Identify which details in a historical fiction passage are drawn from real historical fact and which are invented to build the narrative.
Historical fiction blends two very different ingredients: real, researched facts about a time and place, and an invented story -- characters, dialogue, private thoughts -- that could not be verified even if it happened exactly this way. A careful reader learns to sort the two apart, appreciating the invented story while still being able to point to what is historically real underneath it.
Consider this passage set in ancient Rome: "Marcus rose before dawn, splashed cold water from a clay basin onto his face, and gathered his wax tablet and bronze stylus for the walk to school. His tutor, waiting at the door, hurried him past the bakers already shouting over the smell of fresh bread. At the schoolroom, Marcus recited yesterday's Latin verses from memory while the litterator paced behind the rows of boys, listening for any mistake. That afternoon, his father took him to the Forum, where a young senator practiced a speech to an audience of restless clerks and idle onlookers, his voice rising and falling like a performance."
Mastery looks like: They can sort a historical fiction passage's details into real historical fact and invented narrative, and explain why the invented parts still need to stay historically consistent.
Common stumbles: Assuming an invented character's specific experiences are historically documented simply because the setting and objects around them are accurate.