(Note: By the completion of second grade, Vermont students are expected to master the following standards.)

Vermont Academic Content Standards: History and Social Sciences

• Inquiry

  • H&SS1-2:1—Social and Historical Questioning

    Students initiate an inquiry by:

    • Asking questions based on what they have seen, what they have read, what they have listened to, and/or what they have researched as a class (e.g., How is living in Vermont different than living in Florida?).

  • H&SS1-2:2—Hypothesis/Research Statement

    Students develop a hypothesis, thesis, or research statement by:

    • Using prior knowledge to share ideas about possible answers to questions (e.g., How do people use teamwork to get jobs done?).

  • H&SS1-2:3—Research Plan

    Students design research by:

    • Identifying resources for finding answers to their questions (e.g., books, videos, people, and the Internet).
    • Explaining what their jobs will be during an inquiry investigation (e.g., drawing pictures after a field trip).
    • Planning how to organize information so it can be shared.

  • H&SS1-2:4—Conducting Research

    Students conduct research by:

    • Following directions to complete an inquiry.
    • Asking questions and observing during the investigation process.
    • Recording observations with words, numbers, symbols, and/or pictures (e.g., drawing or labeling a diagram, creating a title for a drawing or diagram, recording data provided by the teacher in a table).

  • H&SS1-2:5

    Students develop reasonable explanations that support the research statement by:

    • Organizing and displaying information (e.g., pictograph, bar graph, chart, building blocks).
    • Classifying information and justifying groupings based on observations, prior knowledge, or experience.

  • H&SS1-2:6

    Students make connections to research by:

    • Discussing if their findings answered their research question.
    • Proposing solutions to problems and asking other questions.

  • H&SS1-2:7

    Students communicate their findings by:

    • Speaking, using pictures, (including captions) or creating a simple report or “painted essay” containing a focus statement, details, and conclusions.

• History

  • H&SS1-2:8

    Students connect the past with the present by:

    • Classifying objects from long ago and today (e.g., sorting pictures or objects into two groups: “long ago” and “today”).
    • Exploring objects and looking closely at similarities, differences, patterns, and change.
    • Describing ways that school life has both changed and stayed the same over time (e.g., a one-room schoolhouse vs. modern schools).
    • Identifying how events and people have shaped their schools or towns (e.g., How does life change when one moves to a different town?).

  • H&SS1-2:9

    Students show understanding of how humans interpret history by:

    • Collecting information about the past (e.g., through interviews, photos and artifacts).
    • Differentiating among fact, opinion, and interpretation of classroom situations, stories, and other media.

  • H&SS1-2:10

    Students show understanding of past, present, and future time by:

    • Placing events that occurred within the school or community setting in their correct sequence.
    • Constructing a time line of events in the history of their own or another family, or of the school or community.
    • Measuring calendar time by days, weeks, and months (e.g., How old are you?).
    • Identifying an important event in their lives and/or schools, and discussing changes that resulted (e.g., after the new baby arrived, I had to share a bedroom with my sister).

• Physical and Cultural Geography

  • H&SS1-2:11

    Students interpret geography and solve geographic problems by:

    • Writing their names and addresses.
    • Identifying characteristics of a neighborhood or community using resources such as road signs, landmarks, models, maps, photographs and mental mapping
    • Differentiating between neighborhood, town, and state.
    • Identifying the locations of places within the community on a prepared map, and suggesting why particular locations are used for certain human activities (e.g., parks, school, shops, etc.).
    • Identifying a map or globe and using terms related to location, direction, and distance (e.g., up/down, left/right, near/far, here/there, north, south, east, west).
    • Using a simple map to find something (e.g., locating the teacher’s desk on a map of their classrooms).
    • Creating a map as a representation of a space (e.g., making a map of the playground, drawing a treasure map).
    • Identifying and using basic elements of the map (e.g., cardinal directions and key).
    • Using appropriate geographic resources (e.g., aerial photos) to answer geographic questions.

  • H&SS1-2:12

    Students show understanding of human interaction with the environment over time by:

    • Identifying ways in which they and people in the community take care of or hurt the environment (e.g., after identifying litter in the local area, discussing why the trash is there and giving suggestions about how the problem can be helped).
    • Participating in taking care of the environment (e.g., gardening, recycling).
    • Identifying ways in which people in their community adapt to their physical environment, and discussing how these adaptations have both positive and negative effects.
    • Recognizing reasons why friends and family move (e.g., climate, job opportunities, family ties).

  • H&SS1-2:13

    Students analyze how and why cultures continue and change over time by:

    • Identifying ways culture is expressed in their communities, such as celebrations, legends, and traditions.
    • Describing the contributions of various cultural groups to the community.

• Civics, Government and Society

  • H&SS1-2:14

    Students act as citizens by:

    • Describing what it means to be a responsible member of a group.
    • Describing what his/her role is as a member of various groups.
    • Demonstrating positive interaction with group members (e.g., working with a partner to complete a task).
    • Explaining their own point of view on issues that affect themselves.
    • Participating in setting and following the rules of the group, school, community.

  • H&SS1-2:15

    Students show understanding of various forms of government by:

    • Identifying rules or laws that solve a specific problem or apply to a specific situation (e.g., raising hands, crossing at the light, wearing bike helmet).
    • Explaining why rules and laws are written down.
    • Identifying the consequences of not following rules or laws.
    • Describing characteristics of good leadership and fair decision-making and how that affects others (e.g., line leader, team captain).

  • H&SS1-2:16

    Students examine how different societies address issues of human interdependence by:

    • Explaining that people have rights and needs (e.g. fairness, safety).
    • Identifying how the groups to which a person belongs (family, friends, team, community) influence how she or he thinks and acts.
    • Defining their own rights and needs—and the rights and needs of others—in the classroom, school, and playground (e.g., “I” statements, learning to be assertive, taking care of yourself).
    • Giving examples of ways that she or he is similar to and different from others (e.g., gender, eye color, hair color, skin color, likes and dislikes, etc.).
    • Identifying examples of interdependence among individuals and groups (e.g., family, sports team).
    • Practicing communication skills with individuals and groups.
    • Describing feelings and situations that might lead to conflict (e.g., fighting over being first in line).
    • Describing ways that people solve problems.

  • H&SS1-2:17

    Students examine how access to various institutions affects justice, reward, and power by:

    • Identifying ways in which local institutions promote the common good (e.g., police enforce rules and laws, fire department, ambulances).

• Economics

  • H&SS1-2:18

    Students show an understanding of the interaction/interdependence between humans, the environment, and the economy by:

    • Participating in activities as a buyer or seller (e.g., bake sale, school store), and discussing where goods come from (e.g., clothing, toys, foods).
    • Identifying economic activities that use resources in the local region (e.g., maple syrup production, logging).
    • Identifying jobs people do in the community, and the value these jobs bring to the community (e.g., road crews help keep people safe while driving).

  • H&SS1-2:19

    Students show understanding of the interconnectedness between government and the economy by:

    • Identifying some goods and services that are provided by the local government (e.g., schools, parks, police, fire protection).

  • H&SS1-2:20

    Students make economic decisions as a consumer, producer, saver, investor, and citizen by:

    • Recognizing the differences between the basic needs and wants (e.g., food, clothing, shelter, and affection vs. toys and sweets).
    • Explaining why people earn, spend, and save.

Content Suggestion:

One’s town to expand knowledge of geography, history, human interdependence, etc. Include comparisons with another town or city in Connecticut.

Standard 1: Content Knowledge

Knowledge of concepts, themes, and information from history and social studies is necessary to promote understanding of our nation and our world.

1.1 – Significant events and themes in United States history.

Grade Level Expectations
Students will be able to:

• 1. Apply terms related to time (e.g. decades, centuries and generations).
• 2. Place key events and people of the historical time period they are studying in a chronological sequence.
• 3. Explain the contributions of historical figures (e.g. George Washington, Harriet Tubman, Sacagawea, Squanto, Abraham Lincoln, Cesar Chavez, Martin Luther King Jr., Rosa Parks).

Correlations

Civic Literacy Social & Cross Cultural Skills
NCSS 2 “Time, Continuity, and Change”

1.2 – Significant events in local and Connecticut history and their connections to United States history.

Grade Level Expectations
Students will be able to:

• 4. Explain the roles that significant events and people play in shaping town/city history.
• 5. Identify and explain the significance of local historical sites.

Correlations

Civic Literacy Social & Cross Cultural Skills
NCSS 2 “Time, Continuity, and Change”

1.3 – Significant events and themes in world history/international studies.

Grade Level Expectations
Students will be able to:

• 6. Investigate one’s own family heritage, making comparisons to classmates and community members

Correlations

Social & Cross Cultural Skills
NCSS 2 “Time, Continuity, and Change”
I&TL: 3

1.4 – Geographical space and place.

Grade Level Expectations
Students will be able to:

• 7. Compare and contrast man-made and physical characteristics in one’s town (e.g. rivers, lakes, town hall, high school).
• 8. Identify one’s town on a state map.

Correlations

Critical Thinking & Problem Solving
NCSS 3 “People, Places, and Environments”
I&TL: 3

1.5 – Interaction of humans and the environment.

Grade Level Expectations
Students will be able to:

• 9. Explain the effects of local and regional changes humans have made and how they affect the environment.
• 9. Explain the difference between man- made and natural geographic features.
• 10. Explain how physical systems (weather and climate) affect people and their lives.

Correlations

Critical Thinking & Problem Solving
NCSS 3 “People, Places, and Environments”
I&TL: 3, 6

1.6 – Patterns of human movement across time and place.

Grade Level Expectations
Students will be able to:

• 11. Display and interpret the geographic movement patterns of one’s extended family.
• 12. Compare and contrast the differences between rural, suburban and urban areas, and explain why people might move from one area to another.

Correlations

Critical Thinking & Problem Solving
NCSS 3 “People, Places, and Environments”

1.7 – The purpose, structures and functions of government and law at the local, state, national and international levels.

Grade Level Expectations
Students will be able to:

• 13. Explain how rules and laws help to establish order and ensure safety in one’s town.

Correlations

Critical Thinking & Problem Solving Civic Literacy
NCSS 6 “Power, Authority, and Governance”
I&TL: 3

1.8 – The interactions between citizens and their government in the making and implementation of laws.

Grade Level Expectations
Students will be able to:

• 14. Explain how people elect a government by voting.
• 15. Experience the democratic process through personal participation.

Correlations

Critical Thinking & Problem Solving Civic Literacy
NCSS 6 “Power, Authority, and Governance”
I&TL: 3, 4

1.9 – The rights and responsibilities of citizens.

Grade Level Expectations
Students will be able to:

• 16. Analyze when an individual’s rights must be limited to ensure safety.

Correlations

Critical Thinking & Problem Solving Civic Literacy
NCSS 6 “Power, Authority, and Governance”
I&TL: 3

1.10 – How limited resources influence economic decisions.

Grade Level Expectations
Students will be able to:

• 17. Identify the resources needed to fulfill wants and needs.
• 18. Compare and contrast resources that are made, learned, built or grown.

Correlations

Critical Thinking & Problem Solving
I&TL: 6
NCSS 7 “Production, Distribution, and Consumption”

1.11 – How different economic systems organize resources.

Grade Level Expectations
Students will be able to:

• 19. Compare and contrast producers and consumers.
• 20. Discuss how a variety of goods are produced.

Correlations

Critical Thinking & Problem Solving
Financial Literacy
NCSS 7 “Production, Distribution, and Consumption”

1.12 – The interdependence of local, national and global
economies.

Grade Level Expectations
Students will be able to:

• 21. Explain how different occupations contribute to a marketplace (jobs that produce goods vs. jobs that provide services).

Correlations

Critical Thinking & Problem Solving
Financial Literacy
NCSS 7 “Production, Distribution, and Consumption”

1.13 – The characteristics of and interactions among culture, social systems and institutions.

Grade Level Expectations
Students will be able to:

• 22. Identify social institutions (e.g. Scouts, service organizations, sports teams) and explain how they contribute to the well- being of the community.
• 23. Identify and discuss how norms and values vary across cultures.

Correlations

Critical Thinking & Problem Solving
Civic Literacy
1.13.22 NCSS 5 “Individuals, Groups, and Institutions”
1.13.22 NCSS 1 “Culture”
I&TL: 1, 2, 3, 5, 6

Standard 2: History/Social Studies Literacy

Competence in literacy, inquiry, and research skills is necessary to analyze, evaluate, and present history and social studies information.

2.1 – Access and gather information from a variety of primary and secondary sources including electronic media (maps, charts, graphs, images, artifacts, recordings and text).

Grade Level Expectations
Students will be able to:

• 1. Gather information with teacher support using reference materials and electronic media.

Correlations

ITC Literacy
RI2- 1, 2, 4, 5, 6 W2- 2, 7, 8
I&TL: 1, 2, 5, 6

2.2 – Interpret information from a variety of primary and secondary sources, including electronic media (e.g. maps, charts, graphs, images, artifacts, recordings and text).

Grade Level Expectations
Students will be able to:

• 2. Identify and explain symbols on the map (scale, title, intermediate directions, etc.).
• 3. Describe the connection between two individuals, events, ideas, or pieces of information in a text.
• 4. Use the illustrations and details in a text to describe its key ideas.
• 5. Identify the reasons an author gives to support points in a text.
• 6. Identify basic similarities in and differences between two texts on the same topic (e.g. in illustrations, descriptions).

Correlations

Information Literacy
RI-2- 3, 7, 8, 9
I&TL: 2, 3, 4, 5, 6

2.3 – Create various forms of written work (e.g. journal, essay, blog, Web page, brochure) to demonstrate an understanding of historyand social studies issues.

Grade Level Expectations
Students will be able to:

• 7. Write to describe historical events, people and/or places.

Correlations

Critical Thinking & Problem Solving
W2- 2, 3, 6
I&TL: 4, 5, 6

2.4 – Demonstrate an ability to participate in social studies discourse through informed discussion, debate and effective oral presentation.

Grade Level Expectations
Students will be able to:

• 8. Present basic information about past or present events, people and/or places.
• 9. Ask for clarification and explanation on social studies topics.
• 10. Participate in collaborative conversations with diverse partners about social studies topics and texts with peers and adults in small and larger groups.

Correlations

Communication
SL2- 1, 2, 3
I&TL: 3

2.5 – Create and present relevant social studies materials using both print and electronic media (e.g. maps, charts, models, displays).

Grade Level Expectations
Students will be able to:

• 11. Create visual presentations on social studies topics (e.g. poster, chart, picture, timeline).

Correlations

Communication
None
I&TL: 4, 5, 6, 7

Standard 3: Civic Engagement

Civic competence in analyzing historical issues and current problems requires the synthesis of information, skills, and perspective.

3.1 – Use evidence to identify, analyze and evaluate historical interpretations.

Grade Level Expectations
Students will be able to:

• 1. Explain why there are different points of view of an event

Correlations

Critical Thinking and Problem Solving
Communication
I&TL: 3

3.2 – Analyze and evaluate human action in historical and/or contemporary contexts from alternative points of view.

Grade Level Expectations
Students will be able to:

• 2. Predict how another person might feel in a historical and/or contemporary situation.
• 3. Analyze how a situation affects the way a person will feel.

Correlations

Critical Thinking and Problem Solving
I&TL: 3

3.3 - Apply appropriate historical, geographic, political, economic and cultural concepts and methods in proposing and evaluating solutions to contemporary problems.

Grade Level Expectations
Students will be able to:

• 4. Identify a local contemporary issue and participate in a class or schoolwide resolution of the identified issue (e.g. recycling, nutrition, safety).

Correlations

Critical Thinking and Problem Solving
Civic Literacy
Collaboration Communication
I&TL: 3

• HI.SS.2.1. Content Standard / Course: Historical Understanding CHANGE, CONTINUITY, AND CAUSALITY-Understand change and/or continuity and cause and/or effect in history
  • SS.2.1.1. Content Standard / Performance Indicator: Chronological Thinking Construct timelines to sequence events
• HI.SS.2.2. Content Standard / Course: Historical Understanding INQUIRY, EMPATHY AND PERSPECTIVE-Use the tools and methods of inquiry, perspective, and empathy to explain historical events with multiple interpretations and judge the past on its own terms
  • SS.2.2.1. Content Standard / Performance Indicator: Historical Inquiry Investigate the history of families using level-appropriate primary sources (e.g., artifacts, photographs, interviews, documents)
• HI.SS.2.3. Content Standard / Course: History HISTORICAL CONTENT-Understand sharing and caring for people and earth
  • SS.2.3.1. Content Standard / Performance Indicator: Stewardship Describe ways in which specific government agencies are responsible for environmental issues and concerns
• HI.SS.2.4. Content Standard / Course: Political Science/Civics GOVERNANCE, DEMOCRACY, AND INTERACTION-Understand the purpose and historical impact of political institutions, the principles and values of American constitutional democracy, and the similarities and differences in government across cultural perspectives
  • SS.2.4.1. Content Standard / Performance Indicator: Governance, Power, and Authority Describe the different ways people gain authority and the limits of such authority
• HI.SS.2.5. Content Standard / Course: Political Science/Civics PARTICIPATION AND CITIZENSHIP-Understand roles, rights (personal, economic, political), and responsibilities of American citizens and exercise them in civic action
  • SS.2.5.1. Content Standard / Performance Indicator: Rights and Responsibilities Demonstrate own roles and responsibilities in caring for others and the environment
• HI.SS.2.6. Content Standard / Course: Cultural Anthropology SYSTEMS, DYNAMICS, AND INQUIRY-Understand culture as a system of beliefs, knowledge, and practices shared by a group and understand how cultural systems change over time
  • SS.2.6.1. Content Standard / Performance Indicator: Cultural Systems and practices Describe ways in which own and other cultures express their cultural beliefs and practices through music and art
• HI.SS.2.7. Content Standard / Course: Geography WORLD IN SPATIAL TERMS-Use geographic representations to organize, analyze, and present information on people, places, and environments and understand the nature and interaction of geographic regions and societies around the world
  • SS.2.7.1. Content Standard / Performance Indicator: Human and Physical Characteristics in Spatial Terms Identify and explain the human (man-made) and physical (natural) characteristics of a neighborhood or the community
  • SS.2.7.2. Content Standard / Performance Indicator: Human and Physical Characteristics in Spatial Terms Describe the purpose and features of maps and globes
  • SS.2.7.3. Content Standard / Performance Indicator: Environment And Society Describe a variety of the earth's natural resources (e.g., water, forests, and oil) and ways in which people use them
  • SS.2.7.4. Content Standard / Performance Indicator: Environment And Society Analyze and demonstrate ways to protect and preserve the local environment
• HI.SS.2.8. Content Standard / Course: Economics RESOURCES, MARKETS, AND GOVERNMENT-Understand economic concepts and the characteristics of various economic systems
  • SS.2.8.1. Content Standard / Performance Indicator: Limited Resources and Choice Explain scarcity and its effects on daily life
  • SS.2.8.2. Content Standard / Performance Indicator: Limited Resources and Choice Categorize resources as natural, capital, or human
  • SS.2.8.3. Content Standard / Performance Indicator: Economic Interdependence Explain how people benefit from trade (the exchange of goods and services)
  • SS.2.8.4. Content Standard / Performance Indicator: Role and Function of Markets Compare the roles of buyers and sellers and explain how they depend upon each other
  • SS.2.8.5. Content Standard / Performance Indicator: Role of Government Explain the responsibility of the government to provide goods and services

• Standard 1: History

  Students in Grade 2 build an understanding of the cultural and social development of the United States.

  Goal 1.1:

  Build an understanding of the cultural and social development of the United States.
  Objective(s): By the end of Grade 2, the student will be able to:

  • 2.SS.1.1.1 Discuss different groups that a person belongs to such as family and neighborhood and how those roles and/or groups have changed or stayed the same.

• Standard 2: Geography

  Students in Grade 2 analyze the spatial organizations of people, places and environment on the earth’s surface and explain how human actions modify the physical environment and how physical systems affect human activity and living conditions.

  Goal 2.1:

  Analyze the spatial organizations of people, places, and environment on the earth’s surface.
  Objective(s): By the end of Grade 2, the student will be able to:

  • 2.SS.2.1.1 Identify landforms, bodies of water, and human made features such as cities and dams on a map and globe.
  • 2.SS.2.1.2 State the cardinal directions and how to use a compass rose.
  • 2.SS.2.1.3 Show that map symbols such as key, legend, and scale represent a real object or place.
  • 2.SS.2.1.4 Illustrate that boundary lines separate states.

  Goal 2.2:

  Explain how human actions modify the physical environment and how physical systems affect human activity and living conditions.
  Objective(s): By the end of Grade 2, the student will be able to:

  • 2.SS.2.2.1 Compare how environmental conditions affect living styles and clothing in different parts of the country.
  • 2.SS.2.2.2 Describe how humans depend on the environment to meet their basic needs.

• Standard 3: Economics

  Students in Grade 2 explain basic economic concepts, identify different influences on economic systems, and explain the concepts of good personal finance.

  Goal 3.1:

  Explain basic economic concepts.
  Objective(s): By the end of Grade 2, the student will be able to:

  • 2.SS.3.1.1 Identify wants and needs of all families.
  • 2.SS.3.1.2 Define income and identify different ways to earn and save.
  • 2.SS.3.1.3 Identify the difference between goods and services.
  • 2.SS.3.1.4 Identify differences between producers and consumers.

  Goal 3.2:

  Identify different influences on economic systems.
  Objective(s): By the end of Grade 2, the student will be able to:

  • 2.SS.3.2.1 Explain how natural resources affect economic activities in the local community.

  Goal 3.4:

  Identify different influences on economic systems.
  Objective(s): By the end of Grade 2, the student will be able to:

  • 2.SS.3.4.1 Identify reasons people save.

• Standard 4: Civics and Government

  Students in Grade 2 build an understanding of the foundational principles of the American political system, the organization and formation of the American system of government, and that all people in the United States rights and assume responsibilities.

  Goal 4.1:

  Build an understanding of the foundational principles of the American political system.
  Objective(s): By the end of Grade 2, the student will be able to:

  • 2.SS.4.1.1 Explain why rules are necessary at home and school.
  • 2.SS.4.1.2 Explain that there are benefits for following the rules and consequences for breaking the rules at home and school.
  • 2.SS.4.1.3 Identify the people or groups that make, apply, and enforce rules at home and school.

  Goal 4.2:

  Build an understanding of the organization and formation of the American system of government.
  Objective(s): By the end of Grade 2, the student will be able to:

  • 2.SS.4.2.1 Explain important customs, symbols, and celebrations that represent the development of American beliefs and principles.
  • 2.SS.4.2.2 State the meaning of the Pledge of Allegiance.

  Goal 4.3:

  Build an understanding that all people in the United States have rights and assume responsibilities.
  Objective(s): By the end of Grade 2, the student will be able to:

  • 2.SS.4.3.1 Identify characteristics of good citizenship, such as courage, honesty, and responsibility.
  • 2.SS.4.3.2 Name historic and contemporary people who model characteristics of good citizenship.

• Standard 5: Global Perspectives

  Students in Grade 2 identify the importance of respecting multiple perspectives and global interdependence.

  Goal 5.1:

  Build an understanding of multiple perspectives and global interdependence.
  Objective(s): By the end of Grade 2, the student will be able to:

  • 2.SS.5.1.1 Compare neighborhoods/communities in various parts of the world.
  • 2.SS.5.1.2 Compare traditions practiced in other parts of the world.

• IN.1. Standard: History Students will differentiate between events that happened in the past and recently, recognize examples of continuity and change in local and regional communities, and consider ways that people and events of the past and present influence their lives.
  • 2.1.1. Proficiency Statement: Historical Knowledge Identify when the local community was established and identify its founders and early settlers.
  • 2.1.2. Proficiency Statement: Historical Knowledge Explain changes in daily life in the community over time using maps, photographs, news stories, Web sites or video images. (Individuals, Society and Culture)
  • 2.1.3. Proficiency Statement: Historical Knowledge Identify individuals who had a positive impact on the local community. (Individuals, Society and Culture)
  • 2.1.4. Proficiency Statement: Historical Knowledge Identify and describe community celebrations, symbols and traditions and explain why they are important. (Individuals, Society and Culture)
  • 2.1.5. Proficiency Statement: Chronological Thinking, Historical Comprehension, Research Develop a simple timeline of important events in the history of the school and/or community.
  • 2.1.6. Proficiency Statement: Chronological Thinking, Historical Comprehension, Research Create and maintain a calendar of important school days, holidays and community events.
  • 2.1.7. Proficiency Statement: Chronological Thinking, Historical Comprehension, Research Read about and summarize historical community events using libraries and a variety of information resources.
• IN.2. Standard: Civics and Government Students will explain why communities have government and laws, demonstrate that people in the United States have both rights and responsibilities, and identify individual actions that contribute to the good of the community and nation.
  • 2.2.1. Proficiency Statement: Foundations of Government Explain that the United States government is founded on the belief of equal rights for its citizens. (Individuals, Society and Culture)
  • 2.2.2. Proficiency Statement: Functions of Government Understand and explain why it is important for a community to have responsible government.
  • 2.2.3. Proficiency Statement: Functions of Government Identify community leaders, such as the mayor and city council.
  • 2.2.4. Proficiency Statement: Roles of Citizens Describe how people of different ages, cultural backgrounds and traditions contribute to the community and how all citizens can respect these differences. (Individuals, Society and Culture)
  • 2.2.5. Proficiency Statement: Roles of Citizens Identify people who are good citizens and describe the character traits that make them admirable.
  • 2.2.6. Proficiency Statement: Roles of Citizens Discuss and explain the meaning of the Pledge of Allegiance and identify other ways citizens can affirm their citizenship.
  • 2.2.7. Proficiency Statement: Roles of Citizens Explain the consequences of violating laws, including punishment of those who do wrong, and the importance of resolving conflicts appropriately.
• IN.3. Standard: Geography Students will locate their community, state and nation on maps and globes; identify major geographic characteristics of their local community; and explore geographic relationships between the physical and environmental characteristics of their community.
  • 2.3.1. Proficiency Statement: The World in Spatial Terms Use a compass rose to identify cardinal and intermediate directions and to locate places on maps and places in the classroom, school and community.
  • 2.3.2. Proficiency Statement: The World in Spatial Terms Locate the equator and the poles on a globe and identify the local community, state and the United States on maps.
  • 2.3.3. Proficiency Statement: Places and Regions Compare neighborhoods in your community and explain how physical features of the community affect people living there.
  • 2.3.4. Proficiency Statement: Physical Systems On a map, identify physical features of the local community.
  • 2.3.5. Proficiency Statement: Human Systems Identify and describe cultural or human features on a map using map symbols. (Individuals, Society and Culture)
  • 2.3.6. Proficiency Statement: Human Systems Describe simple demographics of the school.
  • 2.3.7. Proficiency Statement: Environment and Society Identify ways that recreational opportunities influence human activity in the community.
• IN.4. Standard: Economics Students will describe how people in a community use productive resources, create a variety of businesses and industries, specialize in different types of jobs, and depend on each other to supply goods and services.
  • 2.4.1. Proficiency Statement: Define the three types of productive resources (human resources, natural Resources and capital resources) and identify productive resources used to produce goods and services in the community.
  • 2.4.2. Proficiency Statement: Identify community workers who provide goods and services for the rest of the community and explain how their jobs benefit people in the community.
  • 2.4.3. Proficiency Statement: Explain that a price is what people pay when they buy a good or service and what people receive when they sell a good or service.
  • 2.4.4. Proficiency Statement: Research goods and services produced in the local community and describe how people can be both producers and consumers.
  • 2.4.5. Proficiency Statement: Explain that because of scarcity, people must make choices and incur opportunity costs.
  • 2.4.6. Proficiency Statement: Define specialization and identify specialized jobs in the school and community.
  • 2.4.7. Proficiency Statement: Explain why people trade for goods and services and explain how money makes trade easier.
  • 2.4.8. Proficiency Statement: Explain that income that people do not spend on goods and services is called savings.

ß113.13. Social Studies, Grade 2, Beginning with School Year 2011-2012

Introduction

1. In Grade 2, students focus on a study of their local community by examining the impact of significant individuals and events on the history of the community as well as on the state and nation. Students begin to develop the concepts of time and chronology. The relationship between the physical environment and human activities is introduced as are the concepts of consumers and producers. Students identify functions of government as well as services provided by the local government. Students continue to acquire knowledge of customs, symbols, and celebrations that represent American beliefs and principles. Students identify the significance of works of art in the local community and explain how technological innovations have changed transportation and communication. Students communicate what they have learned in written, oral, and visual forms.
2. To support the teaching of the essential knowledge and skills, the use of a variety of rich material such as nonfiction texts, primary sources, biographies, folklore, poetry, songs, and artworks is encouraged. Motivating resources are available from museums, historical sites, presidential libraries, online tours, and local and state preservation societies.
3. The eight strands of the essential knowledge and skills for social studies are intended to be integrated for instructional purposes. Skills listed in the social studies skills strand in subsection (b) of this section should be incorporated into the teaching of all essential knowledge and skills for social studies. A greater depth of understanding of complex content material can be attained when integrated social studies content from the various disciplines and critical-thinking skills are taught together. Statements that contain the word "including" reference content that must be mastered, while those containing the phrase "such as" are intended as possible illustrative examples.
4. Students identify the role of the U.S. free enterprise system within the parameters of this course and understand that this system may also be referenced as capitalism or the free market system.
5. Throughout social studies in Kindergarten-Grade 12, students build a foundation in history; geography; economics; government; citizenship; culture; science, technology, and society; and social studies skills. The content, as appropriate for the grade level or course, enables students to understand the importance of patriotism, function in a free enterprise society, and appreciate the basic democratic values of our state and nation as referenced in the Texas Education Code (TEC), §28.002(h).
6. Students understand that a constitutional republic is a representative form of government whose representatives derive their authority from the consent of the governed, serve for an established tenure, and are sworn to uphold the constitution.
7. Students must demonstrate learning performance related to any federal and state mandates regarding classroom instruction. Although Grade 2 is not required to participate in Celebrate Freedom Week, according to the TEC, §29.907, primary grades lay the foundation for subsequent learning. As a result, Grade 2 Texas essential knowledge and skills include standards related to this patriotic observance.
8. Students identify and discuss how the actions of U.S. citizens and the local, state, and federal governments have either met or failed to meet the ideals espoused in the founding documents.

Knowledge and skills

History.
The student understands the historical significance of landmarks and celebrations in the community, state, and nation. The student is expected to:

• a. explain the significance of various community, state, and national celebrations such as Veterans Day, Memorial Day, Independence Day, and Thanksgiving; and
• b. identify and explain the significance of various community, state, and national landmarks such as monuments and government buildings.

History.
The student understands the concepts of time and chronology. The student is expected to:

• a. describe the order of events by using designations of time periods such as historical and present times;
• b. apply vocabulary related to chronology, including past, present, and future; and
• c. create and interpret timelines for events in the past and present.

History.
The student understands how various sources provide information about the past and present. The student is expected to:

• a. identify several sources of information about a given period or event such as reference materials, biographies, newspapers, and electronic sources;
• b. describe various evidence of the same time period using primary sources such as photographs, journals, and interviews.

History.
The student understands how historical figures, patriots, and good citizens helped shape the community, state, and nation. The student is expected to:

• a. identify contributions of historical figures, including Thurgood Marshall, Irma Rangel, John Hancock, and Theodore Roosevelt, who have influenced the community, state, and nation;
• b. identify historical figures such as Amelia Earhart, W. E. B. DuBois, Robert Fulton, and George Washington Carver who have exhibited individualism and inventiveness; and
• c. explain how people and events have influenced local community history.

Geography.
The student uses simple geographic tools such as maps and globes. The student is expected to:

• a. interpret information on maps and globes using basic map elements such as title, orientation (north, south, east, west), and legend/map keys; and
• b. create maps to show places and routes within the home, school, and community.

Geography.
The student understands the locations and characteristics of places and regions in the community, state, and nation. The student is expected to:

• a. identify major landforms and bodies of water, including each of the continents and each of the oceans, on maps and globes;
• b. locate places of significance, including the local community, Texas, the state capital, the U.S. capital, major cities in Texas, the coast of Texas, Canada, Mexico, and the United States on maps and globes; and
• c. examine information from various sources about places and regions.

Geography.
The student understands how physical characteristics of places and regions affect people's activities and settlement patterns. The student is expected to:

• a. describe how weather patterns and seasonal patterns affect activities and settlement patterns;
• b. describe how natural resources and natural hazards affect activities and settlement patterns;
• c. explain how people depend on the physical environment and natural resources to meet basic needs; and
• d. identify the characteristics of different communities, including urban, suburban, and rural, and how they affect activities and settlement patterns.

Geography.
The student understands how humans use and modify the physical environment. The student is expected to:

• a.  identify ways in which people have modified the physical environment such as building roads, clearing land for urban development and agricultural use, and drilling for oil;
• b. identify positive and negative consequences of human modification of the physical environment such as the use of irrigation to improve crop yields; and
• c. identify ways people can conserve and replenish natural resources.

Economics.
The student understands the value of work. The student is expected to:

• a. explain how work provides income to purchase goods and services; and
• b. explain the choices people in the U.S. free enterprise system can make about earning, spending, and saving money and where to live and work.

Economics.
The student understands the roles of producers and consumers in the production of goods and services. The student is expected to:

• a. distinguish between producing and consuming;
• b. identify ways in which people are both producers and consumers; and
• c. examine the development of a product from a natural resource to a finished product.

Government.
The student understands the purpose of governments. The student is expected to:

• a. identify functions of governments such as establishing order, providing security, and managing conflict;
• b. identify governmental services in the community such as police and fire protection, libraries, schools, and parks and explain their value to the community; and
• c. describe how governments tax citizens to pay for services.

Government.
The student understands the role of public officials. The student is expected to:

• a. name current public officials, including mayor, governor, and president;
• b. compare the roles of public officials, including mayor, governor, and president;
• c. identify ways that public officials are selected, including election and appointment to office; and
• d. identify how citizens participate in their own governance through staying informed of what public officials are doing, providing input to them, and volunteering to participate in government functions.

Citizenship.
The student understands characteristics of good citizenship as exemplified by historical figures and other individuals. The student is expected to:

• a.  identify characteristics of good citizenship, including truthfulness, justice, equality, respect for oneself and others, responsibility in daily life, and participation in government by educating oneself about the issues, respectfully holding public officials to their word, and voting;
• b. identify historical figures such as Paul Revere, Abigail Adams, World War II Women Airforce Service Pilots (WASPs) and Navajo Code Talkers, and Sojourner Truth who have exemplified good citizenship;
• c. identify other individuals who exemplify good citizenship; and
• d. identify ways to actively practice good citizenship, including involvement in community service.

Citizenship.
The student identifies customs, symbols, and celebrations that represent American beliefs and principles that contribute to our national identity. The student is expected to:

• a.  recite the Pledge of Allegiance to the United States Flag and the Pledge to the Texas Flag;
• b. identify selected patriotic songs, including "The Star Spangled Banner" and "America the Beautiful";
• c. identify selected symbols such as state and national birds and flowers and patriotic symbols such as the U.S. and Texas flags and Uncle Sam; and
• d. identify how selected customs, symbols, and celebrations reflect an American love of individualism, inventiveness, and freedom.

Culture.
The student understands the significance of works of art in the local community. The student is expected to:

• a. identify selected stories, poems, statues, paintings, and other examples of the local cultural heritage; and
• b. explain the significance of selected stories, poems, statues, paintings, and other examples of the local cultural heritage.

Culture.
The student understands ethnic and/or cultural celebrations. The student is expected to:

• a. identify the significance of various ethnic and/or cultural celebrations; and
• b. compare ethnic and/or cultural celebrations.

Science, technology, and society.
The student understands how technology affects daily life, past and present. The student is expected to:

• a. describe how science and technology change communication, transportation, and recreation; and
• b. explain how science and technology change the ways in which people meet basic needs.

Social studies skills.
The student applies critical-thinking skills to organize and use information acquired from a variety of valid sources, including electronic technology. The student is expected to:

• a. obtain information about a topic using a variety of valid oral sources such as conversations, interviews, and music;
• b. obtain information about a topic using a variety of valid visual sources such as pictures, symbols, electronic media, maps, literature, and artifacts; and
• c. use various parts of a source, including the table of contents, glossary, and index, as well as keyword Internet searches to locate information;
• d. sequence and categorize information.
• e. interpret oral, visual, and print material by identifying the main idea, predicting, and comparing and contrasting.

Social studies skills.
The student communicates in oral, visual, and written forms. The student is expected to:

• a. express ideas orally based on knowledge and experiences; and
• b. create written and visual material such as stories, poems, maps, and graphic organizers to express ideas.

Social studies skills.
The student uses problem-solving and decision-making skills, working independently and with others, in a variety of settings. The student is expected to:

• a. use a problem-solving process to identify a problem, gather information, list and consider options, consider advantages and disadvantages, choose and implement a solution, and evaluate the effectiveness of the solution; and
• b. use a decision-making process to identify a situation that requires a decision, gather information, generate options, predict outcomes, take action to implement a decision, and reflect on the effectiveness of the decision.

(Note: By the completion of third grade, Oregon students are expected to master the following standards.)

Benchmark 1 students focus on basic skills in history, geography, civics and economics relating most to home and community. Students use their local area to explore their responsibilities and rights as citizens of a community, and the history of that community. They use simple maps, locate physical features, and consider how people are affected by the environment and how the environment is affected by people. Students also study the concept of economic scarcity and how people make economic choices. Additionally, they learn the basic concepts of Social Science Analysis, identifying issues or problems, gathering information, comparing perspectives, and considering options or responses to issues or problems.

Civics and Government

• Understand the origins, purposes, and functions of U.S. government, including the structure and meaning of the U.S. Constitution.
• SS.03.CG.01 Identify essential ideas and values expressed in national symbols, heroes, and patriotic songs of the United States.
• Understand personal and political rights of citizens in the United States.
  • SS.03.CG.02 Identify rights that people have in their communities.
• Understand participatory responsibilities of citizens in the community (voluntarism) and in the political process (becoming informed about public issues and candidates, joining political parties/interest groups/associations, communicating with public officials, voting, influencing lawmaking through such processes as petitions/initiatives).
  • SS.03.CG.03 Identify ways that people can participate in their communities and the responsibilities of participation.
• Understand how nations interact with each other, how events and issues in other countries can affect citizens in the United States, and how actions and concepts of democracy and individual rights of the United States can affect other peoples and nations.
  • SS.03.CG.04 Distinguish local and world issues.

Economics

• Understand that resources are limited (e.g., scarcity).
  • SS.03.EC.01 Understand that limited resources make economic choice necessary.
• Apply economic concepts and principles to issues of personal finance.
  • SS.03.EC.02 Identify ways of making money to buy a desired product and what it will cost in time and energy for each option.

Geography

• Understand the spatial concepts of location, distance, direction, scale, movement, and region.
  • SS.03.GE.01 View and draw simple maps and pictures to locate, describe, and show movement among places.
• Use maps and other geographic tools and technologies to acquire, process, and report information from a spatial perspective.
  • SS.03.GE.02 Understand the purpose of maps, globes, and other geographic tools.
• Locate major physical and human (cultural) features of the Earth.
  • SS.03.GE.03 Identify major physical features and describe how they are represented on maps, globes, and other tools.
• Compare and analyze physical (e.g., landforms, vegetation, wildlife, climate, and natural hazards) and human (e.g., population, land use, language, and religion) characteristics of places and regions.
  • SS.03.GE.04 Identify physical characteristics of places and compare them.

History

• Historical Skills: Interpret and reconstruct chronological relationships.
  • SS.03.HS.01 Understand calendar time sequences and chronological sequences within narratives.
• State & Local History: Understand and interpret events, issues, and developments in the history of one’s family, local community, and culture.
  • SS.03.HS.02 Understand events from local history.

Social Science Analysis

• Define and clarify an issue so that its dimensions are well understood.
  • SS.03.SA.01 Identify an issue or problem that can be studied.
• Acquire and organize materials from primary and secondary sources.
  • SS.03.SA.02 Gather information relating to an issue or problem.
• Explain various perspectives on an event or issue and the reasoning behind them.
  • SS.03.SA.03 Identify and compare different ways of looking at an event, issue, or problem.
• Identify and analyze an issue.
  • SS.03.SA.04 Identify how people or other living things might be affected by an event, issue, or problem.
• Select a course of action to resolve an issue.
  • SS.03.SA.05 Identify possible options or responses; then make a choice or express an opinion.

• Strand: History

  Content Standard I: Students are able to identify important people and events in order to analyze significant patterns, relationships, themes, ideas, beliefs, and turning points in New Mexico, United States, and world history in order to understand the complexity of the human experience.

  • Grade 2 Benchmark I-A—New Mexico:

    Describe how contemporary and historical people and events have influenced New Mexico communities and regions.

    Performance Standards

    1. Describe how historical people, groups, and events have influenced the local community.

  • Grade 2 Benchmark I-B—United States:

    Understand connections among historical events, people, and symbols significant to United States history and cultures.

    Performance Standards

    1. Describe the cultural diversity of individuals and groups and their contributions to United States history (e.g., George Washington, Ben Franklin, CÈsar Ch·vez, Rosa Parks, National Association for Advancement of Colored People [NAACP], tribal leaders, American Indian Movement [AIM]).

  • Grade 2 Benchmark I-C—World:

    Students will identify and describe similar historical characteristics of the United States and its neighboring countries.

    Performance Standards

    1. Describe and compare similarities of the history of peoples in North America through literature (e.g., story-telling, fables, folktales, fairy tales).

  • Grade 2 Benchmark I-D—Skills:

    Understand time passage and chronology.

    Performance Standards

    1. Correctly sequence historical events.

• Strand: Geography

  Content Standard II: Students understand how physical, natural, and cultural processes influence where people live, the ways in which people live, and how societies interact with one another and their environments.

  • Grade 2 Benchmark II-A:

    Understand the concept of location by using and constructing maps, globes, and other geographic tools to identify and derive information about people, places, and environments.

    Performance Standards

    1. Use a variety of maps to locate specific places and regions.
    2. Identify major landforms, bodies of water, and other places of significance in selected countries, continents, and oceans.

  • Grade 2 Benchmark II-B:

    Distinguish between natural and human characteristics of places and use this knowledge to define regions, their relationships with other regions, and patterns of change.

    Performance Standards

    1. Describe how climate, natural resources, and natural hazards affect activities and settlement patterns.
    2. Explain how people depend on the environment and its resources to satisfy their basic needs.

  • Grade 2 Benchmark II-C:

    Be familiar with aspects of human behavior and man-made and natural environments in order to recognize their impact on the past and present.

    Performance Standards

    1. Identify ways in which people depend on natural and man-made environments including natural resources to meet basic needs.

  • Grade 2 Benchmark II-D:

    Understand how physical processes shape the Earth's surface patterns and biosystems.

    Performance Standards

    1. Describe the physical processes that affect the Earthís features (e.g., weather, erosion).
    2. Identify characteristics of physical systems (e.g., water cycle).

  • Grade 2 Benchmark II-E:

    Describe how economic, political, cultural, and social processes interact to shape patterns of human populations, and their interdependence, cooperation, and conflict.

    Performance Standards

    1. Describe how characteristics of culture affect behaviors and lifestyles.

  • Grade 2 Benchmark II-F:

    Describe how natural and man-made changes affect the meaning, use, distribution, and value of resources.

    Performance Standards

    1. Describe ways that people and groups can conserve and replenish natural resources.

• Strand: Civics and Government

  Content Standard III: Students understand the ideals, rights, and responsibilities of citizenship and understand the content and history of the founding documents of the United States with particular emphasis on the United States and New Mexico constitutions and how governments function at local, state, tribal, and national levels.

  • Grade 2 Benchmark III-A:

    Know the fundamental purposes, concepts, structures, and functions of local, state, tribal, and national governments.

    Performance Standards

    1. Understand the purposes of government.
    2. Describe and compare class rules made by direct democracy (entire class votes on the rules) and by representative democracy (class elects a smaller group to make the rules).

  • Grade 2 Benchmark III-B:

    Identify and describe the symbols, icons, songs, traditions, and leaders of local, state, tribal, and national levels that exemplify ideals and provide continuity and a sense of community across time.

    Performance Standards

    1. Identify local governing officials and explain how their roles reflect their community.

  • Grade 2 Benchmark III-C:

    Become familiar with the basic purposes of government in New Mexico and the United States.

    Performance Standards

    1. Describe the concept of ìpublic goodî and identify local examples of systems that support the ìpublic good.î

  • Grade 2 Benchmark III- D:

    Understand rights and responsibilities of "good citizenship" as members of a family, school and community.

    Performance Standards

    1. Understand characteristics of ìgood citizenshipî as exemplified by historic and ordinary people.
    2. Explain the responsibilities of being a member of various groups (e.g. family, school, community).

• Strand: Economics

  Content Standard IV: Students understand basic economic principles and use economic reasoning skills to analyze the impact of economic systems (including the market economy) on individuals, families, businesses, communities, and governments.

  • Grade 2 Benchmark IV-A:

    Understand that individuals, households, businesses, governments, and societies make decisions that affect the distribution of resources and that these decisions are influenced by incentives (both economic and intrinsic).

    Performance Standards

    1. Identify economic decisions made by individuals and households and explain how resources are distributed.

  • Grade 2 Benchmark IV-B:

    Understand that economic systems impact the way individuals, households, businesses, governments, and societies make decisions about goods and services.

    Performance Standards

    1. Understand the roles of producers and consumers in the production of goods and services.
    2. Explain the role of the worker in the local economy.

  • Grade 2 Benchmark IV-C:

    Understand the patterns and results of trade and exchange among individuals, households, businesses, governments, and societies, and their interdependent qualities.

    Performance Standards

    1. Understand that money is the generally accepted medium of exchange in most societies, and that different countries use different currencies.

Core Standards of the Course

• Standard 1

  (Culture): Students will recognize and describe how people within their community, state, and nation are both similar and different.

  • Objective 1

    Examine and identify cultural differences within the community.

    • a. Explain the various cultural heritages within their community.
    • b. Explain ways people respect and pass on their traditions and customs.
    • c. Give examples of how families in the community borrow customs or traditions from other cultures.

  • Objective 2

    Recognize and describe the contributions of different cultural groups in Utah and the nation.

    • a. Identify various cultural groups within the state and the nation.
    • b. Describe contributions of cultural groups to our state and nation.
    • c. Explain ways American Indians and immigrants have shaped both Utah's and America's culture (e.g., names of places, food, customs, celebrations).
    • d. Compare and contrast elements of two or more cultures within the state and nation (e.g., language, food, clothing, shelter, traditions, and celebrations).

  Social Studies Vocabulary Students Should Know and Use: community, tradition, custom, immigrant, celebration, contribution, culture, group, state, nation, place, compare, contrast

• Standard 2

  (Citizenship): Students will recognize and practice civic responsibility in the community, state, and nation.

  • Objective 1

    Examine civic responsibility and demonstrate good citizenship.

    • a. Describe characteristics of being a good citizen through the examples of historic figures and ordinary citizens.
    • b. Explain the benefits of being a U.S. citizen (e.g., responsibilities, freedoms, opportunities, and the importance of voting in free elections).
    • c. Identify and participate in a local civic activity. (e.g. community cleanup, recycling, walkathons, voting).
    • d. Identify state and national activities (e.g., voting, Pledge of Allegiance, holidays).

  • Objective 2

    Identify individuals within the school community and how they contribute to the school's success.

    • a. Identify the roles that people have in the school and explain the importance of each member.
    • b. Demonstrate respect for the school and the school community.

  • Objective 3

    Investigate and show how communities, state, and nation are united by symbols that represent citizenship in our nation.

    • a. Explain the significance of various community, state, and national celebrations (e.g., Memorial Day, Independence Day, and Thanksgiving).
    • b. Identify community and state symbols, documents and landmarks (e.g., city hall, county courthouse, state capitol, Utah State Constitution, flag, holidays).
    • c. Identify and explain the significance of various national symbols, documents, and landmarks (e.g., Declaration of Independence, Constitution, flag, Pledge of Allegiance, national monuments, national capitol building).

  Social Studies Vocabulary Students Should Know and Use: vote, election, recycle, holiday, respect, community, Memorial Day, Independence Day, Thanksgiving, city hall, courthouse, state capitol, Utah State Constitution, flag, Declaration of Independence, U.S. Constitution, national capitol, national monuments, citizen, civic

• Standard 3

  (Geography): Students will use geographic tools and skills to locate and describe places on earth.

  • Objective 1

    Identify common symbols and physical features of a community, and explain how they affect people's activities in that area.

    • a. Identify community traffic signs and symbols, and know their meanings (e.g., stop sign, hazard symbols, pedestrian crossing, bike route, recreational, blind or deaf child signs).
    • b. Describe how geographic aspects of the area affect a community and influence culture (e.g., river, mountain, and desert).
    • c. Describe ways in which people have modified the physical environment in a community (e.g., building roads, clearing land for homes, and mining).

  • Objective 2

    Demonstrate geographic skills on a map and a globe.

    • a. Identify and use information on a map and on a globe (e.g., map key or legend, simple grid systems, physical features, compass rose).
    • b. Compare and contrast the difference between maps and globes.
    • c. Locate your city, the State of Utah, and the United States on a variety of maps or on a globe.
    • d. Locate and label the following on a map or a globe: the seven continents, the five oceans, the poles, and the equator.
    • e. Using a map or a globe, link cultures/nationalities within your community to their place of origin.

  Social Studies Vocabulary Students Should Know and Use: traffic sign, modify, environment, map key/legend, continent, ocean, the poles, equator, origin, river, mountain, desert, grid, Utah, United States

• Standard 4

  (Financial Literacy): Students will explain how the economy meets human needs through the interaction of producers and consumers.

  • Objective 1

    Describe how producers and consumers work together in the making and using of goods and services.

    • a. Define and explain the difference between producing and consuming.
    • b. Explain ways in which people can be both consumers and producers of goods and services.
    • c. Recognize that people supply goods and services based on what people want.
    • d. Identify examples of technology that people use (e.g., automobiles, computers, telephones).
    • e. Identify how technology affects the way people live (work and play).

  • Objective 2

    Describe the choices people make in using goods and services.

    • a. Explain the goods and services that businesses provide.
    • b. Explain the services that government provides.
    • c. Explain different ways to pay for goods and services (i.e., cash, checks, credit cards).
    • d. Explain how work provides income to purchase goods and services.
    • e. Explain reasons and ways to save money (e.g., to buy a bicycle or MP3 player, piggy bank, bank, credit union, savings account).

  Social Studies Vocabulary Students Should Know and Use: produce, consume, supply, technology, business, government, goods, services, cash, credit card, check, income, purchase, savings account

AL.2 Standard: Living and Working Together in State and Nation

The goal of the second-grade curriculum is to introduce students to major historical events, figures, and symbols related to the principles of American democracy. Children learn to value differences among people and exemplify a respect for the rights and opinions of others.

2.1

• 2.1.1 Students will:

  Relate principles of American democracy to the founding of the nation (History, Civics and Government).

• 2.1.2 Students will practice:

  • Identifying reasons for the settlement of the thirteen colonies
  • Recognizing basic principles of the Declaration of Independence, the Constitution of the United States, the establishment of the three branches of government, and the Emancipation Proclamation
  • Demonstrating the voting process, including roles of major political parties
  • Utilizing school and classroom rules to reinforce democratic values

2.2

• 2.2.1 Students will:

  Identify national historical figures and celebrations that exemplify fundamental democratic values, including equality, justice, and responsibility for the common good (History, Civics and Government).

• 2.2.2 Students will practice:

  • Recognizing our country’s founding fathers, including George Washington, Thomas Jefferson, Benjamin Franklin, Patrick Henry, John Adams, John Hancock, and James Madison
  • Recognizing historical female figures, including Abigail Adams, Dolley Madison, Harriet Tubman, and Harriet Beecher Stowe
  • Describing the significance of national holidays, including the birthday of Martin Luther King, Jr., Presidents’ Day, Memorial Day, the Fourth of July, Veterans Day, and Thanksgiving Day
  • Describing the history of American symbols and monuments

  • Grade Level Example:

    Liberty Bell, Statue of Liberty, bald eagle, United States flag, Washington Monument, Lincoln Memorial

2.3

• 2.3. Students will:

  Use various primary sources, including calendars and timelines, for constructing the past (Geography, History).

  • Grade Level Example:

    historical letters, stories, interviews with elders, photographs, maps, artifacts

2.4

• 2.4. Students will:

  Use vocabulary to describe segments of time, including year, decade, score, and century (History).

2.5

• 2.5.1 Students will:

  Differentiate between a physical map and a political map (Geography).

  • Grade Level Example:

    physical map—illustrating rivers and mountains political map—illustrating symbols for states and capitals

• 2.5.2 Students will practice:

  Using vocabulary associated with geographical features, including latitude, longitude, and border.

2.6

• 2.6.1 Students will:

  Identify states, continents, oceans, and the equator using maps, globes, and technology (Geography).

• 2.6.2 Students will practice:

  • Identifying map elements, including title, legend, compass rose, and scale
  • Identifying the intermediate directions of northeast, southeast, northwest, and southwest
  • Recognizing technological resources such as a virtual globe, satellite images, and radar
  • Locating points on a grid/li>

2.7

• 2.7.1 Students will:

  Explain production and distribution processes (Economics).

• Grade Level Example:

  tracing milk supply from dairy to consumer

• 2.7.2 Students will practice:

  • Identifying examples of imported and exported goods
  • Describing the impact of consumer choices and decisions on supply and demand

2.8

• 2.8.1 Students will:

  Describe how scarcity affects supply and demand of natural resources and human-made products (Economics).

• Grade Level Example:

  cost of gasoline during oil shortages, price and expiration date of perishable foods

2.9

• 2.9.1 Students will:

  Describe how and why people from various cultures immigrate to the United States (Geography, Civics and Government).

• Grade Level Example:

  how—ships, planes, automobiles
  why—improved quality of life, family connections, disasters

• 2.9.2 Students will practice:

  Describing the importance of cultural unity and diversity within and across groups

2.10

• 2.10.1 Students will:

  Identify ways people throughout a country are affected by their human and physical environments (Economics, Geography).

• Grade Level Example:

  land use, housing, occupations

• 1.10.2 Students will practice:

  • Comparing physical features of regions throughout the country

  • Grade Level Example:

    differences in a desert environment, a tropical rain forest, and a polar region

  • Identifying positive and negative ways people affect the environment

  • Grade Level Example:

    positive—restocking fish in lakes, reforesting cleared land
    negative—polluting water, littering roadways, eroding soil

  • Recognizing benefits of recreation and tourism at
    state and national parks

2.11

• 2.11.1 Students will:

  Interpret legends, stories, and songs that contributed to the development of the cultural history of the United States (History).

• Grade Level Example:

  American Indian legends, African-American stories, tall tales, stories of folk heroes