The authors provide an overview of teaching war and explore ways to situate these notions in the elementary classroom. As part of this discussion, they offer a guide for selecting appropriate texts for a thematic text set for children involving issues of war and peace.

The year 1783 marked the end of the American Revolution and set this country on a path as the "United" States of America. The majority of Americans at this time were uneducated. The home, job, and church all played a greater role in education than did the schools (Barr, Barth, and Shermis 1977). The citizens of the United States would need, however, to be educated in the values and responsibilities necessary for national cohesion and survival. According to Cremin (1980), The goal was nothing less than a new republican individual, of virtuous character, abiding patriotism, and prudent wisdom…