This inquiry leads students through an investigation of economic systems by focusing on the context of trade among world communities. Trading is one of the oldest forms of economic interaction among humans, yet it is also among the most complex. In examining the reasons for international trade and the exports of world communities, students should be able to develop an argument supported by evidence to answer the compelling question “Why do countries need each other?”
3-5
The Heart of Social Studies
Inquiries
This inquiry leads students through an investigation of economic systems by focusing on the context of trade among world communities. Trading is one of the oldest forms of economic interaction among humans, yet it is also among the most complex. In examining the reasons for international trade and the exports of world communities, students should…
This annotated inquiry focuses on physical geography in general and on the relationship between early (pre-1700) Native American nations and their environments in particular through the compelling question “Does where you live matter?” The compelling question highlights the idea that geography is not a neutral entity. Environments can exert an influence on human existence, but…
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This inquiry provides students with an opportunity to evaluate the relationship between the dramatic increase in European sugar consumption in the 18th and 19th centuries and the reliance on the labor of enslaved persons to produce sugar in the Western Hemisphere. In examining the compelling question–“How did sugar feed slavery?” students explore the environmental, economic,…
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This inquiry leads students through an investigation of the women’s suffrage movement in New York State as an example of how different groups of people have gained equal rights and freedoms over time. Through examining the role women played in society before the 20th century and the efforts made by women to gain the right…
This inquiry engages third-grade students in exploring world geography through the compelling question “Where are we?” This question sparks students’ intellectual curiosity through the study of geographic location and the impact of humans on their environment. Working with evidence from sources, students should understand that, although we can be in different “places,” our impact on…
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This fifth-grade annotated inquiry asks why countries declare their independence. As an integral early step in the process of becoming independent, a declaration of independence functions as an argument for why people should be free. This inquiry focuses on the argument made in the United States Declaration of Independence. With a firm understanding of the…
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The third-grade annotated inquiry focuses on the concept of universal human rights and fair treatment of all people through the compelling question “Do people around the world care about children’s rights?” This question highlights the idea that human rights, including the right to have one’s basic needs met, are to be universally ensured and protected….