TEACHING

SOCIAL STUDIES
IN
ELEMENTARY GRADES
(SST 55)
Course Description:
This course shall equip the pre service teachers with the
technological, pedagogical and content knowledge (TPCK)
necessary for them to effectively teach Social Studies to diverse
learners in the intermediate grades. In this course, the curriculum
content of Araling Panlipunan in Grades IV to VI (Philippine
Geography, History and Government, the appropriate teaching
strategies and assessment methods will be given emphasis to prepare
students to become elementary grades teachers. Facilitating
discussion, reflecting, finding and utilizing appropriate social studies
resources, planning and teaching a lesson to an entire class in the
intermediate grades shall form part of the authentic and experiential
activities of the course. 2
Course Objectives:
At the end of the course, the pre-service teachers will be able to:
A. Demonstrate content knowledge and research-based knowledge
and its application within/or across curriculum teaching areas
B. Implement teaching strategies that are responsive to learners’
backgrounds and special educational needs
C. Prepare developmentally-sequenced teaching and learning
processes using a variety of resources, including ICT, to address
learning goals aligned with curriculum requirements
D. Identify learning outcomes that are aligned with learning
competencies in the intermediate grades
E. Design, select, organize and use appropriate and varied assessment
strategies consistent with the curriculum requirements. 3
 COURSE OUTLINE IN SST 55
I. Course Orientation
a. Goals and Emphasis of Teaching Araling Panlipunan
b. Guiding Principles in Teaching Araling Panlipunan
c. Approaches and Methods in Teaching Araling Panlipunan
II. Planning for Effective Teaching
d. Review on the Lesson Plan – kinds, format, and components of
the lesson plan
e. Writing Detailed Lesson Plan in Social Studies
III. Teaching Araling Panlipunan in the Intermediate
Grades
a. Actual Teaching Demonstration
b. Evaluation of the Teaching Demonstration
 
Grading System

Submission of assigned activity (online & on-site) 20%

Student Engagement/forum Discussion (online & on-site) 25%
Quizzes and unit examination 25%
Major Examinations (Midterm and Finals) 30%

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INTRODUCTION

Now that you have a clear picture of the intended

outcome of the teaching of Araling Panlipuan, let us find
how to go there. Let us find out effective and efficient
ways of arriving at our destination.
UNIT I:
COURSE ORIENTATION
Goals and Nature of Teaching Araling Panlipunan
 

Araling Panlipunan is a course subject emphasized on the

development of social awareness, empathy and firm commitment to
our common goal as a nation. It entails the use of integrated units,
which enable the individual to personally process, assimilate and
systematically practice wide range of values and life skills including
work ethic.
The main principle of teaching Araling Panlipunan is to do
Integration.
 Integration is characterized by the following: (Kovalik & Olsen,
1994) prefers questioning and problem solving to direct the
process of acquiring knowledge and skills.
 Reflects the interdependent real world
 Involves the learner’s body, feelings, senses, and intuition in
learning experience
 Bases its practices on the characteristics of the human learner and
on the interdependent nature of reality
 Provides holistic context for learning
 Leads to a greater ability to make a number of connections and to
solve problems
The teaching of Araling Panlipunan is expected to:
 contribute to the development of a holistically
developed citizen who is aware and knowledgeable of
 and critically analyzes current social issues and
concerns in the local and global level.
Approaches in Teaching Araling Panlipunan
The K to 12 Curriculum Guide describes the teaching
approach in the teaching of Araling Panlipunan as based on
konstruktibismo (constructivism) , magkatuwang na pagkatuto
(collaborative learning), pagkatutong pangkaranasan at
pangkonteksto (experiential and contextual learning),
pamaraang tematiko (thematic approach), paksain/konseptual
(conceptual approach), pagsisiyasat (survey), integratibo
(integrative), interdisiplinaryo (interdisciplinary) and
multidisiplinaryo (multidisciplinary).
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1. Constructivist Approach
This approach is based on the assumption that the
students come to class with entry knowledge and skills.
The students reflect on the new learned knowledge,
continue to make connections to other concepts learned
and construct new meanings.
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2. Collaborative learning
– this is based on the assumption that students learn
better when they learn with others. It is supported by the
fact that students learn better in a cooperative atmosphere
than in a competitive atmosphere.

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3. Experiential and Contextualized Learning
– as the name implies, it is learning beginning with experience and
ending in experience.
Discussion of concrete experience
Proceeds to an analysis and reflection of concrete experience
Leads to abstraction or generalization
Back to the realm of experience for application of what is learned
This is also called contextualized learning because it is rooted in
human experience; meaning the context of learning is experience itself.
 Experiential learning is inductive, learner-centered and activity-
oriented. The emphasis in experiential learning is on the process of
learning and not on the product. Experiential learning can be viewed
as cycle consisting of five phases, all of which are necessary:
• experiencing (an activity occurs);
• sharing or publishing (reactions and observations are shared);
analyzing or processing (patterns and dynamics are determined);
• inferring or generalizing (principles are derived); and applying
(plans are made to use learning in new situations).
 Araling Panlipunan as a subject develops the following
themes across the Grades:
1. tao, kapaligiran at lipunan;
2. panahon, pagtutuloy at pagbabago;
3. kultura, pananagutan at pagkabansa;
4. karapatan, pananagutan at pagkamamamayan;
kapangyarihan, awtoridad at pamamahala;
5. produksyon, distribusyon at pagkonsumo and
6. ugnayang pangrehiyon at pangmundo.
This is an evidence to use of the spiral progression
approach. 17
4. Thematic Method

• Learning revolves around a theme

• Each theme should be accompanied by focus
questions

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5. Conceptual Approach
• Involves a process of concept formation
• Concepts are mental constructions representing categories of
information that contain defining attributes(Walker & Advant, 1988)
• Structured inquiry process where students figure out the attributes of a
group or category that has already been formed by the teacher.
To do so, students compare and contrast examples that contain
the attributes of the examples with examples that do not contain
those attributes (non- examples). They then separate them into
two groups.
• The process of concept attainment, then, is the search for
and identification of attributes that can be used to
distinguish examples of a given group or category from
non-examples.
• The concept attainment process may proceed
deductively(from rule/definition to examples) or
inductively (from examples to rule/definition).
• Higher than content-focused teaching
For interactive teaching the following variations of the
conceptual approach may be employed:
• Present all of the positive examples to the students at once and
have them determine the essential attributes.
• Present all of the positive and negative examples to the students
without labelling them as such. Have them group the
examples into the two categories and determine the essential
attributes.
• Have the students define, identify the essential attributes of, and
choose positive examples for a concept already learned in
class. 21
5. Integrative Approach
• Anchored on the assumption that teaching and learning
are more meaningful and further enriched if lesson is
connected to other disciplines (interdisciplinary) and is
connected to real life experiences (transdisciplinary).
• Integrates students’ experiences so the experiential
approach is in a sense an integrative approach
• Multidisciplinary and interdisciplinary
• Integrate other related disciplines in the lesson
Specific Methods and Techniques:
• Tri-question – enable students to probe into events (what
happened; why did it happen; what are the possible
consequences)
• Moral dilemma method – a person is torn between two actions.
These are the crucial features: The person is required to do each
of the two actions; the person can do each of the actions; the
person cannot do both of the actions; the person thus seems
condemned to moral failure ( no matter what she does, she will do
something wrong/ or fail to do something that she ought to do)
• Lesson indigenization – localizing the lessons
• Concepts are explained using thought pattern, materials of
indigenous communities
Techniques in Indigenizing:
• Citing examples from the local culture related to the topic
• Using indigenous knowledge – local songs, stories, poems
• Using indigenous aids such as artifacts
• Incorporating community resources in teaching – visit to scenic spots,
inviting local people as resource persons
• Putting up learning resource centers where local artifacts are displayed
• Discussing local problems and issues
• Preserving local songs, dances, and games
• Using the local language in teaching
• Participating in local celebrations
 Intelligence Examples of Classroom Activities
Verbal-Linguistic Debates, journal writing, conferences, essays, stories, poems,
storytelling, reading
Logical-mathematical Experiments, comparisons, number games, formulating and testing
hypothesis, deductive and inductive reasonings

Spatial Concept maps, graphs, charts, art projects, videos, slides,

visual presentations
Bodily kinesthetic Role-playing, dance, athletic activities, manipulatives, hands-on
demonstrations
musical Playing music, singing, rapping, analysing sounds and music

interpersonal Community involvement projects, discussions, cooperative

learning, team games, social activities

intrapersonal Student choice, journal writing, self-evaluation, personal instruction,

independent study, reflecting
naturalist Ecological field trips, environmental study, caring for plants
and animals, outdoor work
existentialist Reflection, diary/journal entry
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 Learning Style Examples of classroom activities

Mastery Direct instruction, drill and repetition,

Exercise-practice demonstration, competitions

Interpersonal Experience- Team games, learning circles, role

personalize playing, group investigation, peer
tutoring, personal sharing

Understanding Inquiry, concept formation, debate,

Explain-prove problem solving, independent study, essays,
logic problems
Self-expressive Divergent thinking, metaphors,
Explore-produce creative art activities, imagining, open-
ended discussion, imagery, creative
problem solving
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Continuation of Specific Methods and Techniques:
• Using varied learning activities to cater to students’
multiple intelligences and learning styles.
• The conduct of survey or interview to gather data,
recording, organizing, analysing and interpreting data to
answer given problem is “hands-on”, minds-on, hearts-
on” activity
• Service learning that involves community projects that
occur during class time falls under the category of
multidisciplinary integration 27
Assessment Task
Select from the Araling Panlipunan Curriculum Guide competencies
which can be taught by the use of the following
methods/techniques:
A. Tri-question
B. Lesson indigenization
C. Multiple intelligencies and learning styles
D. Survey/interview
E. Service learning

(one competency per method/techniques from the competencies