Final Post

During the extent of my life with social studies, I've viewed this subject as boring and unimportant.  Now that I have experienced social studies from a different perspective, I understand how important and dynamic it is and can be in the classroom.  I have witnessed how social studies is now in the classroom and why it is important to know how to teach it.  The lack of this subject in the classroom is disappointing and inspiring because it motivates me to want to improve how it is represented to the students and the school.  I am thankful to have a teacher dedicated enough to this subject to inspire a classroom full of students to want to make a difference and appreciative of the difference that can make.  I hope that my new lease on social studies holds true while I teach and encourages other teachers to follow in the process.

Teaching Multiculturalism using the Tourist Model

Teachers in the classroom strive to find fun and exciting activities for their students to do to help them better relate and understand the material.  Some teachers, however, try to introduce multiculturalism in the classroom by establishing one link such as food or maybe a trinket or tow.  These methods are O.K. as long as you elaborate more on the culture you are explaining.  Just to use these tourist methods of introducing multiculturalism can help fuel stereotypes and other harmful ideas that can actually be anti progressive.

Post-Its Throughout Your Book?

Post-it notes are a great tool for students to have while trying to comprehend and relate to the text in a social studies classroom.  These little sticky sheets of paper can allow students to find places in the text while reading and immediately place a post-it on a page telling how they relate to the certain situation or a reaction the text evokes.  This helps students to become more involved in the reading and fuels the learning in your classroom.

Living History Museum

Studying history in the classroom can be extremely boring.  Students can fall asleep and no one ever knows what page the teacher is on.  Now you can have your students demonstrate history by opening up your very own living history museum.  No this isn't a new learning institute in your town but a simple demonstration your students can do to learn information you would have had to force feed otherwise.  When students become involved in the learning and actually find the lesson interesting and fun, they tend to learn more and be more active throughout the lesson.

History of Ones Self

Throughout many social studies lessons, teachers are always asking students to learn about the history of many different people.  One of the things they never do though is ask them to look at the history of ones self.  This type of project helps students learn and understand the importance history by explaining where they come from.  Also, while the students are finding out about their past, they can make a book that depicts the major highlights of their life allowing them to see the parallels to their lives and the ones in the text book.

Book Talks In The Classroom

The students in the classroom enjoy activities and learning that doesn't fit the norm of teaching.  Book talks are a great way to incorporate these things into the classroom and still allow for a multitude of learning.  Students can do these book talks and the teacher can do them as well but the important part of these is to pick books that relate to the subject or topic being taught in the classroom.  These allow for creativity and a chance to excite fellow students about reading and about the topic.  Book talks are an important part of a social studies classroom and even any other subject as well.

Being Cultural in the Classroom

Learning about Everest and more importantly, the culture of the Sherpas who lead tourists up the mountain, is a great way to excite students about other countries cultures.  This experience keeps the attention that is needed in some classrooms and pushes the envelope on students that go out and learn for themselves.  This type of learning can be used in the classroom with many other wonders of the world and the cultures that inhabit those areas allowing for a culturally rich, world interested classroom. Now who doesn't think Social Studies is awesome?!

Geography Intelligence!

It is hard to swallow watching a two year old blow through a world map like she was reading her ABC's.  Also, it is equally hard to think about how little we know of our own country, let alone, the world.  I feel this is a missed opportunity in the classroom and at home, so it was also reassuring to watch that little girl demonstrate her knowledge.  I know that she is probably gifted in some way but also by starting her out so young allows the child to be exposed to more information, giving her a leg up.  Just something to think about for our future!

Geo Caching

Geo Caching is probably one of the coolest things for people who like to hunt treasure.  I know when I was younger, well even now, I have always wanted to locate hidden things or hunt for a lost treasure and now with Geo Caching everyone can.  All you need is a GPS and the internet, oh and to make it perfect for the classroom, an eager and willing classroom of students ready for a fun day of Social Studies.  This is the perfect way to incorporate coordinates, lines of latitude and longitude, and learning how maps work while also finding a hidden object the students can have fun locating.  This will definitely be incorporated into my future classroom.

Active Social Studies in the Classroom

The classroom is full of active children and the best way to help active children learn is by having them act!  The Boston Tea Party and the Boston Massacre are great plays to have students engage in learning and also have a little fun.  Students have enough dry reading in the classroom so I think this would be a great way to allow the students some creativity while learning.  I can't wait to incorporate this type of learning into my classroom!

Social Studies Left Out?

The classrooms of today, especially in Title 1 schools, have been mandated to stack up their reading, language, and math testing.  This leaves little to the imagination for a great subject that needs to be learned, social studies.  In the classroom, this subject holds time of around 20 minutes a lesson if that and sometimes it's not even present in the management.  I feel that students enjoy this subject if taught properly but when teachers skip over this, the students loose out in learning.  Unfortunately their is little that can be done but if future teachers help to make the most of their teaching time they can make creative ways to teach this subject.

Social Studies in the Classroom

I have seen a typical classroom setting and I understand the amount of time given to a teacher to teach what is necessary.  I feel that certain lessons are completely neglected due to a hierarchy of subject learning.  I understand how important reading is to learn because it influences any other learning after, but to leave certain subjects unfinished, in my opinion, is disgraceful.  I have seen social studies and science lessons last for only fifteen minutes each because of the stressed importance of the language arts and mathematics.  I feel that social studies, especially, is as important if not more than some of the others because of how it demonstrates the way we live in our home, community, society, country, and world.  How could that not be important but apparently all the time is taken.  I hope that in the future the people writing what is important thinks through there the education process leaving important issues.

Finding My Critical Voice

In the classroom, under the rule of a mentor teacher, my critical voice can feel suppressed or even nonexistent.  I don't believe that this is a sign of things to come but I feel that in my position it is not my place to speak out on behalf of learning.  I have felt less suppressed when I am given limited control of the classroom which inspires hope, but I feel that boundaries are important when expressing my critical voice. I do, on the other hand, plan to teach to my beliefs, which includes inspiring the students in anyway that encourages them to want to learn.  This might come with ridicule from fellow staff but that is where my critical voice steps in and explains the importance of education for the students. I hold certain teaching virtues to my soul and plan to speak them whenever needed, hopefully keeping my full respect to others intact.  I know what I will say when the time comes and my critical voice will be with me when needed.