How to Reap the Benefits of Good Social Studies Lesson Plans

Submitted by: urlreader

I'm a new teacher, and history is the subject I teach. The kids I work with are in the 6th grade, which is an age group that is notorious for short attentions spans, so naturally I was nervous at the start of the year. Getting kids interested in history can be a nightmare, as any teacher will tell you. The first day of class, I walked into a roomful of kids who looked disinterested and apathetic. Most of them looked as if they were going to fight me every step of the way, which makes sense since history is a subject that most kids abhor. I had a long, long year ahead of me, and I had to find a way to make social studies lesson plans, world history lesson plans, and civil war lesson plans exciting for kids who acted like they'd rather be getting their teeth pulled.

The first day of class was no fun for me or the students. I love history, but conveying that love to the kids is difficult, to put it lightly. Our first lessons were in general social studies, and so before the second day of class, I went online and looked up social studies lesson plans. After much searching, I found a website that covered several - civil war lesson plans, world history lessons plans, social studies lesson plans, and more. There was a variety of plans to choose from, and suddenly lesson plans were no problem at all. The final challenge was picking just one plan for each area that needed to be covered.

I finally chose one that I figured was perfect for kids in my age group. It incorporated everything that kids love. It had PowerPoint presentations, crossword puzzles, interactive games, videos, artwork, and cartoons. The videos included re-enactments of famous speeches, which the kids would have otherwise read out of a boring old textbook. The interactive games gave them the opportunity to be actively involved in their own learning process, which is crucial if you want to hold their attention. I'd found a teacher's mecca, and suddenly history was no longer the bane of my students' existence.

Now we're having so much fun, and the kids no longer slouch in their seats with their eyes averted. Instead I face a classroom of kids who sit up straight with bright-eyed anticipation, as if they can't wait to see what's in store for them. I divide the kids into study groups (which I naturally refer to as "teams") and give rewards to the team that first completes the crossword of the day, or identifies the orator behind a speech or quote. I have a contest for political cartoons, and I help each team create presentations of their own, using prominent historical figures. And best of all, their test scores are reflecting their interest in the subject. Not only are social studies lesson plans, world history lesson plans, and civil war lesson plans no longer an insurmountable challenge to me, I have a classroom of kids who share my love and excitement for history.

About the Author

Written by Kelly Sparks. MultiMedia Learning LLC provides social studies lesson plans, world history lesson plans and civil war lesson plans through their unique PowerPoint® Presentation software. Students learn history through classroom social studies games and engaging technology. Learn more at http://www.multimedialearning.org .

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