Curriculum

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Social Studies

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Social Studies

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Join inquirED this fall for Exploring Inquiry Journeys, a webinar series for school and district leaders. Each session offers practical insights and strategies from our curriculum to engage students and support teachers in inquiry-based elementary social studies.

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Resource Collections

Downloadable guides, frameworks, and tools designed to help district leaders take action on social studies curriculum and instruction. Looking for our most downloaded resesources? Check the quick links below.

Curiculum Review Guide

Literacy in Social Studies Rubric

Social Studies Pacing Guide

Blog

Fresh ideas, research, and reflections to help district leaders stay sharp and responsive in an evolving social studies landscape.

Webinars

Real-time conversations and on-demand learning with experts and district leaders tackling challenges in social studies education.

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Social Studies Curriculum Review Guide

Download this free tool designed to help educators, districts, and curriculum developers create, evaluate, and select social studies instructional materials that meet the demands of today’s classrooms.

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inquirED Blog

Your source for inquiry-based learning and teaching strategies.

Elementary Social Studies

Creative ways districts are making time for K-5 social studies

Elementary teachers often struggle to protect time for social studies when ELA and math dominate the schedule. This post shares practical strategies from real districts that show how storytelling, clear expectations, and high-quality curriculum can keep social studies thriving. With intentional planning, districts can ensure students build the knowledge they need for literacy, civic readiness, and lifelong learning.

inquirED

Sep 2, 2025
5
MIN READ

Elementary Social Studies

How Oconomowoc made standards stick

Oconomowoc Area School District adopted a new high quality elementary social studies curriculum to meet new standards. Students now practice key inquiry skills—asking questions, analyzing sources, and collaborating—to build deeper understanding across subjects.

Sep 3, 2025
5
MIN READ

Elementary Social Studies

What is Inquiry-Based Social Studies?

No matter your entry point – we’ve created & curated information to help you build your knowledge of inquiry-based social studies!

Nov 9, 2021
4
MIN READ
Illustration of teacher reading a story to classroom

Elementary Social Studies

The Missing Piece in Reading Comprehension: Social Studies

Reading tests don’t just measure decoding – they measure what students know. When social studies disappears from the elementary day, so does some of the context that makes reading meaningful.

Nov 13, 2025
6
MIN READ
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Webinars

Up to the Task: How to Support Student-Led Learning in Elementary Social Studies

Student-led learning tasks in K-8 inquiry-based social studies not only build content knowledge and skills but also help students take ownership of their learning. We explored the benefits and challenges of designing student-led learning experiences in social studies in our webinar with Elisabeth Ventling Simon (Co-Founder and Head of Learning Experiences, inquirED) and Jillian Corr (Senior Learning Experience Designer, inquirED).

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Webinars

Choosing Your Path: Advice from District Leaders on K-6 Social Studies Curriculum Implementation

Are you wondering about the best practices for implementing an elementary social studies curriculum in your school or district?

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Webinars

Questioning: The Key to Unlocking the Power of Inquiry in Social Studies

Discover how educators and experts use powerful questioning strategies to drive inquiry, deepen student thinking, and foster curiosity in social studies classrooms.

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Elementary Social Studies

What is the best inquiry process for elementary social studies curriculum?

Discover how Inquiry Journeys guides students through the inquiry process—engaging them in questioning, investigation, and action for real-world impact.

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Free Resource

Lesson Strategies

Hexagonal Thinking & Mapping: A Dynamic Strategy for Deeper Learning

Imagine your students actively making connections, debating ideas, and visually mapping relationships between key concepts. The Hexagonal Mapping Protocol offers a flexible, engaging way for students to organize their thinking and discover new relationships between ideas. Whether used for inquiry-based learning, unit review, or problem-solving, hexagonal mapping deepens discussion, reinforces connections, and encourages critical thinking.

upcoming webinar

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Elementary Social Studies

Media Literacy: Primary and Secondary Sources in Inquiry Journeys

Inquiry Journeys builds media literacy skills, integrating thousands of engaging primary and secondary sources. These sources represent multiple perspectives from diverse authors and creators across a varied range of media types, including maps, documents, photographs, websites, videos, paintings, personal narratives, and more.

upcoming webinar

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Webinars

The Steps Toward Inquiry in Social Studies (Series Launch)

Discover how inquiry-based social studies transforms questions, tasks, and sources—engaging students as investigators, not passive recipients of information.

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Free Resource

Elementary Social Studies

Inquiry Journeys: Literacy Practices and Supports

Explore how integrating social studies with literacy boosts reading outcomes and supports CCSS-ELA, with practices embedded in inquirED’s Inquiry Journeys curriculum.

upcoming webinar

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Webinars

Choosing an Elementary Social Studies Curriculum for Iowa Schools

This webinar explores how three districts in Iowa are prioritizing social studies aligned to the Iowa Core Standards in Social Studies.

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Take a closer look at Inquiry Journeys

Inquiry Journeys (K–5 social studies curriculum) provides inquiry-based instruction for young learners through hands-on investigations and primary source analysis. Explore how elementary students build knowledge and skills by asking questions, analyzing evidence, and connecting learning to their lives and communities.

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