NAC389.2421. First grade: Social studies.

By the beginning of the first grade, pupils must know and be able to do everything required in kindergarten for social studies offered in public schools. Instruction in the first grade in social studies must be designed so that pupils meet the following performance standards by the completion of the first grade:

     1. For the area of social study skills:

     (a) Acquire and apply skills of reading, writing and oral communication to construct knowledge, as demonstrated by the ability of the pupil to:

          (1) Listen for main ideas in text that is read to the pupil.

          (2) Listen for the main idea and sequence of events in the context of social studies.

          (3) Use vocabulary in sentences.

     (b) Acquire, organize, use and evaluate information that prepares a pupil to be an active, informed and literate citizen, as demonstrated by the ability of the pupil to:

          (1) Research a prescribed topic in social studies.

          (2) Conduct research by locating, gathering and organizing information.

          (3) Present information orally.

          (4) Identify maps, graphs, charts and diagrams as sources of information.

          (5) Practice the responsible use of technology.

          (6) Use technological resources for solving problems, communicating and illustrating thoughts and ideas.

     (c) Demonstrate historical comprehension by analyzing and interpreting historical documents and artifacts that present alternative voices, accounts and interpretations or perspectives on past events, as demonstrated by the ability of the pupil to:

          (1) Identify events that took place yesterday and events that take place today.

          (2) Identify sources of information.

          (3) Read or listen, or both, to historical fiction.

          (4) Identify self-perspective.

     (d) Demonstrate skills which prepare a pupil to be an active, informed and literate citizen, as demonstrated by the ability of the pupil to:

          (1) Demonstrate responsibility for the well-being of himself or herself.

          (2) Listen and participate as a member of a group in the classroom.

     2. For the area of history:

     (a) Understand the development, characteristics and interactions of persons, cultures, societies, religions and ideas, as demonstrated by the ability of the pupil to:

          (1) Describe lifeways of persons who lived in the local community in the past, including, without limitation, their jobs, schools, methods of communication, transportation and recreation.

          (2) Listen to stories that reflect the beliefs, customs, ceremonies and traditions of the different cultures in the neighborhood around the school.

          (3) Listen to histories of important landmarks in the community that create a sense of community among persons in the community.

          (4) Listen to stories that reflect the beliefs, customs, ceremonies, traditions and social practices of cultures from around the world.

          (5) Identify landmarks from around the world.

     (b) Understand the influences of persons, events, ideas and conflicts in the development of nations, empires, cultures and political and economic ideas, as demonstrated by the ability of the pupil to identify methods of sharing that resolve problems in the classroom and at the school.

     (c) Understand the influences of social ideas and personal action on social, political, economic and technological change, as demonstrated by the ability of the pupil to:

          (1) Describe the neighborhood around the school in which the pupil is enrolled.

          (2) Compare or contrast, or both, the daily life of the pupil with the daily life of the pupil’s parent or legal guardian.

          (3) Identify and describe occupations in the community that help persons, including, without limitation, law enforcement officers, firefighters and nurses.

          (4) Demonstrate respect for other pupils and persons in the neighborhood around the school.

          (5) Discuss events that are happening at the school in which the pupil is enrolled.

     3. For the area of geography:

     (a) Use maps, globes and other geographic tools and technologies to locate and extrapolate information about persons, places and environments, as demonstrated by the ability of the pupil to:

          (1) Differentiate between and identify water and land on a map and globe, and use the terms “ocean” and “continent.”

          (2) Describe maps as representations of places.

          (3) Recognize the shape of North America on a map of the world.

          (4) Use simple maps to illustrate direction.

          (5) Display geographic information in a visual manner using simple lists, graphs and maps.

     (b) Understand the physical and human features of places, and use that information to define and study regions and their patterns of changes, as demonstrated by the ability of the pupil to:

          (1) Sort and group pictures that display geographic features, including, without limitation, forests, deserts and lake regions.

          (2) Identify the similarities and differences between persons in the community.

          (3) Identify patterns of change within the community, including, without limitation, construction.

          (4) Recall the home address and telephone number of the pupil.

     (c) Understand how economic, political and cultural processes interact to shape patterns of human migration and settlement, influence and interdependence, and conflict and cooperation, as demonstrated by the ability of the pupil to:

          (1) Use the classroom population to categorize simple demographic information.

          (2) Explain that a person may live in a location other than the location where the person was born.

          (3) Identify characteristics of rural and urban communities.

     (d) Understand the effects of interactions between human and physical systems, and changes in the use, distribution and importance of resources, as demonstrated by the ability of the pupil to:

          (1) Tell how the physical environment affects activity at school, including, without limitation, having recess inside or outside.

          (2) Identify locations in which a pupil may access basic resources available to the pupil, including, without limitation, food and water.

     4. For the area of economics:

     (a) Understand how scarcity and incentives affect choices, how markets work, why markets form, how supply and demand interact to determine the market price and how changes in prices act as economic signals to coordinate trade, as demonstrated by the ability of the pupil to:

          (1) Give examples of “all-or-nothing” choices.

          (2) Identify a consumer.

          (3) Identify a producer.

          (4) Give examples of ways persons earn money.

     (b) Identify indicators used to measure economic performance, understand important aspects of how the economy acts as a system, and understand the roles of money, interest rates, saving and borrowing, financial institutions and the central banking system in the economy, as demonstrated by the ability of the pupil to explain what money is and how money is used.

     (c) Identify the causes of economic change and explain how the economic system of the United States responds to those changes and how other economic systems respond to changes, as demonstrated by the ability of the pupil to identify resources that are shared in the classroom and the community.

     (d) Explore trends in international trade, the impact of trade on the economy of the United States and the role of exchange rates, as demonstrated by the ability of the pupil to define trade.

     5. For the area of civics:

     (a) Know why society needs rules, law and governments, and understand the roles, rights and responsibilities of citizens, as demonstrated by the ability of the pupil to:

          (1) Identify and follow classroom and school rules concerning behavior and resolution of conflicts.

          (2) Identify a pupil’s rights within the classroom.

          (3) Participate in making decisions for the class, including, without limitation, decisions regarding personal responsibilities in the classroom and school.

          (4) Recognize the Pledge of Allegiance.

          (5) Name a traditional patriotic activity, holiday or symbol of the United States.

     (b) Understand the United States Constitution and the government created by the United States Constitution, including, without limitation, the relationship between national and sub-national governments, and the structure and function of state and local governments, as demonstrated by the ability of the pupil to name the current President of the United States.

     (c) Describe the roles of political parties, elections, interest groups, the media and public opinion in the democratic process, as demonstrated by the ability of the pupil to identify sources of information.

     (d) Explain the different political systems in the world and how those systems relate to the United States and the citizens of the United States, as demonstrated by the ability of the pupil to name the school in which the pupil is enrolled.

     (Added to NAC by Bd. of Education by R011-09, eff. 10-27-2009)