It’s Thursday, and time for Social Sciences Resources we can use in our classroom. Charlie and I were talking this morning when he asked me to find websites for us to check out.
While I was searching I thought you might be looking for Social Science Resources as well. Here is what I found. If you know of other resources leave me a comment and I will get them added to the list.
Age Range: 11-18 (Grades 6-12, with parental supervision)
Explore the history of the light bulb with this web presentation from the Smithsonian National Museum of American History.
This site takes visitors through the steps involved in the process of the invention of the light bulb by Thomas Edison in the 19th century and then examines the major developments made to lamps in the 20th century.
After reading through the introductory text on the home page, students can begin their exploration by selecting from the three “doors” on the page:
Invention Factory: 19th Century Electric Lamps
Invention Factory: 20th Century Electric Lamps
Guest Lounge & Library
The “Invention Factory” sections are broken down again into the 5 steps of inventing:
Store Room: Knowledge & Equipment for Inventors (Step 1: Preconditions) – Dig into what previously discovered technology and inventions help in the creation of the new product.
Laboratory: Caution Inventors at Work (Step 2: Invention) – Learn about the people, places, events, and discoveries of lighting inventors.
Marketing Department: Promotions for All Occasions
(Step 3: Promotion) – Gain an understanding of the importance promoting an invention has in bringing new inventions to the public.
Competition: Inventors: Have Patents Out & Ready for Inspection (Step 4: Competition) – Discover the importance of competition in the world of inventions.
Consequences: Intended & Otherwise (Step 5: Consequences) – Examine the results of the invention of the light bulb and its impact on history.
Each section presents concise information about the topic accompanied by exhibit images.
The “Guest Lounge & Library” provides visitors opportunities for further research by providing exhibit scripts and notes, a time-line photo gallery of lamp inventors, links to other informative sites about Thomas Edison and lighting, history, technology, and energy files with additional images and information relating to lighting including ink blotters, patents, the science behind electric lighting and light bulbs, and significance of energy efficiency.
Add this site to your list of resources for history and inventor studies.
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Age Range: All (All grades; children with parental supervision)
Christmas cookies are a staple of the holiday season. Learn a fascinating account of the history of cookies from the 7th Century to modern times.
Read the history of all kinds of cookies:
Anzac Biscuits
Biscotti
Chocolate Chip Cookies
Fig Newtons
Fortune Cookies
Macaroons
Peanut Butter Cookies
and more.
It includes recipes too!
And here are more sites – see how many subjects you can incorporate into the act of baking cookies!
Christmas Cookie Recipes from Around the World
Find Christmas cookie recipes from Australia, Austria, Canada, China, Denmark, England, Finland, France, Germany, Greece, Holland, Hungary, Ireland, Italy, Jamaica, Mexico, Norway, Peru, Poland, Puerto Rico, Russia, Scotland, Spain, Sweden, Switzerland, The United States of America, and Yugoslavia!
Ask your children to find the country of origin of each type of cookie you bake on a globe or map.
The Food Timeline: Christmas food history
Discover a variety of Christmas food traditions, including the baking of cookies, with this timeline featuring information, quotes and recipes from a variety of resources.
The Science Spot: Case #1225: Case of the Christmas Cookie Mystery (Note: Geared for middle school and up.)
Get A FREE, downloadable and printable chemistry lesson themed around Christmas cookies. You’ll also find the printable teacher’s classroom instructions here.
Welcome to the Family Table: Free Elementary Math Worksheets: Munchable Math-Christmas Cookies
Elementary students will enjoy these colorful downloadable PDF math sheets for practicing adding and subtracting 3’s.
Left Brain Craft Brain: Tangram Christmas Cookies
Make math yummy and fun with these wonderful tangram Christmas Cookies. Includes all recipes and instructions for making these simple, buttery confections as well as a downloadable printable template for cutting the dough for your tangram and more.
Family Education: Free, Printable Christmas Cookie E-Book
This website offers a FREE, downloadable and printable E-Book of easy-to-make Holiday Cookie recipes.
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Age Range: 10-18 (Grades 5-12, with parental supervision)
The Christmas holiday is steeped in traditions and customs. This page from the History Channel provides texts and videos relating to the history of many of the traditions practiced today.
When you get to the site, you’ll see the topics covered including:
Christmas Traditions Worldwide
History of Christmas
History of Christmas Trees
Santa Claus
Videos (with commercials) are in each section so, parents, as always, will want to preview the material prior to allowing their student to use the material to be sure that the information presented aligns with their family beliefs and standards.
If you can get over the commercials embedded into the videos, there is still a lot of interesting and educational value to this website.
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Age Range: 5-18 (Grades K-12, with parental supervision)
When you think about the CIA (Central Intelligence Agency), “kids” is probably not the first word that comes to mind. So, you may be surprised to see what they offer for children on their “Kids’Zone” page.
Find out about the history of the CIA and what they do including how they use dogs and pigeons to gather intelligence. You can also try your hand at breaking a secret code!
When you get to the site you will see a menu on the right side of your screen that includes:
K-5th Grade – Click on this link and a new page opens with a brief introduction to the CIA for younger elementary grade students. Look for the menu on the left side of the screen that includes an opportunity to learn all about the CIA Seal, find out about the CIA K-9 Corp (kids will love reading the personal stories of 23 different “spy” dogs), and get a bird’s eye view of the CIA (includes info about how carrier pigeons help the CIA).
6th-12th Grade Homepage – Click on this link to access info designed for older students including:
Who We Are & What We Do – Includes a more in-depth look at the mission, structure, and the operations of the CIA.
Getting a Job at the CIA – Explains the qualifications one must have to work for the CIA.
Operation History – When you click this, don’t miss “one of the most secret museums in the world” to take a virtual tour of the CIA museum and its artifacts. More advanced students might like to read the “History of American Intelligence” and “The History of the CIA” – in-depth looks at the history of the CIA from the Revolutionary War through WWII.
Of particular interest for older students are the spy biographies which can be accessed by clicking “The CIA Hall of Fame.” Here you will find several U.S. presidents (including George Washington, Herbert Hoover, and George Bush), Nathan Hale, Harriet Tubman, and even a heroic spy who, with several names and only one leg, was the only female ever to earn the Distinguished Service Cross, one of the highest honors issued by the U.S. military.
Once you’ve checked out the grade-specific sections, have some fun by clicking on “Games” on the menu. Junior spies of every age, will have fun with a CIA puzzle, word find, and trying to decipher a secret code.
As always, parents should preview this material to determine if the content is suitable for their own children.
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Age Range: 9-18 (Grades 4-12, with parental supervision)
This website offers virtual guides to the geography, culture and history of different countries of the world.
These areas are included:
Africa
Asia
Caribbean
Europe
Latin America
When you get to the site you’ll see the featured country (currently Malaysia), and below that a menu of the most recent countries and destinations that have been added to the site. Click on any title and a new page opens where you can virtually explore a multi-media travel guide of that location.
Or, click on the menu on the left side of your screen to open a window to any of the locations described above.
Enjoy colorful photographs, interesting text, and the ability to sample some of the sounds and music of the location as well (so turn on your speakers).
This site is designed as a travel guide – but the educational content here makes it much more. You’ll learn about the geography, people, culture, nature and history of the country and find out about the national parks, attractions, places off the beaten path, activities, important dates and festivals, and much more.
There is a lot of content here, and we weren’t able to explore it all. Parents, as always, should preview the site to determine suitability of content for their own children.
This site provides a great way to see the world without leaving home. It’s also a fantastic way to jump-start a social sciences curriculum. In addition, it may just inspire a destination for your next family vacation.
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Age Range: All (All grades; children with parental supervision)
Learning takes on a life of its own at this website created by veteran homeschool mom Fran Wisniewski who provides terrific Christmas-themed activities that explore the history of the holiday and the symbols associated with it.
Get ready to have some fun! When you get to the site you’ll see the calendar for December. Simply scroll down the page to read the activities for this week including:
Games Day
Go Caroling Day
The First Day of Winter
Not only does Fran provide the complete instructions for how to do the activities at home, but she provides pictures of her family’s efforts that clearly illustrate the results you can expect. Plus you’ll find links to more web-based resources to further your learning experience.
Continue to scroll down for:
December Activities
25 Fun Activities You Can Do Inside, When It’s COLD Outside!
Fun Christmas Resources
Fran wrote, “In my world education is interesting, the choices are endless and everyone learns at their own pace, in a way that works for them.” Her website is testament to her point of view. Don’t miss it!
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Age Range: 10-18 (Grades 5-12, with parental supervision)
Part of the larger Web Exhibits online museum from the Institute for Dynamic Educational Advancement, this website examines the origins and history of calendars.
When arriving at today’s link, use the upper menu to decide what topic you would like to explore:
Years & Months – Learn about the astronomical events on which a calendar is based then use the sidebar menu to dig deeper into the astronomy of calendars, see a perpetual calendar, the phases of the moon within a given month, the history of our calendar, terms used, and more.
Various Calendars – Discover the differences in the Gregorian calendar (which most of us use) and the Chinese, Christian, Indian, Islamic, Jewish, Mayan, Roman, and other calendars past, present, and future.
Our Week – How did the 7-day week come to be? Where did the names of the days come from? What other connotations are associated with the days of the week? These questions and more are answered in this topic.
Timeline – Not your typical history timeline, this is a timeline of interesting calendar facts.
Visitors will also notice on the main menu “Node View.” From here you can navigate through a cloud map of the site to narrow your research.
With a new year upon us, this website provides an interesting look into the passing of time and a unique history study unit.
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Age Range: 7-13 (Grades 3-8, with parental supervision)
Learn about Captain James Cook, the first European to cross the Antarctic Circle on this date in 1773.
From Cook’s journal on January 17, 1773: “…we crossed the Antarctic Circle at Noon we saw a observation of four Miles and a half South of it and are undoubtedly the first and only Ship that ever crossed that line.”
This Cybersleuth Kids website has gathered two pages of links with more information about Captain James Cook, the English explorer, navigator and pioneer.
Some of the topics include:
an encyclopedia entry
a printable and fact sheet
charts
birthplace museum
timeline
stamps
and more!
Click on any link to learn more about Captain Cook: his life, his voyages, and his ships.
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The Seven Wonders of the Ancient World
Age Range: 8-18 (Grades 3-12, with parental supervision)
Oh, you’ll be glad you visited this site! Most of us know that there are Seven World Wonders, but few can name them all.
At this archived site you will discover all seven, read about their history, and view artists’ illustrations of the wonders.
Click on each of the 7 photos at the top. When you are through exploring the ancient wonders you can click on the Geographic Map link that shows you where they were located in relation to one another.
Then click on “Other Wonders” and discover more ancient wonders, along with Modern and Natural wonders too. In this section, you will find an illustration or photograph along with links that provide historical information.
You can also click on Frequently-Asked Questions to get some answers to questions about the wonders, and there are Related Links about archaeology and history that you might enjoy surfing as well.
This site won a “Top 5% of All Websites Award” and other awards for good reason. Just viewing the wonders may inspire students of all ages to want to learn more about history.
Thank you,
Glenda, Charlie and David Cates
