Who can the majority of your students identify with: Britney Spears or Nancy Pelosi? While most students can identify the former, a social studies teacher hopes they also know the latter.
If you are looking for a free standards-based resource to help students better connect to public policy makers and civics content as easily as they do celebrities, then look no further than C-SPAN Classroom.
C-SPAN Classroom, www.c-spanclassroom.org, is a free online membership service for educators featuring a wealth of resources that appeal to many teaching disciplines and levels, but focuses on a curriculum centered on U.S. government and civics. C-SPAN Classroom provides weekly, short, downloadable video clips. These clips not only help keep students updated on current events, they enliven the curriculum. C-SPAN Classroom clips adhere to C-SPAN’s mission of presenting information objectively, and each clip is accompanied by discussion questions to help navigate the clip’s content.
In addition to weekly video clips, C-SPAN Classroom offers resources dedicated to the 2008 Presidential Election. Each week, two video clips center on the election and will do so until inauguration day. There is an entire resource page featuring worksheets and teaching suggestions covering topics such as primary elections, campaign ads and delegates. This resource page continues to grow as the election process unfolds.
When students are first introduced to C-SPAN Classroom, you may receive a few blank stares. Don’t be discouraged. You will find that after teaching them how to “read” C-SPAN Classroom’s material, they will appreciate interacting with a resource that shows their government in action and allows them to make up their own mind on political issues. All you need is a computer and Internet access to join more than 17,000 C-SPAN Classroom members who help students recognize that the Speaker of the House actually affects their lives more than Britney Spears.
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