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Permalink Reply by Kimberly Farmer on December 3, 2008 at 2:45pm

Hi Kelly I am not sure if you were talking to me lol but one of my middle school teachers is having a difficult time making 7th grade SS interesting. Do you have any suggestions on livening up his lessons or resources that you have used.

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Permalink Reply by Kelly Stevens on December 3, 2008 at 6:18pm

but yes, have him contact me and I'm willing to share/discuss ways he can make it much more interesting for the kids. Also visit my team website. It has links to what I've done and are currently doing in social studies. www.rogersherr.dpsnc.net/teams/pathfinders

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Permalink Reply by Nancy Bosch on December 3, 2008 at 4:17pm

Nothing is better than using primary source documents. You can visit The Library of Congress (American Memory) or National Archives. I have a blog with primary source suggestions, check it out here.

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Permalink Reply by Kelly Stevens on December 3, 2008 at 6:16pm

Yeah I would be happy to help your teacher out Kimberly. However I would like to hear more about what he's already doing, what he's struggling with, etc. I do a lot to liven up SS for my 7th graders. For example, right now I'm studying South Africa with my kids. We're reading Waiting for the Rain (novel about Apartheid) with them. We're having them carry around a passbook like black south africans had to. All the staff in the building are pass police, if they're caught without their passbook they have to complete 10 jumping jacks, sit ups, lungs, etc (their choice.) we catch them in classes, in the hallways, bathrooms, cafeteria, outsidfe at carpool, busses, we've gone on busses, etc. They really get a feel for what it must have been like to be hounded. I then have them respond about their experience via a blog in the past - but this year they're going to respond via voicethread.

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