Games People Play
While in the minds of some school children, history might seem to be a drab and dreary subject, at PanHistoria those who write in the History Genre can have lots of fun. There are a number of games and activities that the History writers get involved in.
At the History Zone you can begin your day with This or That. Someone poses a question with two somewhat related historical items. The responder just explains which one they like best and perhaps why. They then get to post the next pair of historical items. Topics have been as varied as “War or Plague,” “Hanoi Hilton or Andersonville”, Milton or Dante,” and M*A*S*H or Hogan’s Heroes”. There are no wrong answers here, and everyone is welcome to participate.
Another great activity at the Zone is called Two Truths and a Lie. Our incredible emcee Nefersha Hatshepsut posts three statements about a person in history. One of the three statements is a lie. It is your job to figure out what the lie is. This is a great and fun way to learn some history as you use your detective skills to ferret out the falsehood.
You can also use your detective skills at Gaia’s Daughter’s thread called Woman, Who Art Thou. In this thread a person posts a picture of a piece of art depicting a woman. They also post what information they want someone to find about the artwork. The person who answers the questions about the artwork correctly goes on to post the next art entry. Sounds as if it should be easy? Well, it can be an interesting challenge!
Less challenging, but also very informative, is the "Ten Things to Know About” thread at Gaia’s Daughters. The name of a woman, usually real, but occasionally fictional, is posted, and participants try to sum up the high points of the woman’s life in ten posts. Recent candidates for discussion have included the Empress Wu and Bette Davis. Whether you just read the posts or scour the internet and research books for information, this is a fun way to learn about women who have made a difference.
The Empire Divided has its own trivia thread set up as a fun way to share knowledge that group members might learn as they research their novel. Not really a game, but PiRamesses has Raven Tutmose who posts archaeological updates. The Last Trojan has its own Mousaion or Shrine to the Muses. If you have been touched by a muse, this is the place to post poems, songs, quotes, and stories – your favorites or your own writings. The Last Trojan also has a trivia thread and is hoping to set up more games in the future.
So take a look around the History Genre. There is some great historical fiction being written, but there is also a lot of fun to be had.
