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Introduction
Title of Site: Social Studies Lesson Plans and Resources for Teachers
URL: www.csun/~hcedu013/
Developed by Dr. Marty Levine, Professor Emeritus of Secondary Education,
California State University, Northridge (CSUN), this site provide lesson plans, online
activities, curriculum framework, news groups and mailing lists. The site is accessible
through the California State University Northridge website at www.csun.edu. Along with
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being linked with a major university and published by a PhD, this site has received
awards from outside organizations like Pacific Bell and Education Index; just to name a
few.
Although the site is quite plain it is simple to navigate and rich with content. The
lesson plan link has hundreds of lesson plans written for grade level instruction K-12.
Each lesson plan is complete with teaching material like maps, photos, handouts and even
video links. These lesson plans can be pulled up on a classroom computer during
instruction for power point presentations or printed out as a guide or overhead. The
lesson plan and online activities pages list hundreds of topics in alphabetical order and
requires a great deal of reading to find the particular subject you are looking for.
Scrolling through some of the pages can be time consuming.
There is a section on teaching current events that provides up to date access to the
most recent network news, public broadcasting, cable channels and news for kids media
sites. This section of the website has some great materials, but extensive exploration is
necessary to find what you need. Some of the sites listed require subscriptions and
contact information.
In conclusion the website contains a plethora of information helpful to instructors
teaching social studies for all grade levels. The drawback of this site is in the simplicity
and time it takes to scroll through long lists of links. This website is credible source of
information and worth the time to explore.
URL: www.socialstudies.org
Founded in 1921 the National Council for the Social Studies is devoted to
advocacy and support of social studies education throughout the country. This
organization reaches out to educators by offering professional development, classroom
resources and publications. Teachers K-12 can become members of the NCSS by
applying online.
The NCSS website is easy to find through a Google search and is well designed.
You do not have to be a member to access online resources which include: book lists,
media links, lessons plans, curriculum standards and teacher standards. Most of the
teacher resources listed on the NCSS website deal with current events and government
topics. Contact information for the NCSS board of directors and scholars including
telephone, address and e-mail are available through the “contact us” link always visible
on the left hand side of the page.
Unlike many other sites the NCSS has a career center where job seekers can
search jobs or post resumes and employers can create job listings. There are a number of
other organizations that are associated with the NCSS geared towards educational
supervision and social studies advocacy; links to their site are provided.
The NCSS is a clean and organized website aimed help advance the teaching of
social studies at all levels. This site is a great tool when seeking the latest information
concerning educational research, policy making and national curriculum standards. As a
classroom resource the NCSS is limited, but as a professional resource it is a valuable
support network.
supporting and informing parents on their child’s special education needs. There are
many links which take you to well documented research references, legal guidelines and
parent resources. There are no advertisements or pop ups which take away from the
site’s content. The site is fully accredited, easily accessible and full of current news and
contact information. A list of regional facilities with the names of directors and staff are
also available.
This site is highly recommended to parents in need of more information
concerning the education of their special needs child. The site also has information
valuable to educators concerning the law and research on many disabilities. Nothing on
the site concerned me accept for the small amount of regional centers. The Technical
Assistance Alliance for Parent Centers seems to be a reputable and accessible resource
for both educators and parents.
Conclusion
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The pressure put on educators to utilize online resources is greater than ever
before and that pressure will continue to increase as society demands that students must
demonstrate two types of literacy. Traditional literacy focuses on a student’s ability to
read and write. Now, educators are being asked to focus some of their attention on
computer literacy, as skills in today’s job market become more technologically centered.
Both types of literacy are needed in order for students to succeed and teachers must
demonstrate the growing usefulness of technology by utilizing it in the classroom.
Education has been slow to catch up with technology, but the resources currently
available are plentiful, diverse, rich with content and free to access.