Social Studies Discussion on the March Book Series

The March Series has been a part of an ongoing semester-long discussion amongst the Secondary Education Social Studies Majors about good social studies books. The book initially came up when discussing how to teach the Civil Rights Movement. We were all in universal agreement that this series would be an excellent addition to any Civil Rights Unit. This was further reinforced when in our Social Studies Methods Course the series came up during a lesson on texts in Social Studies. This is what prompted me to choose the book as one of my PD goals. The major factor would be the grade I am teaching. I have frequently overestimated my student's lexical level and I don't wish to do the same for this book. A senior would have no difficulty reading this book and could complete it with a week's notice either through class or study hall reading. A seventh-grader, however, would need proper scaffolding in order to understand the content. A word bank, group reading, discussion, and independent class time reading would be the most effective way to teach this book. I plan on using this series once I do become a social studies teacher.

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