Inside the Social Studies Classroom

EDUCATION/ SOCIAL STUDIES â a much-needed addition to elementary social studies that will move the field ahead. Keith C. Barton University of Cincinnati This text fills a valuable niche and should quickly become a leading reference for teachers and teacher educators. Linda S. Levstik University of Kentucky This book resulting from a collaboration among an educational psychologist a social studies educator and a primary teacher describes in rich detail and illustrates with excerpts from recorded lessons how primary teachers can engage their students in social studies lessons and activities that are structured around powerful ideas and have applications to their lives outside of school. The teaching portrayed connects concepts and skills emphasized in national and state standards taught in ways that build on studentsâ prior experiences in their local communities and connect with their family backgrounds and home cultures. The analyses include rich descriptions of the teacher-student interactions that occur during lessons detailed information about how and why the teacher adapted lesson plans to meet her studentsâ background experiences and adjusted these plans to take advantage of teachable moments that emerged during lessons and what all of this might imply concerning principles of practice. The principles are widely applicable in elementary schools across the country as well as across the curriculum (not just in social studies) and across the elementary grades (not just the primary grades). . Language: English