CHAPTER 4 ASSESSMENTS
HISTORY, GEOGRAPHY, AND THE SOCIAL SCIENCES
I. MULTIPLE CHOICE (CHOOSE THE ONE BEST RESPONSE.)
1. The text makes the claim that geography can be easily integrated into historical study. Why?
a. It is difficult to construct or comprehend historical narrative apart from geographical
settings.
b. Geographical skills are not as important as historical understanding so they can be taught
as an integrated topic.
c. Historical study is a broad concept incorporating many other disciplines including
geography.
d. Geography as a discipline has a broad base that includes historical understanding.
2. Teaching history provides students multiple opportunities to do two basic things. What are
they?
a. Write biographies about prominent historical figures and sequence important events into
timelines.
b. Be exposed to primary and secondary sources and utilize them in research.
c. Reason historically and gain historical knowledge.
d. Recite names and dates of historically important people and events and use them to
answer multiple choice questions.
3. What is an historical inquiry or investigation according to the text?
a. Giving students the opportunity to choose their own historical course of study.
b. Having students read about famous investigations in history.
c. Having students investigate their own family history.
d. A question-driven search for evidence and answers.
4. History teaches students to investigate what has happened in the past by teaching them to:
a. Orally communicate the chronological order of events.
b. Interpret evidence and produce a credible account.
c. Create research reports about their favorite event in history.
d. Interview family members who were a part of the historical events being studied.
5. According to the author, what is a basic reason why students want to understand geography?
a. Students want to know their home address.
b. Students want to know the nature of the world and their place in it.
c. Students want to be able to identify what a map is.
d. Students want to write letters to friends in other geographical locations.
6. Geography is composed of five themes according to the National Geographic Alliance. Each
theme is a.:
a. Concept that students should form as they work through multiple examples.
b. Way of thinking about the world that appeals to students.
c. Strategy for understanding how to go from one place to another.
d. Process for constructing multiple types of maps and scale drawings.
7. Why does the text author believe it is important for students to ask political questions while
they are building geographical knowledge?
a. People in power create the maps of regions being studied.
b. Politics impact the placement of buildings, roads, etc., in a society.
c. As students build knowledge about people and places they need to understand the political
system holding that society together.
d. Understanding politics helps students to understand different types of government.
8. Which of the following concepts is NOT central to the study of economics?
a. Production.
b. Distribution.
c. Consumption.
d. Location.
9. According to an anthropological point of view, what is a uniquely human creation that
distinguishes humans from animals?
a. Creativity.
b. Culture.
c. Social organizations.
d. Diversity.
10. Sociology as a broad social science is especially concerned with:
a. Wants and needs of people.
b. Social organizations.
c. Location of groups.
d. Cultures of people.
II. SHORT ANSWER
1. Identify two themes of history you think are most important for students to explore in the
elementary school based on the guidelines in your text. Explain why they are important and give
an example of how you would emphasize each theme at a grade level of your choosing.
2. Follow the same procedure as above for two themes of geography.
III. EXTENDED RESPONSE
You are a teacher in an elementary school where the social studies curriculum is being revised.
There is a debate among the teachers in the school about how much emphasis should be given to
history and geography relative to language arts, especially since the latter is so intensely tested.
Some teachers feel that the social studies should be featured because it has the content while
language arts offers the skills. Others believe social studies and language arts represent distinct
IV. DISCUSSION
Discuss the following issue with a group of classmates. Then, use one of the rubrics found in
Chapter 3 to assess your participation.
A parent of one of your students is concerned that his/her child is not learning enough “facts”
about history and geography. At the recent parent night the parent complained that children
CHAPTER 4 HISTORY, GEOGRAPHY, AND THE SOCIAL SCIENCES