Social Studies: People, Places and Environments

Pre-K-12: Standard 3

• Social studies programs should include experiences that provide for the study of people, places and environments. The study of people, places and human-environment interactions assists learners as they create their spatial views and geographic perspectives of the world.

Social Studies: Power, Authority and Governance

Pre-K-12: Standard 6

• Social studies programs should include experiences that provide for the study of how people create and change structures of power, authority, and governance. Understanding the historical development of structures of power, authority, and governance and their evolving functions in contemporary U.S. society, as well as in other parts of the world, is essential for developing civic competence.

National Council for the Social Studies, Expectations of Excellence: Curriculum Standards for Social Studies (Washington, D.C.: NCSS, 1994). This book may be purchased by calling 800-683-0812. Electronic copies of it are not available.

Source: Curriculum Standards for Social Studies

Bring any social studies scene to life with a creative diorama. Capture a famous location or event for storytelling accompanied by a brief summary, opinion or review. For advanced students, assign historical topics followed by diorama presentations. Encourage lifelong learning through creative expression for any subject area.

Supplies Used: Cardstock, Colored Pencils, Crayons, Double-Sided Tape, Fishing Line, Glue, Scissors, Shoebox, String

The teacher will die-cut the materials for student use prior to the lesson.

1. Die-cut the White House, Supreme Court and Capitol from construction paper and highlight with colored pencils or crayons.
2. Add a tab behind the buildings so that they may stand (see Main Photo).

Setting the Scene

1. Cover the inside of a shoebox with blue construction paper to create the scene. Cover the outside of the shoebox with any desired color.
2. Use green construction paper to represent grass. Cut out 2 strips of green hills. Adhere one strip of hills to the background and save the other for the foreground. Add a tab behind the second strip of hills so that it may stand.
3. Die-cut Clouds. Adhere one cloud to the background. Set the other Clouds aside.

Completing the Diorama

1. Attach string behind some clouds and attach to the inside roof of the shoebox.
2. Place the buildings and hills in the scene, adhering by the tabs (see Main Photo).