100 Experiential Learning Activities for Social Studies, Literature, and the Arts, Grades 5-12

Active learning in secondary classrooms involves much more than students recording the right answers on high-stakes tests. In the social studies in particular, active learning promotes critical thinking, deep understanding, and transfer to real-life situations of knowledge about such important issues as social justice, culture, language, diversity, the arts, economics, and science and technology. Eugene F. Provenzo, Jr., Dan W. Butin, and Anthony Angelini have compiled 100 ready-to-use units that address critical social issues. All lessons emphasize comprehension, comparison, and transfer across disciplinary boundaries and include extension activities, a listing of resources, and suggestions for pacing and time management. Offering content aligned with curriculum standards established by the National Council for the Social Studies, the National Council of Teachers of English, and McREL’s content knowledge standards, this resource includes a matrix linking each lesson to the relevant standards.Instructors and instructional leaders committed to social justice, multiple modes of inquiry, and constructivist learning will find this collection of experiential learning strategies to be an invaluable resource.