My name is Jessica Torres and I serve as the ESC Region 12 Social Studies content specialist as well as the Continuous Improvement Liaison. The purpose of the newsletter is to provide resources specific to social studies content, general instructional tools, resources, updates, and professional development opportunities that are beneficial to all.

🍂 Autumn is the time of year when Mother Nature says, "Look how easy, how healthy, and how beautiful letting go can be." Take a peek at some of the resources provided below. Don't think about adding one more thing, think about what needs to be let go of to make room for new strategies and experiences to meet the needs of the students we serve this year. As always, if you ever need assistance or have a question, please do not hesitate to contact me via email (jtorres@esc12.net) or social media (@owl_b_torresedu).

The SBOE is now accepting applications to serve on social studies TEKS review work groups. The SBOE's TEKS review and revision process calls for multiple, separate work groups. Applicants do not need to be educators to apply. Please enter information in the application that best reflects your experience. A link is provided below to the application.

https://tea.co1.qualtrics.com/jfe/form/SV_39LY0ZqSaPRQO6a

Work Groups

Throughout the revision process, applications are submitted to SBOE members for their review and approval. TEA then builds work groups from the pool of approved applicants and notifies selected applicants of their invitation to serve on a work group.

• Work group members will be expected to complete an online orientation session prior to their work group meeting.
• Work group members may be asked to complete pre-work exercises prior to their meeting.
• Work group members may be asked to provide invited testimony at SBOE meetings.

Questions related to the application for the social studies TEKS review and revision process can be directed to teks@tea.texas.gov.

Make sure you are checking out the newest blog posts from TEKS R US Social Studies. They are a small but dedicated team of educators who are passionate about all things social studies. For their day job, they create curriculum, assessment, and resources for the TEKS Resource System and provide support for partners.

• World Cultures Unit 3 and Sustained Inquiry
• Promoting “Map Literacy”

While many high school students act like they no longer need help and cannot wait to graduate, a part of them still loves school. It creates a sense of routine and comfort before they enter a world of unknowns. Therefore, they deserve creative lessons that encourage them to think deeply. Ultimately, stations are the perfect way to incorporate engagement, creativity, and inquiry into hands-on lessons. Check out this blog post from Not Another History Teacher.

https://notanotherhistoryteacher.com/stations-in-the-high-school-classroom/

What better way is there to learn about something than to actually live it? That’s the thinking behind classroom simulations, where teachers attempt to re-create an event and have students act as participants.

And for many academic topics, this holds true. Students will understand our legal system better if they participate in a mock trial. They’ll gain a deeper appreciation for what led to the Boston Tea Party after playing out the roles of colonists being taxed.

But when it comes to certain events—those related to slavery, the holocaust, war crimes, or any other event where people experienced violence or trauma—simulations can do more harm than good.

Read this article from Cult of Pedagogy for more guidance. https://www.cultofpedagogy.com/classroom-simulations/

After much deliberation, the NCSS Board of Directors has made the decision to host the 101st Annual Conference as a fully virtual event. (Read the full announcement.)

The NCSS 101st Annual Conference will be held online from Monday-Sunday, November 15-21, 2021. Last year we delivered the hottest virtual conference of the season, and this year will be no different as we focus on Solidarity in Social Studies.

This year’s conference is designed with you in mind, based on what we have learned from hosting and attending virtual conferences. This is professional learning designed to fit your lifestyle. Our full week will provide you with the most engaging and comfortable environment to experience your best virtual event yet.

• Experience more than 300+ hours of social studies content to increase your professional learning.
• Get the latest in social studies and law-related education.
• Learn from prominent keynote speakers.
• Explore the virtual exhibit hall highlighting the latest social studies products and services.
• Connect with others via virtual networking.

On Tuesday November 2nd at 6:00 the Dr Pepper Museum will host an informal and formal educator professional development called Bridging the Gap. Informal learning institutions, like Museums, are eager to support teachers in their classrooms and offer a variety of free and relevant programs for classroom teachers to use! Many times, these informal educators will work with individual teachers to support unique classroom needs or have the resources and time to create the engaging lessons teachers are eager for. Unfortunately, many teachers are unaware of this or are unsure how to utilize the organizations in their community. This program is intended to impower teachers to use the hundreds of free and engaging resources offered in them and to collaborate with the informal educators in their community. At the same time, informal educators are eager to support classroom educators, but are unsure what they need! This will be a great opportunity for formal and informal educators to collaborate with one another. Educators will share their educational strengths and needs while exploring how to meet challenges together. Register for this event here: https://drpeppermuseum.com/2021-pd/

PBS LearningMedia is currently seeking ELA and Social Studies educators in grades 6-12 to pilot test educational materials created for the Ken Burns in the Classroom collection. This is a paid opportunity.

For each lesson tested, teachers will be paid a $250 stipend. Requirements of testing include:
-Implementing a resource and support materials in class.
-Utilizing a rubric/form to provide feedback.
-Providing sample work and reflections from two students.
-Classroom implementation observation by a member of the PBS LearningMedia team
-Virtually
-In-class, if possible/following COVID safety protocols).
-Additional student work samples will be requested when observation is not possible.

Application here >> https://docs.google.com/forms/d/e/1FAIpQLSckbhWNRzeGM7UBKieQ1WtPlNjzGtHYULiSM5cH83TF6wfvbA/viewform

This fall, Humanities Texas will hold FREE professional development webinar series for social studies and ELA teachers in Texas schools. Teachers can apply to attend on the Humanities Texas website.

NEW**The Court and the Constitution

Mondays • October 18–November 8, 2021 • 5:00–6:15 pm CT

This webinar series will focus on milestone cases in Supreme Court history related to civil liberties, civil rights, defining federal power, and criminal procedure. Cases to be discussed include, but are not limited to, Marbury v. Madison (1803), McCullough v. Maryland (1819), Gibbons v. Ogden (1824), Hernandez v. Texas (1954), Mapp v. Ohio (1961), Gideon v. Wainwright (1963), and United States v. Lopez (1995). Content will be aligned with the secondary social studies TEKS, with particular emphasis on the standards for U.S. government and history.

NEW** Teaching Frederick Douglass

Tuesday, November 9 and Tuesday, November 16, 2021 • 5:00–6:15 pm CT

The two webinars will focus on the life and work of the great abolitionist and civil rights leader Frederick Douglass. The first webinar will provide a broad overview of Douglass's career, with some specific suggestions (such as how to incorporate photographs of Douglass into your teaching). The second webinar will focus on the challenges of teaching sections of the Narrative (1845) and "What to the Slave Is the Fourth of July?" (1852). Both webinars will consider Douglass's legacy and highlight the most important takeaways for middle and high school students.

NEW** Teaching Media Literacy

Thursdays • October 28–December 2, 2021 • 5:00–6:15 pm CT

Each webinar in the series will provide resources and strategies to help middle and high school students become informed citizens and critical consumers of news in multiple media. Webinars include: “It’s News to Me”: Young Adolescents’ Perspectives on Journalism; “Fake News” in U.S. History; Teaching Students to Become Expert Readers of the News; More Than “The News That’s Fit to Print”: Video and Visual Media; and Teaching Strategies, Assignments, and Classroom Activities.

I am so excited to be part of the #sschat moderator team! I would love to have you join us for a great conversation via Twitter each Monday evening. Need help getting started with Twitter chats, reach out to me and I'll walk you through the steps. All of the Twitter chats are archived for future reference using Wakelet. Check them out here ->> https://sschat.org/archives/

Check them out here:

Volume 1 (2018-2019) Issue 1 Issue 2 Issue 3 Issue 4 Issue 5 Issue 6 Issue 7 Issue 8 Issue 9 Issue 10

Volume 2 (2019-2020) Issue 1 Issue 2 Issue 3 Issue 4 Issue 5 Issue 6 Issue 7 Issue 8 Issue 9 Issue 10 Issue 11 Issue 12 Issue 13

Volume 3 (2020-2021) Issue 1 Issue 2 Issue 3 Issue 4 Issue 5 Issue 6 Issue 7 Issue 8 Issue 9 Issue 10 Issue 11 Issue 12

Volume 4 (2021-2022) Issue 1 Issue 2

Special Editions: Celebrate Black History - Celebrate Women's History - 9/11 Remembered - Holocaust Remembrance Week - Memorial Day - Constitution Day - Juneteenth

Instructional Leadership/Continuous Improvement Liaison

Social Studies Content Specialist

ESC Region 12

o: 254-297-1284

Email: jtorres@esc12.net
Website: https://www.esc12.net/page/ge_socialstudies
Location: ESC Region 12, West Loop 340, Waco, TX, USA
Phone: 254-366-3856
Twitter: @owl_b_torresedu