CSU Teaching and Learning CoLab 2023

Primary source activities provide young people with engaging opportunities to prompt curiosity and improve critical thinking and analysis skills. This session will focus on integrating primary sources into the elementary classroom by using effective literacy and analysis strategies. Content and skills will focus on Colorado Academic Elementary Social Studies and Literacy standards.

Making informed decisions (and knowing what you give up when you make a decision – time, resources, or the opportunity to choose something else) is one of the most important life skills we can teach our students. Yet even though decision making is built into our state standards in most subject areas (and starts in Economics as early as 4th grade) relatively few schools emphasize that process. In this session we will look at fun activities in 4th through 8th grades that can be used to help students “decide” – and understand what they chose to give up. We’ll also discuss ways to help students integrate those skills into financial, economic, and other future decisions in their lives.