Elem Social Studies 07 (Kelly)

I thought the skills progression chart was very interesting.  I know it is not relevant across the board, but I wonder if I will see verification of it when I am in the classroom.  I also wonder how the study was done, was it in different states, grades, and socioeconomic status?

I loved the lesson with making connections and using Dr. Stohr’s own personal family artifacts.  It made the lesson more interesting because I knew it was real, and it meant alot that she would share things that are special to her.  I wonder if my students would feel the same way if I brought in my own family artifacts?

I took 2 big ideas away from class this week, first one is never take a source at face value.  Just because it is a primary source, it does not mean it is accurate.  I would never, ever, have second-guessed a primary source, so this has been very eye-opening.  I wonder as a teacher can we say this to our students?  I feel like this puts teaching history in a whole new perspective, and I am excited to explore along with my students!

Second, is to always consider the historical context when analyzing a primary source.  Always consider the why, how, where, and who, along with the time period and other social and political elements.  If we did this with everything we heard, read and saw, I bet we would have a whole new perspective on a range of topics.

I specifically enjoyed learning about different ways to connect students to social studies by using vocabulary.  I don’t ever remember doing anything other than looking up/defining terms.  I love the idea of using graphic organizers, focusing on just a few key words, and making it fun.  I think this will really help the students grasp and retain the information, along with hopefully getting excited about it as well.

I am very interested in discovering more ways to incorporate creativity into my lesson plans such as the examples in our book, and the activities we did in class tonight.  I am wondering where I can get my hands on more creative lesson ideas?!

 

My expectations of my professors for Social Studies EDU 308 are the following:

• Equip me (the student) with new knowledge and creative tools to use when educating students in the subject of Elementary Social Studies.
• Offer me a deeper understanding of the subject.

My expectations as the student for Social Studies EDU 308 are the following:

• Gain new knowledge and understanding of the subject of social studies
• Take away creative techniques and tools to use when teaching my students social studies.
• Learn from my classmates.