This unit was developed to help students gain a sense of personal identity by examining their heritage. This is accomplished through a study of their genealogical beginnings, their county, and their ancestors' way of life. Part I of the unit engages students in activities investigating their background such as writing an autobiography,…

This booklet describes how students and other researchers can use historical resources in their community to explore the history of their school and to determine how that history relates to community-wide and statewide developments. Although the manual is written primarily from the perspective of the public schools, the underlying theme of the…

Undergraduate students increase their understanding of human geography and become aware of their community's health ecology by examining the degree and geographical pattern of dog-associated health hazards in Athens, Georgia, and by studying the behavioral patterns and attitudes of Athens's residents that might be causally related to these health…

This teacher's guide utilizes the subject matter in the 1998-99 Texas Almanac in a variety of interdisciplinary student activities for grades 3-8. The guide includes a grade-by-grade curriculum chart detailing which lessons correspond to specific Texas Assessment of Academic Skills (TAAS) objectives and Essential Element requirements. The 45…

An elementary school teaching unit uses a visit to a one-room schoolhouse to increase student awareness of what pioneer schools were like. The first section consists of pre-visit activities and teacher preparation suggestions. A description of an early pioneer school is followed by six activities designed to make the visit more authentic.…

Seven authors contributed to a bulletin about using community studies to teach about the interrelationship of the local community with larger economic and social systems. "Young People and Community" (R. Beery and Mark C. Schug) addresses the need for the social studies curriculum to consider the local community, an area which is rarely covered…

Instructional units with suggested resources and appropriate activities for teaching environmental design to students in grades 6-12 are presented. An overview of program goals and suggested environmental awareness exercises and projects is followed by six illustrative units. The first unit (grade 6) focuses on environmental awareness and…

Advocates teaching history through children's fictional and nonfictional literature in elementary social studies. Offers seven criteria for selecting books for elementary history units. Provides activities for teaching about American Indians, communities, and U.S. history based on award-winning children's books. (CH)

Describes a college-level course in psychology in which students study community issues and problems. Outlines how students work in community program internships and participate in individual and group research projects. Includes course objectives, recommended instructional resources, and evaluation strategies. (CFR)

Describes a course that approaches concepts of historic preservation from a humanities, rather than an architectural, perspective. The course begins with a questionnaire about the area that uses ideas from perceptual geography and social psychology. Later readings include novels, poems, essays, and songs. (MJP)

This resource file contains information for Utah elementary school teachers to help their level 3 students meet the state's instructional objectives in the social studies. This particular student level emphasizes comparative communities and environments. The following disciplines are covered in the resource file: psychology, anthropology,…

This manual presents a sequence of assignments to encourage students to commit themselves to a writing project in which the content is derived from their own purposeful investigations of subjects within their local community. Introductory information explains how the instructional sequence works, indicating that: (1) students are asked to…

Describes a history program at the Suzanne Middle School, Walnut, California, in which students create, design, and promote local history activities. Emphasizes the accomplishments of the program, including a rise in the school's state test scores from the twenty-second percentile to the ninety-fourth percentile. (RW)

Discusses cooperative learning as a means of teaching geography. Urges production of a positive classroom climate by using group builders and cooperative projects. Suggests projects involving maps, community study, and bulletin boards. Argues that students in cooperative learning become more involved in the subject and more motivated to learn…

This booklet provides reference materials for teachers of social studies in the Northwest Territories (Canada). The information was gathered during workshops attended by elders, community representatives, and teachers from the region. A section on the environment describes the geography of the area around Fort McPherson on the McKenzie River and…