Justice-Oriented Social Studies in the Elementary Classroom

Here are some components of what I believe justice-oriented elementary social studies can look like:

SOCIAL ACTION PROJECTS - 5th graders raising awareness about the World Water Crisis by marching around the Field Museum carrying a gallon of water on their heads like millions of women and children have to do every day

DELIBERATION - Students are practicing their "arguments with evidence" before going into deliberation around controversial current events with their classmates

COURAGEOUS CONVERSATIONS - Students using Brave Space norms to discuss controversial issues

ROLE PLAY - 4th grader as a Northern congressman arguing slaves should not to be counted as full humans-or even 3/5 of a human- otherwise the South will have higher population & win

GUEST VISITORS - Re-enactors bringing the Civil War to life

CIVIC-ORIENTED FIELD TRIPS - Students sitting with real members of congress in Jefferson City

HERITAGE STUDY - Students linking self-designed "Identity Posters" to where their families come from around the world, helping me figure out how to be culturally responsive

TIMELINE OF BOOKS - After students read a historical-based book, we place a copy of the cover on a timeline so students grasp context & chronology.

HISTORICALLY ACCURATE CHILDREN'S BOOKS FROM MULTIPLE PERSPECTIVES

CURRENT EVENTS EVERY DAY - Students learn politics beyond the Presidential Election

HANDS ON LEARNING - Geography lesson through kinesthetic learning

CONSTRUCTIVISM - 6th grade students constructing a Museum Exhibit displaying what they learned about Ancient Civilizations in S.S.

INTEGRATION OF MUSIC - Students singing and dancing to Funga Alafia, a West African welcome song

SERVICE LEARNING - Local canned food drive

FILM FESTIVALS - Students viewing "Race in America" documentary at St. Louis Film Festival

LEARNING FROM OTHER STUDENTS - 6th graders take notes on 4th grade World Explorers Museum Exhibit