With an ever-expanding focus on reading and mathematics, many elementary schools have chosen to reduce time previously reserved for social studies. Elementary teachers who understand both the relevance of social studies content and the effectiveness of interdisciplinary teaching regularly...

We present an instructional strategy called Challenging Constitutional Rights, in which high school civics students critically interacted with, and interpreted, constitutional rights. As an alternative assessment project, students used technologies to make visual and oral presentations on the...

Social studies teachers engage a vast subject area within which they can enlist a wide scope of possible curriculum and pedagogy choices. Despite the opportunity to engage students with an abundance of potentially fruitful themes, topics, and ideas, social studies teaching can be captured by the...

This paper seeks to intertwine current literature in social studies education with practical suggestions for integrating dialogue and controversy into the practicing teacher’s classroom. The works of John Dewey (1926), Diana Hess (2004), and Walter Parker (2003) will serve as the foundation of...

Although the civil rights movement in the United States occurred more than 50 years ago, voter suppression, as witnessed in the 2012 election, for diverse groups of people continues. The information presented in this article supports the teaching and learning of social studies within early...

Mobile devices are increasingly prevalent and may have large ramifications for social studies education, but there has been limited research as to their effectiveness. This study utilized an Apple iPad to explore how a specific application (Explore 9/11) impacted secondary student interactions...

People rely on power plants to generate the electricity needed to run much of their lives. Power plants, though, are typically not the domain of the average citizen. Even if they stand near homes, schools, and other important places, the operations inside, not to mention the many social and...

This lesson uses Hidden Teens, Hidden Lives: True Stories of the Holocaust, to help students explore life for children and teenagers during the Holocaust. Students utilize primary sources consisting of diary entries and World War II documents to examine life under the Nuremberg Laws for...

Using I Am Different!: Can You Find Me? allows students to explore multiple languages and cultures as they peruse the text to find similarities and differences in the illustrations and languages presented. This lesson introduces various cultural concepts while concentrating on linguistic...

This multi-day lesson involves grade 2-grade 4 students in exploring the life and achievements of Susan B. Anthony. It provides opportunities for students to investigate events associated with the Women’s Rights Movement as well as issues related to women’s right to vote, work, and to...