An excellent resource for social studies teachers, this book will help them learn about and reflect on their responsibilities in our society. It focuses on classroom based experiences and real world contexts. The teaching methods discussed are also closely associated to social studies subject matter so they can be integrated into the actual classroom. Each chapter also examines how social studies is situated within the larger elementary curriculum to demonstrate the interdisciplinary nature of the instruction.

Table of Contents:
1 What Is Social Studies? 2 Defining Social Studies 5 What Is Social Studies? 5 The Nature of Social Studies 6 Social Studies as a School Subject 8 The History of Social Studies 8 Early Purposes of Social Studies 9 SOCIAL AND CULTURAL EXPLORATIONS 10 Approaches to Social Studies 11 Three Approaches to Social Studies 11 IN THE CLASSROOM: TEACHING ABOUT CHRISTOPHER COLUMBUS 12 LESSON: IS DRILLING FOR OIL IN THE AMAZON RIVER BASIN WORTH THE CONSEQUENCES? 16 Interdisciplinary Social Studies in School 18 Social Studies and Content Disciplines 20 History 20 Geography 21 Civics 22 Economics 22 Behavioral Sciences 23 Standards-Based Social Studies 24 2 Reflective Social Studies Teaching 30 What Is Reflection? 32 Reflection in Action 32 Reflection on Action 33 Reflection Prior to Instruction 35 Personal Subject Matter Interests 36 Focusing on Curricular Subject Matter 36 Reflecting on Subject Matter Misunderstandings 36 LESSON: THE ABRAHAMIC RELIGIONS 38 Transforming Subject Matter Into Pedagogy 40 Reflection When Planning for Instruction 41 Reflection During and After Instruction 42 Reflecting During Teaching 42 Reflecting After a Lesson 43 IN THE CLASSROOM: ACCOUNTING FOR STUDENTS’ PRIOR KNOWLEDGE 44 Using Reflection to Increase a Teacher’s Professional Knowledge 45 Professional Development and Reflecting on the Learner 45 Professional Development and Reflecting on Community Needs 46 Professional Development and Reflecting on Curriculum 46 Professional Development and Reflecting on the Purposes of Education 47 Reflection as Inquiry 48 Learning About Teaching from Case Studies 49 IN THE CLASSROOM: A BRIEF CASE STUDY ON TEACHING ABOUT THE CONSTITUTION 50 3 Inquiry in Social Studies 54 Inquiry as Learning 56 What Is Inquiry? 56 Inquiry in Social Studies 60 Emerging Interests: Students Craft the Inquiry Question 61 Clarification: Helping Students Activate Prior Knowledge 62 Examination: Students Work with Authentic Materials 63 Suggested Solution: Students Develop and Propose an Answer 64 SOCIAL AND CULTURAL EXPLORATIONS 65 Designing a Successful Inquiry 66 Managing Time in Inquiry Activities 66 Managing Subject Matter in an Inquiry 66 Prior Knowledge and Inquiry 66 IN THE CLASSROOM: INQUIRING ABOUT THE TELLICO DAM 67 Supporting and Scaffolding Students’ Inquiries 68 LESSON: A GREAT SCIENTIST IN HISTORY 69 Forms of Inquiry 70 Social Science Inquiry 70 Social Inquiry 70 Historical Inquiry 71 Inquiry and the Curriculum 74 Inquiry-Driven Curriculum and Standards 74 Inquiry, Assessment, and Standardized Testing 74 LESSON: “THAT’S NOT FAIR”: AN INQUIRY LESSON INTO THE MEANING OF “FAIR” 76 4 Standards, Curriculum, and Testing 82 Standards and Curriculum 84 Where State Standards Are Born: Professional Organizations and National Standards 85 Standards and Curriculum: The Starting Point for Powerful Teaching 86 IN THE CLASSROOM: A CURRICULUM UNIT ON ANIMALS 88 Two Models of Elementary Social Studies Curriculum 89 Standards and Testing 90 High-Stakes and Low-Stakes Tests 90 Authentic Learning Connected To Testing 93 Teaching Subject Matter In-Depth While “Covering” the Curriculum 94 Creating Detailed Lessons from Broadly Stated Curriculum 94 LESSON: MAP ESSENTIALS 96 Translating Curriculum into Classroom Lessons: The Question of Depth vs. Breadth 98 Making Decisions Based on Instructional Time,Resources, and Meaningful Study 98 SOCIAL AND CULTURAL EXPLORATIONS 99 Authentic Teaching with Standards 100 Adapting Standards and Curriculum to Teacher Circumstances 103 LESSON: GO WITH THE FLOW   RESOURCES 104 5 Teaching for Historical Understanding 110 History in the Schools 112 The Need for History in the Elementary Schools 112 What Do Elementary School Children Need to Know About History? 112 History and the Curriculum 113 Constructing Historical Knowledge 114 Historical Thinking and Historical Understanding 114 Encouraging Historical Understanding through Direct Instruction and Explanation 115 IN THE CLASSROOM: USING HISTORICAL ARTIFACTS 116 Four Ways to Think Historically 118 SOCIAL AND CULTURAL EXPLORATIONS 119 Forms of Historical Understanding: Timelines, Stories, and Empathy 121 Historical Understanding as Chronology 121 Historical Understanding as Story 122 Historical Empathy 122 Understanding What Is Significant from the Past 124 Understanding the Relationship between the Past and the Present 125 Three Approaches to Teaching History 126 Direct Learning in History 126 Active Learning in History 126 LESSON: THE FIRST THANKSGIVING 128 Learning in History Using Authentic Resources 130 6 Teaching for Geographic Awareness 138 The Need for Geographic Awareness 140 What Is Geographic Awareness? 140 Geographic Concepts and Ideas for Elementary School Children 141 How Children Relate to Places 144 Geography as the Starting Point for Social Studies 145 Learning How to Use Maps 147 How Children Develop Geographic Awareness 148 Human and Cultural Geographic Awareness 148 IN THE CLASSROOM: UNDERSTANDING PHYSICAL AND CULTURAL PLACE 150 How Children Understand the World around Them 151 SOCIAL AND CULTURAL EXPLORATIONS 152 Elements of Geographic Understanding: Spaces,Places, and Systems 154 Spatial Understanding 154 Places and Regions 155 Human Systems 155 LESSON: POPULATION DENSITY 156 Physical Systems 164 Using Maps to Teach Geographic Awareness 166 Using Maps and Other Geographic Representations 166 Developing Spatial Reasoning Skills 166 Using Geography to Understand the Past 166 7 Teaching for Civic Competence 174 The Need for Civic Competence 176 Why Do We Need a Competent Civic Body? 176 What does it mean to Possess Civic Competence? 177 How Do We Achieve Civic Competence? 178 SOCIAL AND CULTURAL EXPLORATIONS 179 Forms of Civic Awareness 180 Respect for Authority and Respect for Others 180 Patriotism, Good or Bad 182 IN THE CLASSROOM: CIVIC ACTION: SETTING CLASS RULES 183 Knowledge of Social Issues 184 Conversation, Discussion, and Dialogue in a Democracy 186 Elements of Civic Competence 187 Understanding Rights and Responsibilities 187 Understanding the Role and Processes of Government 188 Democratic Reasoning and Multicultural Understanding 188 LESSON: TINKER V. DES MOINES AND THE FEDERAL COURTS 190 Participating and Taking Action in Democratic Communities 192 Promoting Civic Competence 192 Using Stories to Communicate Civic Values 192 IN THE CLASSROOM: THE STORY OF CÉSAR CHÁVEZ 194 Developing Civic Knowledge 195 Engaging in Civic Activity 195 Social Studies Content, Teacher and Student Opinions, and Ideology 196 8 Direct Teaching and Learning 202 Direct Instruction and Teacher-Directed Instruction 204 What Is Direct Instruction? 205 What Is Teacher-Directed Instruction? 205 A Comparison of Direct and Teacher-Directed Instruction 207 IN THE CLASSROOM: TEACHER-DIRECTED INSTRUCTION—LEARNING ABOUT THE PURPOSE AND LEVEL OF GOVERNMENT 208 Factors Influencing Teacher-Directed Instruction 210 Subject Matter and Teacher-Directed Instruction 210 Teacher-Directed Instruction and Active Learning 210 Curriculum: When to Use Teacher-Directed Instruction 212 LESSON: USING TEACHER-DIRECTED INSTRUCTION IN A LESSON ON AN IMPORTANT INVENTION 213 Types of Teacher-Directed Instruction 214 Direct Explanation 214 Storytelling 215 Taking It Apart: Higher-Order Thinking Skills 216 Other Teacher-Directed Activities 216 Whole Class and Independent Teacher-Directed Instruction 218 Whole Class Teacher-Directed Instruction 218 Independent Teacher-Directed Instruction 218 IN THE CLASSROOM: DECISION MAKING 219 LESSON: HOW MUCH SPACE IS ENOUGH? 220 North Carolina South Carolina Florida Georgia Alabama Mississippi Louisiana Texas Alaska Juneau Honolulu Phoenix Sacramento Carson City Santa Fe Austin Oklahoma City Denver Salt Lake City Olympia Salem Helena Bismark Pierre Lincoln St. Paul Des Moines Madison Boise Lansing Cheyenne Topeka Little Rock Jackson Jefferson City Springfield Nashville Montgomery Atlanta Columbia Raleigh Tallahassee Indianapolis Columbus Charleston Richmond Harrisburg Albany Montpelier Augusta Concord Boston Providence Trenton Dover Hartford Annapolis Frankfort Baton Rouge Hawaii Arkansas Tennessee Virginia West Virginia Kentucky Illinois Indiana Michigan Wisconsin Minnesota Iowa Missouri Kansas Nebraska South Dakota North Dakota Montana Washington Idaho Nevada Utah Colorado New Mexico Arizona California Oregon Wyoming Oklahoma Ohio Pennsylvania New York Vermont New Hampshire Massachusetts Rhode Island Connecticut Delaware Maryland New Jersey Maine 9 Interactive Teaching and Learning 226 What Is Interactive Instruction? 228 Defining Interactive Instruction 228 The Structure of Interactive Instruction 229 Assessing Children’s Knowledge When Planning for Interactive Instruction 231 LESSON: INTERACTIVE LESSON ON STATE GEOGRAPHY 232 Characteristics of Interactive Instruction 234 Active and Meaningful Learning during Interactive Instruction 234 IN THE CLASSROOM: LEARNING ABOUT CIVIC LEADERS 235 Dynamic Instruction and Active Learning 236 Interactive Instruction and Challenging Subject Matter 237 Types of Interactive Instruction 238 Solving Problems Together 238 Making Decisions Together 238 Putting Things Together 240 Other Approaches to Interactive Activities 241 Grouping Strategies 243 Why Group Students? 243 How to Group Students 243 Specific Grouping Strategies 243 Interactive Instruction and Learners 248 Collaboration and Interactive Instruction 248 Adapting Interactive Instruction 248 IN THE CLASSROOM: AN INTERACTIVE APPROACH TO LEARNING ABOUT SOCIETAL RULES 250 10 Literacy in Social Studies 256 The Importance of Literacy 258 Defining Literacy 258 Literacy, Society, and Decision Making 259 Reading in Social Studies 262 General Approaches to Reading in Social Studies 262 Reading and Instruction 263 IN THE CLASSROOM: USING LITERARY RESOURCES IN A LESSON ABOUT TRANSPORTATION 264 Specific Approaches to Reading in Social Studies 265 Determining Reading Levels 267 Using Textbooks in Social Studies 268 Three Approaches to Using TextbookS 268 Textbook Structure and Analysis 270 Limitations of the Textbook 270 Using Authentic Texts in Social Studies 271 Authentic Intellectual Work 271 IN THE CLASSROOM: AUTHENTIC LEARNING ABOUT CUSTOMS 272 Authentic Learning Materials 273 Writing in Social Studies 275 Writing for Social Studies 275 Writing for Learning 276 LESSON: USING WRITING SKILLS TO ARGUE ALTERNATIVE ENERGY POWER 278 Literacy and the Social Studies Curriculum 280 Literacy in the Curriculum 280 Literacy, Social Studies, and Language Arts 282 11 Planning for Active Learning 288 Active Learning in Social Studies 290 Goals for Active Instruction 291 Active Learning and Authentic Social Studies 292 Active Learning and Subject Matter 292 LESSON: WEATHER AND THE EARTH’S MOVEMENTS 294 Initial Considerations for Instructional Planning 296 Reorganizing Knowledge: Content to Subject Matter 296 Transforming Subject Matter into Pedagogical Ideas 296 SOCIAL AND CULTURAL EXPLORATIONS 298 Planning Instruction for Active Learning 302 Developing Procedures for Facilitating Students’ Learning 302 Selecting and Using Resources 305 Choosing Meaningful Assessment Techniques 306 Lesson Plans and Reflection 307 Writing Lesson Plans 307 Reflection 309 12 Teaching Social Studies in a Diverse Society 314 Teaching Children in Diverse Environments 316 Forms of Diversity 316 Diversity in School 318 Diversity in Society 319 Diversity in Learning: Intelligences and Learning Styles 320 Cultural Diversity and Social Studies 322 How Does the Social Studies Curriculum Reflect Cultural Diversity? 322 Cultural Diversity and Instruction in Social Studies 324 Culturally Responsive Teaching and Learning 324 IN THE CLASSROOM: TEACHING ABOUT CALENDARS 325 Individual Diversity and Social Studies 326 Diversity and Individual Learning Personalities 326 Accounting for Individual Diversity When Teaching Social Studies 328 IN THE CLASSROOM: DIFFERENTIATING INSTRUCTION IN A LESSON ABOUT PIONEER LIFE IN AMERICA 329 Teaching in Schools with Homogeneous Social and Cultural Characteristics 330 General Considerations for Teaching in Homogeneous Settings 331 SOCIAL AND CULTURAL EXPLORATIONS 332 Curriculum and Homogeneous Cultural Settings 333 13 Assessing Learning 338 Types of Assessment 340 What Is Assessment? 341 Formal and Informal Assessment 341 Formative and Summative Assessment 344 Assessment as a Part of Instruction 346 Assessment in the Teaching Cycle 346 IN THE CLASSROOM: ASSESSMENT AS INSTRUCTION 348 Planning for Assessment 349 Implementing Assessment 349 Using Assessments to Improve Teaching and Learning 351 Assessment Results and Effective Teaching 351 LESSON: THE DEATH OF TUTANKHAMEN 352 IN THE CLASSROOM: A NEW METAPHOR: CHANGING METHODS FOR EXPLANATION DURING A LESSON 354 Reteaching and Remediation 355 Assessment Case Studies 356 IN THE CLASSROOM: AN ASSESSMENT CASE STUDY 357 Designing and Using Rubrics 358 Purpose of Assessment Rubrics 358 Components of Assessment Rubrics 359 Uses of Assessment Rubrics 360 14 Promoting Student Learning with Technology 364 Using Technology in Social Studies 366 What Is Technology? 366 The Why and When of Technology Use 367 Guidelines for Using Technology 368 Developmentally Appropriate Technology 370 Technological Applications 371 Finding and Using Web-Based Resources and Information 371 Technology, Democracy, and the Human Experience 372 Instruction and Technology 376 Planning for Teaching with Technology 376 LESSON: TECHNOLOGY TIMELINE 377 Using Computer-Based Games 378 IN THE CLASSROOM: GAMES AS INSTRUCTION 379 Appendix A 385 Appendix B 401 Glossary 403 References 409 Credits 411 Index 415