The most important goal of social studies is a well-lived life. Excitement, wonder, inquiry, delight, and puzzlement are central to meaningful learning in social studies. Social studies should be fun and intriguing for all students and provide opportunities to make important life-long connections between the past, present, and future. Students who appreciate the sacrifices that have been made in the past and understand the challenges that lie ahead can make better decisions in the present.
In third grade students will explore the concept of community, learning about the development of cultures, systems of governance, how communities and cultures interconnect both locally and globally, and how the world around them has changed over time. Students will learn about individual rights and responsibilities as well as opportunities for active participation in the life of the community. Students will primarily focus on the local community, yet they will also learn more about the larger world. Geographic skills development will result from comparisons of local communities with communities both near and far. Students will learn more about the geography and richness of indigenous communities and their cultures both in the Americas and around the world.
This term we are studying maps, globes, landforms, and biomes as we explore and understand how geography influences community location and development. Our learning benchmark states, "The geography of a community influences the cultural development of the humans who inhabit the community. There are relationships between climate, natural resources, and other geographic characteristics and a community's cultural development. The unique characteristics of an area influence where and how communities develop, their relative wealth and power, and how they adapt to changes.
Social Studies vocabulary students should learn, know, and use this term:
latitude, longitude, compass rose, north, south, east, west, continents, ocean, key, equator, desert, plain, tropic, tundra, grassland, mountain, forest, wetland, natural resources, reduce, reuse, recycle, recover, economic development, community development, recreation, natural resource extraction, agriculture
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