Tips on Preparing for your Meeting

In preparation for your meeting, collect a few facts, figures and anecdotes that are specific to your state or the local schools, or a few stories as examples to use in your meetings. These could include but aren’t limited to:

• How teaching social studies supports development of critical thinking skills and civic engagement;
• ​The percentage of high schoolers who leave school without history or civic education classes
• Any statements from business leaders in your area about how the skills taught in social studies prepare students to be good citizens AND good employees
• How teaching social studies in your area could benefit from competitive grants to create a menu of innovative, validated approaches to teaching history and civics for schools to select among.
• How past federal funding has been used to support innovative teaching in your school area;