About Annelise Mitchell
If we don't learn from history, we're doomed to repeat it
I really believe this. If we don't understand why things happened the way they did, we will go in the same direction. The key is understanding what happened and what we can do to avoid the same mistakes. But we can't understand the why until we can spot what behaviours, attitudes and biases led us down some very terrible roads.
The only way we can is by reading history but reading books takes a lot of work and most of us don't have the time. That's ok, I've done the heavy lifting (see my academic history below) and have pinpointed the nuggets of gold to share with you and help you and your children learn from history too.
History Teaches us Who We Are
What I learned is there are common pitfalls that we get ourselves in. Thinking traps that cause us to fall over, and doom the people around us. With my own children and students I would refer to these as "threads of truth". Over time, I would notice that there was a pattern - a pattern of behaviour and thinking that would cause things to fall apart. It wasn't all just random and that it doesn't matter what we do. No. What we do and think matters the most.
It was this understanding that led me to create Duchess and Bruno. I could see (and still do) that we need to teach our children how to think critically but not just criticise, that's easy to do. We want them to understand what is happening through a historical lens.
To be able to spot when someone is trying to trick or hoodwink them. To be able to choose to go in a different direction - a direction that is not only good for them but also good for their family, their society and the world. But they can only do this when they have an understanding of the past. Where things went wrong and why.
Duchess and Bruno is the perfect way to bring history to life
Our characters, like in George Orwell's Animal Farm reflect the role of individuals in our society. Duchess, Bruno and Boxer are everyday people, like you and me. Gizmo, the chihuahua, is a billionaire who owns and controls most of the major industries in the community. The journalist, Courtney, represents the media and Bubba, Gizmo's henchman, embodies those who mindlessly follow instructions, no matter how bizarre or cruel.
It is this little community (plus side characters) that brings historical events to life with laughter and heart. Through comics and activities, Duchess and Bruno illustrate the past in a way that kids (and adults) love, helping them spot thinking traps and make smarter choices. This is our mission: to teach critical thinking through the lens of history. In today’s world, I can’t imagine anything more important.
Thank you for joining me on this journey.
Kindest regards, Annelise
A little bit of my history:
- Married to the most wonderful man in the world and we have two adult sons, and toy poodle named Chloe and a cat named Oberyn
- Completed a Bachelor of Education and Bachelor of Arts (History) - Awarded University Medal on completion
- Taught high school history (Modern and Ancient History) and Junior and Senior English from 2007 - 2016
- Owned and operated a tutoring centre, teaching and designing educational materials for early childhood, primary and high school students
- Worked in online education from 2016 - 2024, such as with platforms like LiteracyPlanet and ACER