Social Studies

 

Current Events

 

Lesson plans based on articles appearing in the New York Times, helping teachers integrate current events into their curriculum.

 

Economics

 

Online economic and personal finance lessons and resources for educators and students.

Links to resources that will be of value to the K-12 teacher economics teacher. The "Online Guide" organizes resources by Wisconsin Model Academic Standards.

Links to instructional materials and tools that can increase your understanding of the Federal Reserve, economics and financial education.

Standards-based classroom resources for K-12 teachers, students and parents.

 

Government

 

This site focuses on resources that teach about the United States government. It is tailored for educators, parents, and K-12 students.

    Founded by Justice Sandra Day OConnor in 2009, iCivics makes available curriculum units for grades 5-12 on various aspects of governance, such as budgeting, civil rights, the constitution, the three branches of government, etc.

     

    History

     

    This is "an award-winning portal that contains annotated links to over 1200 history web sites as well as links to hundreds of quality K-12 history lesson plans, history teacher guides, history activities, history games, history quizzes, and more." (Description taken from the website.)

    Collection of genealogical and historical sources, including primary sources related to local and family histories. Provided by BadgerLink.

    "The Historical Scene Investigation Project (HSI) was designed for social studies teachers who need a strong pedagogical mechanism for bringing primary sources into their classroom. With the advent and accessibility of the internet, many libraries, universities and government agencies are housing their historical documents online. Simultaneously, there has been a push in K-12 history education to give students experiences that more closely resemble the work of a real historian." "In partnership with the College of William & Mary School of Education, University of Kentucky School of Education, and the Library of Congress Teaching with Primary Sources Program" (from HSI website)

    "The Newberry provides K-12 resources that make it easy to incorporate primary sources into classroom instruction." (from The Newberry website)

    Database for historical research for high school students. Provided by BadgerLink.

    The Library of Congress offers lesson plans and classroom materials which utilize primary sources from the Library's vast digital collections.

    This is a digital library of primary sources in American social history from the antebellum period through reconstruction.

    Reproducible primary documents, educational units correlated to national academic standards, and cross-curricular connections.

    "The Reading Like a Historian curriculum engages students in historical inquiry. Each lesson revolves around a central historical question and features sets of primary documents designed for groups of students with diverse reading skills and abilities. This curriculum teaches students how to investigate historical questions by employing reading strategies such as sourcing, contextualizing, corroborating, and close reading. Instead of memorizing historical facts, students evaluate the trustworthiness of multiple perspectives on historical issues. They learn to make historical claims backed by documentary evidence." (quote taken from the website)

      This website is funded by the U. S. Department of Education. Its purpose is to provide K-12 history teachers access to a multitude of resources (including lesson plans) to improve the teaching of U.S. history.

      A very good resource for those assignments requiring students to access information about the day they were born.

      Resources intended to enliven the study of Wisconsin state and local history.

       

      Tolerance & Social Responsibility

       

      "Curriculum Connections is a collection of original lesson plans and resources that help K-12 educators integrate multicultural, anti-bias, and social justice themes into their curricula. Each edition is organized around a particular topic or theme, and a new edition is published approximately two times per school year." (Description taken from the website.)

      Provides teaching resources on a range of issues related to international security, conflict resolution, peacemaking, violence prevention, and social responsibility.

      Founded in 1991 by the Southern Poverty Law Center, Learning for Justice (formerly Teaching Tolerance) is dedicated to reducing prejudice, improving intergroup relations and supporting equitable school experiences for our nation's children." (from the website)

       

        

      More Social Studies Lesson Plans

       

      An online, interactive game for elementary students in Wisconsin.  Students will work with primary source materials to become a history detective. Provided by BadgerLink

      Free primary source materials for social studies teachers

      Unit plans developed by teachers in Core Knowledge schools and presented at Core Knowledge National Conferences.

      PBS LearningMedia provides educators with strategies, tools, and professional development resources needed to fully utilize digital learning." (from the website)

      University of Wisconsin-Oshkosh Professor Ava McCall's website.

      Lesson plans and other teacher resources arranged by grade level and content area. This was last updated in 2006, but it appears to be still useful.

      "TeachMideast is a website designed for K-12 educators featuring a plethora of innovative new resources on the Middle East and Islam. The site includes essays, classroom activities, downloadable multimedia content and interactive Google Earth tours." (description taken from the website)

      Very detailed and lengthy unit plans about a variety of topics.