My first day

I was excited to start my Social Studies methods class. Social Studies has always been my favorite subject ever since elementary school, and I could not wait to learn how to teach it properly. While Social Studies is something that has always interested me, I know this is not the case with most learners. Many people find Social Studies to be boring, or think it's just memorizing facts. I believe that if it is taught the right way students will learn to love it just like I do.

During this class we were asked to answer some questions based on our experiences with Social Studies throughout the years. This activity really forced me to think critically about my psst experiences, and my viewpoints regarding teaching and learning. The first question regarded any memories we had of specific projects we did. Sadly, I was unable to think of any, however one that I observed really stood out to me. The project involved having the students create artifacts from ancient Egypt. I remember thinking that it was extremely creative and I could not wait to attempt it one day in my classroom. The next question I had to answer was what made a good Social Studies. I thought of all the positive qualities I would want to have in a teacher. I made a list of bullet points that included passionate, making the class exciting, and using different tools for teaching. The next question asked what I thought the definition of Social Studies was. I wrote studying societies from previous times. The last thing that was asked was when does learning happen. I wrote down learning happens when the teacher makes a connection to the students and makes the material interesting.

In my first week something that really stood out to me were the five elements of teaching of Social Studies. These five elements are meaningful, integrative, value based, challenging, and active. By making the material meaningful it is important to connect it back to their lives in a way the student can relate to. Making what you teach integrative means you connect what you are teaching to previous lessons in order to reach long term goals. If what you are teaching is value based it makes the students think critically, and make their own decisions based on values they hold. It is essential to make what you are teaching challenging. This is will force the student to push their limits. I think it is also important to note that when things become too easy students lose interest. The last of the five elements was active, which means the students should be engaged in what they are learning.

The five elements of Social Studies is something a teacher should always keep in mind when planning lessons. This is an important thing to learn, and can wait for whatever else this class has in store for me.