Kindergarten Social Studies Teacher Edition  

An Introduction to Kindergarten  

 Standards Alignment  Studies Weekly is a standards-based social studies curriculum.   Cross-Disciplinary Integration:  Lesson plans, activities, and assessments are deliberately integrated with the English  Language Arts standards.    Integration with math, science, physical education, and fine arts has also been  incorporated throughout the curriculum, giving students opportunities to engage in  deep learning by transferring, applying, and expanding their learning.    Student Curriculum includes:   

● 32 weeks of original articles, photos, illustrations, and designs  ● English Language Arts-based activities  ● Formative and summative assessments aligned with enduring understandings,  

standards, and deconstructed skills   Teacher Resources include:   

● Year-at-a-glance curriculum scope and sequence  ● Standard correlation and alignment   ● Printable graphic organizers aligned with the content  ● Google Classroom integration  ● Primary source documents, videos, images, and artwork  ● Audio-reader at variable settings  ● Annotation features that allow students to highlight and code text for improved  

comprehension and retention  ● Leveled questions that support formative and summative assessment  ● Avatar game component for increased student engagement  

  

Deep Learning Knowledge, Skills, and Dispositions   The kindergarten curriculum incorporates deep learning strategies that facilitate  student acquisition of knowledge, skills, and dispositions. Deep Learning skills and  dispositions include critical thinking, communication, collaboration, creativity,  character, and citizenship.    Well-Being Support   Studies Weekly is a Tier 1 resource that facilitates student engagement and well-being.  Well-being questions are integrated throughout the curriculum to help teachers and  students make real-world connections and applications. Teachers and students can  use our resources as a foundation to teach, examine, and support well-being  discussion, instruction, and reflection.    Interactive Notebooks   As a research-based strategy, interactive notebooks provide a comprehensive and  engaging system for students to retrieve information and demonstrate knowledge.  Additionally, interactive notebooks help students to make connections between and  among topics and themes (Caine, 2005; Caine, Caine, McClintic, & Klimek, 2005;  Perkins, 1991, Stickel, 2005).   We recommend that teachers create a student binder, storage system, or notebook  for students to take notes, place articles, and engage with printable graphic  organizers provided in the Teacher Edition. To help facilitate the use of interactive  notebooks, graphic organizers are included that can be downloaded and printed.   Inquiry-Based Instruction  The Teacher Edition has been designed to facilitate inquiry-based discussions as  students apply their knowledge to investigate and engage in problem-solving. Each  weekly unit has been designed based on essential questions that encourage students  to inquire about who they are in relationship to the world. Many of the activities invite  students to apply their knowledge to local problems and provide evidence from the  text to support their stance.     Inquiry-based instruction is a literacy-rich classroom. This allows teachers to focus on  teaching content and scaffolding literacy skills like comprehension, communication,  and writing through supportive language opportunities. Inquiry-based instruction lends  itself perfectly to incorporating critical thinking, communication, collaboration,  creativity, character, and citizenship — the foundational learning outcomes reflecting  what we want students to become.    

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Unit Summary: The purpose of this unit is to engage students in learning about  community, government, and their role as citizens of a community. Students will  explore the various communities that they belong to, including family, classroom,  school, and local communities. Students will learn more about the purpose of  government and the rights and responsibilities of citizens. Students will be  introduced to the idea of patriotism and how we demonstrate our patriotism  through national symbols, holidays, and events. Finally, students will learn the  definition of primary sources, including the types of sources, and how to  distinguish between fact and fiction.   

Table of Contents:   Week 1: I Am a Member of a Community  Week 2: What are Rules?   Week 3: What are Laws?  Week 4: Learning and Working Together  Week 5: Our Government  Week 6: Government Services  Week 7: Important Documents  Week 8: Citizens  Week 9: Patriotism  Week 10: National Symbols  Week 11: National Holidays  Week 12: Sources  

   

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Summary of the Week: The students will understand that they are part of many  types of communities, including family, classroom, school, and local communities.  They will learn about and identify their responsibilities in the communities they  belong to.   

Teacher Background Knowledge: The lessons included in this week will teach  students that they are members of many communities. They will understand that  these communities can be small (family) or large (local community). The students  will be able to identify responsibilities in each of these different communities.   

Enduring Understandings:   1. Geography determines how and where people live, move, and use what is  

around them.   2. Economics is how people use the resources around them to meet their  

needs and wants.  3. Culture is the resulting beliefs and behavior of people based on where they  

live, move, and use what is around them.   4. People and events are interconnected over time and place.   5. The purpose of government is to protect the rights of the people.  

Essential Questions:  1. What is a community?  2. What communities are you a part of?  3. What responsibilities do you have in your communities?  

Vocabulary  community: a group of people  responsibility: something you are expected to do  

Notes for Teacher: “I Am a Member of a Community” and “Communities” will be  taught together in the same lesson plan.  

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Think Deeply:  Make a Class Quilt.   

1. Give each child a paper square to decorate and write their name on.  Explain that each of us is an important part of what makes us a class  community.  

2. Glue all the squares on a poster board to create one big “class quilt.” The  quilt can be hung up in the classroom as a reminder that each student is a  part of the whole. Without all the pieces, the quilt would not be the same.  Each student is special and needed.   

Well-Being Questions:   ● What are some ways you help your classroom community?  ● What are some responsibilities you have in your classroom that help the  

whole class?  ● How do you feel when you take care of your responsibilities?  

Weekly Assessment Questions:  1. A school community is made up of people who are in the same ______.  

a. school  b. zoo  c. store  d. pond  

2. You are a member of many ____________.  a. schools  b. cities  c. teams  d. communities  

    

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Student Edition Week 1  

 

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Article 1: Welcome to School  Lexile: 0-100L  Word Count: 23  School is a fun place to play. School is a fun place to learn. School is a place  where we make new friends.    Lesson Plan:  

1. The introduction to Studies Weekly can be done separately from the rest of  the lesson plan if needed.  

2. Introduce Studies Weekly to the class. Show them the publication issue.   a. Invite the class to discuss what they notice. Point out the articles,  

pictures, activities, etc.   b. Explain that students will be able to look at a new issue each week.  

3. Watch the video “Welcome to Studies Weekly-Kindergarten. ”  a. Invite the students to discuss what they saw and heard in the video.  

4. Pull pictures of things that you like to do for fun one at a time out of a box or  bag. Have a variety of pictures, including something outdoors, at home,  with friends or family, a favorite hobby, and something you think is fun at  school (for example, reading books to the class).  

5. Share what you enjoy doing in the pictures you showed. Discuss why you  think these activities are fun.  

6. Invite the students to discuss what they like to do for fun. Have them express  why they think it is fun. (Make class connections by having a sign for “same,”  such as tapping index fingers quietly together. The children can do the class  sign for “same” if they also feel the activity is fun to them.)  

a. Allow all students to turn and talk to a neighbor and share something  they think is fun with each other.  Turn and Talk: Students turn to face a partner sitting next to them,  sometimes called an Elbow Buddy. They should use good  communication skills by taking turns listening and talking. They should  show respectful communication by looking at each other, taking  turns, staying on topic, and shaking hands after each has had a turn  to share.  

7. Read the article together. Discuss the points made in the article. Ask  students:   

a. What are you most excited about in kindergarten? (Answers may  vary.)   

b. What things do we like to do that are the same? (Answers may vary.)  c. What things are different? (Answers may vary.)  d. It is good to have similarities and differences. This helps us learn from  

each other.  8. Have the students draw a picture of what they are excited to learn in school  

this year and share it with the class.  9. Conclude with the connection that learning can be fun!   

 

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Materials Needed:   Images for the attention-getter activity  Paper for the students to draw a picture   Online Related Media (Explore More):  Video ”Welcome to Studies Weekly-K”   

  Article 2: I Am a Member of a Community (taught with “Communities”)  Lexile: Br100-0L  Word Count: 7  A community is a group of people.   Lexile: BR100-0L  Word Count: 8  Communities live and learn in the same place.   Lexile: BR100-0L  Word Count: 6  There are many kinds of communities.   Lesson Plan:  

1. Read the first article together.  2. Find and point to the word “community.” Ask students to underline it in their  

publications.  3. Explain that a community is a group of people who live and learn in the  

same place. We are all members of different communities.   4. Read the second article together.   5. Have the students circle each community they are a part of. (family,  

neighborhood, classroom, school, and town)  6. Our communities include our family, classroom, school, neighborhood, and  

town or city. Write the names of these communities on the board.  7. Discuss each community.   

a. Our family is who we live with at home.  b. Our classroom is our friends and teacher in our class.  c. The school is everyone at our school, including the principal, teachers,  

helpers, and students.   d. Our neighborhood is where we live and the people who live around  

us.  e. We live in a city or town. This is where we live and work.  

8. Watch the video “What Makes a Community? ”  a. Stop the video at 44 seconds. (You can watch the rest of the video; it  

goes into detail on types of communities: urban, suburban, and rural.)   b. Have a discussion about what students learned about communities  

from the video.   9. Show students the images of the different communities from the related  

media.  

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10.Discuss which community each picture represents. Reference the words on  the board.  

11.Compare and contrast the different communities.  a. What is the same about the communities? (Answers may vary.)  b. What is different about the communities? (Answers may vary.)  

12.Make a class community book, using the Our Communities graphic  organizer. Have students draw and label a picture of a community of their  choice. Compile the pictures into a class book, using the Our Communities  (cover page) graphic organizer.  

 Materials Needed:  Graphic organizer Our Communities   Graphic organizer Our Communities (cover page)   Online Related Media (Explore More):  Video “What Makes a Community”   

  Article 3: Communities (taught with “I Am a Member of a Community”)  Lexile: 100-200L  Word Count: 32  You are a member of many communities. You are a member of a family. You are a  member of a classroom and a school. You are a member of your city or town.   Materials Needed: N/A   

  Article 4: Responsibilities  Lexile: 200-300L  Word Count: 20  As a member of a community, you have responsibilities. You can be kind to others.  You can follow the rules.   Lesson Plan:  

1. Review communities that students are part of.   2. Reference the class book “Our Communities” to review. (family community,  

neighborhood community, classroom community, school community)  3. Watch the video “Being Responsible - K.”  

a. Discuss what it means to be responsible (doing what we need to do).  b. Ask the students what responsibilities were mentioned in the video.  

(put dishes in the sink, take out the trash, clean up after ourselves)  4. Read the article together. Invite students to find and circle the word  

“responsibilities.”    5. Have a discussion about what responsibilities are.   

a. Responsibilities are things that we need to do in our communities.   b. We have responsibilities in all of the communities that we are a part of.   

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6. Read the article again. Have the students listen for ways we can be  responsible in our communities.   

a. How can we be responsible in our communities? (Be kind to others.  Follow the rules.)  

7. Class discussion: Whether at home or in our classroom, city, or country,  responsibilities are important. As members of our community, we must  always do our best to work together. Being responsible helps ourselves and  others.   

8. Thumbs Up Thumbs Down: Responsibility Game  a. Give students example scenarios of being responsible and not being  

responsible. Have the students give a thumbs-up if the scenario shows  responsibility and a thumbs-down if it doesn’t show responsibility.  

i. Scenario ideas for the game: you fed your dog this morning,  you pushed in your chair, you picked up garbage, you spilled  and didn’t clean it up, etc.   

 Materials Needed:  Class book “Our Communities”   Online Related Media (Explore More):  Video “Being Responsible - K”  

  Article 5: Family Community  Lexile: 0-100L  Word Count: 19  You are a member of a family. You can help your family. You can be kind to your  family.   Lesson Plan:  

1. Read the article together as a class, and invite students to follow along.   2. Explain that “family community” means students are a member of a family.  

Their family community is the people they live with. Discuss the students’  family communities.  

a. Who is in your family community? (Answers may vary.)  3. Review responsibilities and how we have responsibilities in our communities.   4. Discuss how we have responsibilities in our family communities.   

a. What are some responsibilities you have in your family community?  (Answers may vary.)  

5. Read the article again. Have the students listen for ways they can be  responsible in their family community. (help your family, be kind to your  family)  

6. Discuss how students can help and be kind to their families at home. Write  answers on the board.  

a. How do you help at home? (listen to parents, work hard, help family  members, be kind to others, take care of pets, etc.)  

b. How are you kind at home? (talk respectfully, help without being  asked, complete chores, write special notes, etc.)  

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7. Make cards for family members: Have the students draw a picture of  something that they could do to help a family member that shows  responsibility. Have them sign their name on the card and deliver to their  family.  

 Materials Needed:  Materials to make family cards and messages   

  Article 6: Classroom Community  Lexile: 0-100L  Word Count: 21  You are a member of your class. You have friends in your class. Friends share.  Friends are kind. Friends play together.    Lesson Plan:  

1. Review responsibilities. Responsibilities are things we are expected to do. We  have responsibilities at home.   

2. Invite the students to follow along as you read the article together.  3. Discuss the classroom community.   

a. Who is in our classroom community? (teacher, friends in our class)  4. Have a class discussion about how the students have responsibilities in the  

classroom community.  5. Reference the article. Talk about the classroom responsibilities stated in the  

article. Have the students highlight the responsibilities. (share, be kind, play  together)  

a. How can we be responsible members of our class? (Answers may  vary.)  

6. Play Simon Says, using classroom responsibilities.  a. Examples: how we walk in the hall, how we share, how we clean our  

classroom, how we sit on the rug, etc.   Materials Needed: N/A   

  Article 7: School Community  Lexile: 100-200L  Word Count: 28  Your class is part of the school. Your teacher helps you learn at school. You have  responsibilities at school. You can follow the rules. You can help others.   Lesson Plan:  

1. Review responsibilities. Discuss how we have responsibilities at school.  2. Read the article together.   3. Have a class discussion about the article. Discuss how teachers help us learn  

new things every day. It is our responsibility to listen to our teachers so that  

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we will learn new things.  4. Remind students how it is our responsibility to follow the rules and help  

others.   5. Go through class rules and routines that are to be followed in order for  

everyone to learn and have fun together. Discuss how if school rules are  followed, it makes a nice environment for everyone.  

6. Talk about the different places in the school (lunchroom, office, hallways,  library, etc.).  

a. How can we be responsible in the different places in our school?  (Answers may vary.)  

b. How do rules help our learning and environment? (We can do fun  things when everyone helps create a safe, clean, caring place for us  to learn.)  

c. How can you help others at school? (Answers could include: be a  good example, assist someone who needs help, play nicely, share,  be polite, etc.)  

7. Charades Role Play Activity: Select students to show ways they can be  responsible at school (pick up garbage, walk in the hallway, raise their  hand, be kind, take turns etc.).  

 Materials Needed: N/A   

  Article 8: Local Community  Lexile: 200-300L  Word Count: 17  You live in a neighborhood. You live in a city or town. This is your local community.    Lesson Plan:  

1. Review what “community” means (a group of people who live, work, and  play together). Review what communities students have learned about this  week.  

2. Read the article together.   3. Our classroom community is part of our school community. Our school  

community is part of our local community. We may also live with our families  in the same town. Where we live is a community we are a part of. This is our  local community.  

4. We can choose to make good choices to help out in all the groups or  communities we are involved in. How can we help make a difference for  good? (Answers may vary.)  

5. Turn and Talk: Have students think of a way they can be responsible in their  local community. Have them turn and talk with a partner sitting next to  them. They can use good communication manners as they take turns and  listen respectfully to one another and share their ideas.  

6. Trace each child’s hand on a piece of paper. Have them write their name in  the hand outline and draw a picture of one thing they will do to be  responsible in their local community. Remind them that each of us can  

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change the world with our own hands. We can work together to help each  other. Display the hands on a class or school chart.   

 Materials Needed:  Paper for the art activity   

  Page 4 Activity: My School Community  Lexile: 0-100L  Word Count: 18  What is your name?   What is your teacher’s name?  What is the name of your school?  

   

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Name ___________________________________________________________   Date _____________  

My World Studies Weekly – Near and Far    

 

 

I Am a Member of a Community   

Week 1 Assessment   

1. A school community is made up of people who are in the same _________________ .  

A. school  

B. zoo  

C. store  

D. pond  

 

2. You are a member of many _________________ .  

A. schools  

B. cities  

C. teams  

D. communities  

 

 

 

 

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Our Communities

By : ' s

Kindergarten Class

Name: Date: