Social Studies is a field of study aimed to help students comprehend society and the effect of people on the world. Topics covered by a social studies curriculum might include immigration, ancient civilizations, geography, the economy, and foreign policy. At the elementary school level, social studies generally focuses first on the local community and family. When selecting books for my classroom, I want to look for books with author credibility and accurate information, but the text features should also be appealing to young students. I want the format of the text to be easy to follow, and the language used in the text to be at a level my students can understand. A classroom library should be filled with topics that students are familiar with, such as past wars and famous people, but it is also good to incorporate some topics that might be new to students. I would love to be able to base various hands-on projects with my students off of books in this genre. This would help students gain more comprehension for what they are reading, and I think there are so many interesting books that can be used to introduce a new topic.
Some of my favorite book choices:
I Have A Dream....
By: Kadir Nelson
- King, M. L., & Nelson, K. (2012). I have a dream. New York, NY: Schwartz & Wade Books.
Grade Level: 8
Lexile: 1130
Guided Reading: Q
Martin Luther King, Jr.'s speech is written out with beautiful pictures for students at an elementary level to enjoy. Many students may never otherwise be given an opportunity to read Dr. King's speech. It is a positive and inspiring book. I Have A Dream would be a great book to incorporate into a unit on Black History Month, or even just a unit on Martin Luther King, Jr. The book has won the Coretta Scott King award, which is given annually to African American authors and illustrators of books for children and young adults that demonstrate an appreciation of African American culture and universal human values.
About the Coretta Scott King Award
882 1/2 Amazing Answers To Your Questions About the Titanic
By: Hugh Brewster
Brewster, H., & Coulter, L. (1998). 882 1/2 amazing answers to your questions about the titanic. New York, NY: Scholastic.
Interest Level: 4-8
Grade Level: 5
Lexile: 1050
Guided Reading: Not available
The sinking of The Titanic left people with many fascinating questions. This book is the heart-stopping real story of the legendary ship, with answers to the many questions following the sinking of the ship. The text features in this book make it easy to navigate through all of the information. Each question is in bold print and numbered, and throughout the text are many real-life images that give credibility to the source. The index at the back makes it easy for students to quickly look up facts, and the interactive feature of a True/False quiz helps engage readers. The Titanic is a major event in history that I find interesting, and I would love to have my students use different texts to create a timeline of the night on which the ship sunk. As a class, we could use this book to discuss what might have caused the ship to sink, and how the event affected the future.
