My View on Teaching Social Studies

Social Studies…my thoughts, ideas, and philosophy on the subject.

I had never really enjoyed the subject. All through school I dreaded the class. It was usually the most boring class I had. We would memorize dates, battles, and presidents. We would memorize the capitals of each state. We would try to remember where certain countries were located. But, relating this information to anything in my world was just not done. For whatever reason, it seems that once I got to middle school, my teachers were coaches. They didn’t much care for the subject, so they never made it interesting. They never related it to my life or to my community.

As a professional teacher, I plan to make social studies just as important and as fun as any other subject I will be teaching. I’ve learned sooo much this semester about how to do just that. From putting on skits, having booktalks, and a living history museum to constructing a box city and learning about diverse cultures. I want to do it all. But, will I step on toes? Will I keep up with the NCSS and State standards? I don’t know if I will step on toes…I hope I won’t. But, I know that I can stick with the standards. I just don’t have to “do it the way it’s always been done!” I plan to make learning fun. Something the students will enjoy and therefore care about. Speaking of stepping on toes…as a professional educator and someone my students will look up to and trust, is the question of truth. Do I always tell the truth? What about when telling the “real” story can cause a lot of controversy? Well, I think I will have to wait until I am in the classroom and I see what the ages of my students are before I can say conclusively that I will always tell “the truth, the whole truth and nothing but the truth.” Not that I plan to intentionally lie to my students, but I hope to find a middle ground when telling the “real” story of Christopher Columbus; or, whether or not to reveal all the truths about an historical figure who has always been idealized and thought of as a “saint”. I know that parents as well as school officials may take a dim view of my revealing too many true, controversial facts, but I think students should be armed with accurate information and allowed to draw their own conclusions. These “truths” will be carefully meted out based upon the age and maturity of the students.

I know that school systems want to emphasize reading and math, but social studies can and will be integrated into other subject areas in my classroom. It is of paramount importance that my students learn about where they have come from so they can avoid some of the pitfalls of the past. They also need to hear about how important it is to become a productive, active citizen. There are so many resources available now that weren’t a few years ago. The internet is a fabulous resource for gathering information. As a teacher, I will make sure my students have every opportunity to explore the world wide web – but with some guidance from me. After all, there are many unscrupulous sites out there. I feel compelled to offer safe sites to my students and plan to do so.

Each of us has our own cultural knapsack - a bag full of “us” – where we come from, to offer. Even if we “seem” the same, we’re not! Maybe we have lived a good portion of our lives in a different part of the country. Maybe we worship with a group of folks who are not in the mainstream. Maybe we come from a divorced home. Maybe we have foster brothers or sisters. All of this and more makes us who and what we are. We bring this to the classroom and to our students. When I teach, I want to embrace all the differences in my classroom and “introduce” more!

All of this sounds good on paper. But, as a new teacher…can I really do it? Will I have a critical voice? Will I have the guts to stand up? Will I do the right things? I don’t honestly know. I know that I want to do the right things. I know that I am committed to being an advocate for my kids. But, as much as I think I can do something, reality can be a ……. I do hope I have the courage and conviction to do what I know to be right. And, to present it in such a way that my students are engaged in active learning through various different teaching styles.

Living History

What a fun time we had in class this past week! I got to meet: Amelia Earhardt, Jackie Kennedy Onassis, Calamity Jane, and so many others from the past.

By researching an historical person of importance, I learned so much I did not know about my character: Mahalia Jackson. I always knew she was an incredible singer, but I did not know the full extent of her struggles to become world known. I also did not know of her diverse skills: beautician, florist, and so on.

It was really great to hear about so many different people. However, I think when I try this in my classroom, I will do it a little more like my daughter's third grade class did. Each child presented their "person", one-at-a-time. That way, everyone got to hear about each person. I enjoyed the fact that "visitors" could pick and choose whom they visited, but in a classroom setting, I would want the opportunity to see and hear each and every person. The style we used did not allow for that. The day we were a "character", made it difficult to visit any other "characters". So, I think I would do it a bit differently.

All-in-all.......a fun experience though!

Thanksgiving

As I sit down with my family this Thursday to give thanks for all that I have (and I do have a lot to be thankful for), I will be thinking of those no longer with us and of those who are less fortunate than I. This list will include not only my family members who have gone on, but our ancestors whom we think of as having started this holiday. This week, in our class, I learned some very interesting, and disturbing, facts about the first Thanksgiving.

First of all, when we think of Thanksgiving, we think of the pilgrims and native Americans sitting down together eating a nice meal. Well, they may have enjoyed each other's company, but the first official Thanksgiving was not celebrated until President Lincoln made it a holiday. Secondly, there are soooo many misconceptions about the lives of the original colonists and how they got along with native Americans. As usual, the WASPs (colonists) had a air of superiority about them. They did not treat Indians fairly or even humanely. Planning to "take over" the lands, the white man depended upon the demise of the Indians. And die, they did. Plagues hit big time and wiped out a large portion of the native American population. Even though the Indians' assistance was a large part of the reason colonialists survived, they sure didn't thank their "friends" in a very nice way -- turning some of them into slaves; taking their lands away; killing many of them; and so on.

So, why do we still teach about Thanksgiving the way we do? Should we teach the "real" story? These are just a couple of the questions I will have to ponder when I teach this subject.

Regardless of how you, or I, feel about the "real story" of Thanksgiving, it is a special day and I plan to give thanks for all the blessings I have.

Booktalk

Yet ANOTHER great tool in my arsenal of Social Studies tricks!

Really enjoyed hearing all the information about so many good books.

Great job guys!

Teaching Social Studies

They say you learn something new every day. Well, today was no different. We talked about incorporating Social Studies with Language Arts. The possibilities are ENDLESS! Even if you think you might not have time to teach Social Studies, you will; you can!

We learned about some great strategies to help our students not just read about Social Studies, but how to comprehend it! How to understand and learn.

I have learned sooo much in this class -- so many ways to make learning interesting, interactive, and downright fun!

I'm looking forward to teaching this subject now. Thank you Dr. Meier!

Wanna Climb??

Climb what, you might ask. Well, Mount Everest.
Let's see.....it costs at least $40,000...requires months of becoming acclimated to the thin air...you walk across ice "canyons" on narrow ladders which have been taped together...the temps are waaaay below zero...you will probably wind up with frostbite...supplemental oxygen is required...once you do reach the top (IF you do reach the top) you can only stay a VERY short time or you will die...only to make the dangerous trip back down.

Hmmmmmm........my answer???? "No, thank you!"

Why would anyone WANT to do this? To say, "hey, I climbed Mt. Everest"??? Um....I'd rather tell folks, "hey, I went to Hawaii".

Social Studies Thoughts

Today's class was REALLY interesting. It was fun seeing everyone's visual depiction of what they feel Social Studies is or should be.

There were some VERY creative powerpoint presentations!

I can't believe how much my opinion about social studies has changed since the first day of this semester. I NEVER like social studies. But now!!! Wow, I think I could actually teach the suject. I think I could actually make it fun!

Here's to teaching Social Studies in my own classroom!

Cheers!!!