To promote content literacy, students have to be actively involved. This article focuses on strategies that stimulate student interest by involving them with the content during pre-reading, during-reading and post-reading activities. These processes provide students with optimal opportunities for comprehension. The authors recommend the use of a…

One of the best ways to enrich students' social studies experience is to include assignments in which students interact with social studies content and skills. In this article, the author explains how teachers can use writing exercises to encourage such interaction. She describes the following writing activities: (1) acrostics; (2) haiku; (3)…

Intermediate and junior high school students became very involved with this learning activity which involved detective work. Working in groups, students had to solve a riddle based on a sequence of clues. The answer to each set of clues was either a person, an event, or a place. (RM)

Presents results of a study to determine the effectiveness of the Stock Market Game in contributing to students' learning about financial markets. Suggests that the biggest advantage of the game it its ability to motivate students. Includes the test that was used by the study to determine how much the students had learned. (DK)

An approach that will heighten secondary school students' interest in the study of local government and allow even poor readers to participate is described. Students analyze local county budgets and use a variety of resources, including textbooks and guest speakers, to find plausible answers to their own questions. (RM)

Presents a simulation in which students take the roles of legislators and lobbyists in a debate over the minimum drinking age. Explains that the activity is limited to key elements of the legislative process. Suggests that the activity will help give meaning to abstract processes by providing motivation and relevance for students. Includes…

Secondary students pretend to be members of a committee studying proposals for a new U.S. constitution. They are given a list of 24 constitutional civil rights, taken from the U.S. and Soviet constitutions, and asked to select the 12 they like best. Discussion and analysis follow the selection process. (RM)

Considers three approaches to using entertainment films in history and social studies classes. Provides a list of Hollywood films currently available on videotape and a list of books, articles, and journals dealing with the role of film in society. (GG)

Suggests promoting student critical thinking and motivation through the dramatization of U.S. history. Explains that the exercises make use of old newspaper articles, diaries, and letters, as well as physical artifact facsimiles. Discusses an activity in which students acted out the formation of the Iroquois nation, then wrote first person…

Describes a project in which selected minority students interacted with adults over 60-years old in an Elderhostel program. Discusses the origins and implementation procedures of the project. Provides suggestions for adapting the program for use in social studies classes. (CFR)

How microcomputers can be used in the elementary social studies classroom to teach and reinforce new concepts, to relieve teachers of a variety of time-consuming chores, and to motivate students to produce creative projects is discussed. (RM)

Provides a way to enliven the classroom lecture by involving students in the lecture. Students role-play characters in the teacher's lecture becoming active learners through participation. Students learn their roles and make decisions based on the lecture situation presented. Provides an example unit on the growth of big business in U.S. history…

Asserts that when teachers pose problems that yield solutions running counter to students' perceptions, it results in enhanced student interest and motivation and improves thinking skills. Provides examples and three suggested activities for implementing the approach. (CFR)

In this article, the authors show how oceanography can enlighten and energize the teaching of middle- and high-school social studies on a grade-by-grade basis, and they describe "hooks" from oceanography that will heighten students' interest in various social studies topics. They base the article on their own experiences--as a…

Recounts a student teacher's first experiences in the classroom and provides helpful commentary and suggestions from a more experienced teacher. Briefly discusses classroom management, learning styles, individual needs, time constraints, assessment, and instructional materials. Includes a list of activities that help promote an atmosphere of…