Social+Studies+Wordle

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What is Social Studies? I chose this phrase because it has been our theme, or essential question if you will, for the entire semester. History Ibelieve that studying history is a vital part of our education. Students need to know important events and why things are the way they are; which leads me to my next word--impact. Impact I chose the word impact because it is a part of what makes history. Everything impacts everything. Whether we know it or not, what we do, what our nation does, has an impact on the world. In knowing that, I come to my next word--apply. Apply I think it is important to teach students how to apply what they learn to their own lives. Facts are important to know, but the application of knowledge to one's life is more important. Contribution Part of what makes history is our contributions. Are we teaching students to be effective citizens and make societal contributions? Geogrpahy A big part of social studies that only gets sub-par attention is geography. I found it disheartening when an adult woman in my education class last year didn't know that Egypt is in Africa. People should not grow up to be ignorant--teach geography! Culture Geography leads nicely to my next word--culture. Culture in the S.S. classroom is not learning about a people group's clothing or food. Culture is an immersion in a people's way of life; why, how, when, and where they do what they do. It's also studying one's own culture and instilling a distinct appreciation for it. Appreciation Another large part of social studies is learning about the country we live in and what it means to be appreciative of what we have here. <span style="color: #8738f7; display: block; font-family: 'Courier New',Courier,monospace; font-size: 130%; text-align: center;">Bigger Picture <span style="color: #8738f7; display: block; font-family: 'Courier New',Courier,monospace; font-size: 130%; text-align: center;">I think social studies is seeing the bigger picture. In Kindergarten, we start out ego-centric. We first learn about ourselves and our little community. As we get older, the picture widens to the entire world, and we see how we all work together to form life as we know it. <span style="color: #8738f7; display: block; font-family: 'Courier New',Courier,monospace; font-size: 130%; text-align: center;">We Are Social Studies <span style="color: #8738f7; display: block; font-family: 'Courier New',Courier,monospace; font-size: 130%; text-align: center;">The culmination of the words I chose brings me to my last phrase--We Are Social Studies. Everyone living in this world makes up what we know to be social studies. Our daily interactions with one another are forming history around us. It is our job to be intentionally aware of our impact.