Social Studies

Because political cartoons are somewhat of special category of primary source images, I thought it would behoove us to find a particular strategy for analyzing and interpreting them - much along the same lines as the SOAPS method but one specifically designed for political cartoons. This lesson plan, and its "Cartoon Analysis Checklist" is a start.

Thanks for this add, I can use this for my lesson plan on Chinese immigration.

Pre-categorized primary sources--such as "disasters" or "inspiration". Seems great for first exposure to primary sources as research or going deeper than the textbook

So rad! Social Justice lesson plans on current events. AHHHHH!!! I looked through a few. Looks like they just have articles and then questions on them. So they'll pick a topic and then amass a number of readings on it and write critical thinking questions. So rad. One of the lessons is how to teach Freire to 5th graders. I'm in love! Happy Thanksgiving!

Laura, This is awesome and perfect for one lesson in my curricular unit..thanks a bunch!

This lesson plan allows students to try to put themselves in the shoes of Native Americans who became involved in European conflicts in colonial America such as the American Revolution and the Seven Years War. It provides an extensive lesson plan as well as background information for teachers on the topic.

A fascinating project designed by history teachers to use Augmented Reality to make the past come alive. Help spread the word to make this a reality.

This website links to thousands of newspapers worldwide. I would use this site to collect primary sources or as a research mechanism for current events.  It would be a valuable resource to students who are doing research projects on a specific country or international topic.

History Channel interactive "place-the-state" game.

This site is, overall, a little boring but it does what it's supposed to do. Sometimes getting students interested in geography is tricky but this game could increase student interest. Students will select a level, then drag and drop the states to their correct location on the map. There could be a little more information about each state (just to increase the amount of learning) but this is generally a good, basic, online learning game.

From the site: "Teaching with Historic Places (TwHP) uses properties listed in the National Park Service's National Register of Historic Places to enliven history, social studies, geography, civics, and other subjects. TwHP has created a variety of products and activities that help teachers bring historic places into the classroom." Including lesson plans and tips!

Lesson Plans: The Lesson Plans link has SO MANY lesson plans. They are designed at a middle school level but can easily be adapted (says them). The lesson plans are organized by Location/State; Theme; Time period; and Skill - meaning that you can click on any one of those subdivisions and search them that way. Very exciting! You should definitely check these out. Even if you're not in that state, they still have pictures, mapping materials, and activity ideas that you can use to incorporate geography into historic concepts. For example, the Battle of Bunker Hill lesson contains two maps (of Boston today and in 1775) and inquiry questions for these, a section of text (looks like a high school level to me) and inquiry questions for that AND three images (one a sketch of an encampment and two pictures) and inquiry questions for those. These might make fantastic "Do Now"s for the beginning of the lesson even if you didn't use any of the rest of the sites info. So neat!

Also they have lots of tips for how you can incorporate place into your lessons. AND! you can submit your own lessons. They take you through the TwHP lesson creation process and you can submit them.

This page on the ACLU web site features materials related to students' free speech rights.

This is a podcast interview of a woman who was suspended from school for protesting the Viet Nam War during the 1960s. Subject talks about the example set by her parents, who were Civil Rights activists.

Site contains a wealth of materials -- legal documents, blogs, news articles, podcasts, etc. -- that are searchable by subject area. Subject breakdown could be very helpful for students looking for a research topic.

This is the second part of my Angel Island posting. I find this document fascinating; it is a complete reproduction of a 1917 pamphlet produced by The Women's American Baptist Home Missionary Society, and includes interesting - and sometimes offensive - first hand accounts of immigrants coming through Angel Island at the time. The non-secular language cannot be denied as well, but it still makes for a fascinating glimpse into the perceptions of asian immigrants during this period of our history.

The Historical Census Browser is a comprehensive data site that allows users to sift through U.S. census information collected between 1790 and 1960. There are clear categories with which to search and the limitations of the search are defined on the home page. This site would be a great introduction search tool for lower-level soc stud students

Lesson plan on the Cherokee removal and the Trail of Tears

All the best EDU sites on one single page. 

This link is a part of a school district website in the state of New York. I found it while searching for information on Socratic seminars. It is really great because it provides all the information one needs to learn about teaching the dialogue method. Informational filters include an overview, elements of a Socratic seminar, frequently asked questions by teachers and students, dialogue and behavior guidelines for using this dialogue method and suggestions for the types of readings or materials that work best with this method. If you like the idea of using the Socratic method in your classroom, you will want to visit this site.

I absolutely LOVE the National Geographic Website as a social studies tool. I've specifically used it in civics classes or geography classes for students to study current events, but the options are endless. They have videos, pictures and great information.

This website deals with the History of Jim Crow and has many valuable resources for teachers. The History and Geography sections of this website are quite rich in information and I think well-organized and easy to use. The website provides the in-depth essays and/or other materials to be used in the lessons. The American Literature section provides some interesting unit and lesson plans for well-known books such as A Raisin in the Sun and To Kill a Mockingbird. The Teacher Resources section provides a variety of lessons… some involve images, music, literature, simulations, etc. Quite a few seem to incorporate the PBS series The Rise and Fall of Jim Crow. Overall, I am very impressed with this website. My favorite book is To Kill a Mockingbird and I think the Unit on this book is interesting in the way they link it to an integrated literature/social studies unit on the case of the Scottsboro Boys and life in the 1930s.

A list of very good detailed lesson plans for a high school economic class related to different country and the economic policies that they pursue.

Paul Weinstein wrote this article primarily geared towards undergraduate history professors, and how they might use film in their classroom. However, much of this is still applicable for us as secondary social studies teachers. In particular, his Appendix B has a sort of study guide he provides for each of his students at the beginning of the semester to get them thinking about how to analyze film for its historical perspective.

How might teachers use this site?

This lesson plan from the New York Times web site utilizes the newspaper to teach high school students about First Amendment rights and the daily impact of those rights on their lives.

This lesson plan from the New York Times web site has students locate, summarize and reflect on articles in the newspaper related to First Amendment rights as well as articles illustrating the lack of such rights in other countries.