POWERFUL SOCIAL STUDIES FOR ELEMENTARY STUDENTS examines the nature and purpose of social studies as it outlines ways to select content and teach history, geography, and social sciences more meaningfully. These respected authors present principles and illustrative examples to help pre-service and in-service teachers plan well-organized social studies instruction that produces positive student outcomes. The Third Edition emphasizes the importance of using developmentally appropriate content and methods when helping students to develop social understanding and civic action, and includes a solid research base that is reflective of the current NCSS standards. Rather than advocating the elimination of the traditional content framework used to organize the social studies curriculum ('expanding communities framework'), the authors call for retaining the most important topics that have traditionally been emphasized and for teaching these topics in 'more coherent and powerful ways.'