What is Social Studies?

     Our class textbook teaches Social Studies in the Elementary School: Communities, Connections, and Citizenship for my social studies methods class. Chapter one talks about what social studies is. "Social studies is defined as the 'integrated study of the social sciences and humanities to promote civic competence" (Lyman et al., 2015). It discusses how social studies is supposed to help students "... make informed and reasoned decisions for the public good as citizens of a culturally diverse, democratic society in an independent world" (Lyman et al., 2015). I believe that to teach our students to work in a "diverse, democratic society" (Lyman et al., 2105), we need to be able to teach in a democratic classroom.

    We teach social studies because we need to try and "... prepare children to understand and participate effectively in an increasingly complex world" (Lyman et al., 2015). We also teach social studies because it promotes positive cooperative and collaborative behavior and allows students to gain social and language skills and critical thinking skills.

    There are many different ways to make social studies interesting for students. One way is by integrating other subjects into the learning, an example being music, as a way to make connections throughout the day. Another way is by allowing students to work together for projects, or being able to take students on educational trips, even if it is just an activity outside instead of in the classroom.

    References
Lyman, L., Foyle, H. C., Waters, S., & Lyman, A. L. (2015). Teaching Social Studies in the 
    Elementary School: Communities, Connections, and Citizenship. National Social Science Press.