My Social Studies Manifesto

Wow! It’s hard to believe that the semester is coming to an end and I will be student teaching in the spring and graduating in May! I know that my views on Social Studies have been completely transformed this semester. My own experiences as a student had left me less than thrilled about Social Studies, until this semester. Although I have read about and seen with my own eyes how Social Studies has been left out of most classrooms, I am determined to have Social Studies as a pillar in my curriculum. I think that elementary students need to learn about Social Studies to learn how to be good, responsible citizens. I also think that introducing basic geographical skills to young students is very important. They need to learn about cultures, traveling, directions, and connections to literature. I feel that this can be introduced at a very early age with concepts like near and far. I want my students to feel responsible for their own learning and behavior, so I plan to have a democratic, student-centered environment in my classroom. I want my students to create the procedures for the classroom and sign them, which I feel is a great way to introduce our country’s history and the Constitution into the classroom. I want to have a culturally responsive classroom, so I plan on having my students do the Invisible Knapsack assignment. I will also need to remember what my own Invisible Knapsack contains, and realize that everyone comes from different backgrounds with different views and experiences. I also want to avoid the tourist model in my classroom and avoid stereotypes. I will need to be an advocate for my students, but I will also have to pick my battles wisely. When I need to, I will use my critical voice to advocate for my students. My critical voice has developed and become stronger through experience and the feeling of wanting what is best for my future students. I also realize that in many circumstances, actions speak louder than words, and I can use my critical voice without saying a word. If I teach at a school were Social Studies is sidelined, I will incorporate it into my curriculum. I feel that Social Studies can easily be integrated with other subjects like Science, Math, and Language Arts. Integrating Social Studies can be as easy as using a Social Studies text to teach grammar. I know that I will use every resource at my disposable such as websites, colleagues, conferences, libraries, and field trips to teach Social Studies. I feel that active learning is very important in the classroom for all subjects. This semester in CUAI 4220, doing and learning how to implement different activities such as Box City, Geocaching, and the Living History Museum, I have realized how important an active, hands-on approach to teaching Social Studies (and all subjects) is to engage students and enhance their learning experiences. I want my students to be as eager to learn and as excited about Social Studies as I have been this semester.