Deck 3: How Are Social Studies Inquiry Skills Learned

Question 1

Problem solving involves identifying a problem and taking action to solve it.

Answer 1

True

Question 2

Skills require large amounts of practice to learn but once learned will be maintained.

Answer 2

False

Question 3

Once we have gathered some data by observing, measuring, and questioning, our next step is to:

A) construct a map of the data.
B) organize the data by classifying it, ordering it, or by isolating important variables in it.
C) process the data by finding relationships between the items in the data.
D) quickly communicate our data by reporting it to the class.

Answer 3

B

Question 4

Certain attitudes and dispositions promote powerful social studies. These include:

A) selecting a position on an issue because family members believe it is the right position.
B) reserving judgment until information has been obtained and considered.
C) resisting asking questions.
D) realizing that the natural environment is just the way it is and that we can do little to control the events that change it.

Question 5

Investigating focuses on learning about a problem and reporting what you have learned.

Question 6

Which of the following data-gathering skills might best be used in a project that involves a class of fourth-graders in determining the average amount of trash their family disposes of each week?

A) library, interviewing, and graphing skills
B) graphing, Internet, and interviewing
C) surveying, questioning, and mapping skills
D) interviewing, surveying, and questioning

Question 7

One of the first steps in decision making is clearly defining the problem.

Question 8

Which of the following is NOT a requirement for doing critical thinking?

A) Respecting evidence
B) Being willing to search for more evidence
C) Tolerating ambiguity
D) Staying with your conclusion

Question 9

Ms. Lopez, a fourth-grade teacher was working to help her students develop their problem- solving ability. Which of the following was a component that she had to help them learn if they were to become better problem solvers?

A) Recognize that problem solving means resolving a difficulty.
B) Recognize that problem solving identifies the appropriate solution for us so we do not have to try it out.
C) Recognize that, once a solution is arrived at, there will be no obstacles.
D) Recognize that a general description of a problem rather than a detailed, specific description is preferred.

Question 10

When doing a predictive study, students might ask a question such as:

A) how might our play outside on the school playground change if the city puts a public park next to it?
B) what beliefs are leading city planners to decide to put a public park next to the school playground?
C) how do people's attitudes about public parks result in the city planners choosing to put the public park next to the school playground?
D) how much are the other city parks used?

Question 11

Given that inquiry skills all have several stages of development, which of the following is the most appropriate statement concerning teaching skills?

A) The social studies curriculum should teach an inquiry skill using the same content topic each time to avoid confusing students with different information.
B) The social studies curriculum should teach the inquiry skill very well in the early grades because students will then master it and not need additional help to further develop the skill.
C) The social studies curriculum should teach an inquiry skill in different grade levels, developing it to a higher level each year it is taught.
D) The social studies curriculum should focus on content not on skill development because skills cannot be fully taught in one school year.

Question 12

The emotional aspect or implications of a problem often prompt or stimulate the study of a social studies topic. Which of the following is least likely to have been stimulated by concerns that are a part of the affective domain?

A) A study of Presidents' Day
B) A study of where to locate a new hospital for the community
C) A study of life in another country
D) A study of what to do with an abandoned railroad line that runs through parts of the city

Question 13

"My pencil is not on my desk, so somebody took it!" This statement is an:

A) observation.
B) inference.
C) hypothesis.
D) fact.

Question 14

The most important skills used in teaching social studies lessons are the making of maps and timelines.

Question 15

Observing is a fundamental inquiry skill that involves:

A) sequencing the characteristics of a set of objects from large to small, short to tall, or in some other systematic way.
B) identifying what a set of characteristics tell us, for example, wrinkles on a person's face tell us that person is older than someone who does not have wrinkles.
C) predicting where we will see a particular characteristic again.
D) identifying characteristics of an object that we can see, feel, touch, hear, and/or taste.

Question 16

One difference in learning cycles that teach a social studies skill is the optional nature of the exploratory introduction phase.

Question 17

What data-organizing skill is being used when students take data gathered about the weekly allowances of their classmates and tally it by how many students receive each of the following allowances: seventy-five cents, one dollar, one dollar and fifty cents, two dollars?

A) Classifying
B) Ordering observations
C) Finding patterns
D) Inferring

Question 18

"When there are no rules for a game, people will start arguing because they can't agree on what to do." This statement is an example of an:

A) observation.
B) inference.
C) hypothesis.
D) fact.

Question 19

Which of the following would be the most appropriate expansion activity in a lesson focusing on making inferences about life in New Orleans in the 1830s?

A) Describing the location of New Orleans in North America with the help of a world map
B) Examining photographs of New Orleans after Hurricane Katrina
C) Examining a New Orleans' newspaper dated July 4, 1837
D) Reading an account of the contribution of the citizens of New Orleans to the Confederacy during the Civil War

Question 20

Teachers are able to determine that a student has learned a skill when the student applies the skill in a new situation.

Question 21

When looking for ways to solve a local problem or investigating a historical event, critical thinking skills are also used.

Question 22

Inquiry lessons are likely to require students to use a number of different skills.

Question 23

Reflecting on the use of skills is profitable at the end of an inquiry lesson but not profitable to do during the lesson.

Question 24

Asking questions throughout an inquiry lesson is an important way to encourage students in developing their cognitive skills.

Question 25

It is possible to teach all of the social studies skills in the lower grades so that middle school teachers and high school teachers can concentrate on teaching only social studies knowledge.

Question 26

Making a generalization or conclusion is an easier intellectual skill than describing or explaining what was observed or read.

Question 27

Making a database on a computer is an example of a data-gathering skills that elementary students might be taught.

Question 28

Observations identify characteristics of objects or events through use of one or more of the senses, which is why students are encouraged to observe and handle learning resources.