Human dignity is a complex, though essential, concept for students to master. Inserting human dignity into existing curricula provides students with more opportunities to consider the problems of vulnerable classmates and the status of human dignity and rights in the United States and around the world. Using parts of the US modern Civil Rights…

Because of the importance that geography plays in our understanding of economics, history, and politics, it has been argued that the subject should be taught to students beginning at the early elementary level, usually focusing on the family unit and local communities. However, when the proper technology tools and strategies are used, students at…

To prepare students for participation in a pluralistic, democratic society, history curriculum should help them develop mature ideas about why multiple accounts of the same events exist. But how can we know if we are successful? In this article, we describe work on the design, validation, and piloting of a paper-and-pencil instrument called the…

Elementary students can learn how to take an interpretive approach to learning history so that they can construct knowledge about collective past experience in ways that provide a meaningful context for understanding present experience. Like historians, children communicate their interpretations to others by telling or writing stories in which…

Young learners need activities that engage them mentally and physically in processing new information. It is easy to accept such ideas intuitively, but matching the curriculum content to meaningful activities is a challenge. The authors believe that following a learning cycle is a satisfactory way to meet that challenge. A learning cycle is a…

Discusses the effectiveness of the cooperative/mastery learning method on primary-grade students' acquisition of economic concepts. Provides a sample lesson that shows how cooperative and mastery methods can be combined and used in conjunction with real-life learning experiences when teaching social studies. Offers an economic fable to introduce…

Describes how to design "Journey in a Box" that is literally a box containing a themed set of photographs, selected artifacts, literature, informational texts, travel-journal entries, and maps that combine to tell a first-hand story of time, place, and culture. Provides a framework and an example illustrating the attributes of the…

Examines how social studies and history teachers can help students understand the intellectual origins of German Nazism during World War II. Suggests discussion questions and learning activities. (Author/DB)

Argues that social studies teachers need to involve their students in building their own pyramids of knowledge from basic facts into broad general principles. Discusses a class at Moorhead State University (Minnesota) that uses the inquiry method to help student teachers learn to construct lessons that follow the…

Focuses on how conceptual themes can assist students in problem solving by acting as organizing elements and guides for thinking. States that students can learn how to use important ideas to drive key questions, discern the relationships among concepts that reflect the operation of principles, and visualize a problem to clarify essential issues.…

Identifies and discusses four keys to improved constitutional rights instruction: (1) systematic emphasis on core ideas and issues; (2) analysis and appraisal of core ideas and issues in primary documents; (3) analysis and appraisal of core ideas and issues in judicial cases; and (4) active learning by inquiring students with the help of…

Asserts that teaching concept formation and generalization development are central to any social studies program. Presents a classroom activity designed to teach geographic concepts to middle school students. Includes four figures and instructional procedures to be used in the activity. (CFR)

Describes the author's first meeting with curriculum specialist Hilda Taba and his subsequent work on the Taba Curriculum Project. Discusses the project's objectives, major features, and the instructional strategies necessary for implementation. Concludes by discussing Taba's impact on curriculum design and development. (CFR)

Defines a generalization as "a descriptive statement of broad application indicating a relationship between two or more concepts." Argues that successful teaching about generalizations can only occur when students understand the relationship between concepts and facts. Discusses four issues and four approaches related to teaching…