NISD Elementary Social Studies

As we come upon the end of the 23-24 school year, I just want to say congratulations on all of the success that you and your students have enjoyed this year. Social Studies is important content for our young learners, and I appreciate every effort you make to ensure that they receive engaging instruction.

Thank you for your patience as I navigated this spring semester solo. Our Social Studies Department will have a full team for next year, with the addition of Vanessa as the Social Studies Facilitator and Jenna as the Social Studies & Science IST.

Just a reminder that the Elementary Social Studies Department is here to support you with curriculum, instruction, utilizing social studies resources, reserving giant maps, and much more! Reach out to let us know how we can help.

01: Use Best Practices in Social Studies Instruction

Incorporate opportunities for hands-on, interactive, and collaborative learning while teaching social studies content every day.

02: Implement the NISD Curriculum

Utilize the 5E framework, content, resources, and assessments included in the district's integrated science & social studies curriculum.

03: Celebrate our Students

Celebrate the uniqueness of every student, every day, through teaching the culture and citizenship strands and ensure all students are represented and respected in every classroom community.

This section highlights important features of the new Science and Social Studies curriculum. This year, grades 2nd, 3rd, and 4th are utilizing the new curriculum, but it will be rolled out to all grade levels over the next two years. Although this information may not be applicable to all grade levels this year, the information presented in this section will allow you to anticipate the format and components of the upcoming Science and Social Studies curriculum.

Every curriculum document has a section titled Instructional Strategies. This section offers resources to meet the diverse needs of all our students. You'll see strategies for Special Education, English Learners, and Enrichment. Also listed is our High Quality Tier 1 Instruction Site, which is our commitments to instruction for EVERY child.

Specifically for Science and Social Studies, you'll see links to the 5E Instructional Framework as well as a planning document to support you in designing lessons that are built around the 5E's. If you're unfamiliar with these steps, be sure to check out these resources!

Your last unit, Me in My World, ends with a heavy focus on science concepts, but there is an important social studies skill that ties in: using terminology related to time and chronology, such as before, next, after, first, etc. To review these terms, check out Weeks 27 and 28 in Studies Weekly.

The final unit of the year for 1st grade is Being an American. This unit is entirely Social Studies, so your go-to resource is Studies Weekly. They have multiple articles to help your students understand patriotic symbols, identify historical figures, and discuss the role of good citizens.

One of your final units is Who Are We? Students have an exciting opportunity to identify community landmarks and discuss their influence on history. We have created an Explore activity where students can virtually visit downtown San Antonio and learn more about The Alamo, The River Walk, and the Tower of the Americas.

In The Forces that Keep Communities Connected, students end the unit learning about culture and cultural celebrations. We have provided a choice board from which they can choose a final product that demonstrates their learning. Be sure to check it out in Big Idea 5!

The final unit of the year is The Heart of Texas. Students will explore how citizens can be actively engaged in a variety of civic affairs. We provide an Exemplar 5E for this topic, where students will utilize scenario cards, complete a 4 Corners Activity, and even create a class book together.

As you end the year in the 20th and 21st Centuries Unit, students will focus on key events and people during this time in history. One of the available resources is a link to the National Archives, which provides primary source photographs for students to gain a better visual understanding of all that occurred.

Campuses should be completing their Social Studies Inventory this month. Please make sure that you are following any processes at your campus that your facilitator needs in order to turn in the inventory by May 28!

In the 24-25 school year, revised social studies standards will go into effect. The only changes to the elementary standards are found within the process standards (Social Studies Skills). Each grade level will see slight revisions and some additional standards that have been added. You can view the new standards on our Social Studies Curriculum Site. All new standards are underlined in the document which was provided by TEA.

Third grade students became entrepreneurs for Market Day at Helotes Elementary. They wrapped up their Business Matters unit by creating products that celebrated their community's traditions. Look at all of that creativity and happiness!

Second and fourth graders came together at Franklin Elementary to participate in a market event. Students became entrepreneurs and practiced financial literacy skills as they created and sold their products.

Second graders at Wernli Elementary celebrated local culture by hosting a Fiesta Float Parade. We love activities like this where students get to bring their own personalities into the final product!

May 1-31 is Asian American and Pacific Islander Heritage Month.

May 27 is Memorial Day, a day of remembrance for everyone who has died serving in the American Armed Forces. Check out this resource document for videos, articles, and activities.

https://sites.google.com/nisd.net/elemss/home

Below you will find the table of contents for our Northside Elementary Social Studies Site, as well as many of the resources that can be located within each section of our site. If there is anything we can help you find, please ask!

Access grade levels TEKS (standards), Year-at-a-Glance documents, 5E Framework, 5E Framework planning document, department core beliefs, and curriculum development timelines.

All monthly department newsletters can be found here. These are designed for all Northside teachers. Newsletters are sent out on the 1st of each month.

Here you can find the district assessment site, CMS test ID numbers and testing windows for all K-5 unit assessments, and the district assessment timeline.

Use this section to access the monthly celebrations calendar, as well as links to the sites for each individual celebration. Here you will find general information about each celebration, in addition to a resource document.

Each district-provided social studies resource has it's own dedicated page. You will find a section for giant maps, Exploring Where and Why (map and globe carts), Savvas, and Studies Weekly. Each site has an overview slide deck, a video walkthrough of the slide deck, 1-pager of important information for the resource, as well as additional support videos and information.

Here you will find resources to support CER, OPTIC, See Think Wonder, ESSER mentor texts, book lists, bulletin board ideas, community connections, and priority standards.

This section of the site provides resources and information specifically for our social studies facilitators. Included here are: the facilitator directory, meeting dates, meeting slides, giant map request form, roles & responsibilities document, inventory information, and details on flags and the pledge.

Academic Technology Instructional Support Teacher for Science and Social Studies

cassondra.hartmann@nisd.net

210-397-1258

@MrsCassHartmann