The second edition of Teaching Elementary Social Studies: Principles and Applications reflects a national trend toward "standards-based" curricula and the ever increasing importance of computer-based resources in teaching and learning. Specifically, the most significant new features are the following:

• A separate chapter (chapter 7) devoted to teaching with technology.
• The chapter on assessment (chapter 8) now includes a discussion of how to evaluate students in a standards-based environment.
• All lesson plans and units are "standards based," with direct reference to national standards.
• The previous chapters on inquiry and critical thinking have been synthesized into one chapter (chapter 6).
• The section in chapter 9 on teaching vocabulary has been revised to include a "best option approach," which synthesizes several successful strategies for teaching the meanings of words.
• The section in chapter 9 on teaching reading comprehension has been revised to include more discussion of teaching strategic reading and now includes examples of text structures that can be used as graphic organizers or study guides.
• The references, Web sites, and children's books have been significantly updated.

The conceptual framework for the book is unchanged. The field of social studies, has a rich history. Driven by the dynamic nature of human society, social studies has evolved into a lively and challenging pursuit, drawing concepts and ideas from history, geography, political science, economics, sociology, and anthropology. Thus, the possibilities to create meaningful, engaging, and stimulating experiencesin social studies are endless. The dilemma for many educators, however, has been how to teach such a vast and expanding bed of knowledge.

Fortunately, researchers in education, psychology, and linguistics provide some answers. How we teach should be dictated by how children learn, and research tells us that children learn best when teachers do the following:

• Allow children to construct knowledge as they become active participants in a wide range of learning experiences
• Give all children a variety of materials to manipulate, question, and puzzle over
• Encourage children to think critically about the content they learn
• Plan opportunities for children to interact with one another on a regular basis
• Recognize the cultural and linguistic diversity in their classroom and build enriched learning experiences around that diversity

It is from these perspectives that I have revised the second edition of this text. Part I (chapters 1 to 3) defines social studies and identifies the historic principles behind constructivist teaching and learning. Chapter 2 describes the students you will teach, with special emphasis on language and culture. Chapter 3 explains how teachers can transform the social studies curriculum to reflect a multicultural perspective. Part II (chapters 4 to 10) presents the fundamentals of social studies teaching. Its focus is how to plan lessons and units that include many opportunities for students to work cooperatively, engage in inquiry, and think critically. Chapter 7 is new and examines teaching with computer-based resources. Chapter 8 addresses how to assess each child's performance in social studies in a standards-based curriculum, and chapter 9 discusses how teachers can integrate the social studies curriculum. Part III (chapters 11 to 13) highlights the sources of content for the social studies curriculum, especially citizenship education, history, and geography. Within this organizational framework is an underlying theme—diversity.

Diversity: The Unifying Theme for This Text

As in the first edition, diversity will be the unifying theme for this text. It is impossible to discuss social studies teaching and learning after September 11, 2001, without some acknowledgment of how the tragic events of that day have changed our views about the world and our greater need to understand the diversity of its people. Teachers now face two extraordinary challenges. They must teach about those values that unite us, while at the same time helping students accept disparate perspectives. Teachers must help their students better understand different cultures and also help students avoid stereotypical and biased views of other people. These challenges, it seems, reinforce the power of a text based on understanding diversity.

Diversity has several dimensions. First, our student population continues to be increasingly pluralistic. The results of the 2000 census confirmed a trend that has been constant for the past four decades. The percentage of Americans who identify themselves as "white" is steadily decreasing as the percentage who are either African American, Asian American, or Hispanic American is steadily on the rise. In 2000, the non-Hispanic, white population was 69% of the total; projections are that this percentage will shrink to 52% by 2050. African American, Asian American, and Hispanic American students currently represent over one-third of the K-12 population. They already are the majority in the nation's 25 largest school districts.

Second, our teaching should use a variety of instructional strategies and resources to meet the needs of students from various cultural backgrounds and experiences. Third, the content of the social studies curriculum should be diverse because social studies is the study of people, and the curriculum should introduce our students to a wide array of individuals and groups. Finally, teachers need to prepare students to live in a democracy where citizens celebrate divergent beliefs and perspectives, no matter how great the pressure is to adhere to a single point of view. Diversity is a theme that unifies social studies teaching and learning: we must acknowledge it in our students, present it as our curriculum, and build on it as a civic value.

To accomplish these goals, we need to infuse our lessons with pluralistic, multidimensional resources. For example, children's literature provides authentic accounts of the experiences of people from many cultural heritages. Of particular note are books that share diaries, journals, and oral histories of people who are "distant," either by time or place, from our students. The authentic nature of this literature helps children better understand the difficult decisions other people have made. Many lessons presented in this book model how to incorporate children's literature in the social studies curriculum. At the end of each of these lessons—and the projects and activities provided—are ideas for providing additional multicultural experiences. In addition, the supplementary reference section of this text is a bank of children's literature that can be used to develop elementary social studies lessons.

Visual media and computer resources also are essential resources for a classroom with a diverse student population. This text illustrates the use of videos, CD-ROMs, and Internet Web sites. The Internet, if used wisely, will change the nature of social studies teaching and have immense potential, especially as a resource that will help students as they engage in the process of inquiry. Finally, the visual and performing arts should play prominent roles in elementary social studies. Applying a variety of instructional strategies and resources will increase the chances that every child in your room will be successful and be better prepared for a productive life in the 21st century.