316 Pages
    by Routledge

    314 Pages
    by Routledge

    EDUCATION/ SOCIAL STUDIES

    "… 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 students’ 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 students’ 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).

    CHAPTER 1. INTRODUCTION

    Need for Improving Primary Social Studies

    Our Partnership

    Searching for a Feasible Method

    Barbara Joins the Team

    Negotiating Understandings and Inducing Principles

    Focus of the Book

     

    CHAPTER 2. PRIOR RESEARCH ON PRIMARY SOCIAL STUDIES

    The Need for a Powerful Content Base In Early Social Studies

    The Expanding Communities Sequence

    Cultural Universals as Unit Topics

    Teaching Cultural Universals for Understanding, Appreciation, and Life Application

    Topical Organization of Curriculum

    Teaching for Conceptual Change

    Addressing Prior Knowledge and Misconceptions

    NCSS Standards

    Other Research

     

    CHAPTER 3. GENERIC ASPECTS OF OUR INSTRUCTIONAL UNITS

    Our Approach Compared to Alternatives

    Developing the Unit Plans

    Sequencing the Lessons

    Pilot Testing and Revisions

    Key Characteristics of the Units

    Example Unit Outline: Shelter

    Incorporating the Units Within the Larger Curriculum

     

    CHAPTER 4 USING NARRATIVE TO BUILD A CONTENT BASE

    The Special Challenges of Teaching Young Children

    Narrative Structures as Teaching Tools

    Barbara’s Use of Narrative

    Clothing in the Past

    The Story of Bananas

    Concluding Observations

     

     

     

    CHAPTER 5 STRUCTURING THE CURRICULUM AROUND BIG IDEAS

    Focus on Powerful Ideas

    Three Layers of Powerful Ideas for Teaching

    Barbara’s Focus on Big Ideas

    Maintaining Focus on Big Ideas without Getting Sidetracked

    Techniques for Focusing Students’ Attention on Big Ideas

    Cultural Universals

    Food

    Clothing

    Transportation

    Communication

     

    CHAPTER 6 DEVELOPING BIG IDEAS ABOUT HISTORY

    Teaching History for Understanding, Appreciation, and Life Application

    Barbara’s History Teaching

    Countering Presentism

    Co-constructing Timelines

    An Example

    Adapting Timelines to the Content

     

    CHAPTER 7 DEVELOPING BIG IDEAS: GEOGRAPHY

    The Five Fundamental Themes of Geography

    NCSS Standards Relating to Geography

    Teaching Geography for Understanding, Appreciation, and Life Application

    Barbara’s Geography Teaching

    A Map Lesson

    Incorporating Geographic Context Into Other Lessons

     

    CHAPTER 8 DEVELOPING BIG IDEAS: THE SOCIAL SCIENCES

    Anthropology (Cultural Studies)

    Barbara’s Teaching About Culture

    Economic Development

    Cultural Differences

    Economics

    Barbara’s Teaching About Economics

    Political Science (Civics and Government)

    Barbara’s Teaching About Civics and Government

     

     

     

    CHAPTER 9: USING INSTRUCTIONAL RESOURCES

    Teaching with Visuals

    Books

    Photos and Illustrations

    Video and Other Technology

    Constructed Learning Resources

    Charts

    Lists

    An Example

    Word Webs

    Graphs

    Barbara’s Nine Principles

     

    CHAPTER 10 MAKING CONNECTIONS AND AVOIDING UNDESIRED CONTENT

    Making Connections

    Foreshadowing

    Tie-backs

    Integrating Across Subjects

    Controlling Students’ Exposure to Anomalies and Misconceptions

    Anomalies

    Misconceptions

    Controlling Students’ Exposure to Undesired Content

    Economic Disparities

    Taboo Topics

    Negative Emotions

    Magic Words

    Developing Big Ideas

     

    CHAPTER 11 INTRODUCING NEW KNOWLEDGE BASES

    Adapting and Elaborating Lesson Plans

    Choosing Physical Settings

    Choosing Instructional Resources

    Developing Skills

    Starting by Eliciting Wonders

    Establishing the Initial Knowledge Base

    Starting with the Prototypical

    Building on Prior Knowledge

    An Example

    Alternative Topic Introductions

    Building on Previous Lessons

    Starting with a Question

    Addressing Strong Interests First

    Purposeful Sets of Examples

    Introducing and Controlling Vocabulary

    Deciding Which Terms and Distinctions to Teach

    Tailoring Definitions to Instructional Goals

    Enriching Understandings

    Planned Redundancy

    Other Vocabulary Teaching Techniques

    Dropping in Definitions and Explanations on the Fly

    CHAPTER 12 DEVELOPING KNOWLEDGE BASES THROUGH STRUCTURED DISCOURSE

    Supporting Learning Through Focused Content and Planned Redundancy

    Sustaining Lesson Flow via Elaborations

    Graduated Questioning

    Scaffolding Learning and Retention

    Establishing Prototype Images to Anchor Networks of Content

    Reviewing Earlier Lessons to Set Up Today’s Lesson

    Reviewing to Consolidate Before Moving Forward

    Modeling of Interior Dialogue

    Scaffolding Students’ Thinking and Information Processing

    From Transmission to Construction: A Gradual Shift

    Shifting From Presenting to Eliciting Information

    Reverting from Eliciting to Presenting

    Opening to Student Questions and Comments

     

    CHAPTER 13 USING QUESTIONS TO DEVELOP CONTENT WITH

    THE WHOLE CLASS

    Timing and Frequency of Questions

    Types and Functions of Questions

    Socializing Students’ Attention and Participation

    Calling for Choral Responses

    Protecting Individuals’ Response Opportunities

    Juggling Whole-Class and Individual-Student Agendas

    Maintaining the Flow During Questioning Segments

    Increasing the Probability of Desired Responses

    Embedding Scaffolding Within Questions

    Maintaining the Flow When Questions Do Not Elicit Desired Responses

    Undesired but Usable Responses

    Inability to Respond Correctly

    Responding to Answers that Are Correct But Undesired in the Context

    Responding to Unexpected Problems During Questioning Sequences

    Summary: Maintaining the Flow

    Interruption and Shifts in Anticipated Lesson Flow

    Adapting Scaffolding Routines to Students and Situations

    CHAPTER 14 SCAFFOLDING FOR INDIVIDUAL STUDENTS WITHIN WHOLE-CLASS LESSONS

    Scaffolding to Elicit Improved Responses

    Students’ Questions and Comments

    Teachable Moments

    Responding to Unhelpful Student Questions and Comments

    When Barbara Has to Stop and Regroup

    CHAPTER 15 ACTIVITIES AND ASSESSMENTS

    Barbara’s Use and Adaptation of Suggested Activities

    Pair-Share Activities

    Other Review Activities

    Ticket-Out Activities

    Writing Activities

    Other Common Activities

    Less Frequent Activities

    Home Assignments

    Assessment

    Barbara’s Approach to Assessment

    Formal and Informal Assessment

    Conclusion

    Biography

    Jere Brophy is University Distinguished Professor of Teacher Education and Educational Psychology, Michigan State University

    Janet Alleman is Professor of Teacher Education, Michigan State University

    Barbara Knighton is an Early Elementary Educator, Waverly Community Schools, Michigan

     

    "… 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

    "Brophy, Alleman and Knighton have successfully described a very thoughtful, deliberate, and painstaking research process that spanned several years. This is a volume from which any teacher or prospective teacher of social studies could profit immensely." -- Jane C. Chauvin, Teachers College Record (March 12, 2009)

    "Inside the Social Studies Classroom successfully transitions theory into practice. The deep, rich classroom descriptions and extensive synthesis of purposeful instruction move learning beyond traditional practices, expanding our thinking about authentic and powerful primary social studies teaching."-- Tina L. Heafner, Theory & Research in Social Education (Spring 2009): 273-280