The Fifty States Project: Learning about America, One Care Package at a Time

Autor/in	McPherson, Kelly
Titel	The Fifty States Project: Learning about America, One Care Package at a Time
Quelle	In: Social Studies and the Young Learner, 32 (2019) 2, S.3-9 (7 Seiten) PDF als Volltext Verfügbarkeit
Sprache	englisch
Dokumenttyp	gedruckt; online; Zeitschriftenaufsatz
ISSN	1056-0300
Schlagwörter	Social Studies; History Instruction; Teaching Methods; Primary Sources; Elementary School Teachers; Elementary School Students; Grade 5; National Curriculum; Academic Standards; Geography Instruction; United States History; State History; Active Learning; Learning Activities; Inquiry; Visual Aids; Authentic Learning; Picture Books; Social Media; Class Activities + Suchen Sie Ihr Suchwort? Gemeinschaftskunde; History lessons; Geschichtsunterricht; Teaching method; Lehrmethode; Unterrichtsmethode; Primärquelle; Elementary school; Teacher; Teachers; Grundschule; Volksschule; Lehrer; Lehrerin; Lehrende; School year 05; 5. Schuljahr; Schuljahr 05; Geography education; Geography lessons; Geografieunterricht; Aktives Lernen; Lernaktivität; Anschauungsmaterial; Picture book; Bilderbuch; Soziale Medien
Abstract	This article introduces the fifty states project, a year-long study of the United States that uses crowd sourcing to bring authentic materials into the social studies classroom. The project started five years ago, when author Kelly McPherson decided that she wanted to have a care package sent from all 50 states to help students learn about the nation. McPherson knew that if the students could touch, smell, and taste artifacts from each state, those experiences would help students remember what they learned. "Whether the artifacts being examined relate to popular culture or social history, they illustrate the stories of individuals and groups and can be vehicles to stimulate interest. Artifacts stimulate students' curiosity and help them focus on social studies, providing them with something concrete that they see and touch and serving as a springboard for students' questions." Over the years, McPherson has solicited the help of friends from all over the country to collect some fantastic artifacts and make social studies come alive for her students. Their experiences with the care packages are often meaningful and help them relate to the world outside of school, making this a great example of authentic learning. The learning goals of the fifty states project include: (1) learning the location of each state; (2) important facts and dates in its history; and (3) its culture, resources; (4) industries; and (5) memorable facts. Students will be able to compare and contrast the information that they learn about new states with their knowledge of their home state as well as infer and draw conclusions about borders, regions and other commonalities. They will also make connections with people they have never met and places they have never been. (ERIC).
Anmerkungen	National Council for the Social Studies. 8555 Sixteenth Street #500, Silver Spring, MD 20910. Tel: 800-683-0812; Tel: 301-588-1800; Fax: 301-588-2049; e-mail: membership@ncss.org; Web site: http://www.socialstudies.org
Erfasst von	ERIC (Education Resources Information Center), Washington, DC
Update	2020/1/01