Final Reflection

It is very important to teach social studies in the elementary classroom. Children learn some concepts of social studies at a very young age, and this is vital to their development. You teach Kindergarteners how to work together, share, and just basically how to get along in a social environment. This is social studies. I think when some people say social studies should not be taught in elementary schools, they are not truly considering everything social studies involves. I mean it is very important to teach children about democratic societies and how to survive in the real world. Each child should know the basics about how a community is ran and how our country is set up.
There are several tools out there to help us teach social studies. The National Council of Social Studies has developed a set of standards for the nation as a whole to go by in developing social studies standards. The state of Tennessee also has standards available on their website as a tool for teachers in Tennessee to go by. As teachers, we have got to teach our children these standards. We cannot let them fall behind at an early age, because Social Studies includes so much information they could possibly never catch up.
Social Studies is a subject that can easily be integrated with other subjects in the classroom. I feel that this is the way Social Studies should be taught. So much emphasis is placed on Language Arts instruction these days that you have to find ways to integrate subjects in with it. It is so easy to read a book about a Social Studies topic or make a play for students to perform about history. Another good way to incorporate Social Studies into your classroom is by running your classroom in a democratic environment. Students will feel more like they are part of the community in your classroom if they have some input in the rules and procedures that go on in the classroom. It is important to give your students jobs. It is also important to vote on things and let their opinions count!
I feel that as a teacher I need to create an active learning environment in my classroom. To me an active learning environment is more centered around the students: thus, creating a learner-centered approach to teaching. I fell that the teacher should plan his/her instruction around what the students in the classroom learn best from. If that would be hands-on activities that take longer to plan out and are more difficult to assess, then that is what the teacher should do! I feel like too much history instruction is done by the student reading a chapter and doing a worksheet. I do not feel like most students can truly learn well from this type of instruction. They may be able to memorize the information for a test, but it will not be in their long term memory.
As a teacher, I know that I do not have the knowledge I need to truly teach my students what they need to know about Social Studies. I am aware that my first few years of teaching I will spend teaching myself as well as the students. I know this, and I am willing to learn the information again. I am sure I will learn more from my hands on activities then I did from the books and worksheets I was given in elementary school.
Lastly, I want to talk about finding my critical voice this semester. Before this semester of classes, I had the attitude that all I needed was that first job. I was willing to sit back and keep my mouth shut about the things going on around me in the school, or I was not going to oppose the type of instruction the school system believed in. I feel like my critical voice has strengthened throughout the semester. I still might not be the first one to jump up and buck the system in my first few years of teaching, but I will find ways to make things better for my students. I feel like student teaching is really just going to strengthen my critical voice even more.