I am currently finishing an enlightening book called Door to Door: The Magnificent, Maddening, Mysterious World of Transportation by Edward Humes (2016). True to its title, this book explores how everything from a morning cup of coffee to delivery pizza gets to my doorstep.  While the premise is, in fact, both magnificent and maddening (my ground coffee involved thousands of miles of shipping by boat, rail, and truck to reach my kitchen cabinet), what’s equally astounding to me are the partnerships required to make such commerce happen. The goods and services in our lives require a complex…

Tina currently serves as a professor at the University of North Carolina at Charlotte (UNC Charlotte) Department of Middle, Secondary, and K-12 Education. She also directs the Ph.D. in Curriculum and Instruction and the M.Ed. in Secondary Education at UNC Charlotte. She has over 28 years of experience as a social studies educator in K-12 schools and a social studies methodologist in higher education. Her teaching and research is focused on effective practices in social studies education with particular emphasis in online learning and disciplinary literacy as well as curriculum and policy…

Until October 1, 2017. GEEO.org is offering a 5% Early Booking Discount on all 2018 spring and summer programs. To see the discounted program fees for all of the 2018 programs, visit www.geeo.org.Winter Break Programs: The Peru Winter Break program is almost sold out (9/14). There is room on the Galapagos Winter Break, "which is a great time to go on one of GEEO's most popular programs. The winter break programs are not on sale." Spring Break Programs: There are four spring break departures on sale for 5% off: • Galapagos Spring Break (March 24 to April, 2018) • Peru Spring Break (March 31st…

The middle-level “No Impact Project” curriculum uses film and printed matter (including lesson handouts) to help middle and high school students explore the effects their everyday behavior has on the environment, their health, and their well-being. It will also challenge students to think about how the systems in our present society influence our lifestyle choices in ways that often are not good for environment. Finally, it will guide students to take action both individually and with others to bring about positive change. This curriculum connects students’ personal experiences with the…

The Middle East Policy Council's educational initiative, TeachMideast, aims to give high school teachers and students the tools and knowledge to become better-informed global citizens. Curriculum resources, classroom guides, in-depth essays, professional development opportunities, and film and book lists are all available. “Country Profiles” provide closer looks at the distinct challenges and qualities of 21 different countries. Links give further insight on a variety of subjects for further exploration, and up-to-date information can be used for student projects. For example, “This Week in…

    Starbucks is everywhere.  It is on busy street corners and intersections.  It is in the mall, the airport, and supermarket.  It is St. Louis and St. Cloud, Paris and Singapore.  At one point, there was even a Starbucks in the Forbidden City in China.  In the early 2000s, historian and writer Bryant Simon visited more than 400 Starbucks around the world to try to figure out what the company and it’s outlets told us about us, about what we care about and desire, what we want and what we think we need.   In his book, Everything But the Coffee, Simon connects our deepest desires to be…

(L to R) Author Hasan Kwame Jeffries chats with his former government teacher, Mark Willner, who taught him at Midwood High School in Brooklyn 30 years ago. Willner attended Jeffries's talk at the 2017 NCSS Annual Conference in San Francisco. (Photo by Jennie Bauduy) Over the course of five days in November, 2017, there were 3,404 social studies educators and related professionals who filled the great halls, session rooms, and meetings rooms in the elegant, sun-lit Moscone West in San Francisco. Co-chairs of the 97th NCSS Annual Conference Karen Korematsu (Director of the Fret T. Korematsu…

A classroom examination of the featured historical article announcing North Carolina’s ratification of the Constitution can springboard into a lesson on federalism, the Bill of Rights, and the ratification process.

The Library of Congress’s Slave Narratives Collection present students with an opportunity to expand their understanding of slavery in America while grappling with questions about interpretations of the past.