Despite the virtual start to the 2020-2021 school year, I believe it is safe to say that we have been highly successful in all that we have accomplished over the last month. With the energy, passion, and commitment we have witnessed among our teachers, administrators, students, parents, and community members, I know we will have a highly rewarding school year. As we begin the process to initiate our hybrid face to face learning model, continue to do what you are doing. You are appreciated and are making a difference in your students' lives. If you are in need of any assistance, please feel free to click on the form below. I am eager to work with you during your planning or alongside you during your instruction.

By delivering content to students working at home, teachers can save live classes for what’s most important—the personal interactions that solidify learning. As you continue to work with students both face to face and digitally, set aside some time to develop relations with your students to help build a sense of community. Check out the article below and learn several additional ways to help develop a strong class community during these unprecedented and unexpected times.

Are you in need of a few tips and tricks on how to successfully integrate dual modal teaching into your daily routine? The curriculum team has worked to provide four short videos that will walk you through several tips and tricks to make your dual modal lessons impactful and effective. If additional assistance is needed, do not hesitate to reach out to the curriculum team.

Continue to check the CCSS Social Studies Google Classroom for all things social studies. Please join the respective classroom if you haven't done so already. Resources, district and state level updates, and Professional Learning opportunities will be shared via Classroom. It is encouraged that all teachers utilize the classroom to communicate and share the great things going on within your classrooms.

Thank you to all the dedicated, hardworking, and passionate teachers and administrators who helped create our district's digital lessons over the summer break. Please use the website below to access CCSS social studies digital lessons for the first nine weeks. (Simply click on the image.) We will begin the process to develop the second nine weeks worth of lessons over the next few weeks. If you are interested in helping with this initiative, please contact phillip.sykes@cowetaschools.net.

Looking for a new and exciting way to engage your students? Check out the lists of digital resources teachers across CCSS have compiled over the last few years. Each month, new digital tools are added to the list to provide a fresh way to amp up your instruction. If you know of a great digital resource that helps elevate your social studies lessons and should be added to the Digital Resource Tools List, please share that with phillip.sykes@cowetaschools.net or via your district social studies Google Classroom.

New to the list this month: Mentimeter

Mentimeter is a multimedia presentation platform that is free for teacher/student use. The platform allows teachers to create presentations that are capable of collecting student feedback, understanding, and mastery. Data is presented in colorful and easy to read graphs and charts, while also being eligible for Excel/Google Sheets export.

Teaching September 11th can be a difficult task for many teachers. The content is violent and extremely difficult for children to fully understand without getting bogged down by the gruesome details of that terrible September day. Nick News, hosted by Linda Ellerbee, is an objective educational news program that has safely navigated the waters during critical events in our recent history. Ellerbee provides a focused and "to the point" explanation of what happened during various critical events that remain age-appropriate. If you will be including a discussion on September 11th within your social studies lessons this month, consider using this video as a guide. Click the image below to access Nick News: What Happened: The Story of September 11, 2001.

1. Spider web discussion

2. Using chat to check for understanding

3. Flip your classroom to stimulate deeper discussion

4. Adapting think-pair-share to Zoom

5. A new twist on show-and-tell

ASYNCHRONOUS STRATEGIES

6. Online forums create back-and-forth dialogue

7. Seeing and critiquing peer work through virtual gallery walks

8. Moving station brainstorming online

The Georgia State Board of Education made the decision to eliminate the Economics EOC. Georgia Milestones for Social Studies will only be administered in 8th Grade-Georgia Studies and High School U.S. History.

Note: Georgia has submitted a waiver for Milestones 2020-21.

Additional resources are available on the DOE Social Studies webpage which can be located by Clicking Here.

Youth Vote Georgia Mock Election

The Georgia Center for Civic Engagement and Secretary of State's Office is offering a Youth Vote to schools free of charge. The Ben Fortson Award will also be awarded to high schools that reach certain levels of voter registration within their senior class. EVERY Portion of this program is digital and can be implemented regardless of the learning format (Online, Hybrid, Face to Face). Currently, more than 75,000 students from 50 counties participating, but the goal is to serve EVERY SINGLE COUNTY in Georgia. Please view the attached link to review the guidelines of the Youth Vote program. If your school is interested, please assign one teacher as the school's contact person who will make ballot requests on behalf of the entire school. The mock election will be held Tuesday, October 6, 2020. If you have more questions, please reach out to phillip.sykes@cowetaschools.net.

Program Guidelines

School Coordinator Registration Form

Kindergarten Teachers:

Looking for great resources to help teach the holidays to your students? Need additional resources and teaching strategies to provide engaging social studies lessons to students? Give Georgia Public Broadcasting's & PBS Learning's educational resources a look. Click on the following link to access the "All About the Holidays"

Virtual Fieldtrip: Physical Features of Georgia

The Physical Features of Georgia virtual field trip guides students through twelve of the state’s physical features: the Blue Ridge Mountains, Brasstown Bald, the monadnocks (Arabia, Panola, and Stone Mountains), Red Top Mountain, the Fall Line, Providence Canyon, Okefenokee Swamp, the Savannah and Chattahoochee Rivers, and the barrier islands. Click Here

Grade Level/Course Specific Professional Learning with Virtual Specialists

Introducing a new FREE online professional learning community exclusively for Georgia educators. The Georgia DOE has created course and grade level specific Professional Learning Communities, led by Virtual Specialists, where educators from across the State can connect with each other to share experiences, resources, lesson plans, and instructional activities.

Join the Online Community

Schedule for Monthly Webinars​

Integrating Social Studies into your ELA/Reading Lessons Made Easy

Located within the GA DOE Teacher Notes, teachers can find a list of standards connected books that can easily be integrated into your ELA/Reading lessons.

For Kindergarten access, Click Here.

For 1st Grade access, Click Here.

For 2nd Grade access, Click Here.

For 3rd Grade access, Click Here.

For 4th Grade access, Click Here.

For 5th Grade access, Click Here.

Youth Vote Georgia Mock Election

The Georgia Center for Civic Engagement and Secretary of State's Office is offering a Youth Vote to schools free of charge. The Ben Fortson Award will also be awarded to high schools that reach certain levels of voter registration within their senior class. EVERY Portion of this program is digital and can be implemented regardless of the learning format (Online, Hybrid, Face to Face). Currently, more than 75,000 students from 50 counties participating, but the goal is to serve EVERY SINGLE COUNTY in Georgia. Please view the attached link to review the guidelines of the Youth Vote program. If your school is interested, please assign one teacher as the school's contact person who will make ballot requests on behalf of the entire school. The mock election will be held Tuesday, October 6, 2020. If you have more questions, please reach out to phillip.sykes@cowetaschools.net.

Program Guidelines

School Coordinator Registration Form

GPB Virtual Fieldtrips

These virtual field trips have expanded and offer an opportunity to students to explore and experience the history, geography, and culture of Georgia. Click Here

Youth Vote Georgia Mock Election

The Georgia Center for Civic Engagement and Secretary of State's Office is offering a Youth Vote to schools free of charge. The Ben Fortson Award will also be awarded to high schools that reach certain levels of voter registration within their senior class. EVERY Portion of this program is digital and can be implemented regardless of the learning format (Online, Hybrid, Face to Face). Currently, more than 75,000 students from 50 counties participating, but the goal is to serve EVERY SINGLE COUNTY in Georgia. Please view the attached link to review the guidelines of the Youth Vote program. If your school is interested, please assign one teacher as the school's contact person who will make ballot requests on behalf of the entire school. The mock election will be held Tuesday, October 6, 2020. If you have more questions, please reach out to phillip.sykes@cowetaschools.net.

Program Guidelines

School Coordinator Registration Form

Civic Engagement Diploma Seal Program

Please begin advertising this program to students. Last year, East Coweta High School honored several seniors who accomplished the criteria required in order to gain diploma endorsement. I would love to see more Coweta students gain this recognition.

Criteria and Application Information

Grade Level/Course Specific Professional Learning with Virtual Specialists

Introducing a new FREE online professional learning community exclusively for Georgia educators. The Georgia DOE has created course and grade level specific Professional Learning Communities, led by Virtual Specialists, where educators from across the State can connect with each other to share experiences, resources, lesson plans, and instructional activities.

Join the Online Community

Schedule for Monthly Webinars​

Looking to connect with others in the Social Studies field? Utilize the links below to connect with various organizations that may provide expertise and resources to better your professional networks.

Connect with Georgia's virtual learning community for Social Studies

Georgia Council for the Social Studies

Georgia Council on Economic Education

Georgia Historical Society

Georgia WWI Commission

National Council for History Education

Newnan-Coweta Historical Society

Please contact Phil Sykes, Social Studies Content Specialist, with any questions comments, or concerns.

Email: phillip.sykes@cowetaschools.net
Website: https://sites.google.com/cowetaschools.net/cowetasocialstudies/home
Location: 167 Werz Industrial Boulevard, Newnan, GA, USA
Phone: 7702-254-2800
Twitter: @syked4SS