What to expect in preschool: Social studies
Preschool gives children their first sense of community outside the home. Social studies learning begins as children make friends and participate in decision-making in the classroom; then it moves beyond the school into the neighborhood and around the world.
The classroom
Preschool is a safe, caring community with an orderly routine, and each child is valued as an individual. Everything in the classroom lends itself to learning the concepts underlying social studies. When children play pretend games or build with blocks, and work together in small groups on class projects, they learn to accept differences, deal with their emotions, and practice resolving conflicts. They gain confidence as their social skills develop, and they learn to share, take turns, and practice being both leaders and followers. They develop a sense of personal responsibility by performing a variety of jobs, such as giving out the cups and napkins for snacks, or opening the door and turning out the lights when the class leaves the room. Preschoolers also learn community responsibility by cleaning up after projects and taking pride in having a clean, neat classroom. Teachers encourage children to reflect on their experiences and learn from them by asking thought provoking questions and initiating discussions.
The neighborhood
Teachers help children apply the concepts they learn in their classroom to an understanding of their neighborhood. Children learn to observe their surroundings: the homes, banks, firehouse, police station, restaurants, movie theater, church, synagogue, mosque, senior citizens center, schools, playground, park. They observe the kinds of stores in the area: groceries, dry cleaners, tailors, barber shops, clothing boutiques, bookstores, toy stores. They learn what each store sells, where the merchandise comes from, who the customers might be, and why each is important. The teacher may read a book about neighborhoods and discuss similarities and differences between their neighborhood and the one in the book. Later they may make a map of their area.
Class trips
Preschoolers often go to restaurants to learn how meals are prepared and served. They may visit banks and firehouses, police stations and senior citizen centers. When the children return to their classroom, they discuss their observations and reinforce their learning through play. They may set up a bookstore, a grocery store, or a bank in the dress-up area, and act out the things they have learned.
Holidays
Teachers take advantage of holidays to teach children about their history and to make them aware of different cultural traditions. "We celebrate with songs and stories and craft projects," says Mary Jane Belt, a preschool teacher from Long Island, New York. Children learn about Christopher Columbus and draw pictures of the Santa Maria, Pinta, and Nina, or build them out of blocks. At Thanksgiving children talk about the things they are grateful for and act out the first Thanksgiving dinner. On Lincoln's birthday, they may build log cabins out of pretzel sticks, or recite poems, or listen to stories. On Martin Luther King's birthday, they talk about civil rights and learn about the importance of the role King played.
Children also learn to respect the traditions of others by understanding the stories and traditions of religious and ethnic holidays: The Visit of the Three Kings, Christmas, Easter, Passover, Chanukah, Yom Kippur, Ramadan, and Kwanzaa.
