Bells end and begin our classes. In the past, teachers rang hand-held bells to start the school day. The Liberty Bell may be the icon that students know from history, but there are many ways to use bells in the teaching of social studies. Explore with your students how the sound of bells is present in our daily life and in the past.

Before the computer revolution, cut and paste required scissors and glue. This method originally required scissors to clip information from a newspaper or magazine and glue so the clipping could be attached to paper and saved, shared, or reprinted. In the twenty-first century, the phrase cut and paste has evolved to describe digital methods of replicating information. As students depend more and more on digital information in the classroom, what are the implications of modern cutting and pasting?

In early 2019, I walked into an exhibit at the Skirball Cultural Center in Los Angeles that exponentially expanded my love and respect for Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg. I had long admired her soft but fierce demeanor on the Supreme Court bench and was excited to learn more about the life of this extraordinary woman and pop culture icon. I left that museum more awestruck than I could have ever imagined.

The move to remote learning has thrown students and educators into a whole new world. To help students, educators must understand potential roadblocks and challenges; then they must come up with creative solutions. To help with that, here are five ways to make distance learning effective for students.

In our modern world, different groups are seeking to make changes in their society. Protests, violent and nonviolent, come in many forms. The story of England’s seventeenth-century Diggers is a contrast to many historical uprisings because it was peaceful and its participants hoped to reform the economy of their nation and create an agrarian utopia.

Whether the school year is in person, fully remote, or a hybrid of the two, teachers, administration, and school support staff are collectively navigating uncharted territory. As we enter a brand-new normal, educators are bound to face new challenges in the classroom.

Collective memory, or social memory, is how a group of people remember and forget the past. Individuals and societies base self-understanding and decision-making on past experiences. However, how accurately do we really remember? What do we choose to forget? What is the impact of false or incorrect memories?

As we stand on the precipice of change. We must address several pertinent issues that relate to the Black Lives Matter movement. Change is inevitable, and if things are to be different, a level of respect must be developed between all parties. How do we address these issues? What must we do to ensure students move progressively toward making systemic change?

Teaching all sides of history and utilizing resources that aim to showcase diverse peoples is essential in the modern social studies classroom. Recognizing the unique struggles of people of color throughout history and empathizing with them takes precedence in learning, now more than ever. 

Social studies classrooms can often become a regurgitation of facts, events, and people throughout history. But learning about history and social studies themes has never been more important for students.