Social Studies

Teaching Social Studies: A Methods Book for Methods Teachers, features tasks designed to take preservice teachers deep into schools in general and into social studies education in particular. Organized around Joseph Schwab's commonplaces of education and recognizing the role of inquiry as a preferred pedagogy in social studies, the book offers a series of short chapters that highlight learners and learning, subject matter, teachers and teaching, and school context. The 42 chapters describe tasks that the authors assign to their methods students as either in?class or as outside?of?class assignments. The components of each chapter are: > Summary of the task > Description of the exercise (i.e., what students are to do, the necessary resources, the timeframe for completion, grading criteria) > Description of how students respond to the activity > Description of how the task fits into the overall course > List of readings and references > Appendix that supplements the task description

This teacher resource offers a detailed introduction to the program, which includes its guiding principles, implementation guidelines, an overview of the social studies skills that grade two students use and develop, and a classroom assessment plan complete with record-keeping templates and connections to the Achievement Levels outlined in the Ontario Social Studies Curriculum. This resource has two instructional units: Unit 1: Traditions and Celebrations Unit 2: Features of Communities Around the World Each unit is divided into lessons that focus on specific curricular expectations. Each lesson has materials lists activity descriptions questioning techniques activity centre and extension ideas assessment suggestions activity sheets and visuals

The third edition of The Social Studies Curriculum thoroughly updates the definitive overview of the primary issues teachers face when creating learning experiences for students in social studies. By connecting the diverse elements of the social studies curriculum—history education, civic, global, and social issues—the book offers a unique and critical perspective that separates it from other texts in the field. This edition includes new work on race, gender, sexuality, critical multiculturalism, visual culture, moral deliberation, digital technologies, teaching democracy, and the future of social studies education. In an era marked by efforts to standardize curriculum and teaching, this book challenges the status quo by arguing that social studies curriculum and teaching should be about uncovering elements that are taken for granted in our everyday experiences, and making them the target of inquiry.

Just as society has changed dramatically over the last century, so have the social sciences. This valuable reference chronicles the historical development of social studies as a discipline in elementary and secondary schools. It also assesses the current state of teaching and research in the social sciences and history at the pre-college level, and it charts new directions for the future of social studies in secondary and elementary schools. By tracing the historical development of social studies, the reference indicates how social studies has constantly been redefined to meet the changing needs and expectations of society. At the same time, the historical context provided by the authors sheds new light on the current state of social studies in the curriculum and the development of social studies in the future. The book begins with introductory chapters that overview themes and issues common to all areas of history and the social sciences. The chapters that follow summarize and assess the developments and trends of particular fields commonly thought to constitute social studies. The volume concludes with chapters on broad topics, including the place of religion in the social studies curriculum, the role of writing in history and the social sciences, and the professional training of social studies teachers. Each chapter begins with a section of reflections on the development of the discipline, followed by a section on current issues and trends, followed by a final section of projections for the future of the discipline. The result is a comprehensive overview of the past, present, and future of social studies in elementary and secondary schools and an indispensable reference for educators, historians, and social scientists.

Offering a fresh take on the purpose of social studies today, James A. Duplass positions philosophical counseling as a way for teachers to engage students in thinking deeply about what it means to be a citizen in a democratic society. The Idea of a Social Studies Education takes a uniquely humanistic approach to the idea of a social studies education to show how teachers can act as philosophical counselors in preparing students for active civic engagement. Duplass reminds the reader of the needs of students in modern society who seek to develop an identity worth living and the role social studies can play in students achieving that process. By focusing on the cultivation of students’ autonomy, authenticity, efficacy, and agency, Duplass’ approach avoids political biases and instead encourages critical thinking to decipher what a democratic ideology truly is.

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By linking theory to practice with an emphasis on national and state standards, Head Start Performance Standards, No Child Left Behind, and IDEA, the authors coherently combine principles of child development and social studies content to create a solid program for preschool through grade three. The authors maintain the overriding idea throughout the Teaching Young Children series—that strategies derived from knowledge of child development are used to teach content knowledge. It is this concern that makes this volume an excellent resource for teachers and parents. In addition to specific discussions of how to build and conduct a social studies curriculum, the work includes vignettes of teachers and children in the classroom; graphics illustrating concepts and methods; and matrices, charts and tables to enhance understanding. The authors effectively intertwine social learning in young children and development of self-concept with the theme-based curriculum of the National Council for Social Studies, the principles of multicultural education, parent collaboration to support learning, and creating connections between classroom and community.

This book focuses on multicultural curriculum transformation in social students and civic education subject areas. The discussion of each area outlines critical considerations for multicultural curriculum transformation for the area by grade level and then by eight organizing tools, including content standards, relationships with and among students and their families, and evaluation of student learning and teaching effectiveness. The volume is designed to speak with PK-12 teachers as colleagues in the multicultural curriculum transformation work. Readers are exposed to “things to think about,” but also given curricular examples to work with or from in going about the actual, concrete work of curriculum change. This work supports PK-12 teachers to independently multiculturally adapt existing curriculum, to create new multicultural curriculum differentiated by content areas and grade levels, and by providing ample examples of what such multicultural transformed social studies and civic education curricula looks like in practice.