Geography is often include in social studies curriculum and it is important for children to have a grasp on the world's countries and continents. Divide students up into small groups and have them create paper mache globes using a balloon as the base. Be sure to provide enough newspaper to cover the balloons several times as well as protect the classroom work spaces. Once the globes are dry, students can use green, blue and black poster paints to paint and label them accurately. This project is both fun and informative for students, and allows them to exercise and practice their geographical knowledge.
If the students in your class enjoy performance art, divide them into groups and have them study a certain historical event with the goal of re-enacting it for the teacher and other children. They could even create a song based on this time in history to incorporate into the play. If the children are quite young, consider a puppet show instead. You can also choose to have individual students complete a writing project on a historical event. Students will enjoy choosing a moment in the past and completing a explanatory poster, booklet, newspaper article or drawing.
Increase the interest of students in historical characters by having them choose a famous person from the past, such as Abraham Lincoln or Florence Nightingale. Provide an outline for the children to help them research facts about their chosen person such as where they were born, physical characteristics, what made them famous and their family life. Instruct the students that they are going to pretend to be these characters; have them condense their research into a short speech and find historically accurate costumes. Invite the parents to the classroom on the special day to watch their children perform in character.
Another fun social studies activity for children is the creation of historical time capsules. Divide students into small groups and assign each group a time period or culture. Choose from examples such as the Great Depression, the world wars or Egyptian culture. Each group must fill a time capsule with items that represent the era or culture to which they were assigned. Have students include a short written report explaining why they selected each item and the significance it has to the subject. Groups will enjoy exploring the past through the sharing of the time capsules.