"The Arizona Story"

Monday?s League meeting featured speaker Kyle McKoy, who with AHS staff, wrote the state?s new 4th grade Arizona history textbook, ?The Arizona Story.? She was required to follow the state?s new social studies technical standard as well create a text that would appeal to children.

Kyle succeeded. The textbook received the 2009 Award of Merit for Educational Programming Excellence from The American Association for State and Local History. School districts across Arizona have enthusiastically adopted the text.

Kyle?s inspiration were the stories she collected, and her goal was to collect as many stories from as many points of view as possible. She determined to go to the source for stories and didn?t want a Euro-centered view. One of her favorites? ?Edith, My Baby Doll.? During World War II, rubber was in great demand for the war effort and citizens were asked to turn in rubber in their possession. The author?s beloved doll was made of rubber. To comply, her mother took off the doll?s legs and arms to turn in, then sewed socks on the doll to replace them.

?The Arizona Story? isn?t just for 4th graders. It?s filled with real stories and anecdotes and has an eye-catching design. The book can be purchased in the museum?s gift shop. For museum information: Arizona Historical Society