Dear Teachers Q & A

By Peggy Gisler and Marge Eberts

Summer Learning Activities

Parents: We hope this past school year has gone well for your children. Because children should never stop learning in the summer, once more we are giving you some activities they can do throughout the rest of the break. This summer, we have selected activities in social studies. We realize considerable controversy has erupted about what should be taught in this area, but our hope is that our activities will extend and broaden children’s knowledge of our nation, as well as interject some fun into learning more about it.

Learning More About Immigration

Almost everyone in the United States is an immigrant or a descendant of an immigrant. Today, immigrants need to take and pass the naturalization civics test to become a citizen. Your older children should take the practice 2008 test online. It is a multiple choice test; however, the actual test is not. It is an oral test of 10 of the 100 questions on the 2008 test. Part of becoming a citizen requires an immigrant to answer six of them correctly. Can your children pass the test without doing some studying? Older children and parents should know the answer to most of these questions. Unfortunately, a survey showed that only one in three citizens could pass this test. There are other requirements besides passing the naturalization civics test to becoming a citizen.

A great topic of conversation this month is to talk with your children about from where their relatives immigrated to the United States. If you know, tell them where the relatives entered the United States, approximately what year it was and also why they came to the United States. If you are short on information about your ancestors, visit one of the genealogy sites for an absolute wealth of information. You might even make a family tree together. This is a good project because, more than likely, younger family members will have this assignment sometime during elementary school or even middle school.

Know the United States

Gather the family together and have them look at a detailed map of the United States. Then ask the following questions. Let the younger family members answer the easier questions. If there is no agreement about an answer, look it up. You can make this activity a game by having all family members circle their answers on individual maps, and it can be extended by having family members create new map questions for everyone to answer.

1. What states form an area known as the Four Corners?
2. What state is the smallest in size?
3. What states were the original 13 colonies?
4. How many states border Canada?
5. How many states border Mexico?
6. How many national parks can you find on the map?
7. Which states border Washington, D.C.?
8. What is the capital of your state?
9. What states border our state?
10. Which states border Lake Michigan?

Visiting Seats of Government Power

Expand your children’s knowledge of how government works. You might begin on the local level by visiting your city hall or the county seat. Many are in historical buildings, and some may even offer tours or let you visit different meetings so the children can see government in action. Be sure to call ahead to get information on what you might be able to see and do on a visit. Once your children are acquainted with local government, explore the things they might see and do at the state capitol.

Of course, the best place to see government in action is in Washington, D.C. Your senators and representatives, as well as the Capitol Visitor Center, can arrange for tours of many government buildings. In the summer, it is wise to arrange for reservations to be able to visit many sites. You may be able to see a session of the House of Representatives or Senate, and there are tours of the White House, the U.S. Mint and the Supreme Court. Have some fun, too, at places like the Spy Museum, the Smithsonian Museum and the National Air and Space Museum. Washington, D.C., is such a great place to visit and means you’re not far from colonial Williamsburg and the homes of Washington and Jefferson. Take advantage of their proximity. Such a visit is really a lesson in history.

Visiting the Past

Though students at all levels learn about past events in their social studies classes, they may not also have a picture of what life was like in earlier times in the United States. Summer is a great time to let them experience those days in the past. There are many great places like Connor Prairie Farm in Indiana and Williamsburg in Virginia that have homes and buildings like schools and blacksmith shops that give a great picture of colonial life and offer reenactments of colonial life. Most communities also have museums and historic homes that let children get a glimpse of what life was once like in the United States.

If you live close to one, try to visit one of the 11 important Native American heritage sites or an American Indian Reservation. Be aware that not all tribes wish to have tourists visit their reservations. You should call ahead to the tribal government office. Tours of reservations typically will have a fee; however, some offer a great look of the history of the American Indian people.

Parents should send questions and comments to DearTeacher@DearTeacher.com and to learn more about helping their children succeed in school visit the DearTeacher website.

©Compass Syndicate Corporation, 2021

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