Ronald Evans describes and interprets the continuing battles over the purposes, content, methods, and theorectical foundations of the social studies curriculum. This facinating volume: addresses the failure of social studies to reach its potential for dynamic teaching because of a lack of consensus in the field; links the ever-changing rhetoric and policy decisions to their influence on classroom practice; and helps to clarify the meaning, direction, and purposes of social studies instruction in schools.

This sourcebook contains more than twelve hundred easy-to-follow and implement classroom activities created and tested by veteran teachers from all over the country. The activities are arranged by grade level and are keyed to the revised National History Standards, so they can easily be matched to comparable state history standards. This volume offers teachers a treasury of ideas for bringing history alive in grades 5?12, carrying students far beyond their textbooks on active-learning voyages into the past while still meeting required learning content. It also incorporates the History Thinking Skills from the revised National History Standards as well as annotated lists of general and era-specific resources that will help teachers enrich their classes with CD-ROMs, audio-visual material, primary sources, art and music, and various print materials. Grades 5?12

Explores the value and impact of implementing social action and social justice activities in the elementary classroom. Includes a discussion about how teaching social studies for social justice relates to standardized testing and state curricula and offers classroom activities, teaching ideas, and a list of children's books, curriculum materials, and websites.

Elementary-aged children are often positioned as not developmentally ready to learn about race, racism, and injustice. Yet, the classroom materials used in most schools misrepresent history, withhold knowledge about racial injustice, or fail to uplift stories of resilience and resistance. For almost a decade, this groundbreaking resource has been one of the most highly used textbooks in justice-oriented social studies methods courses for grades 3-8. The author has thoroughly revised her bestseller to provide additional lessons that are more deeply situated within the current context of converging pandemics--COVID-19, racism, and impending environmental catastrophe. Grounded in the daily realities of public schools, Agarwal-Rangnath shows teachers how to use primary and other sources that will offer students new ways of thinking about history while meeting language arts standards for information text proficiency and critical thinking. Educators will also learn how to teach language arts and social studies as complementary subjects. New for the Second Edition: More concrete connections between theory and practice. Additional lesson examples that are centered in today's context of converging pandemics. Reflection questions that challenge readers to think about ways to navigate curricular constraints and standardization in the classroom.