As a social studies teacher, I often get asked “so you just teach history right?” WRONG. My teaching endorsement in social studies allows me to teach so many other subjects other than history. Social studies is often misunderstood because social studies teachers generally just teach history classes, but in these past few years, there’s been an increase in the number of classes being offered within social studies, and a higher interest in social studies teachers (yay!).
Social Studies Subjects
The Well-Known
First, of course, there’s history. And this includes all forms of history – World History and United States History are the main two that are taught. But there are so many other uncommon studies of history – European History, Latin American History, Asian History, Women’s History, African History, African American History, Native American History and it just goes on! Typically, when teaching the two common history classes, there is a weaving of the uncommon studies into the larger overall subject.
The next fairly common subject associated with social studies is civics, government, or also called political science. When teaching civics, typically the focus is the founding documents, such as the Declaration of Independence, the Constitution, and the Bill of Rights. Then there’s a breakdown of the three branches of government, voting, and other conversations about the U. S. federal government.
Another subject included is economics. I’ll be 100% honest – I don’t like economics. I took my classes and struggled through them, was bored through them, but I completed them. However, I do make sure to teach the basics – different economic systems. And because my AP class takes the exam about a month before school gets out, we do a personal finance unit, which requires a basic understanding of economics and encourages a super important life skill. So economics shows up in little ways, even if you dislike it!
Other subjects taught are psychology and sociology. These two go hand-in-hand. Psychology is the study of the brain. People are always interested in psychology, cause learning about why people behave the way they do is interesting. On the same side of learning about why people act the way they do, sociology does the same, but through studying society. So the norms, taboos, and how institutions are set up.
The Not-So-Well-Known
Another subject that isn’t commonly taught as a course anymore is geography. Geography is the study of the physical features of the world – deserts, oceans, countries, rivers, mountain ranges, and so many other land features for how the world is organized. I wish geography was taught as its own class at my school, but it’s not – not yet anyway!
One of my favorite lessons to get students thinking about countries around the world is my Countries in the News lesson!
The least common known subject is anthropology. I LOVE anthropology! It’s a subject that isn’t discussed at the high school level often, and because of that, I didn’t even hear of it until I went to college! The study of cultures is so fascinating. If you’ve never learned about anthropology, research it – it’s awesome!
If you want to see some example lessons of social studies, check out my post with over 20 lesson resources!
Social Studies Skills
Social studies develops so many skills through learning about the above subjects. Often times, these are the skills that teachers are focusing on to help students be productive citizens – as that’s the primary purpose of social studies!
Analyzing Sources
Often times, in social studies, we are looking at primary, or firsthand, sources, and secondary, or secondhand, sources. When analyzing sources, there are four different things to consider. The first is what is happening during that time period. The second and third are who the source is directed at and what is the point of view of the source, like how the author influences what is said in the source. The fourth and final analysis point is what is the purpose for the source. Analyzing sources is a major skill that is developed through social studies and one is that, in my opinion, is the most important!
Compare and Contrast
Comparing and contrasting is another skill that is developed through social studies. To see and understand the differences between major concepts about the world, you have to look at how they are similar and different.
Cause and Effect
Another major skill developed is understanding cause and effect. Through history, there is often a domino effect that leads to major conflicts, discoveries, and creations. Seeing how various events lead to others, which have their own effects as well, is so important to understand. In history classes, this skill is developed TONS!
Why Social Studies is Important
The skills that are learned through social studies subjects is part of what makes it so important – but there’s also more to its importance than just the skills.
Understanding the past leads to understanding the present. You often hear that history repeats itself – which is so true! Through learning about the past, we are able to understand why the world has developed the way that it has. Why that one country doesn’t like its neighbor, why there is war in that region of the world, and other current events that we hear on the news. Social studies helps us understand the world that we live in – through learning about different cultures, studying the past, investigating our minds and society, and understanding how government works.
3 Comments
Love this! As a homeschooling mom, this is excellent! Especially for parents who are now having to homeschool!
We are a homeschooling family and my kids love history and social studies! This is great info!
I love social studies! I didn’t appreciate it as much until I started taking more classes in college. I think it’s great that you point out the little known social study topics. I totally wish I’d taken anthropology! This post really helps people get a better understanding of social studies and why these topics are so important.