One resource I enjoy is “Inquiry-Based Lessons in US History” by Jana Kirchner, Ph.D., and Andrew McMichael, Ph.D. (ISBN: 13:978-1-61821-423-2) This book lays out social studies lessons and points you in the direction of primary source documents that you can use. I find this to be a valuable tool to use with my 8th grade students, as they need to be able to analyze and interpret primary sources on their state test.

Another resource I use in my classroom is a book called “Reading in the Content Areas: Social Studies” based on the work of Walter Pauk. (ISBN: 0-07-861708-1) This book gives students a small social studies passage to read, and then asks 6 multiple choice questions. The multiple choice questions are always covering six reading topics– main idea, subject matter, supporting detail, conclusion, clarifying devices, and vocabulary in context. Students graph their progress so that they can see which type of question they are missing the most. That is a fantastic tool for both teachers AND students!