3 Tips for Using Word Walls in Elementary Social Studies

I am a huge fan of word walls in any subject, and have happily created walls for each math unit, science strand, and novel study I undertook.  Social studies is my particular love, though, and I find that students can struggle without concrete strategies being provided to help them master the content vocabulary.  A word wall is a quick and easy tool to make students comfortable with the new words and terms they encounter.  

Here are 3 tips to help make the most of any word wall in Grades 4-7.

1.  Display Strategies

a)  Word/Phrase + Definition + Image = Comprehension

Students do best when they can see an image related to a word or phrase has a short definition.

b)  Arrange by topic.  In the image here, you can see that an upcoming  municipal election is being studied by the class, and images of the candidates are displayed, as well as election terminology.

c)  Consider individual word walls for some students.  Students who struggle to maintain concentration when using a word wall on a bulletin board may do better with some key vocabulary gathered on a ring or in a folder.

2.  Play Games!

A word wall should never be a stagnant display, but a living tool in your classroom.  When you have a few extra minutes before it's time to go home, play one of the following games using the word wall.

a)  Hangman:  the traditional game, but students know ahead of time that each word is one that is already displayed in the room.

b)  5 Clues:  Choose a word card ahead of time, and create five clues that students can use to figure out what word card you have chosen. Read one clue at a time, and have students use each clue to determine what card you've chosen.  They win if they can guess the card before you have given all the clues.  For example, for the word "foothill", for example, the clues could be:

1.  It is one word.

2.  It is a compound word.

3.  It can be found in the environment.

4.  It is a land feature.

5.  It has two sets of double letters.

c)  Bingo with Clues:  Distribute blank 5 x 5 (or 4 x 4 or 3 x 3) bingo cards to your students.  Have them fill in each box with a word or phrase from the word wall.  Without calling out the actual word wall words themselves, give them a clue.  For example, for "elder", you could say "this is a word that describes a wise person in the community".  

Political and Physical Regions of Canada Word Wall
(image courtesy of Sidney McKay)

3.  Have Students Choose Some Words

Sometimes we assume students understand some vocabulary that seems very basic to us, and then find out we were wrong.  Having some blank word wall words available for those moments will allow you to grab that "teachable moment" and have a willing student create the word wall card for such vocabulary.  Having word wall words made by students makes the wall more meaningful and useful to them!

Click on the image here to get your FREE Canadian Government Word Wall Sampler!

Check out my line of Ontario Social Studies Curriculum word wall resources here.

 

 

Create Social Studies Projects that Engage Your Grades 4 to 6 Students!

 

At the end of a social studies units, teachers often find themselves struggling to design a "culminating task" that is engaging for students and provides teachers with an opportunity to assess overall curriculum expectations.

What makes a great culminating project or task?

A culminating task or project should:

• address the overall curriculum expectations for the unit.
• cause students to think deeply about the important issues or questions brought up during the unit.
• be engaging and hold the interest of students over time.
• be shared with students in advance, using physical models 
• have clear timelines and success criteria.

Before even beginning a unit I already know what the final tasks or projects will be, and using the "backward design" model I plan the entire unit, making sure that every lesson will contribute in some way towards that task.  

I show students what that task will look like early in the unit, and have them work on it bit by bit from lesson to lesson.  I precreate physical models of the different project options, so that students can choose the option that works best for them.  

Types of Projects

Some of my favourite culminating projects or tasks are:

1.  Brochures

2.  Project Cubes

3.  Posters

4.  Debates

5.  Report Cards

6.  Event

The image to the right show a "project cube" that I created for my Grade 4/5 class.  We were exploring Strand B of the Ontario Social Studies Curriculum, which focused on:

Grade 4:  Physical and Political Regions of Canada               

Grade 5:  The Role of Government and Responsible Citizenship

As a final task I wanted the Grade 4s to show how industry and the environment affect each other, and to describe how actions taken by citizens and industries can protect the environment while still meeting human needs.

The Grade 5s would describe and assess any government action has been taken to address an environmental issue, to show different perspectives on that issue, and to describe how Indigenous Peoples have been affected by the issue.

Students could choose to show their learning through a:

* project cube

* poster

* brochure

* scrapbook

* report

I gave physical models of each option, using the issue of invasive species in the Great Lakes.  I also shared clear criteria for each type of project.  (***For your own copy of these project criteria, click here OR on the image to the left!***)

If you are an Ontario Grade 4/5 teach who would like to check out the full unit, click here.

  

Scrapbook Page

              Report Card on Government Action (Grade 5)

Note:  A Grade 5 teacher recently contacted me to let me know that after creating a report card about how governments addressed food insecurity, her class took the "action plan" to another level by creating a huge fundraiser for a local food bank.  Students had been exploring inequities in food availability, and worked through the steps in my Grade 5 government unit to take action themselves!  Amazing!!

Reminder:  Click here or on the clipboard below to download your FREE editable social studies project criteria!

What are YOUR favourite types of culminating tasks or projects?  Let me know below!

Margie