Development of guidelines for using children's literature in the social studies and science programs in the elementary grades

Parsons, Robert Charles (1982) Development of guidelines for using children's literature in the social studies and science programs in the elementary grades. Masters thesis, Memorial University of Newfoundland.

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Abstract

Children’s literature is necessary to extend and enrich the content of social studies and science texts. Many teachers in the elementary grades, however, are unfamiliar with a large number of good books suitable for this purpose. Even when many books are available to them, most teachers do not have the time needed to develop activities for use with each book. -- The primary purpose of this study was to select appropriate children’ s books which could effectively enrich units presented in the elementary social studies and science programs currently in use in the schools of Newfoundland, and to provide for each book an annotation, complete bibliographical information, and an indication of the level of reading difficulty. A secondary purpose was to develop, at each grade level, discussion questions and activities for a sample of several books. -- Through a study of the prescribed textbooks, teachers’ manuals, guidebooks, and programs of study, the units of study contained in the social studies and science programs in the elementary grades were identified. The subject indexes of reputable selection aids were used to determine the titles of children’s books which were related to these units of study. A listing was made of the titles, and each available book was read to determine its suitability for enrichment purposes in elementary social studies and science. An annotated list of books for each grade was prepared. Complete bibliographic information, a summary, an indication of the level of reading difficulty, and at least one recommending source were prepared for each book. For a sample of books at each grade level, examples of related activities and discussion questions were developed to serve as guides for teachers when developing their own activities for these or other children’ s books.

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