What is “social studies” and why is it important?

What is Social Studies?

• The study of geography, culture, government, economics, and history

• Why is it important to study each of these?

Lets start with geography

Geography

• To be an educated citizen of a globally interdependent society, one must have an understanding of where countries are!

• Geography impacts why people live where they do and affects how we live our lives!

Ex. Climate, jobs, diet

Miss Teen USA Pageant

• https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lj3iNxZ8Dww

Culture

• When we understand other cultures, we can respect them.

• By respecting other people’s way of life and beliefs, we are one step closer to living harmoniously with one another.

Government

• We need to understand how our own government works in order to effectively participate in it.

• It is important to understand our laws and rights as citizens

• We need to understand how other governments operate as we are becoming more and more globally interdependent.

• Current Events

History

• You have to know where you’ve been to know where you’re going

• Understanding the mistakes of the past will prevent us from repeating those mistakes in the future.

•History is not just a bunch of dead guys, facts and dates.

•By studying the past we can make better decisions in the present and prepare for the future.

Economics

• Countries are dependent on one another for trade

• We must have a knowledge of economics to make good decisions for personal finance

• We are all connected!

Summary

Now, summarize the information we have just discussed on your paper.