Latitude and longitude are foundational concepts for geography education, yet they are typically poorly understood by students and receive indifferent attention from instructors and publishers' materials. Social studies teachers can take advantage of increasingly ubiquitous geolocating devices such as Global Positions Systems (GPS) to provide…

Social studies teachers of all grade levels are responsible for (a) connecting students with standards-based content, (b) engaging students in their own learning, (c) expanding students' levels of understanding by co-constructing new knowledge, (d) motivating students to express and exchange ideas with one another, and (e) incorporating social…

This article encourages elementary teachers to offer opportunities for their students to critically analyze maps as part of powerful geography instruction in order to help them become well-informed and civic-minded citizens. The article reviews challenges to powerful geography instruction, including traditional geography textbooks and pedagogy and…

The purpose of this study was to analyze the evolution of geography in the United States' K-12 education system throughout the Nineteenth Century to understand the causes of variations, shifts in focus, and relative importance placed on geography. A broad theoretical framework, based on the work of sociologists of education and education…

This research describes how enrolling students in an afterschool Geography Club affects their perception of the discipline and their geographic literacy. The creation of the afterschool club at this particular school came out of the recognition of the need to increase students' exposure to geographical content. The results of this study show the…

As part of a geography-based minority recruiting program (MRP), teachers were asked to serve as mentors for teams of high school students interested in both postsecondary education and geography as a major discipline or career path. The goal was to determine whether teacher participation in MRP programs was an effective tool to mentor…

Encouraging elementary students to become aware of place and the role it plays in shaping their lives can provide them with a clearer sense of self and a greater appreciation for diversity. To support this premise, this article explores using six National Council for the Social Studies Notable Trade Books to assist primary students in their…

This article traces the history of the expanding communities approach, the leading organizational structure for elementary social studies education since the 1930s. Since its introduction into the curriculum, educators have argued about the approach's effectiveness and suitability. Critics claim it lacks intellectual rigor and is redundant in that…

In this case study, the work of an exemplary high school social studies teacher is highlighted. In her class, late-arrival immigrant students participated in oral, writing, and demonstration activities as they learned the physical, cultural, and historical traditions of geography education. As newcomers to the English language, the students'…

The author describes methods for using picture books to teach geography in middle school. Introducing students to geographic regions through narrative and visual text can provide background information about the area, stimulate student interest in the culture, and facilitate student comprehension of geographic concepts. The author provides…

The author examined the way students enrolled in the Introductory Human Geography course at Kansas State University described their hometowns using the location theme of geography. Participants completed this task as a required take-home assignment. Because the majority of students were from Kansas, the author presents results from locations of…

Youths in the United States are less geographically and culturally literate than are youths in many other industrialized countries. In an time in which the world is becoming increasingly interconnected, it is pertinent that American youths study geography, evaluate stereotypes, and understand how individuals are perceived by others. The authors…

Elementary social studies has used the same scope and sequence for more than a half century despite significant changes in society. Efforts to reform the curriculum are adversely impacted by inertia, tradition, the culture wars, traditional state autonomy in setting curriculum, publishers, and competition between disciplines for space within the…

Graphic organizers offer visual models that equip teachers and students with tools, concepts, and language to organize, understand, and apply information. Many teachers, concerned that social studies tends to overwhelm students, feel social studies is viewed as a complex and confusing subject unrelated to the contemporary world. Graphic organizers…

A nation's folk literature offers a window into its people and their beliefs across time and geographic locations. Whether the stories are tall tales, creation stories, or fairy tales, they reveal insights into the make-up of the populace--what they believe, what motivates them, what their attitudes are, how they behave, and how time and place…