This presentation focuses on the listening and interpretation skills students need to engage in disagreements-- especially when they feel passionate about the topic being debated. Participants will see a series of sample exercises and a project they can use in the classroom to help students practice their close listening and argument analysis skills. How We Argue Webinar Series Educators often want to discuss current issues and empower students to engage as active citizens. Yet, when discussing controversial topics, some students rely on unsubstantiated facts or emotional…

Melanie McCormick and Alycia West implore educators to engage in thoughtful conversations about transnational adoption in “Seen but not Seen: Supporting Transracial and Transnational Adoptees in the Classroom.” The authors draw on their stories of growing up as transracial and transnational adoptees as well as their research on children’s literature on adoption to provide instructional guidelines and resources for teachers to teach about transnational adoption.

Step into a new experience. Explore the education system from a unique view point: that of Black girls. Adultification has hindered BIPOC children for years. To successfully teach the whole child instructors must be equipped. Learn how to create engaging curriculum that is both culturally and historically responsive. Speaker: Gabrielle Dingle Owens

We must all hang together, or, most assuredly, we shall all hang separately." Ben Franklin didn't know it at the time, but we was talking about teachers in 2023! Let's share stories where hanging together has made us all smarter, and helped us stay energized as educators! Speaker: Joe Schmidt, Bill of Rights Institute Director of Programs

This teacher's take will be centered on the power of helping students find their voice through debate. Speaker: Ahlam Yassin, High School History Teacher, New Jersey

Come and learn about how important you are to our country and kids! Speaker: Jeff Scott, Vice President of Education at the Freedoms Foundation at Valley Forge  

Consider how you can be a power player for diversity and equity by naming exclusive practices and language that are commonly used in education that are ineffective. Explore how you can encourage and activate inclusive language. Speaker: Magdalena Mata, Texas National Board Coalition for Teaching Founding Director

  National Council for Social Studies (NCSS) and Thinking Nation will host a special webinar that reviews a recent white paper published in Education Week and commissioned by Thinking Nation. The survey data gave statistics behind the anecdotes many of us know: 1. While Social Studies is deemed as critical for democracy, it is not viewed as a priority in most school districts; 2. Professional Development does not currently effectively support social studies teachers; 3. Social Studies as a discipline is not effectively vertically aligned in most contexts.  In this program, NCSS and Thinking…

In this article, the authors highlight four children’s picture books that can be used to discuss gender diversity with young children in social studies.

What is Social Studies? Definition Social studies is the study of individuals, communities, systems, and their interactions across time and place that prepares students for local, national, and global civic life. Purpose Using an inquiry-based approach, social studies helps students examine vast human experiences through the generation of questions, collection and analysis of evidence from credible sources, consideration of multiple perspectives, and the application of social studies knowledge and disciplinary skills. As a result of examining the past, participating in the present, and…