine social studies elementary curriculum, focusing on Grades 5 and 6, where Philippine History is formally taught. Eighteen (18) Filipino historical children’s books were purposively selected and subjected to content analysis using a researcher-developed checklist designed to assess curricular coverage and alignment with prescribed content and performance standards. Each book was rated according to six levels of alignment, ranging from completely present to absent. Findings indicate that for Grade 5, two (2) books demonstrated complete alignment, three (3) high alignment, eight (8) moderate alignment, and five (5) no alignment. For Grade 6, one (1) book exhibited high alignment, eight (8) moderate alignment, and nine (9) no alignment. The results suggest that while selected Filipino historical children’s books show potential as alternative instructional materials, alignment with curriculum standards remains uneven, particularly at higher grade levels. The study contributes to social studies education research by introducing curriculum heat maps as a methodological tool for evaluating and visualizing the alignment of narrative-based instructional materials with curriculum standards.

Keywords

historical children’s books; curriculum alignment; narrative-based learning materials; social studies education

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DOI: https://doi.org/10.17509/historia.v9i1.96198