Describes an integrated social studies and mathematics lesson for preservice elementary teachers that used family stories. Considers the development of cultural sensitivity. Discusses using folktales to develop an integrated, culturally sensitive unit that focuses on a character's basic needs. Assesses the impact of a culturally sensitive…

Explores how historical empathy can give students a richer understanding of the past, focusing on the development of the students' historical understanding through an analysis of 18 documents on President Truman's decision to use the atomic bomb against Japan. (CMK)

Describes the Reading and Writing for Critical Thinking (RWCT) Project. Provides an illustration of the RWCT framework of evocation, realization of meaning, and reflection, focusing on how literacy activities can develop fundamental ideas about democracy. Considers the implication of "democratic pedagogy" and includes a lesson plan on democratic…

Describes the geographic and economic aspects of Appalachia. Asserts that Appalachia is an appropriate topic within multicultural education. Provides suggestions for entry points into the study of Appalachia and guidelines for avoiding stereotyping. Includes a bibliographic resource guide. (CMK)

Discusses how postage stamps can be used to teach social studies, including ideas for units on national culture, the history of technology, and peace education. Explains how teachers can obtain stamps and discusses stamp terminology. Considers classroom strategies and includes an appendix of Internet resources about postage stamps. (CMK)

Describes strategies and guidelines for creating age- and content-appropriate primary source documents using the Internet. Discusses the value of using topic-specific primary source teaching packets, or jackdaws. Provides three Internet generated jackdaws: New Deal/FDR, Home Front during World War II, and the Gilded Age. Addresses fair use issues.…

Describes a professional development project called the Learning Network, launched in 1998. The Learning Network can serve as a model for the integration of technology with interdisciplinary curriculum development and for the creation of a virtual museum. Discusses how the Learning Network incorporates the Massachusetts's learning standards. (CMK)

Argues for including an international perspective within the social studies to enable students to adopt a global world view. Illustrates the international approach by describing a unit on the U.S. Revolutionary War and discusses resources that promote an international perspective. Provides an appendix with an abbreviated unit outline and a…

Discusses eight principles for creating a democratic classroom that were promoted at the Institute on Democratic Education and Exchange for middle school teachers held in Hungary. Discusses the implications of using more democratic methods and suggests activities for applying democratic practices to the middle school classroom. (CMK)

Focuses on using drama in social studies by describing the use of the flippy play, a narrative illustrating social problems and written and drawn on flippable panels. Discusses the process for creating a flippy play, beginning with researching, developing, and constructing the play, building the flippy frame, and then producing and pacing the…

Describes a thematic unit for secondary education students that focuses on eight themes, with accompanying activities, on learning from mistakes, such as "mistakes are inevitable, and everyone makes them" and "making mistakes does not make you a faulty person." Provides a concluding activity on the Titanic. (CMK)

This document is intended to be used: (1) By institutions that prepare teachers to assess the quality of their teacher preparation programs for licensure (or certification) in comprehensive social studies and/or the individual disciplines of history, geography, civics and government, economics, and psychology; and (2) By National Council for the…

This article describes how, by comparing multiple perspectives of the story of Rosa Parks and the Montgomery Bus Boycott, students can experience first-hand how different published accounts of the same event may contain different information. The author relates the lesson plan of Jennifer Morrow, a third-grade teacher at Coral Ridge Elementary…

May 17, 2004 marked the 50th anniversary of the Supreme Court's decision in the historic school desegregation case, "Oliver L. Brown et al. v. Board of Education of Topeka (KS) et al." After concluding a survey of elementary school teachers about the struggle for school desegregation in the 1950s and 60s, this author found that, in most cases,…

In a history class, students typically listen to the teacher lecture, read from their textbook, then take a test. Although they may sometimes be required to memorize information or read stories about historical events and people, they rarely work with other students, use original documents, write term papers, or discuss the significance of what…