What is Social Studies?

What is Social Studies?



The study of Social Studies is more than just learning about history; it is the study of economics, civics, citizenship, geography, and even social behaviors from past and even the present. Social Studies has powerful elements when it is meaningful (when it makes connections with the students and real-world situations, giving them the skills to be engaging with the past), integrative (draws on more than one discipline, subject or skill set), value-based (strengthens students' sense of democracy values and social responsibility), challenging (incorporates different perspectives and draws on students' critical-thinking skills), and active (participatory, makes use on manipulative or physical environment). Students' won't remember the multiple choice test you gave on the Social Studies topic you were teaching in the moment, they will remember how you connected the material with them and todays society while using engaging and active materials. 

Everyone in the world learns in different ways. Whether its strictly reading information, listening to a lecture, looking at examples on the board, when we watch videos or movies, when we have conversations about the topic, when we do hands-on work, or when we teach each other, we all learn in different ways. So, when it comes to teaching Social Studies, teachers must make it possible to incorporate all different types of learning to connect their students' with the past. Most students' find Social Studies boring because it is not what is happening now: it is old news and doesn't matter anymore. But that is so far from the truth. Social Studies teachers must show that to their students': the past is just as important as the future because it reveals patterns and connections. Social Studies is more than the past, it is the ability to learn from the mistakes and successes. Knowledge is power and Social Studies is knowledge. 


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