Engagement, assessments, and more - here are 4 PBL project ideas that you won't want to miss!

Resources and Links

Blog Post - Episode 83

Create a Map Project - Map and Globes Unit

Adventuring Budgeting Project - Ways to Earn Money Unit

Mission and Presidio Project - Early Texas Settlements Unit

American Revolution Quilt Project - American Revolution Unit

Register for the Winter Education Summit!

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Mentioned in this episode:

Free Guided Lesson Sampler for Texas Social Studies Teachers

Looking for a ready-to-use social studies lesson for your grade level? Grab a free guided lesson sample created specifically for Texas teachers.

Grab the Back to School Social Studies Pack!

Get your upper elementary students excited to start the school year using these low-prep back to school social studies getting to know you worksheets! With 20 pages of engaging activities targeting geography, history, and classroom community building, it makes a great back to school resource for the first week or first month of school!

Learn more about the Back to School Social Studies Resource

Leaving a review on Teachers Pay Teachers (TPT) isn’t just about giving feedback; it’s a simple way to support other educators, improve your own resource library, and earn some nice perks along the way! Here’s a quick guide to the benefits of leaving reviews, how to do it, and why it’s worth your time.

Episode Highlights

• benefits of leaving reviews on TPT
• how to leave a review on TPT
• perks of leaving reviews
• tips for writing an effective TPT review

Resources and Links

Blog Post - Episode 82

Leave a review on TPT

Review The Southern Teach TPT resources

Leave a review on my Website Store

Let's Connect!

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Shop TPT Resources

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Mentioned in this episode:

Grab the Back to School Social Studies Pack!

Get your upper elementary students excited to start the school year using these low-prep back to school social studies getting to know you worksheets! With 20 pages of engaging activities targeting geography, history, and classroom community building, it makes a great back to school resource for the first week or first month of school!

Learn more about the Back to School Social Studies Resource

Free Guided Lesson Sampler for Texas Social Studies Teachers

Looking for a ready-to-use social studies lesson for your grade level? Grab a free guided lesson sample created specifically for Texas teachers.

Incorporating humor, weird facts, and unexpected historical tidbits might be the secret sauce for student engagement!

Fun, surprising stories about historical events or people can be an effective way to capture attention and foster curiosity in social studies. This episode is filled with examples to help you plan for the new year in a fresh way.

Episode Highlights

• Start with weird or surprising facts
• Use humor to humanize historical figures
• Tie surprising stories to key concepts

Resources and Links

Blog Post - Episode 81

Paul Revere's Ride

Project Choice Board Ideas

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Mentioned in this episode:

Grab the Back to School Social Studies Pack!

Get your upper elementary students excited to start the school year using these low-prep back to school social studies getting to know you worksheets! With 20 pages of engaging activities targeting geography, history, and classroom community building, it makes a great back to school resource for the first week or first month of school!

Learn more about the Back to School Social Studies Resource

Free Guided Lesson Sampler for Texas Social Studies Teachers

Looking for a ready-to-use social studies lesson for your grade level? Grab a free guided lesson sample created specifically for Texas teachers.

In this episode, I’ll share my personal journey as a 5th-grade teacher who felt intimidated by certain social studies topics that I wasn’t familiar or confident in teaching. I'll discuss the anxiety of potentially giving incorrect information and how it impacted my approach to teaching these subjects.

You’ll hear about the steps I took to overcome that fear, including the resources I used, the importance of continued learning, and how I built the confidence to teach topics I once avoided.

This episode will help fellow teachers feel empowered to tackle those intimidating subjects and give practical tips on how to handle tough content, ensuring you and your students succeed!

Episode Highlights

• The anxiety of teaching what you don't know
• How I started building confidence
• Building confidence over time
• Practical tips for teaching tough topics

Resources and Links

Blog Post - Episode 80

How to Teach Using Timelines

How to Use Primary Sources

Facebook Group - Upper Elementary Social Studies Teachers

Let's Connect!

Listen/watch on YouTube

Shop TPT Resources

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Amazon

Mentioned in this episode:

Grab the Back to School Social Studies Pack!

Get your upper elementary students excited to start the school year using these low-prep back to school social studies getting to know you worksheets! With 20 pages of engaging activities targeting geography, history, and classroom community building, it makes a great back to school resource for the first week or first month of school!

Learn more about the Back to School Social Studies Resource

Free Guided Lesson Sampler for Texas Social Studies Teachers

Looking for a ready-to-use social studies lesson for your grade level? Grab a free guided lesson sample created specifically for Texas teachers.

Assessing student learning is essential but it can also feel overwhelming to plan. In today’s episode, I’m sharing three simple strategies for assessing social studies learning that are effective and low-stress. Ready to take the pressure off and make assessment more manageable? Let’s jump in!

Episode Highlights

• Quick and simple quizzes
• Creative projects for deeper learning
• Informal assessments through class discussions and journals

Resources and Links

Blog Post - Episode 79

Guided Curriculum units

Daily Passages

Let's Connect!

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Mentioned in this episode:

Grab the Back to School Social Studies Pack!

Get your upper elementary students excited to start the school year using these low-prep back to school social studies getting to know you worksheets! With 20 pages of engaging activities targeting geography, history, and classroom community building, it makes a great back to school resource for the first week or first month of school!

Learn more about the Back to School Social Studies Resource

Free Guided Lesson Sampler for Texas Social Studies Teachers

Looking for a ready-to-use social studies lesson for your grade level? Grab a free guided lesson sample created specifically for Texas teachers.

Every social studies lesson should have 5 key components to ensure it’s effective, engaging, and meaningful for students. Whether you’re teaching geography, history, civics, or economics, these essential elements will help you structure your lessons in a way that promotes deeper understanding and keeps your students interested.

Episode Highlights

• Clear learning objectives
• An engaging hook or introduction
• Active learning and student engagement
• Primary sources or real world examples
• Reflection and assessment

Resources and Links

Blog Post - Episode 78

Three Branches of Government Unit

A Guide to Learning Intention and Success Criteria

7 Fun Social Studies Activity Ideas

How to Use Primary Sources

Let's Connect!

Listen/watch on YouTube

Shop TPT Resources

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Amazon

Mentioned in this episode:

Grab the Back to School Social Studies Pack!

Get your upper elementary students excited to start the school year using these low-prep back to school social studies getting to know you worksheets! With 20 pages of engaging activities targeting geography, history, and classroom community building, it makes a great back to school resource for the first week or first month of school!

Learn more about the Back to School Social Studies Resource

Free Guided Lesson Sampler for Texas Social Studies Teachers

Looking for a ready-to-use social studies lesson for your grade level? Grab a free guided lesson sample created specifically for Texas teachers.

Taking complex or traditionally dry social studies topics and transforming them into simple, fun lessons your students will love can be a challenge. Whether it’s trying to explain the complexities of government or the timeline of ancient civilizations, some social studies content can feel daunting for our students—and for us!

But don’t worry, I’ll share some techniques for breaking these topics down and making them not only digestible but also enjoyable for upper elementary students. 

Episode Highlights

• Using storytelling to make connections
• Using visuals and interactive elements
• Turning complex topics into hands-on projects
• Breaking it down with mini-lessons

Resources and Links

Blog Post - Episode 77

Brainpop Videos

Free Enterprise System Unit

American Revolution Unit

Multiple Intelligences Resource

Let's Connect!

Listen/watch on YouTube

Shop TPT Resources

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Amazon

Mentioned in this episode:

Free Guided Lesson Sampler for Texas Social Studies Teachers

Looking for a ready-to-use social studies lesson for your grade level? Grab a free guided lesson sample created specifically for Texas teachers.

Grab the Back to School Social Studies Pack!

Get your upper elementary students excited to start the school year using these low-prep back to school social studies getting to know you worksheets! With 20 pages of engaging activities targeting geography, history, and classroom community building, it makes a great back to school resource for the first week or first month of school!

Learn more about the Back to School Social Studies Resource

While we may have our favorite holidays that we celebrate, it's also key for our students to learn about different traditions. It’s a great way to help build awareness and respect for the diversity of cultures and celebrations around the world. So today, I’m going to share 8 special holidays from different cultures that your students may or may not have heard about!

Episode Highlights

• Lunar New Year
• Mardi Gras
• Nowruz
• Holi
• Las Posadas
• Diwali
• St. Lucia’s Day
• La Tomatina

Resources and Links

Easily incorporate these holidays into your classroom using this resource!

Take a closer look at the Holiday Webquest Bundle mentioned in this episode as well as the Daily Passages.

Blog Post - Episode 76

Let's Connect!

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Shop TPT Resources

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Amazon

Mentioned in this episode:

Grab the Back to School Social Studies Pack!

Get your upper elementary students excited to start the school year using these low-prep back to school social studies getting to know you worksheets! With 20 pages of engaging activities targeting geography, history, and classroom community building, it makes a great back to school resource for the first week or first month of school!

Learn more about the Back to School Social Studies Resource

Free Guided Lesson Sampler for Texas Social Studies Teachers

Looking for a ready-to-use social studies lesson for your grade level? Grab a free guided lesson sample created specifically for Texas teachers.

Ready or not, the holiday season is upon us! As teachers, this busy season can make it feel like we’re stretched too thin in both our work and personal lives.

Today, we’re talking about how to prioritize your time and optimize your daily schedule to alleviate some of that holiday stress. I’ve got six simple strategies to help you avoid burnout and ensure you’re biting off just the right amount to chew during this hectic time of year.

Resources and Links

For more support, take a closer look at my 20 Time Management Strategies resource

Blog Post - Episode 75

Let's Connect!

Listen/watch on YouTube

Shop TPT Resources

Instagram

Website

Amazon

Mentioned in this episode:

Grab the Back to School Social Studies Pack!

Get your upper elementary students excited to start the school year using these low-prep back to school social studies getting to know you worksheets! With 20 pages of engaging activities targeting geography, history, and classroom community building, it makes a great back to school resource for the first week or first month of school!

Learn more about the Back to School Social Studies Resource

Free Guided Lesson Sampler for Texas Social Studies Teachers

Looking for a ready-to-use social studies lesson for your grade level? Grab a free guided lesson sample created specifically for Texas teachers.

Whether you’re teaching geography, history, or economics, visual tools can simplify complex information and help your students develop critical thinking skills. In today's episode I’ll be sharing tips on how to integrate charts, tables, and graphs into your lessons to make learning more interactive and engaging.

Episode Highlights

• Why use charts, tables, and graphs?
• Types of visuals to use in your social studies lessons
• How to integrate visuals into lessons
• Activities and assessment ideas
• The end game - why it will benefit students in the long run

Resources and Links

Blog Post - Episode 74

Let's Connect!

Listen/watch on YouTube

Shop TPT Resources

Instagram

Website

Amazon

Mentioned in this episode:

Grab the Back to School Social Studies Pack!

Get your upper elementary students excited to start the school year using these low-prep back to school social studies getting to know you worksheets! With 20 pages of engaging activities targeting geography, history, and classroom community building, it makes a great back to school resource for the first week or first month of school!

Learn more about the Back to School Social Studies Resource

Free Guided Lesson Sampler for Texas Social Studies Teachers

Looking for a ready-to-use social studies lesson for your grade level? Grab a free guided lesson sample created specifically for Texas teachers.