Social Science Curriculum K-8

The goal of social science in District 97 is to create graduates who are civically engaged, socially responsible, culturally aware, and financially literate.  Through the social sciences, young people develop skills critical to success in high school, college and careers.  Most importantly, students will emerge with the knowledge, skills, attitudes, and behaviors necessary to be informed and effective citizens.

Social Science K-5

Social Science (K-5 ) Mission Statement 

K-5 social science creates a culture that recognizes the need for our students to have the knowledge, skills, attitudes, and behaviors necessary to be informed and effective global citizens.  Students will participate in experiences that recognize and appreciate diversity, varying beliefs, perspectives, and values which promote agency and change by interpreting and navigating historical and current information about relationships between individuals, communities, and societies.

Social Science K-5 Curriculum

In elementary school, students build on expanding social awareness at each grade level, using interdisciplinary themes to compare their social world with others, both in the past and present.  Students learn about civics, history, economics, and geography, cultivating their knowledge, problem solving, and critical thinking through the inquiry process.  Students learn through the following thematic units: 

  • Kindergarten: My Social World
  • First Grade: Living, Learning, and Working Together
  • Second Grade: Families, Neighborhoods, and Communities
  • Third Grade: Communities Near and Far
  • Fourth Grade: Our State, Our Nation
  • Fifth Grade: Our Nation, Our World

Social Science in 6-8

Social Science (6-8) Mission Statement

The D97 Social Science department is committed to helping students become independent and reflective thinkers. Students will make connections from history to the present through reading, writing, and the inquiry process. As educators, we will guide students in the understanding and analysis of important issues of the past and foster a commitment to global citizenship, equity and anti racism.

Social Science 6/7/8

In middle school, learning happens in a continuum to meet the needs of all students. Students cultivate critical thinking skills used by social scientists through the inquiry process. Students apply inquiry skills through the disciplinary concepts which include civics, economics and financial literacy, geography, and history. 

  • Civics
    • Civic and Political Institutions
    • Participation and Deliberation: Applying Civic Virtue and Democratic Principles
    • Processes, Rules, and Laws
  • Economics and Financial Literacy
    • Economic Decision Making
    • Exchange and Markets
    • The National and Global Economy
  • Geography
    • Geographic Representations: Spatial Views of the World
    • Human-Environment Interaction: Place, Regions, and Culture
    • Human Population: Spatial Patterns and Movements
    • Global Interconnections: Changing Spatial Patterns
  • History
    • Change, Continuity and Context
    • Perspectives
    • Historical Sources and Evidence
    • Causation and Argumentation