Every Social Studies teacher aims to look for ways to make social studies activities fun and engaging for the kids. The good news is that you do have some amazing ways to make social studies entertaining and interesting for kids. Here are some of the tips to make social studies activities middle school enjoyable and more engaging:
Show the students what’s amazing about it
If you love to learn and teach history, your students will observe it and benefit from it. If you make the activities boring and dull, your students will notice that too. History may not be the favorite subject of every student, but you can definitely find something enjoyable about it to share with them. They will be more engaged if you show interest.
Link the past and present
History gets extremely interesting when you connect the kids with what they are learning to the situations in the present scenario. Educate kids about real people and events such as three branches of the Government, Constitution of the US, the Colonial Life, the Oregon Trail and so much more and the choices people made that time and how it impacts the present life of the people. It will help the students arrange things by using analogies and references and they will understand better.
Go beyond the textbook
No, not the old textbook! Well, yes you may have to occasionally refer to a text book but it has been observed that teaching kids out of textbooks makes the studies boring. Hence, use local libraries and other resources to make social studies activities fun.
Take help of visuals
Use primary sources to explain the scene. Be it a picture, map, artwork, film clip or anything, it will help kids take more interest.
Try making it hands-on
This is applicable for all subjects. Kids love to get a copy of the Constitution of something that helps them know more about their country’s history, industries and products. You can go for hands-on projects such as making relief maps, biographies and more.
Go for project-based activities
Choosing research-based learning in social studies is a great way to make the subject more engaging and entertaining. STEM projects help to make the students enjoy the topics more. An escape room can also be a great option if you want to begin small.
Read the chapters aloud
There are several historical books you can used to read during a history lesson. Bring those people’s voice to life. History will become more rigorous and meaningful with it.
Integrate technology
Just because you’re teaching the kids about the past, you don’t have to choose old methods of technology. You have some amazing social studies websites and apps available. Choose the best ones to make the students learn about the age-old history. You can do this by using websites, using an app, taking help of animated videos, doing Skype calls with historians and so much more.
Field Trip
Lastly, always make sure to take the students to museums, organizations that will help them learn about history.