Intro. to Social Studies

Intro. to Social Studies

Understanding main vocabulary and concepts of 7th Grade Social Studies course.

Open Ended

In your own words, describe the word "history". Specifically, I want you to think about what this word means to you. (This does not have to be written in a complete sentence.

How can "history", or the concept of it, be used in our everyday lives?

Let's think outside of Social Studies for a moment.

History in Our Everyday Lives

• Transaction history from our bank, credit union, or any other banking institution

• Searching our messaging history to find an old message

• Shopping history on Amazon, Fashion Nova, etc.

• Telling a friend a story of a past event (i.e. an old basketball game)

What is Social Studies?

Social Studies

• The study of social relationships (interactions between two or more people) and the functioning of society

• Made up of courses such as history, government, economics, civics, and geography

Multiple Choice

“The study of social relationships and the functioning of society and usually made up of courses in history, government, economics, civics, sociology, geography, and anthropology"

(National Geographic)

This definition best defines which of the following social studies terms?

• Social Studies

• History

• Social Sciences

• Economics

History

History

“A branch of knowledge that records and explains past events”

Multiple Choice

"When the whites came to our country, we had the land and they had the Bible; now we have the Bible and they have the land."

This quote comes from an African proverb that describes, from an African's perspective, what happened when Europeans arrived in and eventually colonized Africa. The European colonization of Africa heavily occurred in the 1800s and 1900s. If this happened in the past, which of the following fields of social science would be best to use to study what happened?

• Economics

• History

• Civics

• Government

Day 2: Introduction to Social Studies

Understanding Culture, Economics, and Civics

Pictionary! 📸

• We are going to do an activity in which we will identify a picture with a Social Studies term

• When the question appears on the screen, choose the BEST vocabulary word that goes along with the picture

• We will talk about the picture afterwards

Multiple Choice

In the Fresh Prince of Bel-Air theme song, Will Smith gives a story (through rap) of why he had to move from West Philadelphia to Bel-Air.

• Geography

• History

• Civics

• Economics

Multiple Choice

Production taking place in a factory. The products that are being made will be consumed later by people who want to buy them.

• Economics

• Geography

• Civilizations

• Social Studies

Multiple Choice

This is a pyramid built ancient Mayans in what we know as Latin America (Central and South America). The Mayans were skilled in astronomy, built unique structures and cities, and were advanced in mathematics.

• Government

• Civics

• Geography

• Civilization

What do you know about culture?

• What does "culture" mean to you?

• What's in a culture?

• Can people have different cultures?

What is Culture?

Culture

• “The set of shared values, goals, practices, and beliefs of a social group or an institution or organization”

• Can include dress, food, music, nature of friendships, tone of voice we use with others, and how we think about ourselves

• For a society, culture can influence the way the government is operated, how products are produced and consumed, and how people participate in society

Poll

Which of these would you rather wear in public during the summer?

Poll

Which of these is your favorite social media app to use?

• Instagram

• TikTok

• Snapchat

• Twitter

What are Economics?

Economics

“A social science concerned chiefly with description and analysis of the production, distribution, and consumption of goods and services”

In other words...

• Economics focuses on how things such as goods are made or how services (i.e. haircut, blowouts) are carried out

• How these goods and services are being given out

• How those goods and services are being consumed (i.e. buying, how much are people paying/willing to pay)

Open Ended

What are some goods and services that are produced (made) and distributed (given out) that people consume (i.e. through buying and using it)?

Multiple Choice

The struggle for colonies does not result only in cash losses. There were also lives lost, wars fought, and hatreds aroused which threatened new wars. Italy’s trade with her colonies in 1894-1932 was worth 5,561 million lire [about $1,100 million]. This was less than one percent of her total foreign trade in the same period. In fact, her expenditures on colonies for that time was 6,856 million lire. Obviously colonies cost more than they are worth

in trade."

The following quote came from Balance Sheets of Imperialism by Grover Clark which describes negative aspects of imperialism. If I wanted to study the production, distribution, and consumption of goods and services during imperialism, which of the following fields of social science would be best to use?

• Government

• Culture

• Social Studies

• Economics

What are Civics?

Civics

“A social science dealing with the rights and duties of citizens”

As mentioned in the video, these rights are dependent on the culture that a person lives in.

For example, most Americans value individual rights while countries like China emphasize collective rights (what's good for everyone).

What are some rights that citizens have in the United States?

• (Some) adults over the age of 18 being able to vote

• Can apply for federal student aid when they attend college

• Freedom to run for political office (after meeting certain requirements)

Multiple Choice

Mary is a Canadian citizen (which means she was born and lived in Canada) but came to the U.S. for her college studies. After college, Mary wants to become a U.S. citizen and begins the process of applying for citizenships and studying for her citizenship test. The citizenship test will test her on American history and the rights she will have as a citizen. Which of the following Social Studies subject would best prepare her for her test?

• Economics

• Geography

• Civics

• Culture

Instructions for Work Time

• Everyone is expected to stay on the call

• Open your "Vocabulary Guide" on Google Classroom and work on the assignment

• If you have finished the "Vocabulary Guide", you need to work on the "Guided Questions"

• I will pop in on your assignment to see if you are working

• This will count as a participation grade

Day 3: Intro. to Social Studies

Civilizations, Geography, and Government

Open Ended

Based on what you (may) remember from 6th grade, what do you remember about "civilizations"?

Open Ended

Thinking about the definitions you studied over this week, how can "geography" and "government" influence a civilization?

Civilization

• “Complex way of life that developed as humans began to develop into urban settlements and/or complex society.”

• In other words, a more advanced, complicated way of living as people moved into cities based in a more complex society (i.e. Romans, Ancient Mayans, Ancient Ghana)

• Six characteristics: central government, complex religion, labor, social classes, art and architecture, and writing

• However, "civilization" and choosing who is civilized is a controversial (messy, public disagreement) topic

Thinking about Civilizations

• As we watched in the Crash Course video, choosing who is "civilized" and who is not is a messy topic

• Sometimes "civilization" is based on a state's power, their technological advances, and sometimes the racial makeup of their society (i.e. some white Europeans believed that they were the highest form of civilization)

• In thinking about the video, have you heard or seen instances where people have implied that another group of people were "uncivilized", uncultured, or unpolished?

• 
  

"Civilizations" depend on their government

• Government is "the organization, machinery, or agency that exercises authority, provides certain functions, and govern citizens"

• In other words, government creates and execute laws and functions to govern their citizens

• Civilizations that we study typically have a strong government that tax its people to provide services such as military protection from outside enemies

"Civilizations" depend on their geography

• Geography is "the study of places and the relationships between people and their environments…[it] seeks to understand where things are found, why they are there, and how they develop and change over time"

• In geography we study different places and see how people interact with them. Additionally, we study the natural resources there.

• A civilization is dependent on its natural resources (gold, tree, coal, rivers) for things such as food and trade. A civilization needs these resources in order for their population to survive and to have influence/power. Therefore, their location is important.

• 
  

Multiple Choice

“The Arab traders of this region wanted gold as much as the Wangara wanted salt, but both had to pass through Ghana to trade...Ghana controlled land...it had the military forces...to maintain peace in the area, thereby assuring safe trade for the Arabs and the Wangara. Ancient Ghana was an extremely complex empire. It possessed many of the characteristics of powerful nations today: wealth based on trade, sufficient food to feed its people, income derived from taxes, social organization that ensured justice and efficient political control, a strong army equipped with advanced weapons, and a foreign policy that led to the peace and cooperation with other people.”

-This explanation for the wealth of Ghana is taken from Through African Eyes.

The above quote describes the wealth of Ancient Ghana, which was an empire located in western Africa (today it is a country). This quote describes Ghana as a "complex empire", had wealth produced by trade, enough food for their citizens, had taxes, and were able to provide justice from social organization. Based on these characteristics, Ancient Ghana could best be described as a:

• Government

• Civilization

• Culture

• Environment

Closing/Exit Ticket

• Please go to the link in the chat and place a sticky note with your name on it on how comfortable you feel with all the vocabulary words

• This helps me plan for next week 😊

• Don't forget your assignments that are due tonight at 6:00pm

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