Entre palavras e imagens: representações da formação do povo brasileiro em livros de história dos anos iniciais e seus impactos na educação

Abstract

This study aims to examine history textbooks used in elementary schools and how they relate to the idea of a single story of the Brazilian people — an idea that can shape how young students build their sense of identity. The research is based on bibliographic and documentary analysis, using a qualitative, exploratory, and descriptive approach. It seeks to understand how the content in these books is organized, presented, and connected, while also looking for possible gaps, stereotypes, and forms of exclusion.Two textbook collections were analyzed, considering aspects such as how smoothly the content flows, how images are used, the quality of the text, and the overall educational purpose of the material. The study contributes to teaching practice by emphasizing the importance of using textbooks critically and suggests new paths for future research, including comparisons between different collections, subjects, and teaching strategies to help address the gaps and stereotypes that still exist in school materials. The results indicate that teacher mediation is essential for developing students’ critical understanding.