Social Studies

Toward the goal of achieving informed & Productive citizens...

FUNDAMENTALS: Instruction in GCPS classrooms is grounded in the essential practices of...

clear learning expectations: The learning outcomes are clearly described and communicated to students through essential questions, performance-based objectives, and clear daily learning targets. These instructional tools are used by teachers and students to monitor progress toward mastery of standards.
data-driven & continuously assessed: The wide variety of methods or tools that educators use to evaluate, measure, and document the academic readiness, learning progress, skill acquisition, or educational needs of students, using data gained from these methods to make effective instructional decisions.
differentiation: Tailoring instruction to meet individual needs by adapting content (what is learned), process (how it is taught/learned), products (how students show what they have learned) and/or the learning environment.
digital learning competencies: Within the four focus areas - Leadership in Digital Learning, Digital Citizenship, Digital Content & Instruction, and Data & Assessment - the competencies provide a framework of needed skills to provide quality, integrated digital teaching and learning.
engaging: The degree of attention, curiosity, interest, optimism and passions that students show when they are learning or being taught.
rigorous/5 Tenets of Rigor: A quality of instruction that creates opportunity for creative thinking and innovation, collaboration and engagement, critical thinking and problem solving, communication and reflections, and complexity, connections, and relevancy.

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standards-based: All instruction is aligned to the grade-level standards as specified in the NC Standard Course of Study.
personalized: Personalized learning is tailoring learning for each student’s strengths, needs, and interests— including enabling student voice and choice in what, how, when, and where they learn—to provide flexibility and supports to ensure mastery at the highest standards possible.

ACQUIRED KNOWLEDGE & SKILLS: It includes the acquisition of knowledge and skills such as….

civic engagement: Citizens acting alone or together to address issues of public concern and make a difference in their community.
comprehension: Comprehension is the reason for reading. If readers can read the words but do not understand what they are reading, they are not really reading. As they read, good readers are both purposeful and active.
critical thinking: Critical thinking is the ability to reflect on content in order to form a solid judgment based on both evidence and common sense. Critical thinkers identify relationships and determine the accuracy, clarity, reliability, relevance, and importance of what they learned. The practice of these skills requires the ability to conduct research and obtain information through a variety of technologies, and to interpret, analyze, synthesize and evaluate information. The practice of these skills requires the ability to conduct research and obtain information through a variety of technologies, and to interpret, analyze, synthesize and evaluate information.
cultural influence: Refers to historical, geographical, familial, and current factors that guide one’s thinking and behavior
geography: The study of the physical features of the earth and its atmosphere, and of human activity as it affects and is affected by these.
detecting bias: Refers to the consideration for how opinions, perspectives and beliefs influence the telling of events and ideas
economics: The social science that studies the production, distribution, and consumption of goods and services.
government: The form or system of rule of a community, state, or nation.
history: The study of past events and people.
identifying primary & secondary sources: Locating and using primary sources (first-hand accounts) and secondary sources (an interpretation or analysis of a primary source) to learn about events, people, places, and ideas.
research: Careful investigation or experimentation for the purpose of collecting information and interpreting facts about a particular topic in order to gain or apply knowledge.
vocabulary: Researchers often refer to four types of vocabulary: listening vocabulary-the words needed to understand what we hear, speaking vocabulary-the words we use when we speak, reading vocabulary-the words needed to understand what we read, and writing vocabulary-the words we use when we write. Students learn many new words indirectly through everyday experiences with oral and written language. Some words must be taught through direct vocabulary instruction of specific words and word-learning strategies.
writing process: The steps that a writer navigates to produce a coherent, interesting written product such as a narrative story, informational article, or opinion piece. While the process is not always linear, the steps often include pre-writing, drafting, revising, editing and publishing.
writing skills: Effective writing requires the coordinated application of a range of writing skills, including communication of an idea or message, word choice, organization, voice, and conventions. These skills are identified in the writing and language standards.

INSTRUCTIONAL STRATEGIES & CONTEXTS: Which occurs in whole group instruction, small group instruction and/or working with individual students using strategies like...

12 ELA Instructional Practices: Important to the ELA classroom and provide a framework for strongly aligned teaching and learning

1. 1. Teachers use high-quality, appropriately complex text as the center of instruction. There is a balance of informational and literary texts.
  2. Teachers integrate the reading, writing, speaking and listening, and language standards effectively.
  3. Activities and instruction support building academic vocabulary systematically.
  4. Texts are organized around conceptually-related topics (at a range of complexities) to build students’ knowledge and vocabulary.
  5. Teachers integrate technology and research throughout instruction.
  6. There are opportunities for students to engage in effective communication as a part of daily practice.
  7. Students think critically while reading, writing, speaking and listening to texts.
  8. Teachers apply formative assessment practices to gauge student mastery and inform instruction.
  9. Scaffolds are provided as needed so that all students have access to complex texts.
  10. Examples, lessons, and tasks are authentic and relevant.
  11. Students return to the text for evidence to support their ideas, inferences, and conclusions.
  12. Language skills are developed through student writing and supported through mentor texts.

close reading: An instructional strategy through which students critically examine a text, including through repeated readings. Students analyze the organization of the text, the vocabulary used in the text, and the key ideas, details and inferential meanings in the text. Close reading builds the habits needed by students to effectively engage with complex texts.
cooperative learning: Cooperative learning is a successful teaching strategy in which small teams, each with students of different levels of ability, use a variety of learning activities to improve their understanding of a subject. Each member of a team is responsible not only for learning what is taught but also for helping teammates learn, thus creating an atmosphere of achievement.
debate: The engagement of citizens or public assembly in formal and informal discussions involving opposing viewpoints.
digital texts and technology: an electronic version of a written text. Digital Text can be found on the internet or on your computer or on a variety of hand-held electronic devices. With digital text, changing or customizing the information to meet the needs of students is easy. By nature, digital text is more flexible.
gradual release of responsibility: An approach to instruction that moves from teacher modeling to shared responsibility between teacher and students to independent student practice. A structure of “I do”, “We do”, “Few do” and “You do” is commonly used.
independent reading: A time for students to independently practice applying the reading skills and behaviors learned in other instructional settings. Through structured independent reading opportunities, students practice reading a text of their choice with little assistance from an adult.
inquiry & problem-based learning: The use of questions, problems, and scenarios to help students learn through their own thoughts and investigation to learn and understand content.
purposeful talk or discourse: Behaviors that engage students in meaningful conversations about text, including: hearing all voices, saying something meaningful, listening with intent, keeping the lines of thinking alive, and negotiating meaning.
questioning: Strategically using questioning techniques to ensure all learners have the opportunity to participate in meaningful thinking and discussion. The teacher asks varying types of questions to facilitate conversations that support higher-order thinking. Questions are strategically planned prior to the lesson and developed throughout the teaching process.
self-reflection: The careful consideration of one’s own beliefs, thoughts, and actions and the implications for one’s civic engagement.
service learning: A teaching and learning strategy that integrates meaningful community service with instruction and reflection to enrich the learning experience, teach civic responsibility, and strengthen communities.
technology: Technology can open endless possibilities for learning. Technology tools can be used for communication, gathering data, research, or for assessment (making connections, evaluate, and synthesize ideas).
writing to communicate/persuade: The NCSCoS requires students to – Write arguments to support claims in an analysis of substantive topics or texts, using valid reasoning and relevant and sufficient evidence.

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