Social Studies for kindergarten and preschool students begins the moment they enter a classroom. A classroom is a community in itself outside the home. Social studies is defined as the relationship people with their environment and the world that they live in. First-grade social studies have this first lesson starting on the first day of class when the kid enters a new community. This social studies learning continues from the classroom to the neighborhood and then all around the world.
What is a community?
A child needs to know that “A community is a group of people working or living together in the same area.”
The social studies for kindergarten start teaching community houses in three steps.
1. The Classroom Community
The classroom of preschool is a small, safe community in which the kids learn the concepts of social studies with the help of pretend games, group activities and block building. With the help of these activities, kids learn to:
accept differences deal with their emotions resolving conflicts develop social skills share take turns responsibility
By performing small tasks in the classroom like turning out the lights, handing out water cups or napkins during lunch time, kids develop a sense of responsibility and work ethic of community homes.
2. The Neighborhood Community
Now you can help the kids to apply the concepts that they learned in class, it dealing with the neighborhood community. Tell them about the things and parts in a neighborhood community such as homes, playground, park, banks, police station, restaurants, and schools. Let the kids observe the stores and markets in their neighborhood and ask what kind of merchandise they sell. Make cardboard cut paste activities where kids have to paste the picture of merchandise in front of the correct store.
3. Class Trips The third step in this learning is to take kids out on school trips and let them learn about other communities and places in the world. This interactive and practical learning is essential in teaching the basics of social studies for kindergarten.