When the College, Career, and Civic Life (C3) Framework for Social Studies State Standards project began, there really was nowhere else to go but up. The project was up against great odds--a dearth of funding, a history of incivility amongst the disciplines within social studies, a knack for ending up in media battles over what should be taught in…

There is much that can be learned from a curriculum developed in The Netherlands, a country famous for having been "claimed from the sea." Nothing can be truer than that, but there is more to the story than just the physical aspect of claiming land from the water. The identity of the Dutch, the history of their maritime and seafaring…

How something begins can matter a lot, especially for young adults. "The circumstances under which a person enters a profession is predictive of how that person will view the profession for the rest of his or her life." The goal is for that view to be positive and long lasting for social studies educators. Can more be done to support…

Asserts that using children's literature to present life stories can reinforce young children's understanding of life span and help them better understand how goals formed in childhood may help determine an individual's future. Briefly reviews and recommends 15 children's books focused on life stories and decision making. (MJP)

Discusses instructional uses for the "Carmen Sandiego" software series to encourage interest in geography. Suggests "Carmen" be incorporated into the curriculum by teacher-directed grouping that adds teacher instruction into cooperative and competitive arenas, curriculum integration linking diverse specialties, and isolated…

The fascination with buried treasures and lost civilizations transcends all ages and serves as an effective magnet for drawing students toward the study of archaeology. Connecting students to the past gives them a better understanding of their own present and future. In this article, the author describes how the scientific method of investigation…

Discusses California's Middle Grade Task Force and its report, "Caught in the Middle: Educational Reform for Young Adolescents in California Public Schools." Describes the 1987 revision of the California history-social science framework which emphasizes character development through studying the moral and ethical struggles of literary…

Recommends using literature, Supreme Court cases, and moral dilemmas in a debate format as means of instruction for character education. Includes a rationale and examples for each approach. Explains several guiding values (respect for persons, justice, telling the truth) and their relevance to character education. (MJP)

Two new curriculum development projects, interdisciplinary in nature, are described in this article. Exploring Human Nature, the Educational Development Center project, is a social studies course for high school students which integrates biological science into its program. Conversely, the Biological Sciences Curriculum Study course, Human…

Offers energy education guidelines to aid social studies educators at all grade levels respond to increasing interest in energy-related topics. Guidelines are intended to serve as an outline of a multidisciplinary education program, a baseline from which to assess existing energy-related instructional programs, and a starting point for development…

The implications of the use of historical research in elementary grades are examined. The study of the family as a beginning for a historical research project is suggested. (JR)

Reviews the establishment, purposes, current status, problems, and prospects of middle schools. Identifies five goals generally accepted by middle school educators. Reports that middle schools' exemplary features include such components as interdisciplinary team organization, flexible schedules, and home base/individual counseling programs. (GEA)

Preteaching vocabulary terms to fifth-grade students was found to have a significant facilitative effect on their acquisition and retention of social studies content. An instructional sequence for teachers to follow in preteaching concept vocabulary is outlined. (RM)

Suggests strategies and activities related to energy education at the elementary level. The author stresses that learning experiences must be interdisciplinary and based on social and scientific information and concepts. (KC)

As elementary social science methods instructors, the authors observed a need in their student population for instructional methods that would engage students in the content, process, and values of geography instruction. Their initial purpose was to create an instructional model that pre-service teachers could adapt and use in their future…