Social Studies K5 Curriculum

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Social Studies K-5 Curriculum

• October 20, 2005

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History of Social Studies Curriculum Review
Committee

• 1999-2000
• Mapping the curriculum topics.
• 2000-2001
• Providing consistency, continuity, and clarity.
• 2001-2002
• Reformatting curriculum guides to link
  curriculum, instruction, and assessment.

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1999-2000 Curriculum Mapping

• Wide variety of topics taught at each school.
• Topics selected based on teacher favorite
  subjects, e.g.
• Chinese New Year
• Colonial America
• Native Americans
• Japanese Culture

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2000-2001 Consistency, Continuity, and Clarity

• Consistency
• Eliminated topic redundancy from grade to grade.
• Reached consensus about topics to be taught.
• Continuity
• Build on the expanding concept of individual as a
  member of a group.
• Spiraling of research and map skills
• Clarity
• Organized according to National Council of Social
  Studies National Standards.

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2001-2002 Curriculum, Instruction, and
Assessment

• Essential Questions
• Backwards Design
• Map Skills
• Research Skills
• Non-fiction Reading

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2002-2005 Goals for K-5 Social Studies Committee

• Differentiation
• Curriculum Integration
• Field Trips
• Technology

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Differentiation

• Curriculum
• What are possible extensions of the key concepts?
• Instruction
• What are ways to vary the instruction to
  acknowledge a variety of learning styles?
• Assessment
• What are possible designs for final projects that
  acknowledge personality preferences and student
  choice?

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Integration

• How can teachers begin to integrate science,
  math, reading , and special are subjects into the
  social studies unit study?

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Technology

• How can more teachers access and publish social
  studies lessons/units on the WLN?
• How can teachers access and evaluate information
  from a variety of print and online resources to
  seek answers to research questions.

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Field Trips

• How can field trips be organized to provide the
  maximum learning experience for the students,
  e.g. Grade 2 -Westport Community trip?
• What are alternative plans for Grade 3 -Bradley
  Wheeler field trip?

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K-5 Social Studies Curriculum

• Grade K Myself and Others
• Grade 1 Family and School
• Grade 2 Community
• Grade 3 Regions of the U.S.
• Grade 4 Regions of the World
• Grade 5 The Meaning of Culture

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Kindergarten Myself and Others

• How are we alike and different?
• How are families alike and different?
• How has my family changed from past to present?
• How does my family celebrate important holidays
  and events?

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Grade 1 Family and School

• How are roles, rules, and responsibilities
  important in a family?
• How do schools help you learn to make friends and
  be part of a group?
• What are ways that you can solve conflicts at
  home and at school?
• How would you life be different if you were a
  member of a Colonial family?

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Grade 2 My Community

• How are goods and services exchanged within a
  community?
• How does the Westport community provide for its
  citizens?
• What does it mean to be a good citizen?
• How is Westport similar to or different from
  (another community)?

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Grade 3 Regions of the US

• How are the five regions of the United States
  identified, defined , and bounded?
• What is the difference between a country and a
  state a state and a city/town?
• How have the native people in each of the five
  regions of the United States adapted to their
  environment to meet their basic needs of food,
  clothing, and shelter?
• How has technology changed life in Westport from
  the Victorian times until the present day?

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Grade 4 Regions of the US

• How are the geographic regions of the world
  identified, defined , and bounded?
• How have people, living in different regions of
  the world, adapted to meet their basic needs of
  food, clothing, and shelter? How have the natural
  resources and available technology influenced the
  ways in which people can make a living?
• How have humans changed their natural environment
  when finding new ways to to meet their needs and
  make a living?
• How are the regions of the world connected?

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Grade 5 Regions of the US

• How do the cultural universals help us compare
  and contrast various committees?
• How does human interaction with natural resources
  influence the development and survival of a
  culture?
• How do technology and trade affect the growth of
  a culture?
• What contributed to the development and cultural
  diffusion of Ancient Egypt, Greece, and/or Rome?