First Grade Social Studies

Instructor:  Mrs. Grennan

Curriculum Map          Class Pages

Essential Question:  What is a community?

First graders focus on communities. Communities are groups of organisms that live, work and play in the same general area, have things in common, and depend on each other. Through projects, field trips, and service learning, they come to understand how a first grader can be involved, participate, and be an active member of the community. There is an emphasis on identifying rules and responsibilities of good citizens. They have an opportunity to observe and interview community workers, volunteers, and community leaders in order to gain a better understanding of the importance of these roles and how they play a key part in keeping a community thriving.

While most people think of human communities, there are other kinds of communities. Animals live in communities, such as on a farm. During the first trimester, students take a field trip to a local farm to examine the farm as a community.  Throughout the year, students interview important community workers and service volunteers to better understand each person's role in our surrounding community.