1|P age

PROGRAM OUTCOMES
• Demonstrate high level of content and pedagogical knowledge.
• Possess critical and problem-solving skills
• Demonstrate appreciation for diversity.
• Manifest collaborative skills.
• Advocate for children’s rights, equity, community, nationalism and democratic ideas.
• Apply skills in the development and utilization of ICT to promote quality, relevant, and
sustainable educational practices.
• Demonstrate a variety of thinking skills in planning, monitoring, assessing, and reporting
learning process and outcomes.
• Possess innovative thinking
• Practice professional and ethical teaching standards sensitive to the local, national, and
global realities.
• Pursue lifelong learning for personal and professional growth through varied experiential
and field-based opportunities.

COURSE DESCRIPTION & OVERVIEW

The course focuses on the discussion of the concepts in Social Studies as well as the
developmentally appropriate strategies in teaching these concepts to young learners.

This course will introduce the importance of teaching social studies to early childhood
pupils, presentation of the current social studies curriculum, pedagogical approaches in teaching
history, culture, and geography, planning innovative strategies through various approaches and
methodologies, and effective assessment tools to use.

COURSE OUTCOMES
• To provide students with the natural and social science concepts that are taught in the
Early Childhood and Elementary classroom settings as well as the various teaching
methodologies for the teaching of these concepts.
• Focus on the relevance of history and geography, the study of people, and the
interaction of people with others and the world around them.
• Formulate strategies for engaging and empowering young learners to become active,
democratic citizens.
• Develop appropriate strategies for teaching social studies to young children ages three
through eight.
• Evaluate how to reach young learners, pique their interest, and use their natural curiosity
to develop more critical thinking.
• Formulate methods on thinking, social skills, and cultural values as they learn how to
incorporate such development and learning through the social studies.
• Put a greater emphasis on integrating technology in the classroom.

2|P age
 TABLE OF CONTENTS
Understanding the Development of Social Studies
Concepts for Young Children
………………………………….……………………………………………………………………… 4

Knowing the Children We Teach

…………………………………….…………………………………………………………………… 11

Reviewing the Social Studies Curriculum Guide

For Early Childhood Education
……………………………………..………………………………………………………………….. 24

Teaching History in the Early Childhood

………………………………………………..……………………………………………………….. 38

Teaching Civics and Culture in the Early Childhood

……………………………………………………………….………………………………………… 47

Teaching Geography in the Early Childhood

………………………………………………………………………………………………………….. 53

Approaches and Strategies in Teaching Social Studies

In Early Childhood
……………………….…………………………………………………………………………………. 72

Planning Innovative Activities in Social Studies

For Early Childhood
…………………………...…………………………………………………………………………….. 87

Social Studies Assessment of Learning in Early

Childhood Education
……………………………..………………………………………………………………………… 117

References
……………………………………………………………………………………………………….. 143

3|P age
 LESSON 1
UNDERSTANDING THE DEVELOPMENT OF SOCIAL
STUDIES CONCEPTS FOR YOUNG CHILDREN

\ OBJECTIVES:
• Discuss the development of social studies concept and young children.
• Describe the importance of Social Studies in the school curriculum
• Identify the important features of each discipline under social studies

The Importance of Social Studies In The School Curriculum

The answers to the above questions can be found when we understand what exactly is
Social Studies – Social Science is a branch of study which deals with Human Beings – their
behaviour, growth and development, relationships, resources they use and the various
institutions they require to function and carry on their life smoothly. For example – family,
school, workplace, government, judiciary, recreation clubs, etc. All these aspects of life are
inter-related and interdependent on one another. So whether one wants to become a doctor or
an engineer or a chartered accountant, an artist or a teacher, we all have to live in a society,
interact with individuals belonging to different cultural and socio- economic backgrounds, adapt
to various situations and circumstances, and also adhere to certain societal norms in order to
lead a peaceful and productive life.
The inclusion of Social Studies in the curriculum right from primary to secondary classes
signifies the importance of the subject and the role it plays in a student’s life. Social Studies is
incorporated in the school curriculum through a combination of subjects like – History,
Geography, Cultural Studies, Economics, Political Science, Sociology, Psychology,
Anthropology, etc.

These subjects help children to develop…

Awareness of The World and Environment: Lessons in Social Studies related to topics like –
My Family, My Neighbourhood, Community Helpers, Early Man, Indus Valley Civilization,
Modern Period in Indian History, The French Revolution, Great World Leaders, etc teach
students about the various civilizations, movements and renaissances that occurred over the
years. This knowledge enables the students to understand how the world and different societies
have evolved, the important events that have occurred in the past, enduring ideas and eminent
personalities that have created an impact and affected the lives of people both locally and
globally. It also helps students to understand how different societies are structured, managed
and governed. This in turn helps students to understand their place in the world.
Lessons such as – Our Earth, Solar System, Major Landforms, Water Resources, Natural
Vegetation and Wildlife Resources, Natural Disasters, Disaster Management, Pollution, enable
students to learn about – outer space, formation of different landforms; evolution of animals,
flora, fauna and man, water bodies, available resources, importance of conservation and

4|P age
preservation, environmental impact on present life and future generations. This information
helps students to eventually develop a holistic understanding of their environment and the
interrelationship which exists between the natural and human habitats.

Helps to Develop Critical Thinking Abilities: Social Studies inculcate higher order thinking
abilities and skills like – Comprehension, Application, Analysis, Evaluation and Synthesis,
Creativity in students. Learning a variety of topics such as – Natural Resources, Water
Resources, Transport, Communication, Caste System, Political Ideologies, Social Reformers,
Our Cultures, United Nations, etc give students a chance to gain appropriate information and
data in various contexts. The information gained allows students to make relevant observations,
identify similarities and differences, make connections between related concepts, ideas and
resources. Appropriate experiences further enhance the students’ understanding about how
different things and people affect their day to day lives. For example – in order to investigate
poverty in the society, students require knowledge of subjects like – History, Economics and
Politics. Students first have to gain information and comprehend ideas such as discrimination,
resource allocation and political priorities. They then need to understand, analyze and evaluate
the existing connections between those ideas and theories to make sense of how poverty
affects certain populations in the country. This knowledge can be further put to use to foster
creativity, if students are asked to think about ways or come up with new solutions and policies
which they think can help reduce poverty. They could be given a chance to present their ideas
in the form of debates, essays, role plays or class projects.

Helps to Enhance the Social Understanding Of Students: Different topics included in the
Social Studies curriculum for various age groups like – Festivals of India, Different types of
Families, Clothes We Wear, Food We Eat, Our Country, States of India, My Community, Socio-
Religious Reforms, Challenging the Caste System – help students to observe, learn and
understand human behaviour, values and attitudes and the interrelationships which exist among
different people. They come to know about the different religions and cultures which exist in the
world other than their own. They also learn about the societal strata and norms of society and
the need of various governing bodies and other institutions. This in turn helps the students to
develop a wider perspective of society and the human condition.

Furthermore, learning about the different religions, social and cultural beliefs, castes and
creed, nationalities and ethnicity, values, languages, festivals, food and clothing, types of
families, etc makes students aware that the society they live in, is diverse and multicultural and
yet there is interdependence and inter-relatedness between different people, families, cultures,
religions and countries. This helps students to recognize the benefits and challenges of living in
a world with multiple cultures and ideologies. This awareness helps them to understand the
importance of democracy, rights and freedoms and the fact that in order to live and coexist
peacefully each and everyone needs to respect, trust and balance the various opinions, values
and attitudes, lifestyles, cultures and practices and ideologies existing in society.

5|P age
Helps Students To Become Better Citizens: Subjects in Social Studies like Economics,
Political Science and History educate students on Political Ideologies, Constitutional Laws,
Citizenship, Rights and Duties, Morals and Virtues, Social Code of Conduct, thus making
children aware of their roles and responsibilities particularly in relation to social and civic affairs.
By providing relevant information and knowledge, skills and attitudes, the study of Social
Science prepares students to grow up as active, responsible, and reflective members of society.
It also teaches them to address societal and global concerns using literature, technology and
other identifiable community resources. Thus, we can conclude that incorporating Social Studies
in the school curriculum ensures well-rounded education of the students.

Why is Social Studies so boring?

It’s not– the way it’s traditionally been taught is boring. Didn’t you hate history class when
you were in school, memorizing all those meaningless dates and names and places? At the
beginning of the school year, not one of my students typically names social studies as his/her
favorite subject, and most kids don’t even understand what the subject is about. That breaks my
heart, because history is all about studying the things that people were passionate enough to fight
for and change.
Social studies instruction should challenge students to think about the events that have
made our world the way it is: the lessons should be so engaging and interactive that no child
could ever find it boring. I tell my kids on the first day of school that by June, they will be describing
themselves as ‘history buffs’, because we are going to spend the year finding things from the past
and the world around us that fascinate them to the point where they won’t be able to learn enough.

What if *I* hate Social Studies?

Then I’m proud of you for even bothering to read this page, because a lot of teachers don’t
even try to step out of their comfort zones. Chances are, you hate social studies either because
it’s boring to you and/or the kids (in which case, you’ll now have a ton of interesting activities to
try) or you just don’t know anything about history and you’re uncomfortable teaching it.
The good news is that you can TELL the kids this! I like to explain to my class that
everyone has a subject (or two or three) that are harder for them than others, and mine is science.
I tell them that we’ll be learning together, and that when they ask questions I don’t know the
answer to, we’ll write them down and later go online or ask the science specialist to help us. No
one is good at everything! Be honest with your kids.
Choose a social studies read-aloud with lots of interesting tidbits about a subject you don’t
know much about, and learn together. ABC books are great for this. For example, I know next
to nothing about the Revolutionary War, especially since it’s not in our curriculum. However, the
boys in my class always love to read about wars, and I want to encourage them to learn about
things they love, so I got a book called ‘ABC’s of the Revolutionary War’. Each letter of the
alphabet stands for one factoid, and we learn together about important people and things in the
war during our daily read-aloud time. Afterward, we have a general idea of what life was like
during the war–with no research on my part, no testing, and no worksheets. Just learning for the

6|P age
sake of learning. What a concept. You can find many more easy ways to integrate social studies
concepts into your reading instruction on the Social Studies in Literacy Routines page.

Teach what the kids want to learn!!

Children are curious about the world around them and love to discover why things are the
way they are. I encourage you to base your social studies instruction on current events and
student interests as much as possible. Many teachers, myself included, have more freedom to
teach what and how we want in social studies than in any other subject. I have state standards
that students need to master, but I don’t have to use the (boring) textbook provided. In fact, my
kids don’t even keep the texts in their desks because we only reference them a few times a year.

Teach what YOU are passionate about!

Even if you’re not a history enthusiast, there’s probably a time period or culture that has
always fascinated you. Incorporate that interest through read-alouds and mini units. Your
excitement will be contagious and the children will begin looking at history as a unique, individual
passion, much like reading (we all have certain genres and authors that we enjoy). Teach with
your strengths, and try new things. When you change the way you teach it, you change the way
they learn it. Kids know when you enjoy talking about your topic.

TEACHING SOCIAL STUDIES

In elementary school, students take social studies every year, beginning with the most
basic elements of geography and history, and gradually progressing to more specific and detailed
subjects as years go on. In middle school, students take a specific social studies class each year,
usually revolving around world history and U.S. history, and in high school, classes are more
dedicated to completing a thorough study of a particular subject, like modern American history.
A few of the different areas social studies covers are geography, history, government and current
events.

Geography
Geography is the study of different countries, which includes factors like population,
culture, location, climate, economy and physical land properties. In elementary school, general
concepts of geography are incorporated into social studies such as different land forms and the
basics of the world’s map and population. Middle schools tend to go more in depth on the topics
covered in elementary schools. Some middle schools will devote an entire class to geography,
which involves much more memorizing of locations on maps, and an in-depth study of physical
conditions and climates. Many school districts that offer geography as a specific class in middle
school do not offer a class in high school. Oftentimes, aspects of geography in high school are
also incorporated into earth science and history classes.

7|P age
History
History is a general branch of social studies that is taught in the upper levels of elementary school
and in middle school. In middle school and high school, however, it is typically broken down into
two different categories: world history and U.S. history. The foundation for U.S. history is
incorporated into social studies in elementary school, where a basic timeline of United States
history from before the Revolutionary War up to the present day is constructed. In middle school,
this timeline is built upon and different ideas within the study of America are fleshed out and
developed. In high school, the history of America can be taught over the course of two years, and
involves a deep analysis of historical events, systems of government and important figures. World
history, on the other hand, takes a global perspective and covers a broad range of topics including
the ancient history of eastern and western civilizations, the secular history of religions,
globalization, colonialism and major international conflicts.

Government
The study of government includes the history of governments, the basic principals and types of
governments, and the current state of both the American government and governments
worldwide. Oftentimes, government is incorporated into other social studies classes, such as U.S.
history, world history and current events. However, some schools have a specific class dedicated
to the study of the government. In elementary school social studies, students learn about the
branches of the U.S. government and other basic topics, such as the Bill of Rights and the
Constitution. Middle school classes build off these principals, going more in depth into the study
of government, though usually still focusing on the United States. In high school, however,
students may begin to learn about other types of government around the world and other political
models, such as communism, socialism, dictatorships and monarchies. They may also learn
about political revolutions and conflicts between governments.

Current Events
Current events is the branch of social studies that examines the present world. This subject
analyzes a wide range of current social, ethical, political, legal, educational and environmental
issues. Typically, a current events class blends presentations from both the instructor and the
students to keep students actively engaged. In elementary school, social studies classes will
generally cover current events on a basic level to promote awareness. The teacher will frequently
report on recent developments, or ask students to keep an eye on and present interesting
happenings. In middle school and high school, current events becomes a specialized class that
actively develops the students’ ability to monitor and interpret the pressing issues occurring in the
world around them.
Social studies is defined by the National Council for Social Studies External link as “the
integrated study of the social sciences and humanities to promote civic competence.” General
social studies establishes a foundation for all of the subsequent, more specific classes that
students will take in history, civics and the like. Typically, students take general social studies in
elementary school, then move to more specific areas of study in middle school, and even more
in-depth subjects in high school and college.

8|P age
ASSESSMENT:
Task 1
Direction: Answer the following essay questions with the best of your ability. Write your insights
on the space provided after each question.
1. Why do you think social studies is an essential subject to teach in your future students?
Expound your position.
____________________________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________________________

2. Which of the social skills are you going to emphasize in teaching social studies? Discuss how
will execute each.
____________________________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________________________

Task 2
Direction: From the lessons you have learned from this part of the module, write down the
attitudes, behaviors, and values that you will consider in teaching social studies to your future
students. Please specify at least one (1) lesson and briefly discuss how will you integrate those
attitudes, behaviors, or values. Note: Activities must be age appropriate.
1. History
____________________________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________________________

9|P age
____________________________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________________________

2. Geography
____________________________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________________________

3. Civics
____________________________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________________________

4. Government
____________________________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________________________

10 | P a g e
 LESSON 2
KNOWING THE CHILDREN
WE TEACH
OBJECTIVES:

• Describe the learning capacities of early childhood pupils

• Provide conducive learning environment to early childhood pupils
• Give their own perspective in teaching social studies

Early Childhood in the Social Studies Context

NCSS Position Statement
Approved by the NCSS Board of Directors’ March 2019
As young children engage in their play and daily activities, they show a natural interest in
the world around them. Early childhood educators may capitalize on these interests and carefully
plan a variety of experiences with social studies in mind, cultivating and extending young
children’s diverse skills and abilities to form and voice opinions, identify and solve problems,
negotiate roles, perceive diversity and inequality, and recognize the consequences of their
decisions and behaviors on others. Social studies is a vital part of the early childhood curriculum,
since children’s formative experiences shape their attitudes as “citizens of their classroom, their
schools, and of the larger community” (Mardell, 2011).
Given the importance of early years educators in creating learning environments and
experiences that foster young children’s skills as active citizens committed to inclusion and equity,
the National Council for the Social Studies (NCSS) affirms pedagogic practices in the early years
that support young children’s progression of social studies learning in early childhood settings.
This includes a focus on the materials, resources, and interactions needed to support young
children’s skills and dispositions. NCSS recognizes the developmental continuum of social studies
learning, and this statement focuses primarily on young children from age 3 through
preschool/prekindergarten. This document complements the NCSS position statement on
Powerful, Purposeful Pedagogy in Elementary School Social Studies (NCSS, 2017).

Early Childhood Experiences

The foundation of early childhood education is built upon relationships that children
develop in their homes, communities, and schools. In these settings, children meet new friends,
learn to get along with others, share their opinions, engage in decision making, and contribute as
a member of a group. Young children develop an understanding of the roles that they enact as
citizens of a democratic society as they participate in activities that allow them to express their
compassion, caring, and desire to help others (Project Zero, 2016). Numerous examples

11 | P a g e
showcase the capacity of young children to discuss, debate, and think critically to solve important
problems as they interact with others to accomplish goals together (Haywoode, 2018; Ardalan,
2017; Krechevsky et al., 2016; Krechevsky, Mardell, & Reese, 2015; Mardell & Carpenter, 2012;
Hall & Rudkin, 2011).
Social studies learning offers many valuable components in supporting early learners as
they identify real world problems and participate in creating an inclusive and caring democratic
society. Through the social studies, children explore and ask questions about social systems, the
abstract societal norms and values affecting human relationships and interactions in everyday
life. These include nonverbal yet observable social cues that reflect subtle forms of bias,
discrimination, and inequity. Young children take note of these early on, both through implicit and
explicit means, throughout their daily experiences and interactions.
Additionally, social concepts represent what most educators would call the content or
disciplinary areas of social studies. Social concepts are introduced and embedded in children’s
learning through various means, ranging from read alouds, classroom centers, and/or explicit
instruction and conversations on topic areas. Social concepts should focus on topics or themes
that are representative of real-world situations and/or problems children face in their classroom
and community as well as current events (Mindes, 2015).
Teachers serve a direct role in how young children are exposed to social studies, both the
systems and concepts. This includes providing a nurturing environment as well as intentional
topics focusing on self, the family, the center or school, and the local community (Mindes, 2015).
Best practices include providing learning opportunities that are developmentally appropriate
(Copple & Bredekamp, 2009); offering contributions to the school/program culture; and supporting
specific skills reflective of social emotional expectations, approaches to learning, and social skills
as appropriate (Mindes, 2015).
In the early childhood classroom, social studies content is best presented as part of
inquiry-based learning experiences that put children’s interests at the heart of learning. Inquiry-
based learning is a common instructional practice that capitalizes on opportunities supportive of
social system and social concept learning. This includes offering topics of study that focus on
child interest, social context, and real-world problems in an effort to connect learning to authentic
experiences that engage children. Project-based learning offers such an opportunity (Helm &
Katz, 2000). A project is an in-depth study of a real-world topic that typically occurs over a period
of weeks or even months. Projects provide a context for young learners to apply their growing
academic knowledge and skills in authentic ways (Katz, Chard, and Kogan, 2014). Through
engagement in inquiry-based learning, young children are provided opportunities to explore and
interact, which both influence and shape their knowledge and skills across social studies domains
as well as other integrated curricular areas. As children share their receptive and expressive
understandings of the social context, they represent what they are learning in a variety of ways
(e.g., writing, drawing, painting, dramatic play, 3-dimensional construction, music and movement,
and graphics). Inquiry-based learning also provides group learning opportunities that serve a
common goal and purpose, which offers children ownership and belonging through a collaborative
situation (Mindes, 2005).
Additionally, language and communication skills, critical thinking, and learning behaviors
(i.e., approaches to learning) such as engagement and persistence are supported as children
interact and work through various experiences. Teachers can then build on the naturally occurring

12 | P a g e
learning through intentional efforts to scaffold dialogue to present various perspectives and offer
evidence of different arguments, while also modeling respect for different opinions and viewpoints.
In the early years, inquiry emerges and is enacted through play-based modalities. Through
structured and free play, children establish meaningful relationships with peers and educators,
and engage in physical, cognitive, linguistic and socio-emotional aspects of learning. This process
of learning through play is age-appropriate and naturally occurring for young children (Epstein,
2014; Gronlund & Rendon, 2017; Mindes, 2005, 2015). Dramatic play learning centers provide
such an opportunity for child-directed, creative experiences, and early childhood educators often
intentionally utilize the dramatic play center as a setting in which children explore and address
topics of study related to social studies (Epstein, 2014; Gronlund & Rendon, 2017; Mindes, 2005,
2015). Accordingly, early childhood programs should furnish materials and sustained periods of
time that enable children to engage in projects that allow for rich and deep social studies learning.
Through these authentic experiences, teachers may rely on systematic instruction,
responsive instruction to child-initiated play, and teacher-guided instruction to align children’s
outcomes to early learning standards and support skills that are foundational for the C3
Framework (Gronlund & Rendon, 2017). Although state early learning standards for social studies
may vary, they most commonly reflect elements of learning in both social systems and social
concepts areas such as: (1) membership in a democratic classroom community, (2) location and
place relationships, (3) similarities and differences among personal and family characteristics, (4)
basic economic principles relative to the lives of young children, and (5) an appreciation of one’s
own and other cultures in a diverse society (Epstein, 2014).

Culturally Responsive Teaching

Early childhood educators may either diminish or exacerbate social inequalities in the
classroom, based on how they approach children’s socio-cultural, ethnic, religious, and gendered
diversity. As teachers utilize instructional practices that are child-driven and based on interest,
equally important is staying attuned to culturally relevant pedagogy and practices (Durden,
Escalante, & Blitch, 2015; Gay, 2000; Ladson-Billings, 1995). Basic tenets of these include
“attention to the achievement of [all] children including those … minoritized and marginalized;
constructing curriculum and instructional practice in ways … including the knowledge, histories,
and communicative styles of those [both inside] and outside the dominant culture; and developing
children’s abilities to … use learning to affect social change”(Goodman & Hooks, 2016, p.34).
Critical to the notion of culturally responsive teaching is the daily environment of young
children, where they learn about and experience social studies systems and processes. This
environment is not only a physical space, but a social one, ripe for interactions and learning
opportunities in relation to social systems and concepts. The environment conveys both nonverbal
and verbal messages to both inhabitants and visitors about those things valued and coveted by
society. For example, early childhood educators must prioritize the correct pronunciation of
children’s names, which provide powerful links to young learners’ individual identity and ancestral
heritage. When young children see themselves represented and acknowledged in their
environment, their notion of belonging and membership in the classroom community are positively
supported (Catalino & Meyer, 2016; Mindes, 2015).

13 | P a g e
 More directly, the social system and concepts viewed in the environment matter. This
includes not only the vocabulary children hear, but also children’s exposure to visual
representations, play materials, and literature genre reflective of the various family structures,
languages, and racial/ethnic cultures as well as other characteristics of the larger community
(Catalino & Meyer, 2016; Mindes, 2015). With intentional efforts, teachers may explicitly engage
with social justice issues, such as racism, sexism, and economic inequality, and introduce young
children to the ways in which societal change happens to counter bias and discrimination.
Consequently, early educators must create learning environments in a thoughtful and
aesthetic way to enrich children’s learning experiences. Environments should evolve to reflect the
interests of the children and adults in the classroom. Children need to see themselves in their
respective and varying communities. A child’s feelings of belonging and group membership, as
well as opportunities to experience the pleasure of community contributions, will guide his or her
conscious decisions to engage in the community as a citizen.

Families
Equally important is the role of families in supporting their children’s learning in social
studies contexts. Families should be viewed as collaborators in establishing a sociocultural
context of respect and partnership in early education environments (Epstein, 2014; Mindes, 2005,
2015). Classroom topics of study should illustrate examples of various family structures and
cultural traditions. These practices not only foster children’s social and emotional learning at home
and in alternative environments; they provide intentional life experiences to enhance children’s
awareness of the wider community and world around them (Mindes, 2015). Teachers should use
multiple strategies to engage families, including inviting family members to share their
experiences and valuing the role of families as partners in making decisions about their child’s
education (Durden et al., 2015).

Recommendations
NCSS recommends that early childhood educators should uphold the following principles
and approaches in their work with young children:
Young children have the capacity to use the skills of reasoning and inquiry to investigate
social studies concepts as they explore how people interact in the world. Educators should
recognize the value and importance of fostering young children’s curiosity and provide
experiences in the early years that connect social studies content to young children’s roles as
active citizens committed to inclusion and equity. Social studies experiences are already
represented in children’s play and the interactions that they encounter in their lives, but educators
need to intentionally ask questions that provoke clarifications and expand children’s ability to
discuss, debate, and think critically for deeper understanding (Strasser & Bresson, 2017).
Early childhood is a time when the foundations of social studies are established, and
curricular standards should explicitly attend to engaging and developing young children’s
capacity for citizenship, democratic or civic activity, and participation in decision-making, as well
as critical disciplinary literacies. As teachers tap into children’s interests to plan open-ended,
inquiry-based explorations, young learners’ formative experiences will constitute the basis for

14 | P a g e
ongoing growth of the social studies content and process skills defined in the NCSS National
Curriculum Standards and in the C3 Framework (NCSS, 2010, 2013). Although many states
explicitly attend to social studies knowledge and skill development in the early years (e.g., see
the Florida Early Learning and Developmental Standards at
http://flbt5.floridaearlylearning.com/standards.html#d=VII and the Illinois Early Learning and
Developmental Standards at www.isbe.net/documents/early_learning_standards.pdf), early
childhood practitioners are encouraged to draw from the local context in which they teach and
children’s interests to guide their planning and instruction.
As teachers set the tone for children’s social studies learning, it is critical that curricular
and instructional decisions embrace diversity and social justice while intentionally contesting bias
and inequity. Providing a classroom explicitly focused on diversity among children’s cultures and
languages is integral to ensuring that social systems and social concepts are represented in a
learning environment that fosters inclusion and equity. Also critical are efforts by teachers and
providers to intentionally embed diverse languages, materials, and experiences in the early
childhood classroom (Durden et al., 2015; Gay, 2000; Goodman & Hooks, 2016; Ladson-Billings,
1995).
Young children need multiple and varied opportunities to engage in social studies inquiry.
To build understanding of social studies concepts, young children need opportunities to engage
in extended investigation of topics of interest, drawing on a variety of materials that offer multiple
perspectives and foster classroom communities built on inclusive and democratic values.
Early childhood educators should receive social studies-specific professional
development that includes guidance on how to teach social studies to young learners to cultivate
bias-free and discrimination-free communities. Many educators underestimate the capacity of
young children to have an opinion and engage in the cultural and civic life of a community. Lack
of appropriate preparation may cause both preservice and experienced teachers to fail to see
social studies as a priority for young children and to lack confidence in their ability to teach social
studies effectively. Thus, both preservice education and continuing professional development
experiences need to place greater emphasis on encouraging teachers’ repertoire of pedagogic
practices, materials, and resources for building positive social studies attitudes and dispositions,
valuing the contributions of young children as citizens who enrich their communities now and in
the future.
There is a need for the social studies community to engage in further research on early
childhood social studies curriculum and instruction. The ways in which early childhood social
studies is conceived and citizenship is enacted in practice with young children are under-
researched areas of scholarship, and the existing research is typically highly contextualized. To
advance the available evidence about young children, it will be necessary to conduct empirical
research across diverse contexts and investigate how instructional practices can enhance young
students' historical skill development and associated civic competencies, including children’s
perspectives on the choices and challenges they experience, their reactions to the experiences
of others, and their developing responses to matters of social justice, participation, and agency.

15 | P a g e
Early Childhood: What We Know, and What’s Possible
By Emily Liebtag and Janice Walton January 30, 2018
“This is your feeder system,” says Robert Pianta, the Dean of the Curry School of Education at
the University of Virginia. “The kinds of experiences that are accruing in these early settings
matter. Even if you look to age 16 in those kids, there are still significant effects from those early
experiences.”

From local, network and state examples, from practitioners and researchers, we continue to learn
about the importance of early learning experiences and find there to be great promise in existing
and emerging practices. Early childhood care and education (ECCE), as defined by UNESCO, is
the “holistic development of a child’s social, emotional, cognitive and physical needs in order to
build a solid and broad foundation for lifelong learning and wellbeing.” We know these
experiences shape young learners minds, attitudes and often behaviors.

For the purposes of this post (to provide a broad scan of the field and predict what may be on the
early childhood horizon), we mention early childhood care programs but chose to focus
specifically on exploring pre-kindergarten educational experiences.

We talked with ECCE experts and surveyed the field to compile a short list of what we know so
far and share where there is still room to grow.

What We Know

Our scan identified five things we know about early learning, but ultimately we know early learning
matters… and it matters a lot. We also know that all early learning experiences and are not
created equal, nor are they available to all students and families.

Many early childhood education programs help develop social and emotional learning, engage
students in place-based education and start to develop core academic and readiness skills, while
others fail to meet those marks. High-quality early learning programs are also often out of reach
to families due to cost or access (we’ll dive deeper into this subject as well as the changing trends
and demographics that shift the need and demand for early learning programs).

1. ECCE promotes brain development and has positive long-term economic

benefits. Countless studies have shown that quality early learning leads to increased cognitive
development and leads to positive economic impacts — both for the individual and for the nation
at large.

When looking at brain development, Linda Bakken and her colleagues found that “the years from
birth to age 5 are viewed as a critical period for developing the foundations for thinking, behaving,
and emotional well-being. Child development experts indicate it is during these years that children
develop linguistic, cognitive, social, emotional, and regulatory skills that predict their later
functioning in many domains”.

16 | P a g e
ECCE also has an impact on economic growth and development. A 2014 report by Former
President Obama’s Council of Economic Advisers found that “expanding early learning initiatives
would provide benefits to society of roughly $8.60 for every $1 spent, about half of which comes
from increased earnings for children when they grow up.” The research points out the increased
earnings can be attributed to children developing their educational foundation through access to
early learning programs.

2. Developing 21st Century Skills in early learners helps prepare them for success in
school and life. David Ross, CEO of the Partnership for 21st Century Learning (P21) makes the
point that the development of 21st-century skills starts as early as 18 months old. It is for this
reason that P21 advocates for the development of 21st-century skills in early learning contexts
and has developed an Early Learning Framework and guide which provide guidance on how to
integrate these principles into learning experiences.

Lee Scott, Goddard School Advisory Board Member and lead author of the Early Learning
Framework, admitted that while incorporation of technologies into early learning is great to see
she also hopes they are used as a tool to develop these 21st-century skills and not used only as
entertainment. She also shared that she has seen a return to meaningful, experiential learning
and an increased focused on working with parents to understand how these experiences can
promote the development of 21st-century skills.

3. ECCE can make a positive difference in the lives of young children. RAND reviewed 115
early childhood education programs serving children or families of children from prenatal to age
5 and found that quality education at this age can make a major impact on the lives of students.

The researchers found that “Eighty-nine percent [of the studied programs] had a positive effect
on at least one child outcome, indicating that it is relatively rare, among published evaluations, to
find programs that have no demonstrable impacts on child outcomes.”

The outcome domains were behavior and emotion, cognitive achievement, developmental delay,
health and welfare, crime, educational attainment and adult outcomes.

4. Age-appropriate use of technology can enhance learning. In 2016, the US Department of

Education and Department of Health and Human Services issued a policy brief on early learning
and educational technology which laid out four principles for the use of technology with learners
ages 2 to 8.

The Departments’ guiding principles are:

• “Technology—when used appropriately—can be a tool for learning.

• Technology should be used to increase access to learning opportunities for all children.
• Technology may be used to strengthen relationships among parents, families, early
educators, and young children.
• Technology is more effective for learning when adults and peers interact or co-view
with young children.”

17 | P a g e
The Departments believe that if technology is used with the principles as a guide, it can help
children learn how to use technology to effectively communicate with their peers and adults to
foster better relationships, expand their learning, and solve meaningful problems.

We also know that appropriate use of technology and digital media can support whole child
development. Research by the Fred Rogers Center for Early Learning and Children’s Media has
shown that digital media and technology are especially supportive in helping young children grow
when in the context of areas such as:

• Dealing with frustration and/or mistakes

• Taking positive risks
• Encouraging sense of trust
• Promoting sense of self-worth
• Engaging curiosities
• Providing opportunities for play; and
• Providing opportunities to quietly reflect—alone or near a trusted adult or peer.

5. Uneven access. A scan from The Hunt Institute of early childhood education across the
country shows inconsistencies in offerings and quality of programs. In some
states universal pre-k is expanding access but not ensuring high-quality experiences for all (see
a recent Georgetown study on Tulsa’s universal pre-k and a report from Center for American
Progress on how universal pre-k can help close opportunity gaps).

What’s Next

We know more progress is needed and that many educators and leaders are working hard to
advance and enhance early learning experiences. When we look around the country, we
continually see examples of excellence in early childhood education which reinforce the notion
that high-quality experiences for young learners are 1) possible and 2) critical.

Take for example Operation Breakthrough based in Kansas City (and the largest early learning
center in the Midwest) where we found ten remarkable takeaways from the approaches being
used. But we know this is just one example where educators are trying new approaches and
innovating in the early learning environment and that there is still a lot more work to be done.

Ashley Beckner is an investment principal at Omidyar Network, a philanthropic investment fund

that seeks to empower individuals, their families and their communities, where she invests in for-
profit companies and non-profit organizations focused on improving early learning outcomes.
“Every experience for young learners is critically important in early childhood development. There
is huge opportunity to make early learning both more and less place-based through decentralized
networks. Unlike K-12 where there is already a large, incumbent system, in early learning, there
is an opportunity to create locally distributed offerings that cater to caregivers and families through
a connected, global network. We have seen that through tech solutions, smaller and

18 | P a g e
individualized programs have the potential to scale and grow faster. However, we still have to
overcome challenges to ensure that the best of early childhood innovations reach children and
families across the socioeconomic spectrum.”

Including these ideas from Omidyar Network, on the early learning horizon we also see the
following trends further developing or emerging:

More place-based and out of school experiences. Early childhood education typically has
been focused on play, exploration and engaging students in understanding the importance of
community. This is more important than ever given our current challenges and increasingly
complex world and need to find ways to connect to who where are and where we come from. This
means there is a need for more intentional place-based education. A few examples we’ve seen
so far include:

• The Patagonia on-site childcare center where daily child care services are provided
with an added emphasis on creating high quality, place-based early learning
experiences for students and their families.
• In Washington state outdoor preschools are emerging with programs through
the Woodland Park Zoo where children can spend 45-minutes in a hands-on learning
class, and Tiny Trees where the outdoors literally becomes the schoolhouse! Learning
at Tiny Trees happens note in a brick and mortar building but at parks around several
cities in Washington.
• In out-of-school, Tinkergarten is an example of a company that offers play-based
classes for young children through a decentralized network of leaders– providing
access to play to young children, with increasing evidence of the importance of play in
learning.

More use of powerful formative assessments. We know more frequent checks to see what
students are learning is incredibly advantageous. Not only does it help us better gauge student
progress, but it also helps educators better develop relevant and appropriate instruction. While
there are not the same level of high-stakes end-of-year tests you see in later grades in the earliest
years, there still are many developmental and cognitive markers that educators look for,
benchmark assessments and high-expectations and/or standards. Two organizations come to
mind given their work in early learning assessments:

• NWEA realizes the power of rich formative assessment and is developing cutting-
edge tools for early learning educators.
• Reasoning Mind recently launched their early learning program for mathematics,
focusing on understanding young learners development of math skills.
More robust assessments that can be done online provide educators with instant feedback,
activities and instructional ideas. Further, when students feel supported in a positive culture and
become accustomed to formative feedback at an early age, they develop a growth mindset.

19 | P a g e
More use of advanced technologies to support and understand early learner literacy
development. Beckner and the team at Omidyar Network are focused on finding the best
technologies that have the potential to impact early learners. Although many are still nascent, she
shared a few that are particularly well-suited to support early childhood development. Wearable
technology has the potential to advance our understandings of the interactions early learners
have with their environments and with other people, one example being the number of words
spoken by their parents or caregivers on a daily basis. One study looking at what happened to
early learner vocabulary development and usages when they had on wearable technology
revealed that parents changed their behavior after seeing the number of incoming and outgoing
words the child experienced per day.

Also, current platforms are not particularly suited for young children’s voices or for their often loud
environments, but companies like Soapbox labs are harnessing the power of technology to better
understand the beginnings of speech development. Fluency measures are highly dependent on
a facilitator working with students, but voice recognition has the potential to assist.

Better prep for ECCE teachers. Early Learning teachers are the first interaction young children
have with the education system and high-quality teaching and learning becomes essential.
Unfortunately, the training, ongoing support and compensation many teachers receive varies
greatly from state to state. The National Association of State Boards of Education (NASBE), has
stated that now is the time to ensure the professionalization of the early childhood education
(ECE) workforce, by improving training and professional development teachers receive and
enhancing the practice overall. One potential place to start is to consider changing the educational
requirements ECE teachers need, as many do not have college degrees. While there is
specialized knowledge only obtained through a college degree that would enhance teaching and
learning, we must also take care in the rollout of changing educational requirements since many
teachers currently only have a high school degree.

Continued focus on the transition from Pre-K to Kindergarten and an increased focus on
SEL. Students enter Kindergarten with a wide range of educational experiences, each of which
can place them on a positive or negative trajectory for future learning. When the transition from
Pre-K to Kindergarten is deliberate and well thought out by educators, and parents, we begin to
ensure that students have the knowledge and tools for success. New America recommends four
policy shifts: increasing ESSA funds, providing additional tools and guidance, increasing the focus
on alignment between early learning programs and feeder schools, and grant programs to
incentivize strong transition programs and support, for states to consider to help ease the
transition.

Rolf Grafwallner, Program Director of Early Childhood Education at CCSSO, articulated that while
the transitional skills are important a well-balanced approach to early learning needs to include
focus on social and emotional learning, too. Early learners also need to be learning how to work
together, demonstrate perseverance, learn how they resolve conflict and even how to become
more self-regulated, such as being organized in the work that they do in the classroom.

Continued integration (and implementation) of early learning into ESSA plans. The ESSA
provisions provide an opportunity for states to expand, and improve upon, their early learning
strategies. The Center on Enhancing Early Learning Outcomes (CEELO) and the Council of Chief
State School Officers (CCSSO) have identified three key topics for early learning in ESSA: “1)

20 | P a g e
setting clear goals and policy priorities for early learning, 2) integrating early learning into school
improvement, and 3) supporting early childhood educator development.”

Grafwallner (CCSOO), believes that the inclusion of early learning into ESSA is a huge
opportunity for states to improve learning experiences and address some of the achievement gap
issues that begin very early on. Several states are leading the way and providing an example for
how systems can be improved, look to the CEELO and CCSSO policy brief, “The State of Early
Learning in ESSA: Plans and Opportunities for Implementation,” for exemplar states in each of
the three topic areas.

Deeper learning. 21st-century skill development and deeper learning outcomes as a result of
early learning experiences will become the expected standard. There will continue to be a focus
on early literacy skills, but a corresponding focus on deeper learning in early learning
programs will become increasingly important.

ASSESSMENT:
Task 1
Direction: Fill-out the graphic organize below. List four important factors that will surely engage
the students in teaching social studies and explain the effects of each factors in your instruction.

______________________________________ _______________________________________
______________________________________ _______________________________________
______________________________________ _______________________________________
______________________________________ _______________________________________
______________________________________ _______________________________________
______________________________________ _______________________________________
______________________________________ _______________________________________
______________________________________ _______________________________________
Social Studies
Learner
______________________________________ ______________________________________
______________________________________ ______________________________________
______________________________________ ______________________________________
______________________________________ ______________________________________
______________________________________ ______________________________________
______________________________________ ______________________________________
______________________________________ ______________________________________
______________________________________ ______________________________________

21 | P a g e
Task 2:
Do you agree with the following statements? Take position on each one and discuss your
reasons by writing your insights on the space provided for each item.
1. “The problem is not that some children are unready for school. Rather, schools too often are
unready for children.”
____________________________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________________________

2. “Teachers sometimes that cultural differences in children as deficits. This is not right, and is
ethnocentric.”
____________________________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________________________

3. “You shouldn’t treat a child with a special gift as ‘gifted’ any more than you would treat a child
with a learning disability as disabled.”
____________________________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________________________

22 | P a g e
4. “I don’t care if they’re red, green, or polka dot. I just treat them all like children.”
____________________________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________________________

23 | P a g e
 LESSON 3
REVIEWING THE SOCIAL STUDIES CURRICULUM
GUIDE FOR EARLY CHILDHOOD EDUCATION

OBJECTIVES:

• Describe the main competencies of social studies curriculum

• Analyze the objectives of the curriculum
• Align social studies lesson in the requirements of the curriculum
SOCIAL STUDIES IN TODAY’S EARLY CHILDHOOD CURRICULA
Children are born into social studies. From birth, they begin exploring their world. At each stage
of early development—infant, toddler, preschool, and primary—children look around and try to
make sense of their social and physical environments. They gradually learn more about their
expanding community and eventually come to see themselves as citizens. What is relevant social
studies subject matter and what is a useful approach for early childhood educators teaching social
studies today? The answers to these questions depend of course on children’s ages and stages
of development as well as their child care or school setting. Social studies currently and historically
is a field designed to meet the educational needs of society. It emerged at the beginning of the
twentieth century as a holistic approach to citizenship education using the techniques of social
science: raising questions and gathering, analyzing, discussing, and displaying data. Elementary
schools at that time focused on basic education— reading, writing, arithmetic. To help immigrant
children understand the history and social mores of their new country, teachers read stories about
the early formation of the United States and focused on children’s development of the virtues
exemplified in moralistic stories (such as those in the McGuffey Readers). A debate emerged
between educators who sought to teach the facts of history and those who sought to develop
students’ appreciation and understanding of the unique aspects of U.S. history. After several
study commissions of the National Education Association (NEA) had grappled with the issues of
an increasingly complex society, schools began in 1916 to integrate history, geography, and
political science—teaching students how to think about social issues and content—so that
graduates could be effective employees in a democratic society. The NEA saw social studies as
“the subject matter related directly to the organization and development of human society, and to
individuals as members of social groups” (1916, 5). “The ‘subject matter’ for this new school
subject was to be drawn from the most influential social sciences of the time—history, geography,
and civics— and blended together as one school subject for the purpose of helping children
understand our American heritage and acquire the skills and sensitivities basic to constructive
participation in our nation’s democratic society” (Maxim 2006, 13).

TAKING AN INTEGRATED APPROACH

From the inception of the field, social studies teaching used an integrated, project-oriented
approach that continues today. Progressive educators such as John Dewey in the 1930s
encouraged teachers to use social studies as the foundation for activity-based learning built on

24 | P a g e
children’s interests. Dewey maintained that learning involves firsthand experience and draws
upon many instructional resources beyond the textbook. He advocated child learning and
teaching activities that begin with the familiar experiences of daily life (Dewey [1916] 1966). In
farming communities, this might mean growing wheat in the classroom, observing the process,
and documenting the progress of plant growth; in the city, children might study the work of the
milk-wagon driver and the chimney sweep. Accordingly, from the inception of the field, social
studies teaching used an integrated, project-oriented approach that continues today. Preschool
investigations now might consider such child questions as why, in December, people in Florida
wear different clothes than people in New York. In following up, teacher and children may look at
the role climate plays in determining what clothes people wear. They could collect data—look at
weather maps; make weather charts; read stories about weather and clothes; consult the weather
channel on TV or on the Internet; and draw, cut, and paste pictures—to explore climatic
differences. At the primary level, a project might more directly align with state standards but still
follow child interest and a project orientation. For example, children may consider what to do when
there are not enough silver crayons for everyone in the class. Besides evincing the obvious
answer of sharing resources, the question triggers an investigation of a basic economics unit on
supply and demand. The silver crayon discussion evolves into data collection about economic
decisions at classroom, school, and community levels, fostering eight-year-olds’ burgeoning
understanding of issues like resources and scarcity. Another powerful influence on the child-
centered curricular and instructional approach for social studies came in the 1960s with the work
of Jerome Bruner. In The Process of Education (1960), Bruner explained spiraling curriculum, in
which a topic, such as democracy, is introduced to children at an age-appropriate level. Activities
with young children might focus on classroom rules to keep order and be fair to all. In the later
grades, children would study government operations and subtleties of democracy. With Bruner’s
influence, inquiry-based teaching became a central instructional strategy for social studies. He
stressed the doing of social science in the learning process. For example, in considering What is
a family? children would gather information to elaborate their understandings of family,
appropriate to their ages and stages of development. They answer complex questions through
investigation of the big ideas and questions that require critical thinking (see Zarrillo 2004). In the
preschool–primary years, the big ideas derive from topics related to self, family, and community.
They might include immigration (How did/do people come to the United States?), transportation
(How do we move around in our community?), banking (What does the bank do with money?),
and heritage (How did our ancestors live?). The tradition of holistic instruction, using the content
and processes of the social sciences, continues. It is evident in the scope of and sequence for
social studies in the primary grades, as defined by the National Council for Social Studies (NCSS):
• Kindergarten—awareness of self in the social setting
• First grade—the individual in school and family life
• Second grade—the neighborhood
• Third grade—sharing the earth with others in the community (NCSS 1984, 376–85)
More recently, while preserving the developmental sequence, the NCSS organized social
studies content around 10 large themes:
• culture;
• time continuity and change;

25 | P a g e
• people, places, and environments;
• individual development and identity;
• individuals, groups, and institutions;
• power, authority, and governance;
• production, distribution, and consumption;
• science, technology, and society;
• global connections; and
• civic ideals and practices (NCSS 1994).
Each theme guides teachers in selecting content or in deriving content based on child interest.
Obviously, theme evolution and development depend on children’s previous experiences,
developmental stages, and skills. For example, time continuity and change for four-year-olds
might mean a study of grandparents; global connections for third-graders might include e-mail
correspondence with children in Australia.

SOCIAL STUDIES FOR TODAY’S EARLY CHILDHOOD SETTING

Social studies curricula can support children as they solve classroom and school issues as well
as investigate neighborhood and community problems.
Using the underlying concepts from social science, teachers can draw content broadly from the
10 themes and use inquiry-based processes to foster curiosity, problem-solving skills, and
appreciation of investigation. Social studies curricula can support children as they solve
classroom and school issues as well as investigate neighborhood and community problems with
the goal of enhancing understanding and civic awareness and pride. Thus, broadly defined, the
social studies include the following disparate but intertwined content:
• Social learning and self-concept development, including character development. (While building
a block structure together, young children can learn to negotiate, solve problems, and cope with
strong feelings.)
• Academic content of social studies based on NCSS’s 10 themes. (In the primary grades, children
throughout the country usually study the history of the community and state.)
• Classroom community development. (Toddlers develop an understanding of group life that
requires putting toys away and sharing materials.)
• Foundational understandings for civic engagement. (Children of all ages appreciate the diversity
of their friends and classmates.)
There is an inextricable linking of family, culture, and community in the teaching and learning of
social studies. The evolution of each child’s social understandings about the world begins with
self and family, expanding to the child care and educational setting. In developing these social
inquiries, teachers first focus on what children know and are able to do. Then they help children
scaffold additional learning to elaborate their understandings of the world around them. A

26 | P a g e
sensitive, respectful approach to child and family sets the tone for each child’s broader social
learning experience.

SOCIAL STUDIES AS SELF-DEVELOPMENT

The curricular focus of self-development in a social context starts with the classroom and the
people in it: children, teachers, caregivers, and families. Personal interactions facilitate child
understanding of the social world of classroom, child care program, school, and community. For
each age group— infant, toddler, preschool, and primary—social interactions form the foundation
for building curriculum. In responsive child care and school settings, families’ home cultures
influence this curricular foundation. Therefore, the social context includes an ethical orientation
as well as appropriate behavior that begins with family values. With experiences in child care
programs and school, children modify their views of themselves—who they are in the social world.
Beginning in children as young as age two, these experiences influence character—an
individual’s approach to ethical issues. Ethical issues include decisions about honesty, fairness,
courtesy, and respect for others. School experience facilitates the development of mainstream
social behaviors and values among children. Children’s incorporation of such behaviors and
values are expected by child care centers, schools, and communities. Toddlers in child care
settings learn that they cannot grab a chunk of banana from a friend’s plate but must take pieces
from the serving platter in turn. Preschoolers take turns doing jobs that keep the classroom tidy
and running smoothly.
One of the most prominent early arguments for providing group play opportunities for young
children stemmed from the idea that social and play experiences socialize young children—that
is, help them learn the ropes for engaging in the discourse of mainstream “polite society” (see
McMillan [1919] 1930; Read & Patterson 1980). Throughout history and in diverse cultural
situations, the appropriate functioning of young children in the social world depends upon values
articulated by the stakeholders who determine the educational standards for the time. In the
twenty-first century, young children must operate in a society that values respect for diversity and
appreciation of conventions and rules in a broad spectrum. Thus, the content of social studies
becomes even more complex and engaging.

CHOOSING THE CONTENT FOR SOCIAL STUDIES.

For the youngest citizens—infants and toddlers—the content is self-development in a social world.
Adults enhance this self-development by providing safe, colorful, intriguing toys and materials to
foster curiosity. Infants and toddlers play alone, by the side of others, and with others to elaborate
their social understandings of themselves and others. But they also need nurturance and respect
from teachers and families. In these early years, teachers encourage respect for others and
provide opportunities to learn about various cultures by singing songs and reading stories from
various viewpoints and cultures, displaying pictures that reflect families in the community, and
modeling an appreciation for all cultures and backgrounds. In the preschool and primary years,
social studies offer a structure for broad, theme-based content—content organized around a topic
and offering multiple entry points and significant opportunities for investigation. For children, such
content serves as a training ground for acquiring problem solving skills as well as a laboratory for
the development and elaboration of interpersonal coping skills and strategies: “The primary

27 | P a g e
purpose of social studies is to help young people develop the ability to make informed and
reasoned decisions for the public good as citizens of a culturally diverse, democratic society in an
interdependent world” (NCSS 1993, 3). Preschool and primary-age children can develop a sense
of civic responsibility through the exploration of rich thematic units such as a study of food,
clothing, shelter, childhood, money, government, communication, family living, or transportation
(Alleman & Brophy 2001, 2002, 2003). Using these themes as starting points, children and
teachers form hypotheses, gather data, summarize, and make conclusions. Finally, children
organize and present the data in pictures, with maps and charts, in dioramas, in PowerPoint
presentations, and in other ways appropriate to child understanding. Not only do they use the
skills of social scientists in these investigations and learn about civic engagement, but they also
read, manage, and display data.

CHOOSING THE PROCESSES FOR SOCIAL STUDIES

Teaching strategies include individual investigations in the library, in the field, and on the Internet;
interviews; small group collaboration; and large group discussions.
Teaching strategies in preschool and primary social studies include individual investigations in
the library, in the field, and on the Internet; interviews; small-group collaboration; and large-group
discussions. The scale of these investigations varies depending upon the age and development
of the child. For example, in interviews with a grandparent or older adult, three-year-olds might
ask, “What was your favorite fruit when you were little?” The class could then collect the names
of the fruits and, with the teacher’s help, make a chart to show the grandparents’ answers
(oranges, bananas, and so on). For kindergartners, small-group collaboration might involve
making a map of the classroom, with different groups assigned a portion of the room. Second-
graders might go online to collect information about garbage collection and recycling in their
community. The classroom environment must support children’s use of these approaches to
learning. In thinking about the space, teachers should consider not only the room arrangement
but also schedules and how the contents of bulletin boards, learning centers, and resource areas
may be arrayed to encourage child discovery.
• Room arrangement—Traffic patterns match the activities planned. Learning centers are clearly
set up and defined by topic, with appropriate space for the activities. Equipment and materials are
accessible and grouped to encourage child management of them.
• Schedule—There is balance between individual, small-group, and large-group activities. A well-
developed schedule includes large blocks of time during the week to support theme-based
curricular endeavors (Berry & Mindes 1993).
The way teachers allocate space clearly shows the values and culture of the community (Gandini
1998). A classroom that welcomes and encourages social studies has posters displaying child
questions, results of data gathered, child-created pictures, and structures that document learning,
along with comfortable spaces for individual and small-group work. The classroom may include
materials passed from one group of children to another—for example, a book on the previous
group’s trip to the forest preserve becomes a part of cultural history and a resource for the class.
The room also displays materials that families contribute to the ongoing projects and contains
references to field trips made as part of the social studies investigations. Seeing social studies as
both content (organized around important child questions) and process (action-oriented

28 | P a g e
strategies) prevents educators from considering social studies as an adjunct to other subject
areas. An adjunct approach toward social studies is haphazard. Thoughtful teachers avoid
stereotypical poems about Thanksgiving and occasional and inconsistent lessons on character
traits like courtesy. Rather than posting their own classroom rules, good teachers collaborate on
rules with young children, encouraging them to think about how to achieve respect and order.
Effective teachers know, as they teach children to read, write, compute, and problem solve, that
they also must:
• assist children in social/emotional growth,
• emphasize holidays that have community meaning,
• seek an antibias approach to values,
• collaborate with families, and
• foster the development of integrity in individuals and groups of children (Mindes & Donovan
2001).
Through use of social studies themes, teachers can integrate seemingly distinct goals into
meaningful investigations. Using a developmentally appropriate practice model (Bredekamp &
Copple 1997), teachers can develop the natural social studies curriculum. Here are some ideas
for thematic curriculum, with examples:

• Build on what children already know. For instance, after studying neighborhood and
community, move on to the home state.
• Develop concepts and processes of social studies rather than focusing on isolated facts.
For example, create maps visually showing the classroom, the school, or community.
• Provide hands-on activities. Have children draw a timeline showing when each child was
born or make a chart to show how many brothers and sisters each child in the class has.
• Use relevant social studies throughout the year. Conduct child discussions about class
problems, revising class rules accordingly, or consider the concept of scarcity related to
choices.
• Capitalize on child interest (Katz & Chard 2000). Consider why, say, the lake is closed to
swimmers or what makes an airplane stay in the sky. Developed in this way, the curricula
of social studies use big ideas to connect with children and deepen their understanding of
their relevant social world.

Conclusion
Social studies as content and process is a vibrant and vital part of early childhood curricula. Social
studies at the center of early childhood curricula offers the hope that the focus of education will
be on the development of effective, efficient, ethical children who will approach their world non-
simplistically and thoughtfully. With the help of good teachers, children will not only absorb the
content that focuses on citizenship education in all its permutations, but also learn how to learn
and how to consider multiple perspectives.

29 | P a g e
30 | P a g e
31 | P a g e
32 | P a g e
33 | P a g e
34 | P a g e
35 | P a g e
ASSESSMENT:
1. What is curriculum? Why is it essential in fulfilling and achieving quality education?
____________________________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________________________
2. Interview an education expert/teacher (could be through text/chat, email, video call) and ask
what pros and cons of today’s curriculum are particularly in achieving the goals of teaching
social studies.
Pros Cons

36 | P a g e
3. According to what you have learned from this lesson, fill-out this Venn diagram with the
curricular characteristics of History, Culture, and Geohraphy.

37 | P a g e
 LESSON 4
TEACHING HISTORY IN THE
EARLY CHILDHOOD
OBJECTIVES:
• Describe history in the context of early childhood education
• Contextualize history lessons based on the daily experiences of the pupils
• Plot age-appropriate lessons in teaching history to pupils

Introduction

The Social Sciences are a great source of knowledge about man. The insights they offer
provide the children with knowledge and skills to socialize with the people around them, thereby
making it easier on their part to adjust to their environment. The lessons made available through
the Social Sciences serve as excellent sources of inspiration for the young children to take
important active roles in their society. Through these lessons, children find heroes to emulate.
heroic acts to replicate, and models of ideal characters.

HISTORY

A beautiful way of presenting to children stories of great men and women that can inspire
them is through the subject of HISTORY. History presents to the pupils an analysis of events in a
chronological and simple fashion.

As a subject, history, may be described in several ways. First, it is almost always not exact.
There are many controversies over which even historians themselves need to agree They need
to agree on the interpretation of events, exactness of dates, motives of people, and a lot of other
things. In teaching history, therefore, the teacher should not present it as something absolutely
correct. He or she should provide for the possibility that other facts which could change the picture
of the event being discussed may be obtained in the future. In which case, the pupils Should be
prepared for such possible changes.

Because history is not absolute, then, its interpretation may vary from time to time or from
place to place, depending on who is the person looking at it. Filipinos may look at Philippine
history differently from the Spaniards or Americans. Arabians may look at the Desert Storm
differently from the Iraquis. This being so, the teacher should be readily sensitive to the possibility
of varying interpretations.

Though how imperfect history can be it still offers the pupils a series of case stories that
can help them understand current events and situations. For instance, through history, the pupils
can understand why there are many Chinese in the Philippines today: and why the Filipino culture
is greatly influenced by Spanish culture. Many questions of the pupils which involve many
complex situations today can very well be answered by the simple presentation of history. The
story of the importance of the Pasig River in the trading activities of the ancient Manilenos can

38 | P a g e
give the pupils an understanding of its importance today. As the children realize how the River
provided food, water, and transportation to the poor people of Manila, then they will understand
the difficult struggle to clean it once more. Perhaps, as they grow older, such early understanding
could lead them to participate in the effort to clean the Pasig River once more.

History is also a science. As such, it is a body of organized knowledge - a chronological

record of the significant events of the past that, have a remarkable bearing on the present. Ln
presenting this body of knowledge, the teacher may employ different ways. The lesson may be
presented in such a way that the teacher utilizes the other disciplines of the social sciences. For
instance, the field of anthropology may be utilized in presenting the story of the ancient Filipinos.
At the same time, the discipline of sociology can be of help in understanding the ancient Filipino
family. Geography can be utilized to help pupils understand why the early Filipinos behave the
way they do because of their physical characteristics of the Philippine archipelago.

On the other hand, the teacher may opt to present the facts of history in a narrative manner
for the students to readily remember the chronology of events. Specifically, in the lower grades,
the teacher can capitalize on the strength of the rote memory of children.

Depending on the capacity of the pupils, the teacher may present history in an analytical
manner, not simply emphasizing the chronology of events but more so the interpretation of these
events. This can create a strong impact on the pupils' young minds. Early enough, the children
will be given an opportunity to see patterns of development, relationship of events in history,
causes and effects of national movements. They will then become conscious of the process by
which a group of people grow and develop and how history is shaped.

Since the immediate world of the grade school pupil is his family, the teacher may teach
history by first orienting the pupils with the history of their family, then their clan, or their tow.Then,
it will be easier for them to understand the presentation of Philippines history which has a wider
scope.

Inasmuch as history is value-laden, the teacher may choose to present history with
emphasis on the values it brings to the pupils. The values of patriotism, nationalism, service, and
courage are just a few of the values that can be emphasized in class. The content of the subject,
thus, becomes a means to inculcate in the young minds of the pupil’s values which they can
depend on later in life.

Content of History as a Subject

As a subject, history focuses on the significance of the following:

1. Persons. Persons are the key players in shaping history. Their acts can be sources of
inspiration for the pupils. They can serve as models for them. Their failures and successes can
provide tremendous lessons for the pupils.

2. Time. Time is an essential concept of history. If time is lost in the discussion, history will lose
its essence. The concept of time situates the event in its proper perspective in the continuum of
events. It necessarily shows the progression of events, thus, creating an understanding of how
events developed one after the other.

39 | P a g e
3. Chronology. This concept is essential to the concept of time in history. More than time
chronology puts orders to series of events. One event alone does not create chronology.
Chronology requires discussing the events in the order of their occurrence in time. Without this,
history loses its meaning.

4. Place. The location of the event is equally important. Events do not happen in a vacuum, and
persons do not exist in the mind only. These realities must exist somewhere.

5. Value of Events. By events are recorded in history, there must be Significance in them. The
behavior of great men and women, their decisions, the thoughts they produced must have
affected the lives of a great number of people. Recorded events must have significantly affected
the nation's growth and development or must have caused great concern or changes to the
nations around the world; thus, they are given due attention by historians. Because of their value
historian analyze them and put on record the effects they register in the lives of the people.

6. Sources of Data. The reliability of the sources of the historian's data is important in the
reliability of recorded history. Because the classroom teacher is dependent on the historian’s
records, the teacher must be aware of the historian's sources of information, whether the sources
are primary or secondary. Primary sources are first-hand information and are always the best
sources of information. Secondary sources, on the other hand, are also rich sources of
information. Textbooks are among these. A creative teacher, therefore.
can use several sources or books in teaching history

Structural Components of Time in History.

In order to facilitate the understanding of history, historians divide it into periods. Although
such division is not absolute in the sense that they do not represent the exact limits of each time,
they serve as effective guides in the discussion of history.

The following are the periods in history:

1. Prehistoric. It is the period for which no written record is available. History is heavily is heavily
dependent on archeology and anthropology for the discussion of this period. For example, there
are no written records concerning the foreign relations of the Philippines before the coming of the
Spaniards. Yet, it is common knowledge that many Asian countries have been in contact with the
early inhabitants. Data on these are based on the artifacts and fossils derived from archeological
findings

2. Historic. This is the period for which written records are already available. Data regarding this
period is derived from primary and secondary sources. This period has been divided into

2.1. Ancient Times. This is the period which is characterized by the emergence of great
civilizations in the East and in the West. The civilizations which emerged in the East and
which are given great importance are those which emerged in the river valleys, namely,
the civilizations in the Nile River Valley, Hindus River Valley, Yellow River Valley, and the
Tigris Euphrates River Valley. On the other hand, the West gave birth to the great
civilizations of Greece and Rome. Each of these civilizations gave rise to political, social,
and philosophical thoughts and structures that greatly influenced their neighbors.

40 | P a g e
 2.2. The Dark Ages in Europe and the Byzantine Empire. This is the period
characterized by the Barbarian invasion and cultural stagnation in Europe. It started with
the fall of Rome and is coupled with rise of the Byzantine Empire in the East followed by
the emergence of the Muslim power.

2.3. The Medieval Ages. This period is also known as the Middle Ages and the Age of
Faith. As such it is characterized by the emergence of the power of the church and its
tremendous effect on the historical development of the nations in Europe During this
period, feudalism was institutionalized. There was growth in the number of towns and
cities. Merchant guilds were organized, and crusade movements were born. This was
coupled with the emergence of the Ottoman Turks in the East.

2.4. The Age of the Renaissance. For this period, emphasis is given to the great political,
cultural, intellectual, and scientific revolutions of the time. If faith was the greatest influence
during the Middle Ages, humanism became the greatest spirit which influenced the period
of the Renaissance? This Age also gave birth to the religious upheavals in Europe, giving
way to the periods of Reformation and Counter-reformation.

2.5. The Age of Exploration, Discovery, and Expansion. This age was brought about
by the powerful inventions of the previous Age. Stories of the adventures of explorers
stirred the European interest for wealth beyond their horizons. The conquest of new lands
in the various continents of the world marked this period.

2.6. The Contemporary Time. This period features the rise of modern nationalism, the
shift from the old to the new political, sOC1al, and economic thoughts which shaped the
history of the 19th century. This period witnessed the birth of new nations, the wars which
shocked them.

The discussion of the Contemporary times also considers the events of the recent past
like the efforts of the United Nations to preserve peace, the formation of blocs of
nations, the influence of the Middle East countries in the economic development of nations, the
emergence of the Asian countries and their tiger economies.

It can easily be observed that the periodization of history has been centered on the
development of the West. The rapid development of the countries in the West enabled their people
to exercise great influence on the history of other nations in the world. The third millennium may
be a different case.

Since the periodization of history was created only for convenience, the teacher of history
can create adjustments in this periodization for the benefit of the pupils. Philippine history may be
divided into Pre-Hispanic, Hispanic, American, The Commonwealth and the rise of an
independent Philippine Republic.

Since there are many factors that affect the writing of history, the teacher must be
conscious of the possible subjectivity of the written history. The teacher should always bear in
mind that he or she may unconsciously communicate the bias of the historian to the pupils or in
greater probability, his or her own bias. Objectivity should always be the basis for history; thus,
care should be taken in this connection.

41 | P a g e
The Goal of History Teaching

History teaching is always meant to relate the present to the past, for it is through the
understanding of the past that one develops a grasp of the current events and, thus, make wise
decision for the future. History teaching is also meant to provide models and inspiration for the
pupils. Great men and women who personality bravery, nationalism, courage patriotism and other
desirable values are so many in the books of history. Their lives can serve as patterns worth
emulating.

Finally, history teaching aims to develop among the children knowledge and skills, as well as
values and attitudes which will enable them to become worthy members of their community and
good citizens of the country.

Teaching History in the Elementary School. ERIC Digest.

Recent studies have shown that the historical knowledge of young Americans is less than most
educators and citizens would desire. Students' knowledge of history has suffered because of
untrained teachers, reduced course requirements, and textbook treatments that are bland and
voiceless and directed more toward trivial coverage of details than to the fullness needed to bring
vitality and credibility to events of the past (Sewall 1987; Cheney 1987).
Content in history is practically absent from the curriculum of grades K-3 in most elementary
schools; it usually is taught in combination with content from the social sciences in grades 4-6
(Ravitch 1987). A notable exception to national curriculum patterns is the new "California
Framework" (1988), which emphasizes history at all levels of the elementary school curriculum.
This ERIC Digest examines (1) research related to the teaching and learning of history in
elementary schools, (2) purposes of education in history, and (3) teaching practices to develop
interest in and knowledge of history among students in elementary schools.

WHAT DOES RESEARCH TELL US ABOUT CHILDREN'S ABILITY TO LEARN HISTORY?

Research evidence gathered over the past twenty-five years indicates that elementary-age
children are incapable of thinking formally about history. This research, conducted under the
developmental theory of Jean Piaget (Hallam 1970 and Kennedy 1983), shows that even the
oldest elementary students are unable to deal with the conceptual abstractions, lengthy time
frames, sweeping generalities, and complex causal inferences which characterize the discipline
of history. This firmly established conclusion does not indicate, however, that young children are
unable to learn historical facts or use the lessons of history to explore important values and
develop skills in studying, thinking, and communicating. It simply means that teachers must
observe the known limitations of their students in attempting to teach history.
Zaccaria (1978) hypothesized that a limited ability to deal with time might be a cause for student
difficulty in learning to "think historically." He reviewed the psychological literature on children's
time perception and found that the first-grade pupil's time span for thinking about events is only a
week. The span widens by the third grade to nearly a month, and by the sixth grade it is close to
a year. It is not until adolescence, however, that most students become capable of dealing with
the periods of time typically used in a chronological account of United States history.

42 | P a g e
Levstik, (1986) notes the lack of research about the teaching and learning of history in elementary
schools. She concludes that little is known about what historical content should be taught and the
best methods for teaching it. There is no evidence that elementary pupils can learn to "think
historically" if the model of such thinking is that of the mature, professional historian.
Kieran Egan (1982) attacks aspects of Piaget's developmental theory advocates a literary or
narrative-based approach to history instruction. Egan and his followers contend that the narrative
approach works better than traditional textbook instruction because it activates emotional links to
reflective thinking and places the student much closer to the participant's view of history. From
this perspective, historical understanding is based on such hallmarks of literary understanding as
empathizing with others and sensing causality as it operates within the unfolding events.
According to Levstik (1986), research on the teaching of history in elementary schools suggests
that textbook-based teaching practices are unsuccessful in developing historical understanding
as defined by either the developmental or narrative-based models. She states that social studies
educators should apply the techniques of "response to literature research" to history learning and
explore the power of narrative in history.
Renewed research on children's history learning ability based on schema theory, new trends in
Piaget's developmental theory, the narrative approach, or other paradigms may soon start to
provide the knowledge needed to refine and improve our teaching practices.

WHAT ARE PRACTICAL PURPOSES OF EDUCATION IN HISTORY IN THE ELEMENTARY

SCHOOL?
The teaching and learning of history in the elementary school is less focused on building definitive
knowledge or formal thinking ability than it is aimed at more immediate and attainable ends. For
young elementary students, an important purpose of education in history is to make the past seem
real instead of remaining an untouchable abstraction held only in adult memories or hollow
textbook passages. As improved history teaching begins to make this possible, students may
achieve a second purpose of building insights into their own lives and contemporary events; the
past can be used to illuminate the present.
Other achievable purposes of history in the elementary school are to develop knowledge of the
American heritage, recognize and place in historical context important persons of the past, and
introduce and gradually build understanding of time and chronology. Of course, these purposes
should be addressed carefully in terms of the cognitive limitations of elementary school students.
History instruction will help children recognize their own relationship to history, realizing that their
actions and lives are a potential part of yet-to-be-written histories. Holding these as the purposes
of history in the elementary school will help students develop a love and respect for history and a
realistic view of its limitations. Only then will students be receptive to more complex and formal
history lessons of the secondary schools.

43 | P a g e
WHAT TEACHING PRACTICES ARE LIKELY TO HELP YOUNG STUDENTS DEVELOP
KNOWLEDGE AND INTEREST IN HISTORY?
Much has been written over the years about the shortcomings of textbook-bound social studies
instruction. Sensitive teachers are aware of the learning and motivational difficulties entailed by
over reliance on a single textbook, regardless of how good it is. Nevertheless, even when the
textbook is the predominate source of instruction, it is still possible to help most students enjoy
and benefit from their daily lessons. Teachers who are successful with this approach take steps
to accommodate the varied reading abilities of their students; they make sure that vocabulary,
conceptual, and experiential foundations are laid prior to reading; and they vary their reading
assignments and routines to help break the boredom of needless repetition.
History instruction can be greatly enhanced by the use of literature. There is a substantial supply
of elementary level historical fiction, biographies, and special purpose reference works related to
history. Teachers should work with their media center and public library to identify the titles of
books which may be used to investigate the past. Such books should be displayed attractively,
used frequently, and discussed as a part of the regular classroom routine.
Instruction about the past is aided by the sounds and images of videotapes, films, and filmstrips.
Although overreliance on these kinds of resources is a fault, careful selection and meaningful
integration with ongoing instruction can do much to enhance students' knowledge of the past.
Special experiences pump life into children's history learning. Such experiences go beyond the
"staples" of the classroom instruction and include field trips to museums and historical sites,
simulations, craft and model-building experiences, individualized and in-depth National History
Day projects, and oral history projects. When students are properly prepared for such
experiences, the depth of understanding they build more than justifies the extra effort they entail.
Field trips to museums and historical sites, for example, work best after considerable study and
preparation. The more students know before entering the experience, the more they will be able
to see, understand, and remember. Perhaps the best type of museum to visit is a "living" one
where volunteers, dressed in clothing of the period, perform the tasks and practice the crafts of
the past. Regardless of whether the museum is of the "living" or traditional variety, it is important
to make advanced reservations and work closely with the resident director, museum educator, or
tour guide.
In conclusion, history should be a vital part of the elementary social studies curriculum. It has
much to offer students who are striving to learn about their world and develop a sense of
themselves in it. Skilled teachers can use the strategies discussed here to help their students
learn history and love it.

REFERENCES AND ERIC RESOURCES

Following is a list of resources, including references used to prepare the Digest. Those items
followed by an ED number are in the ERIC system and are available in microfiche and/or paper
copies from the ERIC Document Reproduction Service (EDRS). For information about prices,
write EDRS, 3900 Wheeler Avenue, Alexandria, Virginia 22304 or call 1-800-227-3742. Entries
followed by an EJ number are annotated monthly in CIJE (CURRENT INDEX TO JOURNALS IN
EDUCATION) which is available in libraries containing ERIC collections. EJ documents are not

44 | P a g e
available through EDRS; however, they can be located in the journal section of most libraries
using the bibliographic information provided below. Bennett, William J. FIRST LESSONS: A
REPORT ON ELEMENTARY EDUCATION IN AMERICA. Washington, DC: U.S. Department of
Education, 1986. ED 270 236.

ASSESSMENT
Task 1
1. Explain the significance of teaching history to grade school pupils/ students.
____________________________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________________________
2. What do you think are the skills that students can develop from studying history?
____________________________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________________________

3. Do you believe that history is a boring subject? Why or why not?

____________________________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________________________

45 | P a g e
____________________________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________________________
4. What do you think is the essence of teaching history using timelines?
____________________________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________________________

Task 2
Choose any topic from grades 1-3 curriculum and make an outline on how you will deliver your
history lesson effectively and age-appropriately.

46 | P a g e
 LESSON 5
TEACHING CIVICS AND CULTURE IN
THE EARLY CHILDHOOD
\
OBJECTIVES:

• Describe civics and culture in the context of early childhood education

• Contextualize civics and culture lessons based on the daily experiences of the pupils
• Plot age-appropriate lessons in teaching civics and culture to pupils

Benefits of Community Involvement in Early Childhood

Community involvement is beneficial in all areas of life. We see the impact it has in the
work force and company culture, in schools, towns, and small businesses around the world.
Perhaps, one of the greatest examples of the profound and inspiring ways that it impacts our
society, is when we look at the benefits of community involvement in early childhood.
Children grow emotionally, intellectually, and physically through both their relationships
and through their community. They might find this community in school or at home, on the
playground, or in the backyard.
For children, community involvement and engagement produces long-term benefits in their lives.
It gives them a sense of belonging and is crucial to the building of their identity.
The National Education Association states that the popular proverb, it takes a village to
raise a child, produces a clear message and that is, “the whole community has an essential role
to play in the growth and development of its young people.” It’s noted that parents and family
members play a vital role in the life of the child and so, too, does the entire community as a whole.
To experience the benefits of community involvement, we must first look at creating the
community. From there, the relationships are built and the self-esteem and happiness of the child
is given a foundation to flourish and succeed.
Community involvement sends a powerful message to children. It’s one that says you are
important. You are loved. You belong. And it’s a message that, with it, holds the strength to
empower every child in the world.

Creating a Community
Community is defined as “a feeling of fellowship with others, as a result of sharing common
attitudes, interests, and goals.” For children, a sense of community brings connection both to their
surroundings and the individuals in those surroundings — further connecting them to their own
unique place in the world.
Let’s think about one of the most simple, yet simultaneously complex, community builders: sound.

47 | P a g e
 Babies enter the world born as natural listeners. They’re accustomed to the loud noises
occurring around them in the womb. They can hear everything from the beating of their mother’s
heart to the soothing nature of her voice. According to parenting.com, babies in utero are getting
their first lessons in native language and are beginning to “[pick] up on the rhythm and melody of
the speech.”
As they grow, children are introduced to a wide assortment of other sounds: the honking
of cars, the noises of their siblings, the drip of the bathtub or the sink, the lullabies of their family
members. Many young children, collectively, take interest in another profound sound: music.
Soundscape and music, at its core, can be one of the most universal ways to create
community among young children. Playthings.com discusses that although early childhood
teachers are intentional in creating children’s physical environments, we often overlook the
soundscape. “First,” they state, “we need to envision sound as a learning domain.” Like touch and
smell, sound is just as pivotal to a young child’s development and their place in the community.
“Second,” they say, “we must build confidence to present sound and music so we can
support the learning.” The article further discusses the importance of the adult community as
facilitators to help children make their discoveries.
Whether in music or otherwise (reading, painting, nature walks, eating new foods) inspiring
the thirst of discovery among children and bringing them together as a community for a common
experience allows them to bond and solidifies their sense of belonging and identity.
Children grow in the context of their community. As they develop within their smaller
community environments (a music circle, an art class, a reading corner) they begin to understand
the wider society as a whole — what actions work and do not work, what values, sensitivities, and
longings we share. The creation of a local community in early childhood becomes the supportive,
positive, uplifting foundation of a child’s life. It helps them to learn about themselves. It helps them
learn how to tackle challenges, build knowledge, and thrive.

Building Relationships
Within communities, children are gifted the opportunity to build relationships that support
their emotional and physical development and help them to succeed in life.
The beauty of participating in the creation of a community is that these events and
experiences eventually lead to the building of profound relationships. These relationships must
become part of the child’s everyday experience and must be nurtured consistently over time.
For children, these relationships can be vastly different and influential in their own unique
ways. Perhaps for some, it’s a grandparent whose home they venture to a few times a week while
a parent is at work. In that relationship, they begin to appreciate and acknowledge a slower pace
of life. They might take a watering can to the garden and spend the afternoon tending to
strawberries and tomatoes. They might spend the morning baking cookies in the kitchen, learning
how to measure the flour and sugar and finding patience in the process of baking.

48 | P a g e
 Maybe it’s a resource parent whom a foster child bonds with over their mutual love for
beautifully illustrated fairy tales or the different colored leaves as they play outside. It could be an
older mentor, who takes them out to the basketball court every morning so they can shoot hoops
and experience their own growth and development as each day, they improve a bit more than the
day before. These relationships are generational and in them, children begin to discover the
differences between the relationships — what is a grandparent, what is a brother, what is an
uncle, a cousin, a friend? And how do these relationships relate to their own identity?
In an article for The Center on Evidence Based Practices for Early Learning at the
University of Colorado at Denver, Gail E. Joseph, Ph.D., & Phillip S. Strain, Ph.D. state, “Building
positive relationships with young children is an essential task and a foundational component of
good teaching.” Children grow, they say, in the context of close and dependable relationships —
relationships that provide love, security, nurturance, and responsive interactions.
With these types of relationships, children are more readily able to understand and
cooperate. Though, like a young seedling, adults must invest time, attention, and patience to the
budding relationships.
“In order for adults to build meaningful positive relationships with children,” Joseph and
Strain write, “it is essential to gain a thorough understanding of children’s preferences, interests,
background, and culture.”
What’s incredible about the child and adult relationship — is that these preferences,
interests, backgrounds, and cultures need not be the same. Often, as adults, we gravitate towards
individuals with similar interests. Does she like surfing? Does he practice yoga? Are they
interested in Italian food, like I am, or are do they prefer Indian food?
Children are innately curious. They’re on a constant quest to discover new information
and new play. They want to know where the deepest ocean is, how the bread rises like that in the
oven, why their eyes might be a different color than your own. They’re fascinated by our
differences.
Positive relationship development and the building of trust can be a long process. Like
Joseph and Strain say, it’s similar to making deposits into a piggy bank. When caregivers and
teachers work to build the relationship, it’s as though they are “making a deposit” into the child’s
relationship piggy bank. When the adults “make demands, nag, or criticize children, it is as if they
are making a relationship withdrawal.”
Depending on the child’s past experience with their relationship piggy bank, they may
need more or less positive deposits in order to build the foundation of trust and love. And if this is
the case, if a child has had more ‘negative’ deposits than ‘positive’ deposits, adults may find that
these children act out more. They might be disruptive, aggressive, and difficult to deal with which
may cause us to get angry, nag, or raise our voices.
But, as the authors articulate, “the very children we find the most difficult to build
relationships with are the ones who need positive relationships with adults the most.”
It’s true that building relationships will be simple with some children and difficult with
others. It takes consistent commitment and a whole lot of love. But luckily, for adults, it’s incredibly
gratifying. It allows us, in our own way, to learn and grow through high fives, games, hugs, stories,
conversations, and acknowledgment and appreciation for one another.

49 | P a g e
 For children, building relationships with others become prominent to the relationship they
build with themselves. It should be filled with understanding, love, and trust.

Improving Self-Esteem
Children with high self-esteem and a positive self-image feel capable, accepted, and
encouraged. Parents.com states that, “a positive sense of self is one of the greatest gifts you can
give your child” and helps them “develop into happy, productive people.”
At the community level — whether we are a mentor, a teacher, a parent, an aunt, a
godparent, an adoptive parent, a sibling — we are given the opportunity to boost a child’s self-
esteem and help prepare them for a successful and invigorating path ahead.
“Do give them choices,” author Kristen Finello of parents.com further writes.” Choices help
children feel empowered. At breakfast, let them choose between eggs, pancakes, french toast,
or yogurt. By implementing the power of decision making early on, children will be more able and
prepared to face more difficult choices down the road.
“Don’t do everything for her,” she writes. Be patient and allow the child to figure things out
on their own. This can be as simple as letting them tie their shoes. Sure — it may take longer to
get to get the shoes tied and get out the door. But if you have the time, let them meet the
challenge, learn the skill, and grow from it.
“Do let him know no one is perfect,” Finello states. This is advice that is applicable for
everyone and should be proclaimed from the rooftops to kids and adults alike. No one is perfect.
And no one expects anyone else to be perfect, either. We all make mistakes. We all learn. We all
grow. In fact, that’s one of life’s greatest pleasures, watching ourselves change and become who
we want to be. When a child makes a mistake, try not to react with disappointment. Instead ask,
how can I help them grow from this?
When kids feel both accepted and understood from adults, they begin to accept
themselves, too. This positive reinforcement transfers over into their behaviors and can produce
a lifetime of happiness and strength in mental health. There is an incredibly strong correlation
between how children feel about themselves and how they act — so, too, for the adult. Therefore,
if we approach ourselves and our community with confidence, we are better equipped to instill
this same sort of confidence within children.
Whether you’re approaching your own connection to community involvement and the
development of children from the point of view of a parent, a guardian, a friend, a grandparent, a
teacher — every point of connection makes a difference. Every dot that is connected leads us to
a stronger, healthier, happier, and more well-rounded society as a whole. Every positive impact
that is made on the playground, in the garden, at school, at the community center, leads to a
change and an influence over our entire society.
If we put in work, and the heart, at the community level for our children, we’re working to
give them the foundation for a better future. Children are gifted the opportunity to learn, grow, and
achieve greatness and happiness through their community.

50 | P a g e
Let’s work together to unify, engage, and build these connections around the entire world — one
community, one child, at a time.

How Do You Explain Culture To A Child

Teaching your children about culture at a young age will greatly impact their lives by helping them
understand and respect differences in all people throughout the world. Furthermore, providing
your child with insightful information about the context of race, customs, values, language and
familial history will shape their experiences and influence their development into adulthood.
Sparking your children’s curiosity by making them culturally aware will play an essential role in
how they make sense of the world.

Begin by talking about your own upbringing or stories that have been passed down by your
parents, because stories of cultural history can provide a rich view on cultural heritage.
Additionally, spending time with loved ones that have first-hand accounts of life in another country
or within a completely different culture will provide a well-rounded understanding of your child’s
background. Explore your family tree with your children and talk about how family history is
important to understanding diversity. Encourage your children to talk about their family traditions
with their friends, as they will grow up proud of it when they explain it to those around them.

Reading books and watching foreign movies with your children teaches them about different
cultures and countries and encourages acceptance and education of new cultures. When learning
about different cultures through characters, your child will further empathize and generate
enthusiasm for other cultures and traditions. Experiment in the kitchen and cook traditional meals
with your children while using it as a teaching opportunity. Talking about recipes and what they
mean to your family’s history will give them a greater sense of cultural identity and admiration.

Task 1
1. Explain the significance of teaching civics and culture to early childhood/ grade school
students.
____________________________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________________________

51 | P a g e
2. What do you think are the skills that students can develop from studying civics and culture?
____________________________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________________________

3. Do you believe that teaching civics and culture would affect the value system of our pupils?
Expound your answer.
____________________________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________________________
Task 2
Choose any topic from grades 1-3 curriculum and make an outline on how you will deliver your
civics and culture lesson effectively and age-appropriately.

52 | P a g e
 LESSON 6
TEACHING GEOGRAPHY IN THE
EARLY CHILDHOOD
\ OBJECTIVES:
• Describe geography in the context of early childhood education
• Contextualize geography lessons based on the daily experiences of the pupils
• Plot age-appropriate lessons in teaching geography to pupils

Bodies of Water

The Philippines boast of many different kinds of natural water forms, such as bays, rivers,
lakes falls, gulfs, straits, and swamps. Because it is made up of islands, the country's coastline,
if laid end-to-end, would measure around 17.5 thousand kilometers. The Philippines is blessed
with excellent natural harbors for ports like Manila Bay. Other excellent harbors with port
potentials are found in Ilocos, Pangasinan, Visayas, and Mindanao. The three largest rivers in the
country are the Cagayan River in Northern Luzon, the Rio Grande de Mindanao, and the Agusan
River, also in Mindanao. Also noteworthy in terms of size are the Agno, Pasig, Angat Pampanga,
and Bicol rivers in Luzon. Most popular among tourist is the famous underground river in Palawan.
Aside from rivers, the country also abounds with lakes. Easily the most famous is the heart-
shaped Laguna de Bay. Other famous lakes are Taal in Batangas, Sampaloc in Laguna, Buhi and
Bulusan in Bicol, Naujan in Mindoro oriental, and Lanao and Mainit in Mindanao. Generating
power for the Nation’s growth are the magnificent waterfalls that serve as tourist attractions, as
well. The biggest is waterfalls is the Maria Cristina falls, it can be found in the North Western part
of Lanao province in Mindanao, while the most popular is Pagsanjan falls in Laguna, where tourist
came in droves.

Natural Resources

The Philippines is rich in natural resources. It has fertile,

arable lands, diverse flora and fauna, extensive coastlines, and
rich mineral deposits. About 30% of the land area of the country was
determined be geologically prospective by the Philippine Mines and
Geo-Sciences Bureau. But Only 1.5% of country's land area is
covered with mining permits. Despite the rich natural resources of the
Philippines, the government is restricting its exploitation. A logging
ban is imposed on many areas of the country and only in select areas
are "sustainable logging" allowed. However illegal logging and small-
scale illegal mining continues is many areas. In July 2012,
President Benigno Aquino III ordered a stop to all mining activities in
all (78 areas) protected and eco-tourism sites. A positive step in the
right direction to protect the natural resources of the Philippines.

53 | P a g e
Our Land

The Philippines’ primary

source of livelihood is its fertile land.
Rich, wide plains suitable for farming
are found in the Cagayan
Valley, Central Luzon, South western
Bicol, Panay, Negros, Davao,
Cotabato, Agusan and Bukidnon. The
country ‘s six

major crops are rice, corn, sugarcane, coconut, abaca and tobacco. Except for rice and corn, all
these products are exported, along with bananas and pineapples.

Our Forests

The Philippines also boasts of wide tracts of lush, green forests. In fact, almost half of the
country’s total land area is forested. Sixty percent of these forests are found in Mindanao.

Mineral resources

Except for petroleum and a number of metals, mineral resources abound in Philippine soil.
The country’s mineral deposits can be classified into metals and non-metals. Our metal deposits
are estimated at 21.5 billion metric tons, while non-metal deposits are projected at 19.3 billion
metric tons. Nickel ranks first in terms of deposits and size, it is found in Surigao del Norte, Davao,
Palawan, Romblon and Samar. Iron is found in Ilocos Norte, Nueva Ecija, Camarines Norte and
Cotabato. While copper in Zambales, Batangas, Mindoro, Panay and Negros. Among non-metal
deposits, the most abundant are cement, lime, and marble. Other non-metals include asbestos,
clay, guano, asphalt, feldspar, sulfur, talc, silicon, phosphate, and marble.

Fishery Resources

With its territorial waters measuring as much as 1.67 million square kilometers and located
in the worlds fishing center, the Philippines is definitely rich in marine resources. Of the 2,400 fish
species found in the country. 65 have good commercial value. Other marine products
include corals, pearls, crabs and seaweeds. Some of the countries best salt water fishing area’s
are found in Sintangki Island in Sulu Estancia in Bohol, Malampaya in Palawan, Lingayen Gulf in
Pangasinan, San Miguel lake in Camarines Norte, Bantayan Channel in Cebu, and the seas of
Quezon and Sorsogon.

On the other hand, among our biggest fisher water fishing areas are Laguna de Bay,
Bombon Lake in Batangas, Bato Lake in Canmarines Sur, Naujan Lake in Mindoro and Mainit
lake in Agusan del Norte.

How Geography Affects Early History

When you study ancient civilizations almost anywhere in the world, one simple fact jumps
out to meet you. Most civilizations initially formed around major rivers, especially those that led to

54 | P a g e
oceans. We can point to the early civilizations that formed along the Nile River in Egypt, the Tigris
and Euphrates Rivers in the Middle East, the Yangtze River in China, or the Ganges River of
India. Each development had a lasting influence on history.

What geographic feature influenced these events? What were the advantages of living in
this particular area as opposed to some other? It is easy to see several advantages of living on
or near a major river. Historically, rivers provided a constant supply of clean, fresh water for
humans, their crops and animals. A major river provided an easy means of transportation and
exploration, especially if it emptied into an ocean. Larger rivers also provided protection against
invasion because it was difficult to transport a large army and its supplies across a wide, deep
river. The availability of fish and other marine related food added yet another benefit to being near
a major river. Think about how the Mississippi River played such a role in the opening up of
America.

On the other hand, living far from water meant that the tribe or group were almost always
forced to be nomadic. They followed the animals, which followed the grass, which was determined
by the prevailing rains. Most of these groups had a somewhat more difficult lifestyle than their
settled urban counterparts. So, the role of fresh water can easily be seen as a major influence on
history because it helps to explain why civilizations were located in particular places.

Living on or near a major river also had its challenges. While it may have brought trade
and commerce, it could also bring invasions and wars. A short study of the Vikings and the Norse
indicates how these groups used most of the major rivers and oceans of Europe, all the way to
the Baltic Sea, to raid and plunder in their swift warships. Rivers also brought floods which wiped
out entire cities, sometimes more than once. Each of these events, based on a geographic
feature, affected the history of the civilization involved.

Mountain Barriers

Mountains also have a major role to play in the history of most countries. In the past,
mountains were the barriers that restricted movement. Whether that is the movement of explorers,
settlers, traders or armies is of importance at various times in a nation's development.

In the United States. for example, expansion of the original thirteen colonies was blocked
by the many ranges of the Appalachian mountain chain. The mountains made expansion to the
west difficult. Due to the agreements made between the native Indians and the settlers, the land
to the west of the mountains was considered to belong to the Indians. At some point, some
adventurer discovered the Cumberland Gap through these mountains and slowly but surely trade,
commerce and settlement flowed through it. The rest is history.

Mountains and mountain passes have had historic effects because of their military
significance. The three hundred Spartan soldiers who held off Xerxes and his thousands of
Persian warriors at the pass at Thermopylae saved ancient Greece from being conquered by the
Persian empire. The same outcome could never have happened on an open plain. The defense
of the Iron Gap, a pass through the Carpathian Mountains, kept the nomadic hordes of Huns from
capturing parts of Europe. During the final stages of the American Civil War, the battle of
Kennesaw Pass slowed the advancing Union armies in the same way that the Kesselring Line in
Italy's northern Alps temporarily fended off Allied troops from entering Germany at the end of
World War II.

55 | P a g e
Weather and Geography

Many students may not immediately see the impact of some geographic phenomenon on
subsequent events. Weather and land features, for example, were both major influences in the
defeat of both Napoleon's "Grande Armee" and Hitler's 6th Army in their separate attempts to
conquer Russia. The Russian winter, the overextended supply lines, and the very long retreat
back over the Russian steppes in subzero temperatures, ensured their defeat. Each army lost
more than 250,000 men-another examples of how geography causes history to change.

Weather affects geography. Think of hurricanes, volcanoes, tsunamis, earthquakes,

avalanches and other such events. These have left their mark on the pages of history as well.
The San Francisco earthquake, the eruption of Mount Etna which wiped out the Italian city of
Pompeii, and Hurricane Katrina, each left an imprint on regional and national histories.

Guiding Our Learning

Now that the relationship between geography and history may be a little clearer, we can
decide on how to make sure that our students know basic geography facts so that they can use
this knowledge to understand both disciplines and their mutual interdependence.

Advanced knowledge is derived from an understanding of basic facts. Students obviously

must be completely familiar with the basic concepts and the fundamental facts of geography to
appreciate their effect on history. The physical geography of any region is the template upon
which its history is written. Knowing the template's features fluently allows the student to
understand the history more quickly and easily. The student must be able to label certain features
quickly and accurately such as landforms, rivers, weather and climate information, the crops or
products, the resources available, transportation hubs and routes and other geographic data. The
student must be able to understand and apply the basic terms and concepts of geography
including their definitions. They can only be considered fluent when they can do without hesitation
and/or error.

Although they don't know it, this mother is helping her children learn geography. The children are
beginning to understand the nature of the world and their place in it. The acorn was not on the
ground a month ago. It's new on this trip! Acorns fall from trees that grow in their neighborhood,
and that means fall is coming. When they pick up the acorn or leaves, they make the ground
neater. The squirrel lives here too, and runs and jumps in a special way that children can imitate
in their own homes. Cars move people from one place to another; and mailboxes move
information. Cars and street signs use symbols or pictures that tell people where they are, or
where they are from. The neighborhood is divided into regions—some for houses, some for
stores. Young children learn through their senses and experiences. They touch, feel, smell, and
taste things. They run and jump and climb. They play imaginary games, and they ask a million
questions. In an everyday walk these children are beginning to understand how people relate to
the Earth, how they change the environment, how weather changes the character of a place, and
how one place relates to another through the movement of people, things, and ideas. Children's
everyday play and experiences give them the basis for the geographic knowledge that they will
learn in school. With just a little encouragement and some direction, young children will develop
the vocabulary, awareness, and curiosity that will help them better understand and learn
geography. With this book we hope you as parents will get ideas that will use your children's play

56 | P a g e
to help them learn more geography—the study of the Earth and its human, animal, and plant
population. Most of the suggestions in this book are geared to children from 2 to 5 years of age.
Parents of children with disabilities can use the activities in this book, although some may have
to be adapted. Keep in mind that all youngsters vary widely in their development. Children may
find any of the activities appropriate. The activities and games are organized around five specific
themes that help focus our thinking. These themes were developed by professional geographers
and are now being used in many schools. They are: 1. Where are things located? 2. What
characteristics make a place special? 3. What are the relationships among people and places?
4. What are the patterns of movement of people, products, and information? 5. How can the Earth
be divided into regions for study? Each chapter begins with some background, examples of
questions geographers ask, and some explanations of the early developmental skills that are
involved. Next, there are two sets of activities—one for children ages 2 to 3 and a second set for
children ages 4 to 5. These activities will help children gain the skills that lay the foundation for
the study of geography.

A child’s developing sense of place

Most children are born ready and eager to explore their physical world. Drawing on the work of
Jean Piaget, Gandy (2007) suggests that children begin developing their sense of place during
early childhood. Equipped with curiosity and their five senses, young children explore and
manipulate materials in their environment to understand the world around them. In preschool and
early primary classrooms, geography is often viewed traditionally, focusing on activities that build
geographic skills, such as mapmaking. However, the geography discipline consists of two main
subfields: physical geography and human geography. While physical geography is the study of
the natural environment, human geography is the study of the relationship between humans and
their natural environment (National Geographic n.d.). With human geography as a framework, the
focus shifts to include a geographic sense of place. Developing this sense of place lets children
know that they belong in the physical world around them and in the social and cultural world they
share with others. When teachers implement geography projects and investigations with the goal
of increasing children’s connections with their physical environments, children enhance their
cognitive skills as well as social and emotional ones. Yi-Fu Tuan (2001), the Chinese American
human geographer recognized for his definitions of space and place, wrote that people of all ages
need to develop a sense of place in order to understand their status in the world and form a sense
of self-identity. Sense of place becomes part of what adults need to be considered geo-literate—
having the tools and knowledge to protect natural and cultural resources, reduce violent conflicts,
and improve the quality of life worldwide (Edelson 2011). Through interactions with the
environment and each other, children develop geo-literacy skills, become empowered, and see
themselves as capable social beings.

A sense of place = A sense of belonging

A developing sense of place is linked to a sense of belonging. A sense of belonging contributes
to children’s overall social and emotional development and is an essential aspect of school
readiness (Epstein 2009). Keep in mind that space is different from place. While space is location,
place is used by humanistic geographers to describe our attachment to specific locations
(Cresswell 2013). To put that succinctly, our address marks the location of our house, but place

57 | P a g e
describes where we feel at home (Vergeront 2013). In “Pedagogy of Ecology, “Ann Pelo describes
a recent visit home: “In Utah I remembered, with a child’s open-hearted joy, how it feels to give
[yourself] over to a place, to be swept into an intimate embrace with the earth. In Utah, I
understood that place is part of our identity—that place shapes our identity” (2009, 30).
Many adults fondly recall places in their childhoods. They remember a favorite tree they climbed,
the creek where they looked for frogs, the smells and sounds of playing on the streets after dark,
or the backyard clubhouses where they imagined and pretended with friends. Adults remember
neighborhood stores and other places they visited over and over, where they met familiar friendly
people. These relationships foster a deep connection and sense of commitment to people and
places.
Human geography as a vital early childhood subject Many children today do not have the same
experiences of playing and roaming freely through the neighborhood, as children did in
generations past. Children’s interactions with places are becoming impersonal—shopping at
chain stores in malls and interacting with technology instead of their environment. Yet children
still need to develop the necessary skills to become informed and active decision makers who are
connected to the world around them.

Teachers as place-makers
In the most recent publication of the National Curriculum Standards for Social Studies, the
National Council for the Social Studies (2010) defines social studies as the promotion of civic
competence—the ability to actively participate in society. Within social studies, geography
education promotes development of reasoning and inquiry skills by generating questions and
using an inquiry-based approach to explore the answers (Bliss 2008). These skills are essential
for gaining independence in work and school. Many geography-related investigations and
curriculum ideas for young children begin with children’s relationships with people and places.
Since children’s experiences with nature and the environment outside of school can vary
tremendously, teachers can intentionally plan explorations of the landscapes, soundscapes, and
smellscapes of the school environment with walking tours and explorations of the school building,
school grounds, and local neighborhoods. In addition to fostering academic skills and knowledge
acquisition, these explorations will help children develop a relationship with the local environment,
which nurtures a sense of place. For young children, physical environment can play a role in
development and attachment. Accessible environments reflect the idea that all children are valued
and their differing abilities or modes of learning are understood and respected. Teachers can
begin planning for all children by making sure they prepare the classroom environment.
Classroom environments are integral to a child’s development of a sense of place. When teachers
understand how the geography of the classroom and the arrangement of the classroom
furnishings help to either support or hinder their instructional objectives, they are acting as what
Schneekloth and Shibley (1995) termed classroom “place-makers.” Teachers’ purposeful use of
environmental design helps children understand the space and the place they share with peers
and adults (Schneekloth & Shibley 1995). Influential research by Kritchevsky, Prescott, and
Walling (1969) looks at the organization of the physical environment. They observe that poor
arrangement and organization of furniture and materials, such as pathways that interfere with the
play of other children or materials that are not arranged in a logical and accessible manner, cause
children to be more dependent on the teacher for guidance and instruction. As a result, teachers

58 | P a g e
spend a significant amount of time directing and addressing the needs of the whole group, which
inevitably leaves less time to assist individual children.

Activities Direction
Concepts of location begin early in life. By age 2, children are able to distinguish between
objects that are near and can be grasped, and those that are farther away. They can notice
features of their immediate surroundings, such as the bedroom or yard. The idea of direction is a
difficult concept. Children develop the concept of direction through experiences such as climbing,
jumping, running, and rolling around. Children need to physically experience themselves in space.
First, children need to develop body awareness; to understand where their body is in a room,
including its size and level (upright, crawling or stooping, or on the floor); how the body's different
parts are put together with wriggling wrists and wobbling ankles, and how to move in directions
like forward, backward, or sideways. When they know how their body moves, they will have the
basis for learning precise directions and locations later in life. The more opportunities children
have to run and move about, the greater their ability to keep track of position and location.
Children with disabilities have a special need to experience space, direction, and location.
Even when using a wheelchair, children can play simple dancing games that help them orient
themselves in space. They can take field trips into the community and use maps to follow
directions.

Ages 2–3

• Give toddlers a lot of opportunities to run about and explore their environment
• Babies love to play ``So Big.'' When you ask them how big they are they raise their hands
over their heads and everyone says, ``so big.'' Now that they are older, ask toddlers to
make themselves very tall or very small by standing on tip toes, or stooping down.
• Have toddlers play at moving in different directions, like backward, forward, or sideways.
• A simple game to play is ``Mother, May I.'' To play, stand at the opposite end of a room
from your children. Take turns having them ask, ``Mother, may I''. . . jump two steps. . . or
hop quickly. . . or take one big step. After you say, ``Yes, you may,'' they take the requested
steps. The first to reach you is the winner.
• Give toddlers discarded cardboard boxes to climb in and out of, get under, put things in,
and play with. Talk about what they are doing: ``Where are you? Oh, you are under the
box!'' Parents can participate too. ``Daddy's feet are in the box!''
• Let your toddler play with pots and pans or plastic kitchen containers, fitting them together
and putting them away. They will become familiar with shapes and sizes, as well as
concepts like in and on.
• Children need to understand positional words. You can teach these by involving them in
household tasks. Teach children a lot of positional words like above and below in a natural
way when you talk with them or give them directions. When picking up toys to put away
say, ``Please put your toys into the yellow basket'' or ``Put the green washcloth into the
drawer.'' Words that describe features such as color, size, and shape are also important.
• When looking through books, point out where objects are, like a teddy bear sitting on the
bed.

59 | P a g e
Ages 4–5
Ideas of direction develop gradually through preschoolers' experiences. Try some of the following
activities to introduce terms of direction:

• Use words left and right in connection with real situations. Play circle games like ``Sally
Go Round the Moon'' or ``The Hokey Pokey.'' ``Start with your right foot.'' To make this
easier, you can put a felt marker dot, or a bracelet or string, on one of your child's hands.
Find ways to modify the games for children with disabilities so they can experience
themselves in space.
• When you go somewhere, use directional terms. ``We'll turn right here.'' ``Shawndra's
house is three blocks from us, so we have to look for the gas station. That is where we
turn left.''
• You can get your child to understand ideas like north, south, east, and west, by pointing
out that the kitchen is always sunny in the mornings because it faces east and that is
where the sun comes up. Or, you might sit on the stoop to catch the afternoon sun because
the sun sets in the west.
• Help increase your children's vocabulary by using pictures from books and magazines so
they can associate words with visual images. A picture of a desert can get you started
talking about the features of a desert—not much water, not many green trees. Talk with
your children to help them find more detailed words to describe different natural and
cultural features.
• When you go outside, look back at your home and ask your children to point to where they
live. Can they find their room? When you walk across the street, look back and ask again
if they can point to their home.
• On a walk around your neighborhood point out other signs that indicate location. There
are street signs and numbers on apartments and homes. Ask your children how a friend
would find your home if they didn't have a number or street name.

Maps
Maps represent the real world. Young children won't fully understand maps until they are much
older. However, without a foundation from their own experiences, children will not develop into
successful map readers or users when they are older. Personal experience helps children
understand maps and how they use symbols, which can be introduced to children when they are
quite young.
Before children can learn to use maps, they must understand that maps are tools to help us find
where we are and where we are going. They need to know that maps and globes use other
symbols and the concept of scale. They are pictures from a ``bird's eye view,'' and reduce the
size of an actual place.

60 | P a g e
Ages 2–3

• Toddlers can't use maps. But they can become familiar with the idea that maps help
people locate themselves in space. Just as they know that books have symbols that
represent words, they can understand that maps and globes have symbols that represent
things in the physical world. Symbols have meaning. Colors, lines, and markings on a map
stand for something.
• Let your children see you reading maps and using globes. They should become familiar
objects in your home.
• Keep a globe or a map of the United States near the television and use it to locate places
talked about on television programs, or to follow the travels of your favorite sports team.
Very young children won't be able to fully understand globes, but they will become familiar
objects.
• Point out signs that indicate location. In a store or other public place there will be entrance
and exit signs, and signs that indicate stairs, escalators, and elevators. Many signs use
symbols. Point them out and talk about them. In elevators or other places, show children
how people with visual impairments use Braille signs.
• Look at videos or photographs of yourself and your children. Point out how much smaller
everyone looks than they really are. A map is like a photograph. A photograph represents
you, only it is smaller. A map represents a large area, but it is small.
• Give children all kinds of blocks and boxes with which to play. You can put paper signs on
blocks to show where the toy store or their house would be. When they pretend that the
blocks represent objects, they are beginning to understand how people use symbols.

Ages 4–5

• By the time children are four and five years old some can use a simple map to locate an
object. They understand that maps represent reality. They also can develop beginning
ideas of scale, symbols, and perspective, and the idea that maps are tools people use to
locate themselves in space. Put your child's natural curiosity to work. Even small children
can learn to read simple diagrams or plans of their homes, or maps of their bedrooms,
school, neighborhood, and community.
• When your children play with toy trucks and cars they are learning the use of symbols.
Take advantage of this opportunity, and either draw a rough map of a highway, a city, or
a park over which they can run their trucks, or pretend that things around your house are
trees or fields.
• Point to symbols you use in your daily life. For example, you stop at a red light, and go on
the green. Red means stop, green means go.
• If you are upstairs in a building, look out the window and ask your children how the world
below looks. Is it small? The higher up you go, the smaller things on the ground appear,
just like looking at a map.
• Before taking a trip, use a map to show your children where you are going and how you
plan to get there. On the map, point out other routes you could take and talk about why
you decided to use a particular route.
• Encourage children to draw and make their own maps. They can draw make believe maps
of places they have visited or just imagined. They can use felt markers—but let them use

61 | P a g e
 blocks and milk cartons as well, for a three--dimensional approach. Children may build,
draw, or paint maps well before they are able to read them.
• Go on a walk and collect natural materials such as acorns and leaves to use for an art
project. Map the location where you found those items.
• Many games use maps of journeys. Some libraries will lend games as well as books.
• If you go for a walk in a state or national park, get a map of the pathways and let your child
carry it around and ``consult'' it.
• Work jigsaw puzzles of the United States or the world. Through the placement of puzzle
pieces, children can feel and see where one place is located in relation to others.

What Is It Like?
The second theme used by geographers is the theme of place. Every place has a personality.
Just like people, places may have a lot in common, but no two are exactly alike. We can learn a
lot about the people and the physical characteristics of any given place. What makes a place
special? What are the physical and human characteristics of your hometown? Is the soil sandy or
rocky? Is the temperature warm or is it cold? Did important historical events occur there? Do you
live near a river or lake? What physical features are most important or different from other places?
What about the people? How do they affect the characteristics of a place? What is their language,
what do they believe in, what do their houses and buildings look like? What type of work do they
do? All of these features define the special character of a place. When your children learn about
the trees, roads, and buildings that make up their neighborhood and city, they see that where they
live is special. Young children can learn to name the physical traits of the places in which they
live, naming the landforms, bodies of water, soil, plants, weather, and climate in their immediate
surroundings from their own point of view.

What Is My Home Like?

Early experiences can increase children's awareness of the world around them. Learning about
geography begins with children's ability to notice, examine, and think about their own
environment. As very young children have direct experiences in their home and immediate
environment, they will be able to build more accurate concepts of the Earth. These experiences
will be useful when children move to the next stage of thinking.

Ages 2–3

• Toddlers learn about the world through their senses. By playing in water, sand, dirt, and
even mud, they will learn about the physical characteristics of their home. By pointing out
to them differences and similarities between your home and that of your friends or
relatives, you will help them notice the human characteristics of home.
• Point out the special features of your home. Do you live in an apartment building with long
halls, or in a house with a porch? Do most people walk everywhere, or do they drive? Are
the buildings all the same color or many different colors? Baltimore has rows of houses
with marble steps; New Orleans has houses with second floor porches; Arizona has

62 | P a g e
 houses that are only one story; farmhouses are near barns and silos. How do you describe
the place where you live?
• A small pile of sand is enough to keep toddlers busy for a long time. Give them plastic
containers with or without lids, old plastic bottles, spoons, scoops, a sieve, and a few small
pots and pans. Feeling the sand or water pour through their fingers, pouring it from one
container to another, watching it sift through the holes in a sieve, children are learning
about their world.
• Young children are fascinated by water play. By playing with water, children learn its
properties—it pours, it can be contained, it can be squirted. You can make water even
more interesting by adding a few drops of bubble bath or soap suds. The bubbles will keep
children interested. When you are bathing them, let them play in the bathtub, and help
them describe the way the water feels and how it acts.
• Use songs to teach geography. ``Home on the Range,'' ``Red River Valley,'' and ``This
Land Is Your Land'' bring to mind images of a place. Children enjoy folk songs of different
countries like ``Sur La Pont D'Avignon,'' ``Guantanamara,'' and ``London Bridge.'' They
can even play the game of London Bridge Is Falling Down.

Ages 4–5

• Walk around your neighborhood, looking at what is there and talking about it. Describe
the surfaces on which you walk—``the grass feels soft,'' ``concrete is hard, so cars can
drive on it,'' ``gravel feels bumpy under our feet.'' Encourage children to use their senses
to become aware of the things that make up their world.
• As you walk with your children, point out the different types of houses, porches, sidewalks,
and even streets. Play ``I Spy'' by saying, ``I spy something red'' and then have your
children look around to find what you are ``spying.'' When one of them guesses correctly,
he or she can become the ``spy'' and think of something for you to find.
• Look at the soil, plants, insects, birds, and other animal life. Ask what things you find most
often in your neighborhood. What does the soil look like? Are there rocks and pebbles?
Look at their shape, color, and size and describe them.
• How many birds and animals can you find in your neighborhood? Where do they live?
Discuss what they might eat.
• Encourage your children to role play and don't be afraid to participate with them. You can
pretend you are explorers walking on rocks over a make--believe creek. Have them hop
on imaginary camels and wander into the kitchen--oasis for a glass of water.

What Is the Weather Today?

The weather is an important part of the character of a place. The amount of sun or rain,
heat or cold, the direction and strength of the wind, all determine such things as how people
dress, how well crops grow, and the extent to which people will want to live in a particular spot.
Join your children in observing weather conditions.

63 | P a g e
Ages 2–3

• As you dress your children in the morning talk about the sunshine or rain, the heat or the
cold, and how they need to dress for the weather.
• Bundle up and take your toddler for a walk when it is windy, raining, or snowing. Talk about
the experience—about how it felt to be outside, how you dressed for it, what the weather
did to your clothes. What did the wind feel like? What did the rain smell like? Was the
snow soft, and was it cold? How did things outside look different from when the sun was
shining?
• Take a pinwheel outside, listen to a wind chime, or fly a kite. Let your children tell you what
happened when they took their weather toy outside.

Ages 4–5

• Look at a large outdoor thermometer together and talk about what the temperature tells
us about the day.
• Watch the weather forecast on television or read the weather map in the newspaper.
Reading the weather map helps children observe changes in the local climate.
• Use a weather map in the daily paper to look up the temperatures of cities around the
world and discover how hot some get in the summer and how cold some get in the winter.
Look up the temperature in several cities, and have your children guess what that
temperature might be. ``It's 45 degrees here in New York City. What do you think the
temperature is in Florida today?'' Compare these figures with your town. Ask your children
if they can think of reasons why different locations have different temperatures. Many
children enjoy finding the place that is the hottest or the coldest.
• Watch cloud formations and make your own predictions. Will it rain? Will the weather
change tomorrow? What do the clouds look like? Don't be afraid to guess, and then check
your prediction later in the day.

How Do We Adjust To Where We Live?

How do people adjust to their environment? How do people change the environment to
better suit their needs? Geographers examine where people live, why they settled there, and how
they use natural resources. For example, traveling Bushmen in Australia carry water in ostrich
eggs because water is so scarce in their environment. In other places we turn up the heat or put
on a sweater when it gets cold. All people change something about the way they live in order to
adapt to their environment.
Throughout early childhood, children become increasingly aware of how people and the
Earth interact. They know and experience how the weather and climate affect their daily lives.
Toddlers are just beginning to understand the world in which they live. Parents often try to get
them to understand what they need to do to adapt to their surroundings, like wear a jacket when
it is cold, or take off their socks when it is hot outside. By ages 4 and 5, children are beginning to
learn what they can do to adjust, and they are beginning to see how people change the Earth to
their own benefit.

64 | P a g e
Ages 2–3

• Toddlers think of themselves as the center of the world. The daily routines of dressing,
eating, and playing are the basis for learning how the Earth affects them, and how they
adapt to their environment.
• Daily routines help toddlers make sense of their world. With routines they learn that
morning is followed by afternoon, and night follows day. As stable as their routines are,
changes will occur. These changes occur because of rain, wind, storms, or other weather
conditions. Point this out to them. ``We can't go out today because of the ice and someone
could slip, fall, and get hurt'' or ``The weather is so nice today, let's take our lunch to the
park and have a picnic.''
• Add a squirt bottle of water to the sand pile so children can become aware that they have
some control over the Earth. Within limits they can adapt things to their needs. Show them
how to make sand pies by packing containers with wet sand and dumping out a sand pie
or cake. They can create mountains and then count them. Remember, they are developing
an awareness of how to control their environment.

Ages 4–5

• When going through your neighborhood, name the different types of houses you find.
Distinguish between 1--story, 2--story, and multi--story houses. You might see
apartments, duplexes, townhouses, single family houses, trailers, or farm houses. When
you go on a trip, point out dwellings that are different from those in your neighborhood.
• Animals need shelter too. Point out animal homes such as birds' and squirrels' nests, ant
hills, beehives, and barns.
• Nearly everywhere people are building something. Stop to watch and observe how earth
is moved and buildings go up. What materials are being used? Are builders using the
stones that are found in your neighborhood, or are they making concrete out of sand and
cement?
• Move the furniture around in your child's room and talk about how you are changing how
he or she uses the space.
• Plant flowers in either a window box or a garden and water them together with your child.
Talk about why the plants need water. What happens if you forget to water the plants?
• If you live in an urban area, try to visit a nearby farm. Some cities and states maintain farm
parks for just this purpose. Call the Department of Parks or Recreation in your area to find
one near you. Talk with your children about how farmers use natural resources— soil,
water, and sun—to grow crops and raise livestock. How do they keep livestock from
wandering off? How do they prevent crops from being eaten by birds or destroyed by
disease.
• Spend the day outside with your children. If possible, go camping. It is easy to understand
why we wear long pants and shoes when there are rocks and branches on the ground. In
the woods, with no plumbing and indoor water, it will be clear why early settlers found it
so important to be near water.

65 | P a g e
How Do People, Things, and Ideas Move From One Place To Another?
The study of geography includes learning how people, products, and information move
from one place to another. People all over the world travel everyday to go to work, go to school,
and see relatives. Products like sugar and coffee are shipped from country to country. Information
is communicated via telephones, televisions, faxes, and computers. Understanding movement
helps your children see that people all over the world need each other for many things.

How Do People and Things Move?

Ages 2–3

• Toddlers are expert travelers. In their attempt to learn what they can do and what the world
is all about, toddlers climb over, under, and into nearly everything. They crawl, run, and
walk around everything else. Let them play on wheel toys, wagons, and push and pull
toys.
• Ask them how many different ways they can move. They can go fast or slow. They can
crawl, hop, jump, or slither like a snake.
• Make a tunnel for children to crawl through. Cut both ends out of a couple of cardboard
boxes, turn the boxes over and line them up. Toddlers will enjoy crawling into, through,
and out of a tunnel.
• Give toddlers something to ride. A variety of vehicles with a seat and no pedals—some in
the shape of animals—are available for toddlers who push themselves around with their
feet. Pull your children in a wagon.
• Children with physical disabilities also need to experience movement. All children can
have opportunities to travel by car, bus, or the back of a bicycle. If possible, take other
forms of transportation such as airplanes, trains, subways, boats, ferries, barges, and
horses and carriages. Take a map with you.
• Toy trains with tracks and other wheeled toys are good ways to play traveling.
• When you give your child a bath, blow or push toy boats to move them to different places.
Use sponges or washcloths as make--believe islands.

Ages 4–5

• Go around your house and look at where things come from. Examine the labels of the
clothes you wear and the food you eat. Talk about where they come from. Why do some
bananas come from Central America? Why does milk come from the local dairy? Perhaps
your climate is too cold for bananas. The milk will spoil if it is not refrigerated for too long,
so it can't travel far. How did the food get to your house?
• Take a trip to the local supermarket to watch the food being delivered. How many different
trucks do you see? Is there a separate truck for the bread and the fruit and vegetables?
• When you are outside, ask your children to watch animals traveling. Find animals that fly,
swim, crawl under or over the ground, run, jump, and hop. Organize your findings. Count
the number of animals you saw that moved in each way.

66 | P a g e
 • Children who are just learning to use their bodies in space can imitate other forms of travel.
They can hop like a rabbit, jump like a squirrel, slither like a snake. They can climb a chair
and pretend it is a train or a plane.
• Have your children ask older relatives what their world was like when they were young.
They can ask questions about transportation, heating and refrigeration, the foods they ate,
the clothes they wore, and the schools they attended. Look at old pictures. How have
things changed since Grandma was a child? Grandparents and great aunts and uncles
are usually delighted to share their memories with the younger generation, and they can
pass on a wealth of information.
• Talk about all the ways your children have traveled since they were babies. Go through
photo albums and magazines and point out the pictures where you traveled or make a
book called ``traveling.'' Your children can sort out the pictures of things they traveled on—
cars, boats, minivans, buses, trains, planes.
• Make milk carton boats to float in the bath tub or nearby pond.

How Do Ideas Travel?

Many ideas come from beyond our immediate surroundings. How do they get to us? Information
moves from one person to another through telephones, mail, television, radio, faxes, and
computers. Even posters, bumper stickers, and graffiti communicate ideas.

Ages 2–3

• Two--year--olds learn that ideas and information travel. Teach your children to talk on the
telephone with Mommy or Daddy at work or Grandma who lives in another house. They
need to learn to say ``hello'' and ``goodbye,'' and to learn that the person at the other end
of the line cannot see them, so they must use words to communicate.
• Give toddlers a lot of paper, crayons, and markers so they can send messages to others.
Their early scribbles are without form, but as they get older the letters and pictures may
become clearer.
• Toddlers see the mail being delivered. They can scribble on paper and give you their
pictures to mail to Grandpa.

Ages 4–5

• By watching television and listening to the radio, your children will receive ideas from the
outside world. Where do the television shows they watch come from? What about radio
shows?
• Encourage children to communicate with friends and relatives. They can dictate letters to
them, or send them pictures. They can talk with them on the telephone.
• Go around your house and count all the different ``communications systems.'' There are
the more obvious things like a telephone, a radio, and a television set. You might even
have a computer or an intercom. Count the mailbox, as well as the newspaper, magazines,
and books from which you get information. Don't forget pens and pencils. There Is So
Much In the World. How Can We Look At It All? Because there are so many things to

67 | P a g e
 study and so much to look at, geographers divide the world into physical, cultural, and
economic regions. A region is an area that includes a number of places, all of which have
something in common. Physical regions may have a particular type of climate, natural
feature, or plant life. A cultural region has some common culture and history that
distinguish it from other nearby regions. In some areas, people speak the same language,
observe the same holidays, practice similar religions, or share a political identity. An
economic region may be known by what is made and exported from an area.

What Do I Do Here?
Toddlers can learn about the regions in their own home and neighborhood. We use certain areas
for different purposes. There are areas with water, like bathrooms and kitchens, or areas with
beds like bedrooms. Many children over 4 years of age may be able to explore the part of the
Earth that is closest to them and begin naming the traits that make it special.

Ages 2–3

• Help your children understand physical regions by examining areas in your home. Is there
an upstairs and a downstairs? Is there an eating area and a sleeping area? Eating meals,
resting, napping, and sleeping in the same place everyday gives toddlers an initial sense
that there are places with distinct characteristics in which you do certain activities.
• When you travel through your community or take trips, name the different regions—the
shopping area, the playground, the church, synagogue, or mosque and your own street.

Ages 4–5

• Take a trip to a region that is very different from your own. A nearby park will do, or you
can travel to a waterfront, mountain, or desert. If you can't travel, look at pictures in a
book. Talk about how these regions differ from your own neighborhood and from each
other.
• As you travel in different regions, look for familiar features. Do you see a school that other
children attend? Is there a church or an office building?

What Are My Traditions?

Children learn about culture through language, art, music, and games. Toddlers and preschoolers
love to listen to the sounds and patterns of their language and the languages of others.

Ages 2–3

• Fill your toddler's life with the songs, poetry, and sounds of the language of your culture.
Play baby games such as ``The Eensy Teensy Spider,'' ``This Little Piggy,'' and ``Patty
Cake, Patty Cake,'' as you dress, bathe, and care for your toddler. Sing nursery rhymes
and songs your parents sang to you when you were a child. By doing so, you are

68 | P a g e
 transmitting the language and culture of your family and perhaps your region and your
nation.
• When you follow your own holiday customs or the customs of your own cultural heritage,
you are teaching your toddlers and giving them something to compare others to as they
get older.

Ages 4–5

• Take your children to visit the different political, residential, recreational, ethnic, and
commercial regions of your hometown.
• Go to plays, movies, and puppet shows about people from different countries. These are
often presented at libraries and museums. Some are also on television.
• Holidays provide an opportunity to learn about the customs of people around the world.
You can use the library to discover how other people celebrate special days.
• If you have friends who are from different countries or have traveled or lived abroad, invite
them over to talk with your children. If they have pictures, so much the better. What
languages do they speak? How are their customs or dress similar to or different from
yours?
• Learn a few words of another language. If there is someone in your neighborhood who
speaks another language, teach your children how to say ``hello'' or ``thank you'' in that
language.
• Learn about other cultures. Make different ethnic foods, take your children to folk festivals,
or watch movies or shows on television such as Ali Baba or Heidi. Read stories about
children in other lands.

What Do We Produce?
Introduce children to the ways that location can influence the way people produce and export
goods.

Ages 2–3

• Take toddlers to work with you if possible, so they can see you producing either goods or
services.
• Every community has some different economic sections. As you travel through these
regions, name them for your children. ``We are going to the mall to go shopping.'' ``We
are driving past the harbor where ships come from all over the world.'' Don't forget to point
out the smells from the bread factory, the oil refinery, or the fisherman's dock.

Ages 4–5

• If you live near a river, lake, or ocean you might observe barges loaded with automobiles,
machinery, or even garbage. Watch for trucks and ships carrying different materials and
goods. Discuss the advantages and disadvantages of the different ways goods are
shipped.

69 | P a g e
 • People travel and so do goods, clothing, and other materials. Look around your house for
items made in different countries. Don't forget to check the labels on the foods you eat to
see where they came from. Talk about how these things ended up in your home.

ASSESSMENT
Task 1
1. Explain the significance of teaching geography to early childhood/ grade school students.
____________________________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________________________
2. What do you think are the skills that students can develop from studying geography?
____________________________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________________________

3. Do you believe that teaching geography would affect our students’ sense of nationalism and
patriotism? Why or why not?
____________________________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________________________

70 | P a g e
____________________________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________________________

Task 2
Choose any topic from grades 1-3 curriculum and make an outline on how you will deliver your
geography lesson effectively and age-appropriately.

71 | P a g e
 LESSON 7
APPROACHES AND STRATEGIES IN TEACHING
SOCIAL STUDIES IN EARLY CHILDHOOD
OBJECTIVES:
\

• Identify the different approaches and strategies in teaching social studies in early
childhood pupils
• Distinguish the approaches used in different disciplines in social studies
• Study the sample lessons applying some of the approaches and methods in teaching
social studies

Approaches for Accessing the Social Studies Curriculum

It is important that social studies teachers learn to teach social studies standards to both special
needs and general learners. However, there is no single technique, approach or strategy that
will accomplish this because of the complex nature of the Social Studies. The complexity rests
in the diverse nature of the social studies, the wide variety of social studies teachers, the range
of learning problems held by learners who are in social studies classrooms, and the many
differences among the social studies standards themselves. However, general areas of advice
can be offered to point teachers in the right direction. In addition, teachers can add to their "Bag
of Tricks" by adopting the teaching tools that follow.

On University campuses, there is no department called Social Studies. It is a designation that

appears in Schools of Education and in public school education. However, the diversity of the
Social Studies is characterized by the number of separate departments represented in a typical
Liberal Arts College. In the University of Kansas Course Catalog, there is a department of
Mathematics that represents all areas of math. In the Language Arts area, there is an English
Department, and a Literature, Language and Writing Department. But the Social Studies related
departments include: Anthropology, Economics, Geography, History, Political Science,
Psychology and Sociology. Other departments that deal in many ways with Social Studies
disciplines are African Studies, International Studies and American Studies. Only the Natural
Sciences with six departments come close to the Social Studies. This is not to say the Social
Studies are more important than any other area, but to illustrate that there is great diversity
among social studies courses, a diversity that is often ignored by State certification departments
and school human resources department.

The National Council for the Social Studies has the daunting task of "herding the cats" that are
the various social studies curricular areas. In writing the standards for school children, they have
identified a unifying theme for the social studies:

72 | P a g e
Social Studies is the integrated study of the social sciences and humanities to promote civic
competence. Within the school program , social studies provides coordinated, systematic study
drawing upon such disciplines as anthropology, archaeology, economics, geography, history,
law, philosophy, political science, psychology, religion and sociology, as well as appropriate
content from the humanities, mathematics, and natural sciences. The primary purpose of social
studies is to help young people develop the ability to make informed and reasoned decisions for
the public good as citizens of a culturally diverse, democratic society in an interdependent
world.

It is important to understand the nature of the Social Studies Teacher in order to make effective
recommendations about instruction. Social Studies teachers are Pragmatic Generalists.
Although this is an oversimplification, it is generally true. Elementary teachers are, by necessity,
generalists (or eventually multiple specialists.)

Among full time, life-long Social studies teachers, there are specialists, but they are not the
majority. In a recent letter to the editor in a Tampa newspaper, a local politician was decrying
the fact that fewer than 20% of teachers teaching history had majors or minors in history. This
was neither surprising nor shocking to me. Because of the nature of Social Studies employment,
teachers are full time generalists and part time specialists. Although Social Studies is a required
course at all levels of education, the supply of available teachers has exceeded the demand for
a long time.

A prospective Social studies teacher, therefore, makes a serious mistake to specialize too early.
As an example, when I graduated from High School, my goal was to be a High School
Sociology teacher. My college advisor suggested that if I wanted to find a job in the next 10
years, I had better get prepared in one of the required courses: History or Government. I
enjoyed history so became a history major. It took 10 years and the right circumstances to
become the one Sociology teacher in a large High School, and another 5 years to become
Department Chairman and be assured of my teaching assignment so that I could pursue my
chosen specialty. Along the way, I taught American Government and found it interesting and
enjoyable so it became a specialty.

Social Studies teachers become certified by taking a few hours of several courses in
undergraduate work. If they are lucky, they then get a job, and become temporary specialists as
they are assigned a particular course. My most recent teaching job was a one semester fill-in-
for-another teacher job. One of the courses was World History. I was "qualified" because I had
had a smattering of esoteric Russian History courses 30 years before. Being a good social
studies teacher, I was able to do an adequate job, while becoming a temporary specialist on the
job. Had I continued in that position, my first priority would have been to take a refresher course
so my specialty would be richer.

73 | P a g e
Life-long social studies teachers tend to be Independent, free thinking, non dogmatic people.
Again, this is not to say that there are not intently dogmatic social studies teachers, but ask and
Secondary Principal who are the rebels and rabble rousers.

Chances are they will be Social Studies, as well as Language arts and Biology teachers.
However, these teachers have probably already used innovative approaches to reach a variety
of students. They are likely to be ripe for new ideas and approaches to the problems.

Some Social studies teachers are casual social studies teachers that is to say, they found the
job on their way through life. These folks like working with children as teachers or coaches and
found social studies to be a convenient way to do it. They are also likely to be interested in
different approaches to success in working with a variety of students.

How does the nature of the teacher affect the approach to improving instruction of standards for
special and general school populations? Adopting a singular, doctrinaire methodology for an
entire school district is not likely to appeal to Social Studies teachers. Making available
workshops and information about different options, so that teachers can discover and adopt
ideas as their own is more effective. "This year we’re going to practice Multiple Intelligence
ideas" approach will likely meet resistance and grow cynics.

There is a great diversity of mild learning disabilities that might be found in a social studies
classroom. Each teacher is likely to have some, but not all of these in a given year, so individual
strategies need to address the current situation. However, it is also wise to develop tools that
address several issues.

Common disabilities include: learning disabilities, behavioral and emotional disorders,

intellectual disabilities, and attention deficits and hyperactivity. Any student from these
categories may have problems with social studies instruction. The basic skills of reading writing
and spelling are needed at all levels of study.

Students with cognitive processing or perceptual problems may have visual problems that
interfere with understanding of written work and illustrations. Most students have some difficulty
with charts, graphs and maps, but those with visual spatial and visual processing disorders have
even more problems.
Students with auditory problems have difficulty hearing lecture or discussion as well as small
group work.

74 | P a g e
Students with motor processing deficits may have problems with keyboard or handwriting
assignments.
Students with attention deficits and hyperactivity disorders have problems sticking with a long
lesson, discussion or group project
Students with social and emotional issues may have problems with class and group activities.
They may interrupt, ask for assistance, talk loud, or even fight. They may withdraw from group
activities.
Students with cognitive deficits may have problems checking their progress on long term
projects, difficulty planning for lessons and problems studying for tests. They may be
overwhelmed by a major research project and never really get started.(Marcee M. Steele
"Teaching Social studies to Students with Mild Disabilities." Social Studies and the Young
Learner 17 no. 3 (January/February 2005) 8-10.

In 1992 The Board of Directors of the National Council for the Social Studies defined the Social
Studies and set the stage for the development of the Standards. They acknowledged that the
Social Studies are divided intro disciplines, but sought to integrate these disciplines among
themselves as well as cross disciplines. Two main characteristics distinguish Social Studies: It
is designed to promote civic competence and it is integrative, incorporating many fields of
endeavor. The various standards tend to center on particular disciplines, but encourage
integration into other disciplines.

The standards involve ten themes. The teaching of some of these standards to both general
and special populations varies from standard to standard. The themes are:

Culture
The study of culture deals with common characteristics of different cultures, belief systems and
how they influence the rest of the culture, changing culture, and language. In schools this theme
is usually addressed in classes dealing with geography, history, sociology, and anthropology as
well as multicultural topics across the curriculum. Any difficulties in this area usually are related
to reading comprehension. Attitudinally, the concept of ethnocentrism is difficult for most adults,
so it is naturally a difficult concept for children of all learning abilities.

Time, Continuity, and Change

This is a history related theme which involves understanding historical roots and a person’s
position in time. It deals with what happened in the past and how I am connected to those in the
past. Understanding the changing world helps explain events today and well as speculate about
the future. Many learning difficulties in the history area, once again, revolve around reading
comprehension. An issue particular to this theme, however, is the concept of historical time.
Children are at a definite disadvantage when studying history because they just have not lived

75 | P a g e
long enough to get a concept of time. This opens up possibilities for a teaching tool focusing on
Timelines.

People, Places, and Environments

This geography-related theme assists students as they create their spatial views and
geographic perspectives of the world outside their particular knowledge. The particular problems
for all learners beyond the concepts of geographical perspective and reading comprehension
have to do with graphic presentations. Special needs students have particular problems reading
graphs, charts and maps. A Teacher tool addressing graphic presentations offers some
solutions as special needs students need more time to understand these areas.

Individual Development and Identity

"Why are we the way we are" is the central question here. It is a Psychology and, to a certain
extent, Anthropology issue. The areas addressed are how people learn, why do people behave
as they do, and how do people perceive and grow. Special challenges here for all learners
involve "getting outside" of one’s self to analyze individual behavior without personality affecting
the objective view. This, however, is a problem for adults as well as all levels of students.
Reading comprehension is again an issue.

Individuals, Groups, and Institutions

This is primarily a sociology/anthropology theme which also relates to psychology, political
science and history. One issue involves understanding the influence of institutions on one’s life,
while the understanding of the nature of institutions and institutional change are addressed. This
theme along with the Culture theme and Individual development theme offer opportunities for
improved instruction using real examples and simulations of real events. Teacher tools involving
personal realities and simulations are helpful for both general and special learners.

Power, Authority, and Governance

This political science theme involves the history and nature of power and the institutions of
power. How are governments created, structured, maintained and changed? How can majority
rule and minority rights be protected? This theme, along with the Civics theme, addresses the
NCSS definition of social studies: "The primary purpose of social studies is to help young people
develop the ability to make informed and reasoned decisions for the public good as citizens of a
culturally diverse, democratic society in an interdependent world." An ongoing learning problem
for adults as well as all students is the concept of "common good" and the attitudinal issue of
minority rights. Instruction improvement for general and special learners may involve connecting
to the real world and experiencing processes through simulations. Teacher tools for those areas
can be helpful.

76 | P a g e
Production, Distribution, and Consumption
Economics involves how goods are produced and distributed as well as the factors of
production (land, labor capital, and management.). As a discipline, economics may be the most
disparate from the others. Economics is a major part of the study of history and government, but
has its own set of language and approach. Many social studies teachers are not comfortable
with Economics. It involves the most practical, everyday issues, but addresses them in a highly
abstract study. As with some other themes, the understanding of charts and graphs is a
challenge for general, but particularly for special learners. Also, making the study real is useful
in this area.

Science, Technology, and Society

This theme is not discipline-specific and involves the impact of technological change on people.
It has the same learning complications as other historical concerns. It opens up possibilities for
personal, real examples to improve student instruction.

Global Connections
This theme focuses on the need to understand interdependence among nations. It addresses
tensions between countries as well as universal problems of health, environment, human rights,
economic competition and independence, age-old ethnic enmities, and political and military
alliances. This theme is the subject of the rarely offered International Relations course, but may
be studied in geography, history and government classes. The most difficult part of this theme
for adults as well as all students is being able to see the "Big Picture" and understanding that
national decisions may conflict with "common good" realities. Oftentimes, ecology classes
taught in the Science departments address these issues as well as any social studies class.
Again, reading comprehension and understanding graphics are useful here. Reality simulations
can be useful in instruction.

Civic Ideals and Practices

If the unifying concept among the social studies is preparing students to cope in a democratic
society and the world as a whole, this theme is central to that concept. The typical American
Government class is a combination of the study of governmental institutions and the attitudinal
focus on responsibilities of citizenship. Students can benefit for reality and simulation in
understanding these institutions.

There are general directions that Social Studies teachers can take to do a better job with
general and special needs students. These include developing our content specialty, becoming
more aware of reading comprehension instructions, being willing to try social studies processes
and trying the teacher tools in this and other sections of the Special Connections website.

77 | P a g e
Since we may find ourselves in the "temporary specialty" phase of employment, it is time to
become more knowledgeable. When choosing courses for advanced degrees or salary
improvement, take a course in your field. The more we know about a content area, the better we
are able to manipulate the information so that it is accessible to a wide range of learners.

Because so much of Social Studies instruction involves reading, teachers need to be aware of
good reading comprehension instruction. Teachers without a good reading instruction
background should take every opportunity to brush up on reading instruction by taking courses
and in-services. While the ultimate goal is to make students self-sufficient in their reading, there
are many teacher-assists that can be used while that self-sufficiency is being developed.

Social Studies teachers should practice what they teach in terms of behavioral sciences. So
much of education instruction is a practical application of Social Studies methods. Group work,
whether small or large, comes from Sociology. Learning styles and the psychology of learning
are a part of Psychology. Cooperative learning involves interpersonal relations. We, more than
any other discipline, should be willing to try new approaches for both general and special needs
children. Much of what has been discovered by the neurosciences in the Brain/mind learning
area is verification of what we have believed to be true for some time.

Cooperating teaching involves collaboration between general and special education teachers.
Social studies teachers would do well to work with staff members assigned to the special need
students in their classrooms. Although it is often difficult to schedule regular meetings, unless
provided for in the teacher’s daily schedule, it is important that that connection stays strong.

Most importantly, good social studies teachers need to add to their "bag of tricks" every year.
One of the nice things about teaching is that we get to start over every year (also one of the
worst things about teaching). But the fresh start gives us the opportunity to try something new.
The Teacher Tools in this website are one source for your "bag of tricks. Decide at the
beginning of the year that you are going to try one approach for the year. Concentrate on doing
that Tool for the entire year to give it a fair trial, and then decide whether to continue its use. As
in athletics, it is helpful to concentrate on one aspect of the game each time out. New teachers
may want to try a new tool each semester until the bag is comfortably full.

Designing accessible, inclusive classrooms Room arrangement is a key element in many

research based curriculum models (Sussna Klein, 2002). While teachers can organize the room
to encourage children to be independent and have access to play materials, room arrangement
can also foster a sense of place. Teachers can implement the following ideas:
■ Involve children in making decisions when developing or rearranging the classroom centers; let
them have a voice about the location of materials to strengthen their feeling of belonging. The
idea that the space and materials belong to them—and being actively encouraged to use them—
fosters an emotional attachment to the space.

78 | P a g e
■ Have children make classroom signs that tell others where things are located and how everyone
shares materials. The environment communicates important messages; materials that are not
accessible suggests they are “off-limits” so children become more dependent and reactive to the
teacher instead of more independent and collaborative with peers.
■ Help children remember activities shared with peers and teachers by pulling together classroom
photos to make books of the children joyfully playing in the classroom spaces. Recalling and
reflecting on previous project-based activities in which the children explored and interacted with
peers and the environment helps them develop a deeper connection to the space and the people.
■ Include photos of families (e.g., as props in the dramatic play/house area or in homemade books
about the children and their families at home) to bridge the home– school community, and depict
many kinds of family structures. Displaying these pictures demonstrates that each child’s family
is accepted.
■ Create a sense of safety and security. Design personal, intimate spaces, including nooks and
crannies indoors and outdoors, to help children understand spatial relationships. Large boxes,
pop-up tents, and small benches that fit one or two children help them attain some independence
and autonomy within their environment.
■ Nurturing the whole school community Exploring and being part of the larger school environment
is also important when developing a sense of place. Teachers can plan activities around these
events and ideas:
■ Plan visits to different classrooms around the school so children have the opportunity to share
experiences with other children. Having common experiences links people and places, helping
children make social connections outside of their families.
■ Engage children in whole school activities centering on a common theme or purpose, like
planting a garden or participating in field day activities. This reminds children that they share the
space and share a common attachment to the space with others.
■ Organize schoolwide family evenings on the playground. Families and children can play
together outside of school hours and develop a sense of place with the school while getting to
know other students and families.
■ Host schoolwide activities such as multigenerational family dinners or cultural celebrations to
highlight the commonalities and differences of traditions and demonstrate that each family’s
culture is valued and respected.
■ Wear T-shirts with specific school colors or mascots to foster a sense of school spirit and
community.
■ Take photos showing the children, their families, and the teachers interacting in the classroom
and neighborhood and post them to a class blog or website. This helps develop the psychological
attachment that forms the basis of sense of place.
■ Exploring the neighborhood. Being part of the outside community, whether in a city center or
country landscape, brings new and different sounds, smells, and fine and gross motor
experiences to a developing sense of place. Teachers can expose students to these
experiences in several ways:

79 | P a g e
■ Take the children outside. Allow them time to explore everything outdoors—mud puddles,
trees, sticks, rocks, statues, parks, playgrounds, parking lots, and more.
■ Plan field trips in children’s neighborhoods, places such as local stores and bodegas, parks
and city centers. Explore issues of accessibility with the children. For example, have them
discover if they can easily enter stores or use equipment independently, and allow them to
problem solve. Point out the uses of multiple languages on signs or in written materials, if
available.
■ Help children pay attention to their environment in new ways, for example, by going on a
listening walk or a smelling walk. Take a digital camera or audio recorder with you to document
children’s observations through pictures, videos, and sound recordings.
■ Invite the outside world inside by sharing experiences with families and asking them to do the
same. You might ask families to bring in examples of what they do for work or play, or even
Skype with family members from different parts of the country or world as a way to partner
around children’s learning.

80 | P a g e
81 | P a g e
82 | P a g e
83 | P a g e
ASSESSMENT

1. Why should brainstorming be used as one of the teachers techniques in problem solving?

____________________________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________________________

84 | P a g e
____________________________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________________________
2. Describe each call in the inquiry approach, critical thinking, problem solving, and creative thinking.
Are they more alike than different? How?

____________________________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________________________
3. How should thinking skills be taught? directly? Or indirectly? What would you choose? Why?

____________________________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________________________

85 | P a g e
4. Choose one social studies topic in one particular grade level. Show at least two to three learning past
that you would like to develop for pupils of different thinking abilities. Prepare a visual thinking diagram
for them to expand and form ideas.

____________________________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________________________
5. How would you stimulate and encourage students that's all problems creatively using your own ways
and designs to express their discoveries.

____________________________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________________________

86 | P a g e
 LESSON 8
PLANNING INNOVATIVE ACTIVITIES IN
SOCIAL STUDIES FOR EARLY CHILDHOOD
OBJECTIVES:
▪ Define innovative teaching strategies
▪ Adapt innovative activities in teaching social studies for early childhood
▪ Plan innovative activities in teaching social studies for early childhood

Introduction
Children are very good in rote memory. Their ability to memorize facts and information is
indeed an advantage that the teacher can use to teach geography, culture and civics. However,
as facts and information become increasingly difficult to manage, the teacher can explore
alternative ways. One approach which the teacher can use is the conceptual approach.
Based on the constructivist view of learning, the conceptual approach places the children
at the center of a vast horizon/field of learning experiences where they have opportunities to
develop concepts through inductive models. Learning, therefore, ceases to be a matter of
memorizing facts and information. Learning becomes a matter of forming constructs; that is, a
configuration of clearly defined ideas which are related to one another.

Nature of the Conceptual Approach

Forming Concepts
Concepts are products of the abstraction of the mind. When the mind works on given facts
and information, analyzes them, and puts them into particular groupings. order or relationships, a
construct is produced.
This construct forms the concept Examples of concepts that can be formed in civics,
geography and culture are:

family (pamilya) environment (kapaligiran)

peace (kapayapaan) government (pamahalaan)
culture (kultura) rights (karapatan)
heritage (salinlahi) location (kinaroroonan)
time (panahon)
Take note that the words listed cannot be represented by a single object the way the
concept of a chair is represented by a piece of furniture used for sitting: or, the concept of a pen

87 | P a g e
 as an object used for writing. To represent them requires the use of some ideas related to one
another which we refer to as constructs.
Thus, a construct of the concept of environment (kapaligiran) may be as follows:

ENVIRONMENT

PHYSICAL SOCIAL

NATURAL MAN-MADE COMMUNITY FAMILY

Figure 1
Another one is the concept of family.

FAMILY

REYES FAMILY JONES FAMILY CHUA FAMILY

MOTHER FATHER MOTHER FATHER MOTHER FATHER

CHILDREN CHILDREN CHILDREN

88 | P a g e
Sample Unit Plan
A. CONCEPT Culture
B. GENERALIZATION Culture is a shared behaviour
Culture is a way of life.
C. OBJECTIVES General: To understand the nature of culture
Specific: At the end, the pupils will:
1. Define culture;
2. Discuss the cultural differences of the Ifugaos, the
Negritos and the Badjaos;
3. Explain the way of life of the Ifugaos, the Negritos and
Badjaos
4. Formulate general statements about them;
5. Show respect for the people’s culture.
D. STRATEGY
Day 1. Launching of the unit
1. Presentation of the following examples of culture:
- Marriage practices of the Badjaos
- Religious practices of the Ifugaos
- Economic life of the Negritos

2. Pupils define culture

Day 2. Pupils identify the following topics/problems for the discussion
- Culture of Badjaos
- Culture of Negritos
- Culture of Ifugaos
Pupils raise some scientific guesses about the culture of the above. (Assuming that
thepupils were given enough time to gather data individually or in groups.)

Day 3. Pupils present the culture of the Badjaos. They formulate conclusions regarding
the culture of the Badjaos.
Day 4 Pupils present the culture of the Ifugaos. They formulate conclusions regarding
the culture of the Ifugaos.
Day 5 Pupils present the culture of the Negritos. They formulate conclusions regarding
the culture of the Negritos.
Pupils formulate generalizations about cultures similar to the following:
- Culture is a shared behaviour.
- Culture is a way of life.
- Culture differs from place to place.
- Environment affects the development of culture.

89 | P a g e
 From the example, one can deduce the following strategy of the conceptual approach
1. Launching of the unit;
2. Identification of the concept;
3. Identification of the topic/problem/issues;
4. Raising of the hypothesis;
5. Presentation of data;
6. Formulation of conclusions and generalizations.
The preceding discussion shows the inductive nature of the conceptual approach. In other
words, generalizations are drawn from specific data, Its inductive nature required the pupils in the
example to go through the following processes:

CLASSIFICATION The pupils classified examples and non-examples of culture

as early as the launching.

GROUPING The pupils grouped all similar examples under one label:
culture.

DEFINING/ DESCRIBING The pupils defined culture as observed from the examples.

SUB-GROUPING The pupils grouped practices into those of the Badjaos, the
Ifugaos, and the Negritos

Through this strategy, the pupils analyzed the data they had and finally synthesized what
they had learned in the form of generalizations.

Constructs as Conceptual Frameworks

Using the conceptual approach, the pupils learn to form mental images of related ideas
revolving around the concept. These images are called conceptual frameworks.
Conceptual frameworks vary from pupil to pupil. Its formation depends on the pupil's
experiences, mental ability and exposure. Thus, the pupils may be given the same classroom
experiences, but they form conceptual frameworks in varying complexities. Some constructs will
be simple, while others will be more elaborate. Some will have more insights; while others will
form fewer insights

The concept of rights for example, may produce the following conceptual framework in
a Grade 2 pupil.

90 | P a g e
 RIGHTS OF A CHILD

HUMAN RIGHTS

Right to protection from Right to be born

violence
Right to education
Right to government
Right to develop one’s
protection
talents
Right to leisure RIGHTS OF A CHILD Right to belong
Right to protection from
Right to be nurtured danger
Right to express one’s self
Right to good health

All these rights are related ideas that help the pupils understand the concept of rights.
Such understanding deepens as the pupils' experiences inside and outside the classroom
expand. Thus, to ensure a deeper understanding of a concept taught in the classroom, the teacher
should take special attention to the careful selection of materials that will help the pupils form
conceptual frameworks. Clarity of relationship of materials will ensure quick configuration of
conceptual framework and will greatly hasten the precise understanding of the concept being
taken up.

Techniques in Using the Conceptual Approach

The teacher may consider the following suggestions in using the conceptual approach:
1. The level of the pupils should be an important consideration. The younger the pupils, the
more concrete the examples should be. Following Piaget's stages of cognitive
development, the teacher should consider that the pupils in the lower elementary grades
should be given more simple concepts. Patterns establishing the concept being studied
should be more precise. Thus, more examples, rather than non examples should be given.
As the pupils' abstraction sharpens in the higher grades, they become more ready to deal
with more complex concepts such as government, rights, freedom, democracy, etc.

2. The scientific steps always come in handy. The teacher should try be faithful to use the
scientific steps. If at times the pupils wander away from the scientific steps, the teacher
should guide them back to it. Constant exercise of the scientific steps will develop in the

91 | P a g e
 pupils the habit of scientific thinking and they become more prepared to exercise logical
thinking.

3. The concept- building approach found in various textbooks may be modified or revised.
They are not absolutes. The teacher should use his/ her creativity in implementing the
approach. For instance, the teacher may lead the pupils to form a concept by first using
one example at a time; or, by using three examples of the concept altogether; or, present
examples and non-examples of it. Indeed, an imaginative teacher will find several creative
combinations or presentations.

4. The conceptual approach can be a great opportunity for allowing pupils to learn by groups,
thus enhancing their social skills and reinforcing their values in the group. While concepts
may be deeper in a large class discussion, smaller group discussions may be used in the
higher elementary grades, where the pupils will be more comfortable to present their views
and opinions.

5. Facts and information are the building blocks of concepts. Thus, the teacher should
recognize the invaluable significance of facts and information in building their children’s
capacity to form concepts. Depending on the grade level of the pupils, the teacher should
provide them with opportunities to know as many facts and information. The teacher
should lead them to classify known facts and information by establishing their similarities,
differences unifying elements.

Conclusion
The conceptual approach is an approach that emphasizes concept-building. It places the
pupils in a vast field of ideas wherein they are given the opportunities to form conceptual frame
works or constructs that are composed of related ideas. These related ideas deepen the pupils
understanding of the main concept.
The conceptual approach is inductive by nature and as such uses specific examples to
form patterns that eventually lead to concept formation. The lesson gradually unfolds using the
scientific steps.

15 EXCITING IDEAS FOR TEACHING SOCIAL STUDIES CONTENT

Look at your state standards. Chances are, elementary school children no longer have to
memorize dates or identify random historical figures like we did when we were growing up. Now,
students need to understand systems and cultures. This is your license to make instruction
hands-on and engaging! The goal is to have kids DISCOVER history, not have it taught to them.
This is easier than it sounds. Here are some great activities I learned (mostly from Social Studies
Alive workshop) that you can use over and over with almost any historical event and time period
in any grade level.

92 | P a g e
1) What would YOU do?
Before introducing a historical event (such as a war, the slave trade, or the adventures of
an early explorer), present the situation to students hypothetically. Have them close their eyes
and imagine… or use photos (from the internet) and other artifacts to tell about the political climate
or cultural environment of the time. What shapes history are the things that people were willing
to fight for and change, so getting students to care about what their ancestors did is critical. Have
students think or write independently about how they would have responded to a historical
dilemma, and after they have gathered their thoughts, have them discuss in groups. For example,
pose the scenario of the English (Pilgrims) who wanted religious freedom—what would students
do? Try to overthrow the government? Make do with the situation and work within the system?
Someone will eventually suggest finding a new place to live, and that’s when you can say, let’s
find out what some people REALLY did 500 years ago. Put students in groups and give them
three choices based on the discussion, and try to get the entire group to decide on one choice.
Be sure to discuss how to respectfully agree or disagree. Groups could make a chart listing the
reasons for their choice. While this may seem advanced for the elementary grades, remember
that students don’t have to give realistic responses or think out all possible consequences: just
getting them to THINK about their choices and those of people long ago is enough to get them
engaged and thinking critically in a way that is developmentally appropriate.

2) A-Z Vocabulary/ Social Studies Word Wall or Word Bank

Create a word wall for the unit you are studying, and have students suggest words to add. This
can be done traditionally on a wall, or in other ways, such as a file folder word bank. These file
folders can be kept up for reference during your unit, then put in the writing center for students to
continue to incorporate the vocabulary in their writing.

3) Art history IS history

Since art dates back tens of thousands of years, there is artwork for almost every time period and
culture your students will study. Show children paintings and sculptures from your chosen time
period and have kids make inferences about the culture. Even young children can draw
conclusions about the popular styles of dress (and therefore climate and geography), hobbies
and interests, and cultural values of ancient people just by looking at artwork. Art is a reflection
of the time period and culture it is created in, so any introduction to art is an introduction to history.
Check with your art teacher to find additional resources, videos, prints, activities, etc.

4) Visual discovery
Introducing new units, topics, or concepts with pictures can be extremely powerful. Type your
subject into a search engine and click on ‘images’ to run a search just for pictures. Show students
a FEW powerful images to elicit inferences about the time period or historical event shown. For
example, you can show a photo from the 1950’s that has two store entrances, one for whites and
one for ‘colored only’. Have students predict what those terms mean and what’s happening in
the picture. Students can also write questions they have about the images. This is great to do

93 | P a g e
as pre- and post-unit activities: after the unit, students can interact with the images to demonstrate
what they have learned.

5) What am I?
Create pop-up books for important vocabulary in the social studies units you teach. Each
student can pick a term and create one page. Glue the pages together to create a book for your
class library. The book can be a pop-up, as shown here.

6) Flip books and flap books

Folding paper in various ways can create information presentations that are far more interesting
than worksheets. Below is just one way to fold: students write a vocabulary word on the outside
of the flap and the definition underneath. (More foldables and flap book ideas can be found on
the math activities page–coming soon!–and sample science unit page.)

7) Living statues
If your students aren’t developmentally ready to create skits, have them start with this activity.
Show photos of statues and discuss where statues are placed. Then have children work
together in groups to recreate a historical scene or event in the form of a statue. They can even
create the corresponding plaque.

8) Experiential exercise
Students love to re-enact history, so get them actively involved! One powerful example is a slave
ship experiential exercise. Show students a diagram of the inside of a slave ship and discuss.
Volunteers must then stand (or if you want to be more accurate, lie down) extremely close to one
another. Yarn can be lightly wrapped around their wrists and ankles to represent the way slaves
were chained to one another. Once students are in position, they must remain still and silent for
30-60 seconds. After going back to their seats, elicit their feelings, questions, and ideas about
the Middle Passage. The follow-up discussion is critical in allowing students to process and make
connections. An activity such as this can be disturbing but will help students understand the
reality of slave transport and how abominable the slave trade really was. Another idea is to have
pairs of students share a desk for a period of time, and give privileges and treats only to the
‘owner’ of the desk. Experiential exercises work well for other difficult concepts, too: help kids
understand what life was like on the Oregon Trail by allowing them to keep only three items in
their desk for the day and make do without everything else. To help them understand why wars
begin, set up a game of tug-of-war in which the teams are grossly mismatched (i.e. 15 against 5)
and discuss how unfairness can lead to conflict (such as the Revolutionary War).

94 | P a g e
9) ABC books
After completing a unit, reference your word wall/word bank (see idea #6) or have students
generate an alphabetical list of important vocabulary words. Have each student choose a letter
of the alphabet and a corresponding vocabulary word, and create a page explaining what the term
means. The pages can be bound together in a class book.

10) I have…, Who has…?

You may be familiar with this game for math facts, but it works well for any subject. Each child
gets a card with an answer to one question and a new question for the next person. You start
with the person whose card reads ‘START’. That person reads his question: “Who has…a piece
of land that is surrounded by water on 3 sides?”. The person with the card that says ‘peninsula’
says, “I have peninsula. Who has…the continent that is also the name of a country?”. The person
with ‘Australia’ would respond by reading her card, and so on. You can run an internet search to
find ‘I Have…Who Has…’ games already created by other teachers, and after the kids have had
some experience with the game, they can create their own. It’s a great review activity no matter
how you incorporate it.

11) Extensions menus

Extension menus can be used for gifted students and fast finishers, or as center activities.
Create extra activities for students to further their understanding of the concepts taught. Students
can choose a set number of items to complete, or can be required to choose 3 in a tic-tac-toe
pattern so that you can ensure they have a variety of activities. The book featured above has
great social studies menus which help differentiate instruction. It’s actually a series so if you like
the idea of menus, Laurie E. Westphal’s books cover lots of different subject areas and grade
levels.

12) Postcards
Have students create postcards from the culture or time period they are studying. The
postcard should be written as if the child actually lived at that time and is explaining daily life to a
faraway friend. The postcard could mention recent activities, chores, weather, etc. You can
provide students with a photocopied postcard outline and picture or have students create their
own. The idea of a postcard is a bit difficult for young children, but with some concept
development and modeling beforehand, it can be a great synthesis activity and provides a unique
opportunity for writing practice.

13) Paper bag history

This is a great culminating activity. Have students collect or create ‘artifacts’ to represent
a time period or historical person/event. Children must put a set number of items in a paper bag
and pull them out one at a time, in a predetermined order, for the class to predict what event is

95 | P a g e
being represented. For example, in an American History unit, a child could make a paper bag for
Thomas Jefferson, and pull out a student-made replica of the Declaration of Independence, a
picture of the plantation Jefferson lived on (printed from the internet), a foam #3 (for the 3rd
president) from a puzzle; and a drawing of Jefferson. The rest of the class can write their guesses
down after each item is pulled out, and discuss their answers at the end before the child reveals
who the paper bag items represent.

14) Artifact discovery (from The Energy to Teach by Donald Graves)

Choose items from a specific time period or culture (books, blueprints, photos, musical scores,
paintings, etc.). Have students explore the artifacts and discover the time period through them.
Donald Graves writes, “The objects eventually lead to people, and it is through the eyes of these
people that the time period is understood”. This could be done gradually, with students exploring
one new artifact each day and slowly making connections between the items to draw inferences
about the culture. This approach makes history concrete and can be adapted to fit your teaching
style and strengths: students could pretend to be archaeologists and dig for the artifacts in a sand
table, you could dress up like a detective and make a big show of pulling the artifact out of a
special container, students could catalog the items in journals or do group discoveries. The
possibilities are endless!

15) Sequential questioning

This technique is also from Donald Graves. Either you or a special visitor presents an object
relevant to the curriculum. No explanation is given, but students can ask as many questions as
they want. This works especially well for items for which student have little background
information because they must actively construct knowledge. After the questioning session, ask
“When did the session become interesting to you? Which question(s) brought the most
information?”. Donald Graves suggest having students bring in objects as well and experience
the process from the other side. Sequential questioning teaches children that being able to ask
questions can be just as powerful as being able to give answers.

10 Kindergarten Geography Activities to Make Their World Spin

Do you often find yourself wondering what planet your kids are on? Do you find yourself shouting,
“Earth to Susie, Come in Please!”? Do Johnny’s shenanigans sometimes shake you to your core?

If so, it may be time for some kindergarten geography activities that will distract your kids from
their usual mayhem while helping them to learn about the space they inhabit in our world.

The following list covers all types of issues related to the lands we live in, from the mountains, to
the prairies, to the oceans … and more. So get ready to get down and dirty with your child while
you explore Planet Earth.

1. All Over the Map

96 | P a g e
Get some large sheets of blank paper, pencils, stickers, and markers. Explain what a map is. With
your child, draw a map of two or more rooms in your house. Select rooms your child uses a lot,
like the kitchen or his bedroom.

After drawing walls, windows, and doors, have your child add drawings or stickers for furniture. A
newborn sibling does not count as furniture.

On a second sheet, help him draw a map of the streets in your neighborhood. Show him where
his house is and have him draw it onto the map. Add landmarks that are special to your little one.

Go outside and compare how your map matches up with the real world. Walk around, perhaps
drawing a line on the map to represent your path. You could even scatter breadcrumbs as you
go.

Follow your map (or your trail of breadcrumbs) home. Add things to the map that you didn’t think
of before. Save the map for future activities. It will come in handy for activity number 4, below.

2. Land, Water, or Air

Get 3 small glass jars with lids. Put potting soil in jar #1, put water and a few drops of blue food
coloring in jar #2, and leave jar #3 empty. Label jar #1 “land,” jar #2 “water,” and jar #3 “air.”

Beg, borrow, or steal a pile of magazines. Travel magazines work well for this
activity. Cosmopolitan and National Geographic are not recommended, unless you also want to
teach a lesson in human anatomy.

Give your little demon angel scissors (blunt-pointed, if you value your life) and ask her to cut out
pictures that show land, bodies of water, and sky.

Place an empty box in front of each jar. Have her sort the pictures into the boxes that go with
each jar, depending on whether the picture shows land, bodies of water, or sky.

Explain that the earth is mostly water, has seven huge lands called continents, and is surrounded
by air (atmosphere). Emphasize the importance of keeping our land, water, and air clean
(unpolluted).

A variation of this activity can be done using pictures of people, birds, land animals, and sea
animals.

3. Going Green, Brown, and Blue

Find a topographic map of your country on the Internet showing the land mass in green, mountains
in brown, and bodies of water in blue. Print it on a color printer.

Tape the map face up inside of a glass pie plate or baking dish that is slightly larger than the map.
Using green clay, help your child press the clay on top of the land mass so that it resembles the
shape of that country.

Then have him add brown, yellow, or white clay for mountains, pinching and pressing it to form
peaks and valleys. Make major rivers and lakes using a pencil or spoon.

97 | P a g e
Now pour water into the dish to represent oceans, lakes, rivers, etc. Make a paper and toothpick
flag and plant it where you live on the map. This activity can be repeated using countries other
than your own.

4. Pole to Pole
Purchase a globe and show your child where she lives on Earth. Point out the north and south
poles. Draw a compass rose (that little design that shows north, south, east, and west on maps)
on the neighborhood map that you made for activity number 1.

If the dog ate your neighborhood map, just draw a compass rose on a blank sheet of paper.

Buy a compass. Demonstrate how the compass works, explaining that the needle always points
toward north for some reason having to do with magnets. (Actually, you have no idea how it works.
Your child will explain it to you when she gets to first grade.)

5. Compass Time
Cut out the letters N, S, E, and W using poster board, or buy them online or at teacher supply
stores. They can be any size — the bigger the better if you want to cover up those nasty
fingerprints and jelly stains stuck to your child’s bedroom walls.

Paint the letters with your kindergartener’s favorite color (but make sure the color contrasts with
his walls or at least complements the jelly stains).

Glue items to the letters representing things found in the northern, southern, eastern, and western
parts of your country. For example, for the U.S., you could use photos of surfers, Disneyland,
small state maps, or license plates. (No stolen plates, though.)

Hang the letters in his room (N on the north wall, S on the south wall, etc.). Let him practice using
your compass while in his room. Better yet, buy him a compass of his own!

6. Sunrise, Sunset
Get out that globe and make it spin. That’s the best thing about owning a globe, right? (Besides
dreaming about where you’d like to escape travel to, that is.) Shine a flashlight on the earth.
Explain that the earth revolves around the sun and rotates on its axis.

Get up early with your early bird (not on a weekend), grab your compasses, and wait for the sun
to make its appearance. Use your compasses to ensure that the sun is still in the habit of rising
in the east. If all is as it should be, go make breakfast (since you’re up anyway).

7. This Land is Your Land, and It’s in Their Hands

Help your tot to get a global perspective by using hands-on materials. She’s never too young for
books, map puzzles, and atlases. Include information about cultural geography such as
languages, customs, and foods.

8. Where in the World

Using alternating colors of paper, cut out 8 circles with diameters from 1 to 8 inches. Label the
bottom edge of each circle as follows:

98 | P a g e
 • My Planet (8”) – this one can be a paper plate
• My Continent (7”)
• My Country (6”)
• My State (Province, Territory, etc.) (5”)
• My City (4”)
• My Street (3”)
• My Home (2”)
• Me (1”)
Gather small photos or pictures depicting your child and his home, street, city, state, country,
continent, and planet. Call your child away from whatever trouble daydream he’s involved in and
ask him to hand you the smallest circle.

Have him glue his own photo on it. Help him to do the same with consecutively larger circles until
each circle has a corresponding picture on it. (He can draw his own pictures if he prefers.)

Pile the circles on top of each other, with the largest circle on the bottom. Punch a hole at the top,
and clip them all together with a paper fastener or circular clip.

9. Placemat Places
With your child, make placemats using maps that are laminated or inserted in plastic sleeves. Use
these at mealtime. While your hungry monster awaits dinner, hand her some stick-on stars and
ask her to put a star on an ocean, desert, jungle, ice cap, and so on.

10. Global Proportions

Hang a large world map on the wall. Any wall will do, but make sure the map is hung low enough
for your child to reach all countries on it. This doubles as a barrier to hide splattered ketchup and
scuff marks (as well as pet stains, if they happen to reach wall level).

Show your child the countries and continents on the map. Make a point to work geography into
your everyday conversations, mentioning the climate, land formations, animals, etc. that are
present in different parts of the world.

So … if the terrain seems to be getting a little rough at your house, try introducing the above
kindergarten geography activities to make your child’s world spin in a more positive direction.

After you’ve enjoyed doing kindergarten geography activities with your youngster, you may find
yourself humming “This Land Is Your Land” (by Woody Guthrie), “I Feel the Earth Move” (by
Carole King), or perhaps your own national anthem.

But maybe an even more appropriate song is “To Know You Is To Love You” (by Phil Spector),
because that’s what happens when we teach kids about Planet Earth. The more they know, the
more they’ll learn to cherish and care for it. And that’s something worth teaching.

99 | P a g e
 5 Multicultural Activities for Preschoolers to Help Teach the Importance of Diversity

One of the reasons you love being a teacher is getting to help children explore the world around
them. Your preschool classroom is a reflection of America—a melting pot of different ethnicities,
languages and cultural beliefs. It’s normal for children to be curious about people who look or act
differently than they do, as this natural curiosity presents the perfect opportunity to bring the
importance of diversity into your classroom.

“It is our responsibility to not only provide our children with early access to education, but also to
prepare them to be responsible and caring citizens of the world,” says Marc Carver, founder of
educational technology company FutureSoBrite. “Creating that crucial spark of discovery and
curiosity in our children at an early age can lead to a lifetime of embracing and celebrating
diversity.”

Teaching diversity may seem like an intimidating task in early childhood education, but it doesn’t
have to be. These hands-on multicultural activities for preschoolers are a fun way for you to
introduce other cultures to the little ones in your care. Keep reading to find a multicultural activity
for your next lesson plan.

5 MULTICULTURAL ACTIVITIES FOR PRESCHOOLERS

1. School around the world

Children are interested in learning more about kids their own age, including what school looks like
in other countries. Set up a “school” interest center in a portion of your classroom. Add photos,
books, videos and other activities that feature students at school in another culture.

Encourage discussions about school in other countries by asking questions such as, “How do the
children get to school?” and “What do they eat for lunch?” Rotate cultures throughout the year so
students are exposed to many different school experiences from around the globe.

How it teaches diversity: “By focusing on school, children can automatically relate to experiences
of children around the world,” says Robin Leon, a 20-year ECE teacher and senior community
counselor at Global Awareness. “Letting the children experience schools around the world
through pretend play is a great way to tackle this important topic at a developmentally appropriate
level.”

2. Diversity dinner party

Food is at the center of community in many cultures, so it’s a great way to introduce young children
to cultural traditions that are different from their own. Ask your classroom families if there are any
favorite traditional cuisines they’d like to share with the class, suggests Alison Kim Walker,
educational consultant and owner of Hummingbird Learning Group.

Try to include healthy dishes from a variety of countries that may be different from what children
have experienced at fast-food restaurants: fresh guacamole, Bánh mì, homemade hummus with
pita chips or naan with mild curry.

100 | P a g e
How it teaches diversity: Some children may be afraid of new experiences, and that includes food.
One of the best ways to introduce an unfamiliar culture is to sample the cuisine. This activity
provides a safe way for children to try new foods from other cultures while also giving families a
chance to share their personal food culture.

3. Hello, friend!

Greeting one another each morning is already an established part of your preschool routine. Make
it a fun learning opportunity by introducing words and phrases in other languages at circle time,
and encouraging children to practice by greeting their friends with their new vocabulary words.

Bilingual read-aloud books provide another opportunity to introduce children to new languages.
Try Hello Ocean / Hola Mar by Pam Munoz Ryan (Spanish), Bee-bim Bop! by Linda Sue Park
(Korean) and Am I Small? / Mimi Ni Mdogo? by Philipp Winterberg (Swahili).

How it teaches diversity: “One of the first steps in understanding cultural differences is recognizing
that not everyone speaks the same language,” Carver says. “Through this exercise, children begin
to understand the many different ways people of the world communicate and that language is a
bridge to understanding other cultures, not a barrier.”

4. We all celebrate

Children love a good party! Teaching them about cultural and religious celebrations around the
world is a great way to get children excited about diversity. You can easily add multicultural
classroom celebrations throughout the year by choosing one event to celebrate each month.

Use books and online resources to teach children about the importance of each celebration, and
incorporate relevant music and artwork into the learning experience. Children can decorate their
own paper skulls for Dia de los Muertos, create Chinese lanterns and rattle drums for Chinese
New Year and husk an ear of corn for Kwanzaa.

How it teaches diversity: A culture’s celebrations can reveal a lot about its deeply held values and
traditions. Children will look forward to their monthly party while gaining a deeper understanding
of how people around the world celebrate with family and friends.

5. Passport travelers

This fun activity allows children to become world travelers and introduces them to their
classmates’ diverse backgrounds. First, talk to the parents and children in your class to gather
information about their background and any cultural traditions that are important to them,
recommends Diana Lee Santamaria, preschool teacher and children’s author. Then, have the
children create their own passports for their upcoming ‘round-the-world trip.

Throughout the year, students will take turns sharing where they’re from. Encourage children to
bring props like photos, a favorite snack or their country’s flag. Everyone in the class earns a new
passport stamp for each country they “visit.” If your class doesn’t have a diverse group of children,
Santamaria advises reading a book like Diversity Soup by Latrecia Brown-Johnson, then letting
children choose countries from a map.

101 | P a g e
How it teaches diversity: “It helps children to understand that although we all come from various
backgrounds, we are all essentially the same,” Santamaria says. “They also learn that diversity is
all around them, even in the classroom.”

Teaching global citizens

We can’t overlook the importance of diversity, even for our littlest members of society. By
incorporating these multicultural activities for preschoolers into your classroom, you’re doing your
part to raise the next generation of children who appreciates and respects people of all cultures.

SAMPLE LESSON PLAN

Politeknikong Unibersidad ng Pilipinas

Tanggapan ng Bise Presidente para sa Akademikong Affairs
KOLEHIYO NG EDUKASYON
DEPARTMENTO NG ELEMENTARYA AT SECONDARYANG EDUKASYON

Masusing Banghay Aralin sa Araling Panlipunan I

I. Layunin
Sa loob ng 30 minuto na pagtuturo, ang mga mag-aaral ay inaasahang
matutunan ang mga sumusunod nang may 85% kahusayan:
1. nahihinuha ang kahalagahan ng alituntunin sa paaralan at sa buhay ng mga
mag-aaral;
2. nagagamit ang mga nakahandang litrato upang matukoy ang ibat-ibang
propesyon na maaaring makamit sa pamamagitan ng pag-aaral;
3. nasasabi ang mga dapat na gawin ng isang mag-aaral at ang maaaring maging
epekto ng nakapag-aral at hindi nakapag-aral;
4. naisasabuhay ang mga gawain at pagkilos na nagpapamalas ng
pagpapahalaga sa sariling paaralan at nakalilikha ng imahe ng propesyong
pinapangarap sa pamamagitan ng pag-guhit.

II. Paksang-Aralin
Paksa: Pagpapahalaga sa Paaralan
Sanggunian: Pilipinas: Bansang Minamahal Batayang Aklat 1. 1997. pp. 146;
Pilipinas Bayan Mo, Bayan Ko Batayang Aklat 1. 1997. pp. 204-207; Pilipinas
ang Ating Bansa Batayang Aklat 1. 1999. pp. 144-145
May Akda: Patricia C. Magbuhos, Noel P. Miranda
Materyales: Mga litrato ng ibat-ibang propesyon, laptop, prodyektor, biswal
eyds, walis tingting at walis tambo.
Pagpapahalaga: Pagiging masipag at responsableng mag-aaral

102 | P a g e
 III. Pamamaraan

Gawain ng Guro Gawain ng Mag-aaral

A. Paghahandang Gawain

1. Pangaraw-araw na Gawain

Magandang umaga mga bata. Magsitayo

ang lahat para sa panalangin, sino ang
nais na mamuno para sa araw na ito? (Ang mag-aaral ay pangungunahan ang
panalangin)

Magandang umaga mga bata! Magandang umaga rin po, Guro.

Manatiling nakatayo, pakipulot ang mga

kalat na inyong makikita at itapon sa
tamang basurahan. Isaayos din ang
inyong mga upuan. (Ang mga mag-aaral ay maglilinis, at
isasaayos ang kanilang upuan.)
Maraming Salamat mga bata! Maaari na
kayong magsi-upo. (Ang mga mag-aaral ang magsisiupo)

(Tatawagin ng guro ang kalihim ng klase).

Mayroon bang lumiban sa klase ngayong
araw? Wala pong lumiban sa klase ngayong araw.

2. Pagbabalik Aral

Mga bata, bago tayo dumako sa ating

paksa ngayon, maaring niyo bang ibahagi
kung ano ang ating pinag-aralan noong
nakaraang pagkikita? Ang tinalakay po natin noong nakaraang
pagkikita ay ang kwento ng ating paaralan.

Mahusay! Bigyan ng limang palakpak! (Ang mga mag-aaral ay magpapalakpakan)

Ngayon, sino ang makakapagbigay saakin

ng buong pangalan ng Paaralang
kinabibilangan ninyo ngayon? Bobon First Palimbo Proper Elementary
School po.

Magaling! Bigyan ng iba ka clap! (Magpapalakpakan ang mga mag-aaral)

103 | P a g e
 Ano naman ang dahilan kung bakit ito ang
pangalan ng ating paaralan? Kasi po hango po ito sa pangalan ng
Barangay na kinabibilangan natin.
Tama!

Ano nga ulit eksaktong lokasyon ng ating Purok Abagatan Palimbo Proper Brgy. Bobon
paaralan? First Camiling, Tarlac po.

Magaling! Bigyan ng barbie clap! (Magpapalakpakan ang mga mag-aaral)

Mga bata, mahalagang malaman ninyo

ang mga bagay na iyan tungkol sa
paaralang inyong pinapasukan dahil ito
ang mgasisilbing pangalawa ninyong
tahanan. Tama ba?
Opo!
B. Panlinang na Gawain

1. Paggaganyak

Para sa ating bagong aralin, tumayo

muna ang lahat at bumuo ng limang
pangkat na may tig-anim na miyembro.
(Nagtayuan ang mga mag-aaral at nag
pangkat-pangkat.)
Maaari bang lumapit ang isang miyembro
ng bawat pangkat sa akin?
Mag-uusap ang mga bata kung sino sakanila
Mayroon akong hawak ngayon at ibibigay ang lalapit sa guro.
ko ito sainyo maya maya. Ngayon
kailangan muna ninyong hulaan kung ano
itong hawak ko na nakatago sa aking
likuran.
(Mag-iisip)
Nagsisimula ito sa letrang ‘L’ at
nagtatapos sa letrang ‘N’. Madalas ninyo
itong nakikitang nakasabit sa pader ng
inyong mga bahay. Kung minsan ay
nandon pa mismong ang inyong mga
sariling litrato.
(Magbibigay ng ibat-ibat hula)
Kadalasang kwadrado ang hugis nito at
nilalagay ng inyong mga magulang sa
album.
Litrato po guro.
Tama! Mahusay kayong mag-isip. Mga
larawan nga aking aking hawak-hawak

104 | P a g e
 ngayon. At ang bawat pangkat ay
makakatanggap nito. Yehey!

Mga bata, susuriin ninyo ang mga ito at

sabihin ninyo sa akin kung alam ninyo ang
mga kagamitang nariyan sa mga larawan
lalapit ako sa bawat pangkat upang
magtanong, okay ba yon? Opo!
(Pumunta na sa kani-kanilang mga pangkat at
sinuri ang mga litrato)
Mga bata, sino ang inyong naisip matapos
ninyong suriin ang mga litrato? Unang pangkat –Stethoscope, syringe, Lab
gown, surgical masks and gloves,
bandages/bandaids (Doctor)

Pangalawang pangkat – ballpen, teachers

uniform, chalk, blackboard, libro (Guro)

Pangatlong pangkat – airplane, pilot uniform,

map, headphones (Piloto)

Pang-apat na pangkat – ruler, pencil,

engineer uniform, tools, computers (Engineer)

Pang-limang pangkat – lawyer suit, big book,

court, gavel (Abogado)

Dahil tapos na tayo sa ating aktibidad at

lahat ng pangkat ay nakakuha ng tamang
sagot bigyan niyo ang mga sarili ninyo ng
monster clap. (Magpapalakpakan ang mga mag-aaral)

2. Paglalahad

Balikan natin ang mga propesyong

nabanggit ninyo mula sa binigay kong
mga litrato. (Ipapakita ang litrato ng mga
taong nakasuot ng pang doctor, guro,
abogada, engineer at piloto)

Tukuying muli kung anong propesyon ang (Sabay-sabay na bibigkas ang unang
mga ito. pangkat) ang mga kagamitang ito po ay
ginagamit ng isang Doctor.

Magaling! Ngayon, para kanino ang mga (Pangalawang pangkat) sa amin po ay mga
kagamitang ito? gamit ng isang guro.

105 | P a g e
 (Pangatlong pangkat) itong mga kagamitang
ito naman po ay gamit ng isang piloto.

Magaling! Para kanino naman ang mga

kagamitang napunta sa ika-apat at limang
pangkat?
(Pang-apat na pangkat) ang napunta naman
po sa amin ay mga gamit ng isang engineer.
(Pang-limang pangkat) napunta naman po
saamin ang kagamitan na ginagamit ng isang
abogado.
Napakahusay mga bata! Palakpakan
ninyo ang inyong mga sarili.

3. Pagtatalakay (pumalakpak ang mga bata)

Ngayon,sino sainyo ang paglaki gusto

maging isang doctor, guro, abogado,
piloto at engineer?

Sa inyong palagay, ano ang dapat (magtataas ng kamay ang mga estudyante)
ninyong gawin para paglaki ninyo ay
maging ganap na doctor, guro, abogado,
piloto at engineer kayo?
(Ituturo ang litratong nakadikit sa pisara)

Mag-aaral po ng mabuti.
Magaling! Ngunit paano ninyo iyon
gagawin? Paano ba ang ginagawa ng
isang mabuting mag-aaral?

(nagtaas ng kamay ang isang mag-aaral)

Tama ‘yan. Dahil lahat ng tinuturo namin susunod po ako sa lahat ng iuutos at
ay mahalaga buhay ng bawat isa sainyo. ipapagawa ng aking guro.
Ano pa maliban doon?

(nagtaas ng kamay at sumagot)

Mahusay! Isa yan sa mga katangian ng Papasok po ako araw-araw at hindi liliban sa
mabuting estudyante. Lahat ba dito ay klase.
gustong matuto at makapagtapos?

Kung gayon, ano naman sa tingin ninyo Opo.

ang mangyayari sa mga batang hindi nag-
aaral?

Magiging pulubi po sila at manghihingi ng

Tama! Pero mga bata, lagi ninyong limos sa kalsada.
tatandaan na hindi lahat ng pulubing
makikita ninyo ay hindi nakapag-aral.
Minsan, mayroon ding mga pulubi o

106 | P a g e
 nanghihingi ng limos na pumapasok sa
paaralan.
Pero bakit parin po sila nanghihingi ng limos?
Dahil hindi lahat ng bata ay mayroong
magulang na sumusuporta sakanila.
Minsan, kailangan nilang manghingi ng
limos upang may pambaon sila sa
pagpasok ng paaralan. Kaya kayo mga
bata, pahalagahan ninyo ang mga bagay
na mayroon kayo at magpasalamat kayo
sa inyong mga magulang dahil
nakakapag-aral kayo ng hindi nanglilimos
sa kalsada.

Ano pa kaya ang mangyayari kung hindi

nag-aaral ang isang bata?
Hindi po sila magiging doctor, guro, abogado,
piloto at engineer paglaki nila.
Magaling! Hindi po sila matututong magsulat at
Ano naman sa tingin ninyo ang magbasa.
mangyayari kung wala silang magiging
trabaho paglaki nila?

Tama! Ang ibang batang walang makain Wala po silang pambili ng makakain nila.
ay minsa’y nagnanakaw na lamang. Tama Magugutom po sila.
ba ang magnakaw mga bata?

E ano naman mangyayari kung hindi sila Hindi po.

marunong magbasa at magsulat?

Kung gayon, maaari niyo bang sabihin sa Mahihirapan po sila paglaki nila.
akin kung bakit mahalaga ang pag-aaral
sa buhay ng mga batang kagaya ninyo?

• Para po marami kaming matutunan.

• Para po matuto kaming magsulat at
magbasa.
• Para po matupad namin ang aming
mga pangarap. (doctor, guro,
abogado, piloto at engineer)
Mahuhusay ang lahat ng inyong mga • Para hindi po kami magutom at
kasagutan! Mukhang lahat kayo ay magnakaw.
handang matuto at maging mga doctor, • Para po paglaki naming makakabili
guro, abogado, piloto, engineer at iba pa. kami ng mga bagay na gusto namin.
Dahil sa pamamagitan ng pag-aaral,
mapapaunlad ninyo ang inyong mga
angking kakayahan at kaalaman.

Kanina mga bata, nasabi natin na

mahalaga ang pag-aaral. Tama ba?

107 | P a g e
 Ngayon naman mga bata alam niyo ba
kung ano itong mga bagay na hawak ko?
(ipapakita ang walis tambo at walis
tingting)
Opo.
Sino ang makakapagsabi saakin kung ano
itong mga bagay na hawak ko?

Alam nyo ba kung saan ito ginagamit?

Opo.
Sino sainyo ang naglilinis sa bahay nila?

Wow. Ang sisipag naman ninyo. Bakit sa (Magtataas ng kamay ang mga bata)
tingin ninyo ay kailangang linisin ang Walis tingting po at walis tambo.
bahay at paligid na mayroon tayo?
Sa paglilinis po.
Tama!
(Magtataas ng kamay ang mga bata)
E mga bata, ano naman ito? (Ipapakita
ang larawan ng paaralan)

Ang paaralan ba, kailangan ding linisin? Para po makaiwas sa sakit.

Bakit niyo nasabi?

Mahusay! Bigyan ng tatlong bagsak. Larawan po ng ating paaralan.

Ano ano pa sa tingin ninyo ang maaaring Opo.

gawin upang mapanatiling malinis at
maayos ang ating paaralan? Kasi po panagalawang tahanan na namin ito
kaya kailangan din linisin parang sariling
bahay.

Magaling mga bata! Kailangan nating

magtulong tulong upang mapanatiling
maayos at malinis ang ating pangalawang (sasagot ang mga bata)
tahanan. Brigada eskwela ang tawag sa • Pagtatapon sa tamang basurahan
pagsasagawa ng mga pagkukumpuni, • Pagkakaroon ng cleaners sa loob ng
muling pagpipinta ng mga pader at silid-aralan
kisame, pag-aayos ng mga may tagas na • Pagpulot ng mga basura sa
tubo, paglilinis ang mga palikuran, at kapaligiran
pagtitiyak na walang pinangingitlugan ang
lamok at iba pang insektong nagdadala ng
sakit ang mga campus na ginagawa ng
inyong mga magulang bago mag-umpisa
ang pasukan.

108 | P a g e
 4. Paglalahat

Ano nga ulit ang limang propesyong ating

nabanggit kanina (pangalan ng
estudyante)? Isa-isahin mo nga.

Ano nga ulit ang dapat ninyong gawin

upang maging mga doctor, guro,
abogado, piloto at engineer kayo? Maaari
mo bang ilahad (pangalan ng
estudyante)? Doctor, guro, abogado, piloto at engineer.

Ano na nga ba ang maaaring mangyari sa

mga batang hindi nag-aaral? Sabihin mo
nga (pangalan ng estudyante)?
Mag-aaral po ng mabuti, susunod sa
alituntunin ng guro at hindi liliban sa klase.

Bakit nga ulit naging mahalaga ang pag- Hindi po sila matututong magbasa at
aaral mga bata? magsulat. Magiging pulubi po sila at hindi
magiging mga doctor, guro, abogado, piloto at
engineer. Magugutom din po sila dahil wala
silang trabaho.

• Para po marami kaming matutunan.

• Para po matuto kaming magsulat at
magbasa.
Mahusay mga bata! • Para po matupad namin ang aming
Bigyan ng limang bagsak ang buong mga pangarap. (doctor, guro,
klase! abogado, piloto at engineer)
• Para hindi po kami magutom at
Ano naman ang tawag sa pagtutulong magnakaw.
tulong ng mga magulang ninyo sa • Para po paglaki naming makakabili
pagsasaayos ng paaralan bago mag- kami ng mga bagay na gusto namin.
umpisa ang pasukan?

5. Paglalapat *pumalakpak*
Sa loob ng 10 minuto ay hahayaan ko
kayong lumabas ng ating silid-aralan at
mamulot ng mga kalat sa labas at ilagay
ninyo ito sa tamang tapunan pagkatapos Brigada Eskwela po.
saka kayo bumalik sa inyong mga upuan.

109 | P a g e
IV. Pagtataya
A. Halina’t Subukan!

Iguhit ang masayang mukha (😊) kung tama at malungkot na mukha (☹) naman kung
mali ang mga sumusunod na pahayag tungkol sa pagpapahalaga sa paaralan.
_____1. Susundin ko ang alintuntunin ng aking guro.
_____2. Tutulong ako sa pagpapanatili ng kalinisan at kaayusan sa aking paaralan.
_____3. Makikinig akong maigi tuwing nagsasalita ang aking guro sa harapan.
_____4. Hindi ko tatapusin ang aking takdang aralin.
_____5. Brigada eskwela ang tawag sa paglilinis at pagkukumpuni ng mga sira bago mag-
umpisa ang pasukan.
_____6. Mas mabuting maging isang pulubi at magnakaw na lamang.
_____7. Itatapon ko sa tamang tapunan ang mga basura at hindi ako magkakalat sa loob ng
aking paaralan.
_____8. Matututo akong magsulat at magbasa kung hindi ako papasok sa paaralan.
_____9. Magpupursigi akong makatapos sa pag-aaral dahil ito lamang ang kayamanang hindi
mananakaw sa akin nino man.
_____10. Mag-kukunwari nalang akong may sakit upang lumiban sa klase.
B. Pagtutukoy.
Tukuyin ang sinasaad na trabaho sa bawat larawan at isulat ang responsibilidad o
gawain ng mga ito.
Mga larawan ng:
1. Guro
2. Pulubi na nagnanakaw
3. Doctor
4. Tsuper ng jeep
5. Abogado
6. Magbobote
8. Engineer
9. Magsasaka
10. Mangingisda

110 | P a g e
C. Paghahanay.
Ilagay sa hanay A ang letra ng mga katangian ng batang nagbibigay kahalagahan sa pag-
aaral at sa hanay B naman ang letra ng mga katangiang hindi tinataglay ng mabuting mag-aaral.
a. Masipag
b. Responsable
c. Masunurin
d. Tamad
e. Walang pangarap
f. Mahilig lumiban sa klase
g. Nakikinig sa guro at magulang
h. Hindi gumagawa ng takdang aralin
i. Hindi pumapasok sa tamang oras
j. Walang paki-alam sa paligid
k. Naninira ng kagamitan sa loob ng paaralan
l. Nagtatapon kung saan saan ng basura
m. Tumutulong sa paglilinis
n. Matiyaga
o. Mareklamo
A. B.

IV. Takdang Aralin/Kasunduan

Igulit sa loob ng kahon ang iyong sarili na nakasuot ng uniporme ng iyong pinapangarap na
propesyon/trabaho. Kulayan din ito.

Inihanda ni:
DESIREE ANNE M. GAGARIN

111 | P a g e
ASSESSMENT:

Task 1

Direction: Using the graphic organizer below, list down your “most important steps” to be
considered in conducting your social studies classes. Please make sure that the principles in
teaching must be involved in filling this organizer.

112 | P a g e
Task 3

Make at least 4 innovative games in teaching history, civics, culture, and geography to your
students that will surely engage to those subjects. Please indicate the objectives, criteria (if
applicable), and complete instruction.

Game#1

Title: _______________________________________________________________________

Objectives:
____________________________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________________________

Instruction:
____________________________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________________________

Game#2

Title: _______________________________________________________________________

Objectives:
____________________________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________________________

Instruction:
____________________________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________________________

Game#3

Title: _______________________________________________________________________

Objectives:
____________________________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________________________

113 | P a g e
Instruction:
____________________________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________________________

Task 2

Direction: Choose 2 disciplines from any of the following: History, Geography, Culture,
Government. Make an innovative detailed lesson plan for each of your chosen disciplines that
suits to the level of your target students. Use the template attached in this module in writing your
lesson plans.

114 | P a g e
115 | P a g e
116 | P a g e
 LESSON 12
SOCIAL STUDIES ASSESSMENT OF LEARNING
IN EARLY CHILDHOOD EDUCATION
\ OBJECTIVES:
• Identify the learning assessment principles in early childhood education
• Design innovative assessment tools for children
• Comply with the guidelines in writing assessment tools

ASSESSING STUDENT LEARNING

Main Idea:
Assessment goes on continually in the classroom and is both a natural and an essential part of a
learning environment. The primary purpose of assessment is not to sort children or to compare
schools; it is to improve teaching and learning. For this reason, this chapter has been placed
before the planning and teaching chapters.

Picture this:
Mr. Bailey introduces his students to the concepts-democracy as part of the fourth-grade social
studies 9language arts curriculum. But he thought he would find out what the students already
know about dictatorship and democracies. He asks a few questions, “Are our classroom meetings
democratic? Thumbs up if you think so, down if you think not. Sideways if you’re not sure.” He
counts thumbs. “Thank you, now let’s hear your reasons.” Their decisions tell him little about their
understanding of democracy, but listening to their reasoning, he learns that they have very little
understanding, only something vague about elections. The next week, he launches the unit on
democracy. At the end, he will revisit this questions and listen again to their reasons.

Begin with a rather long story about classroom assessment. If you read it thoroughly, you will find
it a helpful introduction to the main idea of this chapter.

Ms. Rivera is a new fourth-grade teacher who plans to teach children to read and make
maps of their state and the United States. The school district curriculum guide states that fourth-
grade teachers should achieve the following objectives. The first specifies under standings, the
second skills,

Knowledge: At the end of the fourth grade, pupils should understand (1) the difference between
state and national maps and (2) the differences and similarities among different kinds of maps:
political, landform, and shaded relief maps

117 | P a g e
Skills: Pupils at the end of fourth grade should be able to (1) use map symbols and directions,
hake different kinds of maps of the school grounds, and (3) locate places on the U.S. map
using longitude and latitude.

Before she begins planning a unit of instruction, Ms. Rivera decides to find out what these children
presently know about maps. She considers asking the whole class several questions: “What is a
map? Have you ever used a map? What kinds of information do maps give us? What things make
a map a really good map? Who knows what a map legend is?” She also contemplates listing key
map terms on the board and asking students to define each of them on a sheet of paper. These
are fine ideas. After weighing these alternatives, Ms. Rivera decides to create a brief pencil-and-
paper test so she can maximize the amount of information she obtains from each child. Using
ideas from her college methods course, she finds a map-skills practice exercise in the students'
social studies workbook (Figure 7-1) and makes a copy for each child.

The next day, Ms. Rivera informs the children that she wants to find out what they know about
maps so she can plan instruction accordingly. She warms them up to the task by asking them
about their experiences using and making maps. Then, she hands them the practice sheet and
directs them to take 15 minutes or so to answer the 10 questions below the map. After they finish,
to find out their immediate reactions, she asks the class which items were the most and least
difficult for them. She jots down a few notes on what they say.

Later that day, she looks over her notes and scores the assessment. She notes that two thirds of
her students marked 4 or 5 of the 10 items correctly. Two students answered none correctly, and
two answered 9 of the 10 items correctly. No one got all 10. Examining responses item by item,
she observes that no students correctly answered the question about due north, and nearly all
the children identified the railroad. This is good information, and she figures it will help her plan
instruction on maps.

She goes back to school the next day eager to gather more information. She decides to lead a
class discussion of the same 10 items. She makes a transparency of the map and questions, and
displays it on the overhead projector. This time, she asks the class to respond to each question
out loud. Her questioning procedure goes something like this; She directs her students' attention
to the first question and asks the children which responses they selected yesterday. She uses the
"fingers technique to maximize participation: "Hold up one finger if you said it was a swamp, two
if you said it was a desert, and three fingers if you said it was mountainous" Then she calls on a
student to give reasons for his or her choice. After listening, she asks another child for his or her
reasoning, and then another child. This way, she is able to hear their reasoning something that
yesterday's exercise did not allow. As she moves through the 10 items, she is able to hear each
student reason aloud at least once. Children are able to hear one another’s reasoning, too. Ms.
Rivera is careful to call on as many girls as boys.

118 | P a g e
Figure 7-1 Assessing map skills
Use the map above to decide the correct answers. Then underline the correct answers.

1. The land north of A is (a wetland), (a desert), (mountainous).

2. The mouth of a river is located near letter (A), (B), (C).
3. The city D is perhaps a (capital), (seaport), (mining town)
4. The river flows (from southwest to northeast), (from northeast to southwest), (from east to
west)
5. An island is marked by the letter (A), (B), (C),
6. A railroad runs between (B and C), (D and B), (D and C)
7. The letter E marks (a bay), (a peninsula), (an island)
8. A peninsula is shown on this map at (B), (G), (C)
9. A delta might be found just north of (C), (A), (B)
10. The letter G is due north of (C), (A), (B)
Hungry for still more information, she turns to a different kind of assessment procedure on the
following day. She places a blank sheet of paper in front of each student and asks them
individually to try to draw from memory a map of the United States. She tells them to sketch very
roughly the nation’s general outline, add the Rocky Mountains and the Mississippi River, and draw
in their own state, locating it as best they can. She asks them to indicate compass directions as
well and to create a legend or key to explain any symbols used. Her students are nervous and a
little embarrassed at the prospect of drawing. Ms. Rivera calms them with a little humor and
impresses upon them how important it is for her to find out what they now can do so she can plan
the very best instruction for them.
She has a hunch, based on the prior assessment, that several children will do very well
on this map-drawing exercise, but mainly she is genuinely curious to see what they will draw,
where they will draw the Mississippi River, whether they will use symbols, and where they will say
north is.

119 | P a g e
 After mulling over all the information she has gathered, Ms. Rivera plans a unit. The
learning activities begin with conversations about road maps found in automobile glove
compartments, which several students bring from home, and she displays well-worn trail maps
that she has used on summer hikes. During the unit, pairs of children learn to make maps of the
classroom and playground, and they search for explorers' routes on CDs and the Internet.
Assigned to cooperative teams, the class develops expertise on different regions of the United
States, making political and landform maps of each region. Each day, they practice drawing an
outline map of the United States from memory, after studying once more the map hanging in the
front of the room. Global comparisons are made between each U.5. region and a geographically
similar region on another continent; for example, the Rockies are compared to the Swiss Alps,
Death Valley to the Sahara, the Great Plains to the steppes of Russia, and so forth.

When introducing the unit, Ms. Rivera (with great flourish) informs the class that "by winter
vacation this year, each of you will be able to place in your portfolio a landform map of the United
States drawn from memory, and it will include our own state mapped correctly.

ASSESSMENT IS NATURAL
Assessment means finding out what students know and are able to do. Like a detective
trying to get the facts, assessment's emphasis is on observation of what is happening now.
Evaluation, by contrast, involves value judgment: comparing what is the facts about the child's
present understanding –with what ought to be—the desired outcome of instruction. This
distinction is often blurred. When teachers assess children's present understanding of a landform
map or map legend (or citizenship or immigration), they usually do so with a desired level of
understanding—a standard—in mind. Indeed, assessment and evaluation often occur in one
breath. In this chapter, I will follow common practice and use the terms assessment and evaluation
almost interchangeably, making the distinction where necessary for clarity. But first let's reflect on
Ms. Rivera's assessments.

She was assessing her students map knowledge and skills. But why? To help her plan an
effective unit of instruction. Was she doing anything out of the ordinary? Not really. Teachers
assess their students almost continually, observing them at their desks, checking their homework,
and looking over their shoulders as they make models, paint lakes and mountains, read about
deserts of the world, and write stories about historical events. They notice when children raise
their hands higher and higher, hoping to be called on, and when they slump down in their chair,
avoiding the teacher’s gaze. They notice when children are rejected from one another's play and
observe how they negotiate tasks in small cooperative groups. Teachers, because they are
teachers, are constantly assessing.

Ms. Rivera is a model of curiosity. She loves to learn what her children already know and
can do. She is able to make them feel comfortable as she gathers information. They know she
has much to teach them and that she diagnoses their present knowledge and skills so she can
properly plan instruction.

Note the variety of assessment procedures she used. First, there was the paper-and-
pencil assessment, She pulled an activity from the workbook and adapted it to her assessment
purpose. This paper-and-pencil assessment was of the selection, or multiple-choice, type
because students were asked to select the best response from several given. The next day, she
asked the whole class which items they found difficult and easy. informal questioning of this sort
is probably the most common kind of assessment conducted by teachers. Ms. Rivera then placed
the same map and questions on the overhead projector and conducted a sort of group interview
using a planned sequence of questions and the "fingers” technique to get all of her students

120 | P a g e
involved-so that she could gather information about how they puzzled their way through these
items. She did not provide correction or instruction; these would come later, during the unit. For
now, she was only trying to find out what they knew and how they thought about these things.
Finally, she used a production (also called supply) assessment when she had students sketch
the U.S. map. When Ms. Rivera introduced the unit to students, she informed them of a key
performance expectation or target.

These are only a few of the kinds of assessment commonly carried on in classrooms, and
Ms. Rivera’s purpose—to plan instruction—is only one purpose. This chapter will explore these
and other kinds and purposes of assessment. First, it is important to emphasize that assessment
goes on continually in classrooms. And it ought to. Assessment "ought to become part of the
natural learning environment, writes Howard Gardner. "As much as possible it should occur on
the fly, as part of a teacher's or learner's natural engagement in a learning situation. What is to
be avoided is a view of assessment as a formal procedure that occurs only at the end of an
instructional unit for the purpose of reporting a score or grade That is one purpose of assessment,
and a necessary one. But it is a narrow purpose and not one that helps teachers plan or children
learn.

PURPOSES OF ASSESSMENT
This section and the next invite you to think carefully about purposes and principles of
assessment. The following sections explain the main kinds of assessment techniques, from
simple observation to self-assessment checklists, scoring guides, and portfolios.
First, though, consider three general purposes of assessment (Figure7-2).
Ms. Rivera's assessments were serving the purpose of diagnosing her students’ knowledge and
skills, which in turn served the purpose of planning effective instruction. This—instructional
planning— is the primary purpose of assessment as far as the teacher a concerned. Instructional
decision making without assessment data would be subject considerable error. Not only does
assessment information allow teachers to tailor instruction to individual students, it also helps
them decide on the instructional objectives themselves and monitor students' progress. If Ms.
Rivera knows, for example, that her children’s oral reports on the geographical regions of the
United States will be graded on organization accuracy, voice clarity, and use of visual aids, then
these become major performance objectives of the unit. I will discuss this in detail in the next
section.

FIGURE 7-2 Purposes of assessing student learning

Instructional Planning
Assess in order to
• diagnose students' understanding of maps before developing a map unit
• provide feedback to students on their progress and problems
• decide how to modify a unit plan
• identify cultural differences
• identity ability strengths and weaknesses
• provide evidence of success to students; therefore, motivate them to persevere

Public Accountability
Assess in order to
• report student progress to the community
• compare students across schools, school districts, states, and nations
• discuss with parents students' progress and problems

121 | P a g e
Student Placement
Assess in order to
• assign students to pairs and cooperative groups or ability groups
• decide which students require an IEP
• place profoundly retarded and extraordinarily gifted children in special programs

Public accountability and program evaluation is a second purpose of assessment. Most states
in the United States have developed social studies assessments that are administered to students
statewide, and the U.S. Congress funds assessments of students' knowledge in history,
geography, and civics." Assessments such as these are typically administered to students in
grades 4, 8, and 12, and the results are used by parents and public officials to compare education
programs and student achievement within districts, across states, and among nations.
Assessments designed for this purpose are usually standardized and norm-referenced.
Standardized means that the test is designed to be administered and scored in the same way
wherever it is given. Norm-referenced means that the results will be used to compare one student
or group of students (e.g., those in your school or state) to another (students in the nation as a
whole)

A third purpose of assessment is placement, that is, the selection of students for particular
schools and programs. IQ tests and the Scholastic Aptitude Test (SAT), introduced in 1926, are
perhaps the best-known tests used for this purpose. 1Q and similar tests are frequently used to
determine placements of exceptional children. The SAT has determined college and university
admission for millions of high school students. In the elementary grades standardized reading
and math tests are often used to determine ability-group placement, and other assessments of
social competence, intelligence, and language proficiency are used to place students in special
programs.

Critics of testing for this purpose have called attention to some of its abuses, one of which is
to sort children into categories from which there may be no escape, As was noted in Chapter 2,
once a child is labeled, the label often sticks long after its supposed benefits
the child have worn off. It may generate negative effects as a self-fulfilling prophecy: Teacher’s
expectations of the child may be lowered in a way that is not warranted, the child's self-
perceptions may be lowered accordingly, and, making matters worse, he or she may be
permanently (rather than only temporarily) separated from other children. As a result of the
separation, the child may experience a less challenging and less empowering curriculum. As a
consequence, he or she will know and be able to do less than his or her peers. Labels have been
misused especially with racial-, ethnic, and language-minority children. For these reasons,
teachers are urged to use extreme caution when using test results for placement purposes.

PRINCIPLES OF ASSESSMENT
When teachers plan to assess their students' learning, they should also be thinking about
curriculum objectives and alternative ways to provide instruction. Similarly, when teachers plan
curriculum objectives and think about how they will teach to them, they need also to consider how
they will assess student achievement of these objectives. They are, in effect, thinking about three
things at once. For this reason, it has become popular to say that the boundaries between
assessment, curriculum, and instruction are blurred. This brings us to the first principle of good
assessment practice.

Principle 1: Assessment Is an Integral Part of Curriculum and Instruction

Assessment planning should not be tagged onto the end of a unit, after the curriculum has been
planned and instruction delivered. Good assessment is not an add-on or an afterthought. If

122 | P a g e
assessment is to facilitate student learning, it must be woven into the fabric of curriculum and
instruction. It must be done before, during, and after instruction.
Assessments conducted before instruction are diagnostic assessments. Ms. Rivera
developed her unit to address the geographic knowledge and skills she found wanting in the
assessments she conducted before planning the unit. Assessments conducted during instruction
are formative assessments. These assessments help teachers decide what next in a lesson or
unit. They are called formative because they help teachers "form” or modify instruction to help
children achieve the objectives. These are certainly the most common kinds of assessment.
Often, they are nothing more than observations made of students they are engaged in project or
committee work, or while they are working independently at their desks, but they may also be
brief paper-and-pencil tests given periodically through a unit of instruction. Such tests help
teachers to check students' understanding of the topic and then to alter the lesson as needed.
They also give students knowledge of the results of their work and a sense of making progress,
which can be of tremendous help in motivating learners of all ages to carry on with the task at
hand. Frequent formative assessment provides both teachers and students with the feedback
they need to teach and learn better.

Assessments conducted after instruction are summative assessments. These are used to
judge students' overall achievement at the end of instruction, They sum up the learning that has
taken place and may incorporate many quizzes, work samples, performances, and other evidence
of learning. Chapter and unit tests are the most common kinds of summative assessments, along
with the grade given at the end of the school term.

Whether before, during, or after instruction, assessments facilitate student learning by

helping student and teacher alike find out what is and isn't being learned. This information is then
used to plan further teaching and learning.

Principle 2: Devote Time to Essential Learnings

Teachers should spend their assessment time on a relatively small number of essential subject
matters or skills. Key themes and topics of citizenship, history, geography, and the other social
sciences were discussed in Chapters 3 through 6, and the teacher should direct assessment in
social studies primarily to these. It is more important, for example, to develop assessments related
to ideas such as democracy, cultural pluralism, poverty, human environment interaction, and the
enduring tension between individual freedom and the common good than it is to spend time listing
Civil War battlefields, the governors of your state, or the sequence of Chinese and English
dynasties. Of course, these latter subjects may have their place in a well-conceived curriculum,
but school time is precious. Thoughtful teachers spend most of their instruction and assessment
energies on the knowledge, skills, virtues, and values that matter most.

Take a moment to contemplate Figure 7-3,"What's worth knowing? The question asks
teachers to set priorities—to engage in the thoughtful task of content selection: From the universe
of possible topics, which few should we spend time teaching and assessing?

Try to think of examples that might fall within each circle. For example, list the governors
of our state" might be placed in the outer circle and "understand why democracies sometimes
collapse" in the inner circle. In between might be "identify the beginning and ending dates of three
past democracies. "These distinctions are not necessarily easy to make. Different teachers,
students, and parents will certainly disagree on where to draw the lines. Content selection (in
social studies especially) is a deeply value-laden procedure. It is political as well a pedagogical.
The decision tree in Chapter 3 (Figure 3-4) may come in handy.

123 | P a g e
 Figure 7-3: What’s worth knowing?

But help is available. The members of the committee that developed the curriculum
standards for social studies (see the accompanying Sampler) debated this question continually.
The 10 standards represent their advice to beginning and experienced teachers alike.

Principle 3: Set High Standards for Teaching and Learning

The minimum competency movement of the 1970s and 19805 was an attempt by the
educational community to restore public confidence in American education. Test data
indicated a downward trend in scores on tests of basic school subjects over a period of several
years. It was widely believed by the public-rightly or wrongly -that the achievement of American
schoolchildren was falling behind that of their counterparts in other industrialized nations. Out of
this concern came the idea that schools should identify minimum levels of competency for basic
school subjects that presumably all students would be expected to master. Teaching for these
minimum competencies would be followed by minimum competency tests. This movement had
great appeal and received strong support from public officials. Several states developed programs
to implement minimum competency testing. What was not anticipated in this process was the
detrimental effect of fore-shortening achievement by focusing on minimum requirements.
Minimum expectations gave no hint of the kinds of targets toward which students and teachers
should put forth their best effort.

"Social studies teaching and learning are powerful when they are challenging, according
to the vision statement developed by the National Council for the Social Studies

124 | P a g e
Assessments, like the curriculum objectives to which they are connected, need to capture the
richness and depth of social studies subject matter. Knowing the names of those who signed the
U.S. Constitution falls short of knowing why the Constitution has the content it does, grasping the
principles on which it relies, and knowing what democracy requires of citizens.
To set high standards for children's learning and to assess their attainment in relation
these standards, teachers need to be familiar with the several sets of curriculum standards
developed in recent years. These were addressed in Chapters 1, 3, 4, and 5. Consider the two
following curriculum standards for social studies learning developed for children in early grades.
By the end of the fourth grade, students should be able to:
• Identify key ideals of the United States' democratic form of government, such as individual
human dignity, liberty, justice, equality, and the rule of law, and their application in specific
situations.
• Explain the purposes of rules and laws, and identify the most important values and
principles of American democracy.

Teachers who teach to these standards in the early grades are aiming high. But there is assess
student achievement of these standards, it is necessary to envision the levels of achievement that
students must reach to receive particular scores, awards, or certificates. These levels are called
performance standards or performance criteria. They define levels of achievement—degrees of
mastery or proficiency—from high to low. Teachers often define three levels: good, fair, and poor.
When a fourth level is added, it usually specifies a still higher level: excellent, superior,
commendable, highly proficient, and distinguished. Sometimes five or six levels are specified.
Below is a set of performance criteria that spell out three levels of achievement. These
performance criteria were developed to assess the quality of short essays that fifth-grade students
write about important events in American history, such as the signing of the Declaration of
Independence or the Emancipation Proclamation.

• Level 3-Proficient: Response shows considerable knowledge of the time period and
geographic factors as inappropriate, and frequently demonstrates insight. It usually
supports ideas and conclusions with specific historical examples. Response is well
reasoned and organized and is largely historically accurate.
• Level 2-Adequate: Response contains adequate information about the event. L
demonstrates some knowledge of the time period and geographic factors, as appropriate.
Response demonstrates some understanding, but reasons and evidence are in limited
depth.
• Level 1-Minimal: Response addresses the question, but shows minimal understanding. It
may lack historical and geographical context. It may contain numerous historical errors. It
may simply rephrase the question but includes at least a word or phrase showing historical
knowledge."

PRINCIPLE 4: CLARIFY TARGETS (OBJECTIVES) EARLY

Teachers need to clarify for students early in the instructional unit the targeted level of
performance. In other words, they should let students in on the objectives of instruction and try to
describe those objectives as clearly as p0ssible, specifying what students will know and be able
to do if they achieve the objective. If teachers want children to develop their skills and knowledge
to a high degree of proficiency-if they want children to hit the target-then the children must know
the target well in advance. Just as an archer cannot shoot an arrow to the bull's-eye if she cannot

125 | P a g e
see the target, children cannot become proficient if they have no idea of the level of performance
they are striving tor. Skillful teachers, therefore, clarify the goals of instruction at the beginning of
the year and state specific objectives and performance criteria at the beginning of the unit. How
to frame these objectives is central to unit planning, as the next chapter will reveal.
For example, Ms. Paley's kindergartners know in advance that their dramatizations of
historical events must be rich in detail. Consequently, each time she repeats to them the story of
Rosa Parks's bus ride or of Squanto, the Pilgrims' friend, it is with the expectation that their
retellings of the story will evolve. And they do. Likewise, Mr. Smith tells his seventh-grade class
in September that by June they will draw a world map beautifully from memory on a blank piece
of tagboard. when they arrive here, I tell them they’ll end up with 150 countries, and they tell me,
'No way. But they do, confidently. "I used to hear about

Figure 7-4 Backward design: From target to activities and instruction

Determine desired result

(target).

Specify what evidence will

show that the targeted
learning has been achieved.

Plan learning activities and

instruction.

countries on television and think they were over there somewhere, admitted one student. I hadn’t
heard of half of them. Now I can figure out better what's going on in the world. I always know that
Angola is in Africa and not just over there somewhere.

Teachers like Ms. Paley and Mr. Smith make clear for children the "destinations" of their
efforts. Ms. Paley's specification that dramatizations are to be "rich in detail," and Mr. Smith's that
their world maps will be drawn beautifully and "from memory let children in on the performance
criteria by which their work will be judged and toward which their work
should be aimed. This is tremendously important. This can be called "backward design because
the end point (the arrow hitting the target) is envisioned first, and then specified
("in rich detail, "drawn beautifully from memory), and only then are learning activities
planned (see Figure 7-4).

Teachers assess continuously, in large and small ways, formally and informally, within
learning activities and between them. Teachers then can provide additional instruction and
experiences as needed, calibrating them to student progress toward the desired results. In this
way the first principle of assessment is realized: improving teaching and learning.
Principle 5: Aim for More Authentic Assessments
Assessments should be geared to finding out students' ability to apply knowledge and
skills successfully in meaningful or "authentic" tasks. These tasks are exhibitions of children’s
ability to use what they have learned -to apply it. Such tasks are meaningful because they are
goal directed, and these goals have a real-world quality; hence, they are not school-bound tasks
that have no bearing on what people do in their lives as citizens, workers, family members, and
neighbors. Rather than focusing only on what children have memorized, require children to use

126 | P a g e
information, to analyze, manipulate, or interpret it in some a consequently, higher-order thinking
is incorporated into the assessment.
Grant Wiggins clarifies: "Authentic assessments require students to be effective
performers with acquired knowledge. Traditional tests tend to reveal only whether a student can
reorganize, recall, or plug in' what was learned out of context. This may be as problems as
inferring driving or teaching ability from written tests alone.

Examples of authentic tasks in social studies are plentiful. Teachers can assess students’ ability
to:

• Participate in deliberation on classroom, playground, and community problems as part of

maintaining a healthy civic life
• Use reference books and the Internet as part of social studies inquiry projects
• Work cooperatively as part of a team that’s completing a challenging task
• Display historical reasoning by creating a classroom museum exhibit of an ancient
community (e.g., Mesa Verde)
• Read and make charts and graphs showing food supply, election results, census data,
and economic data
• Write and illustrate a travel brochure of the community

Principle 6: Collect Multiple Indicators of Learning- An Array of evidence

Teachers should collect multiple indicators of student achievement. A score on a lone chapter
test or a summative performance assessment does not go far enough to tell what a child knows
and is able to do in relation to the most important learning objectives, and it gives no indication of
progress. In this sense, a single score can be said to lack validity: it doesn’t really capture the
learning it claims to be capturing. Teachers can remedy this problem by having students collect
numerous work samples into a portfolio that documents their work over course of a unit. The
portfolio might contain a chapter test from the social studies textbook program along with two or
three other paper-and-pencil test and quizzes. There might also be a team-written biography to
which the student contributed a chapter, letters to the editor about current events, self-
assessments of the student’s reading and thinking skills, and several drawing and maps. In this
way, students have much to show for their work, and teachers can justify the grades they give by
pointing to an array of evidence.

Principle 7: Provide Ample Opportunities to Learn

Students should not be held accountable for learning subject matter on which they have not been
provided adequate instruction. Therefore, schools should not only provide targets for learning, but
also the means of achieving them—teachers, curriculum materials, classrooms, wall maps,
libraries, stimulating environments. Children must be provided support or assistance if they are to
reach the targets. School buildings in poor physical conditions, outdated curriculum materials,
school administrators who deny teachers the assistance of knowledgeable curriculum
coordinators, unsupportive citizens, and teachers who have little professional competence or are
not themselves readers and learners and combine to deny children sufficient opportunities to
learn. Clearly, some of these problems are larger than what individual teachers can deal with in

127 | P a g e
their own classrooms. Nonetheless, what teachers can do is assess what is taught, teach what
will be assessed, and assure the community that what is taught and assessed are essential
learnings. Figure 7-5 summarizes the seven principles.

Figure 7-5 Principles of Good Assessment

• Principle 1: Treatment assessment as an integral part of curriculum ad instruction.

• Principle 2: Direct assessments toward essential learnings.
• Principle 3: Set high standards for teaching and learning
• Principle 4: Clarify targets early.
• Principle 5: Assess student performance in authentic tasks.
• Principle 6: Collect multiple indicators of learning.
• Principle 7: Provide ample opportunities for students to learn.

METHODS OF ASSESSMENT
We turn now to a variety of methods of assessment, beginning with informal techniques and then
moving to more formal methods of paper-and-pencil tests, performance assessment. and
portfolios. The latter are more formal because they are less likely to be done on the fly require
more planning, and require the development of materials such as scoring guides.

Informal Assessment Techniques

Much of the evaluation of learning in social studies is done informally by the teacher. Many times
each day the teacher observes learners and judges the quality of their work. The teacher notices
what problems individual children are encountering or what kind of help they need to progress.
The teacher then decides what deficiencies are apparent in children’s work, whether the
instruction is proceeding too rapidly or too slowly, what materials are required, now well concepts
have been understood, or how proficient children are in their use of skills. Of course, formal tests
have a place in this process, but most of the assessing a teacher does involves informal methods
and simple observation. This means that careful records must be kept if the progress of each child
is to be reported accurately. Some of the more commonly used informal assessment techniques
are described on the pages that follow.

OBSERVATION
Observation is among the best techniques the teacher can use to learn about children, appraise
their progress and determine areas for improvement. Although all teachers use this method of
learner appraisal, not all teachers are skillful in its application. The teacher who makes the most
of observation knows what to look for, systematizes observations, and tries to objectify the
information so obtained. To this end, some suggestions follow.

1. Spell out what is to be evaluated in terms of child behavior. For example, if the teacher is
looking for progress in historical reasoning, it would be important to determine whether the student
asks where a primary document came from and wants to know who wrote it rather than just
reading it and believing it without question. Or, if the teacher wants to observe growth in
democratic virtues, the following questions would be appropriate. Two virtues, civility and
individual responsibility, can be combined into one: consideration for others. Does the child…
a. Show respect for the ideas and feelings of classmates?

128 | P a g e
b. Refrain from causing disturbances that make it impossible for others to do their best work
c. Carry a fair share of the workload in a small group?
d. Enjoy helping a classmate when needed?
e. Display sensitivity to injustices that may occur in the course of life in and out of
the classroom?
f. Return borrowed materials? Obtain permission to use materials that belong to
others
g. Observe group rules?
h. Fulfill responsibilities on time?

2. Select certain children for intensive observation and study rather than observing in general.
This intensive observation might be limited to specific situations. For example, just what happens
to David when he is placed on a committee to accomplish some task in connection with a social
studies unit? The purpose of observations of this type is to gain insight into the child's behavior in
the context of a specific set circumstances.

3. Record observations in writing and do not depend on memory. Keep a written record of
information obtained through observation and maintain this record over a period of time. Here are
six entries in one teacher's anecdotal record on a child:

Sara Larsen
9/24: Difficulty in getting going in independent choice work; ignored all suggestions of activities.
"It's boring."
9/26: Found a fiction book related to unit for Sara. Read during work time. Took it home today.
9/27: Finished book... took suggestion to make a poster showing main characters.
10/1: Asked for time to show class the poster and to tell about the story.
10/2: Showed work. Is she a budding artist? Received lots of compliments/support from
classmates.
10/3: Sara asked for another book; suggested biography to her; also suggested she draw a map
showing the area in which the person lived.

Group Discussion
The teacher should reserve some time near the end of every social studies period for the class to
discuss its progress and to make plans for the next day's work. This discussion reminds students
of all the things they are learning in social studies and gives the teacher an opportunity to identify
their emerging understandings and stubborn misconceptions.

Asking Basic Questions

Asking questions is perhaps the most widely used assessment technique of all time. Parents
could not get along without it, and skillful teachers turn it into an art form. For example, Janet
Alleman and Jere Brophy have developed a brilliant set of questions for diagnosing primary-grade
students' understandings of cultural universals before beginning units on them. Cultural universals
are dimensions of human life that can be found in all human creatures, past and present. The
assessment questions Alleman and Brophy developed are basic because they get right to the
bottom of a child's understanding of, in this case, the concepts food, clothing, and shelter.

Food
• People all over the world eat food. Is that just because they like to, or do they need food?
Why?.. What does food do for us?
• What is food?... How is food different from other things that are not food?

129 | P a g e
Clothing
• People all over the world wear clothes. Is that because they need to, or just because they
want to?... Why?... (If a child's response only mentions keeping warm) Do they wear
clothes in warm places like Hawaii?... Why?
• Our clothes are made out of cloth. What is cloth made from?

Shelter
• People Iive in homes just because they want to, or do they need homes?... Why?
• What about in places like Hawaii where it's warm all year? Do people still need homes
there?... Why?

Additional examples of basic questions can be found in the culminating integrated unit plan of this
book the plan called "Explore," in Chapter 13. Again, these are basic because they go to the core
of children's present understandings (and misunderstandings) of important ideas
• What is the scientific way of learning? (lesson 1)
• What is true of all living things? (lesson 2)
• What do all living things need to survive? (lesson 3)
• What decisions and plans do people have to make to see to it that living things have what
they need to survive and develop? (lesson 4)

Asking Classifying Questions

Classifying questions may be the most useful for purposes of assessment, and for this reason
they are worth learning well. Classifying questions are perfect for assessing students
understanding of a concept. You will learn in greater detail in the concept learning section of
Chapter 9 that there are four types of classifying questions. Briefly, the first asks students whether
something that the teacher is displaying is or is not an example of the concept being studied. The
second asks students to sort a number of things into two sets: examples and nonexamples of the
concept. The third asks students to produce an example of that concept, and the fourth asks
students to correct a nonexample. Here a teacher uses two of these types: the first, then the third,
and then the first again. The concept is transportation.

• "Children, I want to ask a few questions about what you think transportation is. Hold up
one finger if you think walking from the cafeteria to the playground is an example of
transportation. Hold up two fingers it you think it is not an example. Hold up a closed fist if
you aren't sure.

• ."Good. Now let's hear some of your reasons. Rosa? Tom?

• "Let's get lots of examples of transportation on the board. Who will give us the first
example? Okay, Sara? Rick?"
• "Good. We have 15 suggestions on the board. Now let's hear the thinking behind them.
Nicole, you suggested covered wagons. What makes you think covered wagons are an
example of transportation?
• "Thank you. No one mentioned the space shuttle. Is it an example of transportation? Think
about it for a minute and then jot down your decision and your reasons. In a minute, I'll
ask several of you to share your response with the class.”

Note that this teacher is not providing instruction on the defining attributes of transportation. She
is not teaching the concept transportation. Rather, she is 15 using classifying questions to assess
what her students already know about this concept. Their decisions and the reasons they give
will both provide the teacher with ample information to decide what sort of instruction the students

130 | P a g e
need on this concept. Do they think transportation means simply movement? If so, a cloud and a
worm are both examples of transportation. Or do they think one thing is being moved by another?
The teacher will find out as she listens to their decisions and reasons.
Readers may wish to read again the opening vignette of this chapter, now paying attention
to how Ms. Rivera uses classifying questions as she diagnoses her students knowledge of the
concept map.

Conferences
Conferences with children should teach them how to assess their own work, thereby
leading to increased self-direction. The teacher-learner conference can help identity particular
learning problems and difficulties that children may be having provide insight into students'
feelings about schoolwork, and help the teacher become aware of special personal or social
problems the children may be having. The conference is a method of assisting every child
individually in a personal way. Teachers need to budget their time to allow regular 10-minute
conferences with individual children. Children need the personal contact with their teacher that a
conference can give.
A conference will be of little value if the teacher does all the talking and the child all the
listening. A friendly, helpful approach is needed, one that results in greater feelings of personal
worth and accomplishment on the part of the child along with some constructive and concrete
help for improvement. This close working relationship with children is critical to good education,
especially in the social studies.

Paper-and-Pencil Tests
Paper-and-pencil tests in the classroom usually are constructed by the teacher or selected
from the collection of tests that accompany textbook programs. Even though they can be used
successfully with primary-grade children (assuming they are designed appropriately, their value
increases as the child moves into the third and fourth grades and beyond. Such tests can help
teachers gather data about how well students understand the concepts they are learning, their
ability to write and to reason, their ability to recall key information, and their ability to use skills.
Ms. Rivera’s diagnostic exercise relied on a paper-and-pencil test of map symbol and
directions (Figure 7-1). It assessed both knowledge and skill. The classifying test shown in Figure
7-6 is a straightforward way to assess students’ understanding of economic concepts concerning
the theme of production. Note that it is a variation the third type of classifying in which children
are asked to produce one or more examples. In this case, the test provides one example and then
asks the student to produce a second. Students' understanding of any concept, from climate to
culture, government to religion, ecosystem to rain shadow, sentence to paragraph, can be
assessed in this simple way.

131 | P a g e
 Figure 7-6 Understanding Concepts
One example is given for each of the terms listed. Your job is to write down another
example.
1. Raw material Wood is a raw material for making furniture; another raw
material is ____________________________________
used in making ________________________________.
2. Fuel Oil is a fuel used for heating; another fuel is __________
used for ______________________________________.
3. Grain Corn is a grain used for fee; another example of grain
is_________________ used for ___________________.
4. Industry Dressmaking is an industry; another example of industry is
__________ that makes ____________________________.
5. Natural Water is a natural resource necessary for life; another natural
Resource resource is _____________ used for __________________.
6. Manufactured A rocket booster is a manufactured product used for space
Product exploration; another example of a manufactured product is
________________ used for ________________________.

Even a complicated skill such as using the encyclopedia can be assessed, at least in part,
using a paper-and-pencil format. Figure 7-7 suggests a test in which students find topics in one
encyclopedia and then locate the same topics in another. A benefit of this particular test is that
children find their way around not one, but two encyclopedias. From the standpoint of concept
formation, the teaching strategy discussed in Chapter 9, two examples are always better than
one. Locating the same items in an online encyclopedia would make a good third example for
older students, once they have completed this task.
Paper-and-pencil tests lend themselves to both formative and summative assessment.
Short matching and true-false quizzes can be written and scored quickly, and these can help
students feel successful it they are purposefully made to be somewhat easy. One suggestion for
giving these formative tests is to put children in teams of four. Hand the team two sheets of paper.
One has the questions only; the other has the answers filled in. Of course, the material on the test
has been taught to students over the previous one or two days. Explain that the reason you have
given students both the questions and the answers is that the team's job is to make sure that each
person on the team understands why these are the answers. Inform them that they will have 20
minutes for this review. Appoint a timekeeper and chairperson for each team. Explain that this
review will be followed by a quiz on the same material and that the teams that do well will earn a
certificate. After the time has expired, administer the same test to each individual. Robert Slavin,
who conducts research on cooperative learning, has shown that this assessment technique has
many positive benefits, which are examined in Chapter 11, ‘Cooperative Learning in Social
Studies.” Not the least of these benefits is that children learn the material on the test. This is good
news, reflecting the primary purpose of assessment: to improve teaching and learning.

Directions: Using the ten-volume Our Own Encyclopedia shown in this diagram, select
the number of the volume in which you would find information about each of the items listed
below. Write the number of the volume you select in the spaces on the left side of the sheet.
Then list the volume number of World Book in which the same items are found in the spaces
on the right side of the sheet.

132 | P a g e
Our Own World Book

1.___________________ 1. Earthquakes in Japan 1.___________________

2. ___________________ 2. The Mexican leader Zapata 2. ___________________

3. ___________________ 3. The history of rocketry 3. ___________________

4. ___________________ 4. The People’s Republic of China 4. ___________________

5. ___________________ 5. The U.S. Constitution 5. ___________________

6. ___________________ 6. Apple-growing in Washington State 6. ___________________

7. ___________________ 7.The Pony Express 7. ___________________

8. ___________________ 8. Countries that are members of the United Nations 8. ___________________

9. ___________________ 9. Confucius 9. ___________________

10. ___________________ 10. The history of computers 10. ___________________

Of course, more challenging and authentic assessments are needed as well. Two kinds
of paper-and-pencil test items are becoming increasingly popular. Both are challenging, and both
require higher-order thinking. One uses multiple-choice items; the other requires short essay
responses. Remember that multiple-choice items; the other requires short essay responses.
Remember that multiple-choice tests require students to select the best response of those given.
The major shortcoming of such tests is that too often they are not authentic tasks; that is, people
rarely engage in multiple-choice tasks outside school settings shortcoming can be offset when
the questions (1) deal with essential social studies learning and (2) require higher-order thinking:
analysis, interpretation, application or manipulation of information. The multiple-choice test items
shown in Figure 7-8 accomplish both. How?
These are multiple-choice-with-justification items. Such items present students with more
than one reasonable correct answer. The student's task is to choose the response that can best
be supported with reasons based on knowledge. In other words, the child has to justify his or her
selection. The emphasis, therefore, is on the reasoning children bring to the choices they make.
"By justifying their answers, students must go beyond mere rote learning. The answers they give
provide teachers with greater insight into the knowledge and thinking patterns of individual
students.

Turning to short essay assessments, Figure 7-9 shows a short essay item used to
fifth-grade students understanding of historical events. There are several impressive features
here. First, it deals with essential learning, events leading to the American revolution. Second, it
presents students with something for them to examine-a stimulus in this case, a time line. Other
possibilities are a map, photo or painting. or a brief quote from a primary document, such as the
Declaration of Independence or an eyewitness account of the Boston Tea Party. Third, the
directions for student writing are given in one, very clear sentence. Fourth, assistance or
scaffolding is provided in the form of several “be sure” to promps. These are intended to help
students to reason with facts (in this case, explain the relationship between two events) rather
than only to recall facts. Applying these four attributes, teachers can construct similar items for
other historical events. Try this now with one of the following events: the Cherokee Trail of Tears,
Columbus's first voyage, the first women's rights convention at Seneca Falls.

133 | P a g e
Figure 7-8 Multiple-choice with justification.

Example #1 Example #2

1. Which of these was a cause of the 1. Which of these is an example of the

Declaration of Independence? idea culture?
a. The Intolerable Acts. a. The life of the people living in a
b. The king sent troops to force the Lakota Sioux village.
colonists to obey. b. The rules of cooperation and
c. Americans wanted to keep their interaction in our classroom.
wealth rather than share it with c. The way kittens in a litter are raised
England. by cats.
d. The way the English treated the d. The animals and plants living
colonists. together in a forest

II. Give your reasons. II. Give your reasons.

Source: Steven L. McCollum, Performance Assessment in the Social Studies Classroom. A How-
To Book for Teachers (Joplin, MO: Chalk Dust Press, 1994).

Performance Assessment
Figures 7-8 and 7-9 actually are performance assessments. Why? Performance assessments are
assessments that help teachers find out how well students can translate knowledge into action.
In the multiple-choice justification assessment (Figure7-8), children are required to use the
knowledge they have acquired to defend the choice they make. In the short historical essay
assessment using the time line (Figure 7-9), students are required to use their knowledge of cause
and effect to explain the relationship between two events on the timeline. Both are authentic tasks,
too. Using one's knowledge to defend a position or explain a choice one has made is a valuable
and necessary life skill; being able to determine what caused what, and how, is another.

Performance Criteria
If students are to aim high in their responses, performance criteria are needed. These
performance criteria serve also as instructional objectives, and this is why performance
assessment truly blurs the boundary between instruction and assessment. The performance
criteria are the behaviors we want students to learn. On a scoring guide (also called a scoring
rubric or rating scale), these criteria are identified and sequenced from high to low proficiency. As
mentioned in the discussion of the third principle of good assessment, these criteria can be
arranged on a three-level rating scale with descriptors such as proficient, adequate, and minimal.
Doing so helps students to aim high, toward proficiency, and to want to know just what a proficient
performance will look like. Look again at the short historical essay item (Figure 7-9). A rating scale
needs to be created that spells out tor students and teachers the criteria that will help them
distinguish between a proficient short essay and one that is merely adequate or only minimally
competent. Suggested criteria were given earlier in the chapter in the explanation of principle 3.
That was a 3-point scale, and while it certainly will be more helpful to students and teachers than
a simple “yes/ no” checklist, a 5- or 6- point scale can make for a still more powerful instructional
tool and scoring guide.

134 | P a g e
 A6 point scoring guide for teaching and assessing short-essay historic writing is found in
Table 7-1. California teachers field-tested this rubric with fourth- and fifth grade students. Its
advantage over the 3-point scale is that it has greater explanatory power. More distinctions are
made, and thus the quality of students’ performances can be refined. Just as pianists at a recital
or divers at a tournament are not judged merely “good,” “fair,” and “poor,” historical reasoning—
even in the elementary grades—can be advanced beyond the 3-point scale. Of course, the 6-
point scale is more difficult than the 3-point scale—difficult both to comprehend and to use.
Teachers can start students out on the simpler scale and graduate them, as they become able,
to the more complex one. (Different scales can be used with students of different ability.) A good
illustration of this difference can be found in Table 3-1 and Figure 3-3 in Chapter 3. In that chapter,
the point was made that discussion competence is one of the most important of all citizenship
behaviors. Two rating scales were presented for assessing students discussion abilities: one that
might be more appropriate for children in the primary grades, the other for students in the fourth
grade and higher (or students with greater discussion ability in the primary grades). The latter was
field-tested in the Oakland County, Michigan, schools with sixth-grade students.

How to Create a Scoring Guide

Remember, the 3-point scoring guide is a terrific place to begin. It is easy to develop because
children's work so easily falls into three categories: the good, the bad, and the in-betweens.
Creating a scoring guide, whether 3-point or more, is a fairly direct procedure with five steps.

Step 1. Objectives/curriculum standards. Determine the desired results of instruction what

students are to learn. Refer to state and school district curriculum guidelines the curriculum
standards published by professional organizations (e.g., the NCSS curriculum standards; the
History, Geography, and Civics standards), and the suggestions in this book. Be sure to think in
terms of skills (intellectual skills, study skills, reading and writing skills, social skills) as well as
knowledge (ideas and information). Also consider democratic values and attitudes. Here is an
illustrative list of social studies objectives.
By the end of the fifth grade, children should:
• Know the history, government, and geography of their home town/state
• Know why the American colonists declared independence from England
• Know the parts and principles of the U.S. Constitution
• Know the differences between the geographic regions of the United States
• Know how and why so many different ethnic groups have come to the United States
• Be able to distinguish between goods and services, and production and distribution
• Be able to develop different kinds of maps to represent the same physical space
• Be able to participate competently in deliberations of classroom and community policy
controversies
• Be able to draw cause-effect conclusions based on evidence (historical thesis
• Value liberty, equality, fairness, and the rule of law
• Routinely consider evidence rather than jump to conclusions
• Routinely respect cultural differences
• Routinely work cooperatively with other students in small-group work

Step 2. Performances. Determine how children might exhibit or demonstrate what they have
learned. That is, what evidence could they give to show that they have learned and how could
they show (exhibit, perform) it for all to see? Brainstorm performances with colleagues and ask
your students for their ideas. Pianists usually have recitals, artists exhibit their work in galleries,
athletes perform in tournaments. What about your students? Earlier, you learned about two kinds

135 | P a g e
of performance, both using paper-and-pencil formats. Later, you will encounter others that do not
rely on writing

Step 3. Criteria/performance standards. Create a relevant scoring rubric. It should provide

students, teachers, and parents with indicators, or actual descriptions, of the behaviors at different
levels of mastery

Step 4. Share. After creating the rubric, discuss it with students. Listen carefully to the questions
they raise about these performance criteria and watch tor confusion. Typically, teachers will learn
enough from this experience to revise the rubric somewhat before trying it. Naturally, students will
not understand these criteria very well, for they have not yet received instruction on them. The
point is to provide students a reasonably clear idea of the target so they will be able to marshal
their efforts accordingly.

It's obvious how a scoring guide helps teachers assess student learning. But how does it help
students learn?

Step 5. Revise the rubric. Explain the performance criteria and provide the instruction that
should help children develop proficiency. Use what you learn to revise the rubric before using it
again.

Checklists
Scoring guides come in all sizes and shapes. The simplest are checklists that specify how
often a desired behavior (the learning target or objective) occurs. A 4-point scale might read:
"Always,” “Usually," "Rarely," "Never" Figures 7-10 and 7-11 present two checklists. The first lists
behaviors called "consideration for others" that were given under the informal technique of
observation. Using a checklist, teachers can assess each student periodically and record the
observations directly on the checklist. This is much preferred to relying on memory. At conference
time, checklists can be shared with parents.
Children also can be taught to assess their own behavior using the same 4-point scale
Figure 7-11 shows a self-assessment checklist that can be used during the unit (formatively) as
well as at the end (summatively). Both formative and summative assessments can be gathered
into students' portfolios.

Portfolios
The practice of saving samples of children's work in a portfolio has become increasing
popular in recent years. Begun with the literacy instruction in the late 1990s,"it rapidly expanded
to all the subject areas and in some schools has become a major way to a students’ progress
both through a single school year and across several years. This practice is similar to that of the
parent who cuts notches on the inside of a closet door recording the height of a child at various
ages. Both the parent and the teacher know that changes are occurring, but, because of their
continuous, day-to-day contact with the child, changes are sometimes imperceptible. They need,
therefore, a specific sample of the child’s work at one point to compare with his or her work later.

136 | P a g e
 Figure 7-10 Checklist Consideration for others

name date Shows Refrains Carries Enjoys Observes Fulfills

respect for from fair share helping group responsibilities
classmates’ disturbing of classmates rules on time
ideas and others workload when
feelings in small needed
group

Work samples saved for this purpose are usually written material and may include a biography, a
story, a classroom test, an explanation, a booklet, and a conclusion drawn after a research project.
The teacher will also want to save a child’s map work, artwork done in connection with social
studies, and photos of a construction project, such as the museum exhibit the children created for
parents’ night. Care must be taken that the work samples saved are closely related to essential
learnings and desired social studies outcomes. There is no need to clutter the portfolio with
relatively unimportant work when so many learning outcomes are critically important and in need
of continuous assessment.

Figure 7-11 Checklist: Student self-assessment

SELF-ASSESSMENT CHECKLIST

DATE_________________________________ NAME_______________________________________________-

In this unit I was able Always Usually Rarely Never

to:
Choose appropriate
activities
Use my work time
efficiently
Work cooperatively
with another person
Keep my work area
clean
Use suggestions that
others gave me
Comments:

The portfolio of the child's work can be useful during parent conferences at the regular
reporting periods during the school year. Additionally, some teachers send samples of the child's
work home from time to time simply to keep the parents informed of the child's progress in school.
To make sure the parent has received the material, teachers may want to use a message sheet
that asks the parent to comment, sign, and return.

137 | P a g e
 This chapter concludes with two sample portfolios. Figure 7-12 shows the contents of a
collection of maps the children have made. The collection is tailored to the fourth-grade mapping
objective that Ms. Rivera was working with in the chapter-opening snapshot. Ms. Rivera's
students, after much instruction and practice, eventually became proficient at creating three
different kinds of maps, and six different places were mapped, ranging the playground to the North
American continent. The second collection (Figure7-13) contains children's written responses to
social studies literature. This collection displays dents ability to integrate literacy skills and social
studies subject matter. Note the categories of responsive writing (paraphrasing, composing a new
verse, interpreting) and the variety of social studies literature-from trade books and textbooks to
songs. Other portfolios can capture students' sustained work over time on other important social
studies objectives. A teacher who takes seriously the objective to teach children to do history
rather than only absorb the history written or told by others (see Chapter 4, Figure 4-3) can begin
this portfolio with the snapshot autobiographies his or her students composed at the beginning of
the school year.

Figure 7-12 A map portfolio

Contents of My Map Portfolio _________________________

Name

Types of Map Place Date/ My Comments

Landform Our community
Landform North America
Political United States
Political Countries in our state
Shaded relief playground
Shaded relief state

Next might come their oral histories based on interviews with old-timers in the community,
and then the oral histories conducted with students who have moved from one neighborhood,
state, or nation to another. Next might come their first brief biography written about a U.S.
president, followed by a more extensive cooperative biography written with a team of classmates.
In this way, a body of work is collected that displays, first, that historical reasoning is being
attempted (itself an ambitious endeavor) and, second, that progress is being made.

Contents of My Social studies Literature _________________________

Response Portfolio Name

Response Type Selection (genre) Date/ My Comments

Paraphrase Paul Revere’s ride (poem)
Compose new verse “Oh Freedom” (song)
Memorize “I have a dream” (speech)
Book review Aekyung’s Dream (book)
explain The pledge of Allegiance (oath)
138Short
| P story
age Climate of Sahara (textbook)
 Finally, the assessment glossary in Figure 7-14 should assist readers as they try to make
sense of the specialized vocabulary that describes assessment procedures in social studies.

139 | P a g e
ASSESSMENT:

Task 1
Direction: Considering principles of assessment, make at least three (3) innovative alternative
assessment complying with the following indicators. Assessment tools to be made must be 1 for
History, 1 for Culture, and 1 for Geography.

Alternative Assessment #1 (for Philippine History)

Title: ________________________________________________________________________
Subject Matter (Topic): _________________________________________________________
Criteria: 1. _____________________ - __ %
2. _____________________ - __ %
3. _____________________ - __ %
4. _____________________ - __ %
5. _____________________ - __ % (fill this 5th blank only if applicable)
Instruction:
____________________________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________________________
Graphic Organizer (if applicable):

140 | P a g e
Alternative Assessment #2 (for Asian/World History)
Title: ________________________________________________________________________
Subject Matter (Topic): _________________________________________________________
Criteria: 1. _____________________ - __ %
2. _____________________ - __ %
3. _____________________ - __ %
4. _____________________ - __ %
5. _____________________ - __ % (fill this 5th blank only if applicable)
Instruction:
____________________________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________________________
Graphic Organizer (if applicable):

141 | P a g e
Alternative Assessment #3 (Economics)
Title: ________________________________________________________________________
Subject Matter (Topic): _________________________________________________________
Criteria: 1. _____________________ - __ %
2. _____________________ - __ %
3. _____________________ - __ %
4. _____________________ - __ %
5. _____________________ - __ % (fill this 5th blank only if applicable)
Instruction:
____________________________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________________________
Graphic Organizer (if applicable):

142 | P a g e
 REFERENCES:

References:
Alleman, J., & J. Brophy. 2001. Social studies excursions, K–3—Book one: Powerful units on
food, clothing, and shelter. Portsmouth, NH: Heinemann.
Alleman, J., & J. Brophy. 2002. Social studies excursions, K–3— Book two: Powerful units on
communication, transportation, and family living. Portsmouth, NH: Heinemann.
Alleman, J., & J. Brophy. 2003. Social studies excursions, K–3—Book three: Powerful units on
childhood, money, and government. Portsmouth, NH: Heinemann.
Ardalan, G. (2017). Spreading happiness: A preschool classroom in Washington, DC,
investigates citizenship and makes a statement—“Be happy!” Young Children, 72 (2), 64–71.
Beneke, M. R., Park, C. C., & Taitingfong, J. (2018). An inclusive, anti-bias framework for
teaching and learning about race with young children. Young Exceptional Children.
https://doi.org/10.1177/1096250618811842
Bennett, William J. and Jeane Kirkpatrick. "History, Geography, and Citizenship: The Teacher's
Role." ETHICS AND PUBLIC POLICY ESSAY 64. Washington, DC: Ethics and Public Policy
Center, 1986. ED 271 351.
Berry, C.F., & G. Mindes. 1993. Planning a theme-based curriculum: Goals, themes, activities,
and planning guides for 4’s and 5’s. Glenview, IL: Goodyear.
Bredekamp, S., & C. Copple, eds. 1997. Developmentally appropriate practice in early
childhood programs. Rev. ed. Washington, DC: NAEYC.
Bruner, J. 1960. The process of education. Cambridge, MA: Harvard University Press.
Cheney, Lynne V. AMERICAN MEMORY: A REPORT ON THE HUMANITIES IN THE
NATION'S PUBLIC SCHOOLS. Washington, DC: National Endowment for the Humanities,
1987. ED number to be assigned.
Catalino, T., & Meyer, L. E. (Eds.). (2016). Environment: Promoting meaningful access,
participation, and inclusion (DEC Recommended Practices Monograph Series No.2).
Washington, DC: Division for Early Childhood.
Copple, C., & Bredekamp, S. (2009). Developmentally appropriate practice in early childhood
programs serving children from birth through age 8. Washington, DC: NAEYC.
Derman-Sparks, L., & Edwards, J. O. (2010). Anti-bias education for young children and
ourselves. Washington, DC: NAEYC.
Derman-Sparks, L., LeeKeenan, D., & Nimmo, J. (2015). Leading anti-bias early childhood
educators: A guide to change. New York: Teachers College Press.
Durden, T. R., Escalante, E., & Blitch, K. (2015). Start with us! Culturally relevant pedagogy in
the preschool classroom. Early Childhood Education Journal, 43 (3), 223–232.

143 | P a g e
Dewey, J. [1916] 1966. Democracy and education. New York: Free Press.
Egan, Kieran. "Teaching History to Young Children." PHI DELTA KAPPAN 63 (1982): 439-441.
EJ 259 456.
Epstein, A. S. (2014). Preschool: Social studies in preschool? Yes! Young Children, 69 (1), 78-
83.
Gandini, L. 1998. Educational and caring spaces. In The hundred languages of children: The
Reggio Emilia approach—Advanced reflections, 2nd ed., eds. C. Edwards, L. Gandini, & G.
Forman. Greenwich, CT: Ablex.
Gay, G. (2000). Culturally responsive teaching: Theory, research, & practice. New York:
Teachers College Press.
Giese, James R. and Parisi, Lynn S., editor. A HUMANITIES APPROACH TO EARLY
NATIONAL U.S. HISTORY: ACTIVITIES AND RESOURCES FOR THE ELEMENTARY
SCHOOL TEACHER. Boulder, Colorado. Social Science Education Consortium, 1986. ED 274
564.
Goodman, K., & Hooks, L. (2016). Encouraging family involvement through culturally relevant
pedagogy. SRATE Journal, 25 (2), 33–41.
Gronlund, G., & Rendon, T. (2017). Saving play: Addressing standards through play-based
learning in preschool and kindergarten. St. Paul, MN: Redleaf Press.
Hall, E. L., & Rudkin, J. K. (2011). Seen & heard: Children’s rights in early childhood education.
New York: Teachers College Press.
Hallam, R. N. "Piaget and Thinking in History." In M. Ballard, editor. NEW MOVEMENTS IN
THE STUDY AND TEACHING OF HISTORY. Bloomington: Indiana University Press, 1970.
162-179.
Haywoode, A. (2018). City Connects prompts data-driven action in community schools in the
Bronx. Phi Delta Kappan, 99 (5), 44-46.
Helm, J. H., & Katz, L. (2000). Young investigators: The project approach in the early years.
New York: Teachers College Press.
History-Social Science Curriculum Framework and Criteria Committee. HISTORY-SOCIAL
SCIENCE FRAMEWORK FOR CALIFORNIA PUBLIC SCHOOLS, KINDERGARTEN
THROUGH GRADE TWELVE. Sacramento: California State Department of Education, 1988.
Kennedy,
Katz, L. G., Chard, S. C., & Kogan, Y. (2014). Engaging children’s minds: The project approach.
Santa Barbara, CA: ABC-CLIO.
Katz, L.G., & S.C. Chard. 2000. Engaging children’s minds: The project approach in education.
2nd ed. Stamford, CT: Ablex.
Kerry J. "Assessing the Relationship Between Information Processing Capacity and Historical
Understanding." THEORY AND RESEARCH IN SOCIAL EDUCATION 11 (Summer 1983): 1-
22. EJ 287 456.

144 | P a g e
Krechevsky, M., Mardell, B., Filippini, T., & Tedeschi, M. (2016). Children are citizens: The
everyday and the razzle-dazzle. Innovations in Early Education: The International Reggio Emilia
Exchange, 23(4), 4–15.
Krechevsky, M., Mardell, B., & Reese, J. (2015). Children are citizens book. Project Zero,
Harvard University Graduate School of Education. www.pz.harvard.edu/resources/children-are-
citizens-book-2015
Krechevsky, M., Mardell, B., & Romans, A. N. (2014). Engaging city hall: Children as citizens.
The New Educator, 10 (1), 10-20.
Ladson-Billings, G. (1995). But that’s just good teaching! The case for culturally relevant
pedagogy. Theory into Practice, 34 (3), 159–165.
Levstik, Linda S. "Teaching History: A Definitional and Developmental Dilemma." In Virginia A.
Atwood, editor. ELEMENTARY SCHOOL SOCIAL STUDIES: RESEARCH AS A GUIDE TO
PRACTICE. Washington, DC: National Council for the Social Studies. 1986, 68-84.
Mardell, B. (2011). Learning is a team sport: Kindergartners study the Boston marathon (video).
Project Zero, Harvard University Graduate School of Education.
www.pz.harvard.edu/resources/learning-is-a-team-sport-kindergartners-study-the-boston-
marathon.
Mardell, B., & Carpenter, B. (2012). Places to play in Providence: Valuing preschool children as
citizens. Young Children, 67 (5), 76–78.
Maxim, G.W. Forthcoming 2006. Dynamic social studies for con-structivist classrooms: Inspiring
tomorrow’s social scientists. Upper Saddle River, NJ: Merrill.
McMillan, M. [1919] 1930. The nursery school. New York: Dutton.
Mindes, G. (2005). Social studies in today’s early childhood curricula. Young Children, 60 (5),
12–18.
Mindes, G. (2015). Preschool through grade 3: Pushing up the social studies from early
childhood education to the world. Young Children, 70 (3), 10–15.
Mindes, G., & M.A. Donovan. 2001. Building character: Five enduring themes for a stronger
early childhood curriculum. Needham Heights, MA: Allyn & Bacon.
National Council for the Social Studies (NCSS) (2010). National curriculum standards for social
studies: A framework for teaching, learning, and assessment. Silver Spring, MD: National
Council for the Social Studies.
National Council for the Social Studies (NCSS) (2013). The college, career, and civic life (C3)
framework for social studies state standards: Guidance for enhancing the rigor of K-12 civics,
economics, geography, and history. Silver Spring, MD: National Council for the Social Studies.
National Council for the Social Studies (NCSS) (2017). Powerful, purposeful pedagogy in
elementary social studies. www.socialstudies.org/positions/powerfulandpurposeful.
NCSS (National Council for Social Studies). 1984. In search of a scope and sequence for social
studies. Social Education 48 (4): 376–85.

145 | P a g e
NCSS. 1993. Definition approved. The Social Studies Professional 114 (January/February): 3.
NCSS. 1994. Curriculum standards for social studies: Expectations for excellence. Washington,
DC: Author.
NEA (National Education Association). 1916. The social studies in secondary education. Report
of the Committee on Social Studies, Bulletin 28. Washington, DC: Bureau of Education.
Project Zero, Harvard University Graduate School of Education. 2016. Children are citizens.
www.pz.harvard.edu/projects/children-are-citizens.
Sewall, Gilbert T. AMERICAN HISTORY TEXTBOOKS: AN ASSESSMENT OF QUALITY. A
REPORT OF THE EDUCATIONAL EXCELLENCE NETWORK. New York: Teachers College of
Columbia University, 1987. ED number to be assigned.
Strasser, J., & Bresson, L. M. (2017). Big questions for young minds: Extending children's
thinking. National Association for the Education of Young Children.
Ravitch, Diane. "Tot Sociology, Or What Happened to History in the Grade Schools." THE
AMERICAN SCHOLAR 56 (Summer 1987): 343-354.
Read, K., & J. Patterson. 1980. The nursery school and kindergarten: Human relationships and
learning. 7th ed. New York: Holt, Rinehart & Winston.
Villoti, K. & Berson, I. (2017). Early Childhood in the Social Studies Context. Retrieved from
https://www.socialstudies.org/position-statements/early-childhood-social-studies-context
Watson, A. (n.d.). 15 Ways to Make Elementary Social Studies Lessons more Exciting.
Retrieved from https://thecornerstoneforteachers.com/social-studies/
Zaccaria, Michael A. "The Development of Historical Thinking: Implications for the Teaching of
History." THE HISTORY TEACHER 11 (1978): 323-340.
Zarrillo, J.J. 2004. Teaching elementary social studies: Principles and applications. 2nd ed.
Upper Saddle River, NJ: Prentice Hall. https://www.gettingsmart.com/2018/01/early-learning-
what-we-know-and-where-we-are-headed/
Bliss, S. 2008. “Geography: The World Is Its Laboratory.” Chap. 13 in Studies of Society and
Environment: Exploring the Teaching Possibilities, 5th ed.,ed.
C. Marsh, 293–325. Sydney, Australia: Pearson. Cresswell, T. 2013. Geographic Thought: A
Critical Introduction. West Sussex, UK: WileyBlackwell.
Edelson, D. 2011. “Geo-Literacy: Preparation for Far-Reaching Decisions.” Education. National
Geographic. http://education. nationalgeographic.com/education/news/ geo-literacy-preparation-
far-reachingdecisions/?ar_a=1.
Epstein, A.S. 2009. Me, You, Us: Social-Emotional Learning in Preschool. Ypsilanti, MI:
HighScope.
Gandy, S.K. 2007. “Developmentally Appropriate Geography.” Social Studies and the Young
Learner 20 (2): 30–32.
Kritchevsky, S., E. Prescott, & L. Walling. 1969. Planning Environments for Young Children:
Physical Space. Washington, DC: NAEYC.

146 | P a g e
National Geographic Education. n.d. “What Is Geography?” Education, Topic Collections.
www.education.nationalgeographic.com/ education/what-is-geography/?ar_a=1.
NCSS (National Council for the Social Studies) 2010. National Curriculum Standards for Social
Studies: A Framework for Teaching, Learning, and Assessment. Atlanta: NCSS Publications.
Nemeth, K. 2009. Many Languages, One Classroom: Teaching Dual and English
LanguageLearners.
Lewisville, NC: Gryphon House. Nemeth, K. 2014. “Fast 5 Gamechangers That Make a Great
First Day for DLLs in Pre-K.” www.languagecastle.com/2014/08/fast-5- gamechangers-make-
great-1st-day-dlls-prek.
Opportunity for Independence. 2011. “Dignity of risk.” http://ofiinc.org/ dignity-risk-0. Pelo, A.
2009. “Pedagogy of Ecology.” Rethinking Schools 23 (4): 30–35.
Relph, E. 1976. Place and Placelessness. London: Pion.
Sandall, S., M.L. Hemmeter, B.J. Smith, & M. McLean. 2005. DEC Recommended Practices: A
Comprehensive Guide for Practical Application in Early Intervention/Early Childhood Special
Education.
Logan, IA: Sopris West. Schneekloth, L., & R. Shibley. 1995. Placemaking: The Art and Practice
of Building Communities. New York: Wiley .
Sussna Klein, A. 2002. “Different Approaches to Teaching: Comparing Three Preschool
Programs.” Early Childhood News. www.earlychildhoodnews.com/earlychildhood/article_view.
aspx?ArticleID=367.
Teel, A.S. 2011. Alone and Invisible No More: How Grassroots Community Action and 21st
Century Technologies Can Empower Elders to Stay in Their Homes and Lead Healthier,
Happier Lives.
White River Junction, VT: Chelsea Green Publishing. Tuan, Y.-F. 2001. Space and Place: the
Perspectives of Experience 5th ed. Minneapolis: University of Minnesota Press.
Vergeront, J. 2013. “Place Matters.” Museum Notes (blog).
https://www.naeyc.org/system/files/YC0715_Brillante.pdf

147 | P a g e