History and Social Science Teachers Start New School Year with Extra Funds to Help Students

Arizona teachers and students from Laveen to St. Johns will start the school year with new tools to help them learn more about history and social science thanks to grants by Salt River Project. The History and Social Science Grant program, which awarded more than $16,000 to seven schools, provides a unique opportunity for schools and teachers to develop projects and programs that improve student performance in history, geography, civics, government and economics. Grants are up to $2,500 per school.

SRP annually contributes more than $1.3 million to education initiatives, grants and partnerships and provides free training and resources to educators throughout the state. To apply, learn more and get grant-writing tips, visit www.srpnet.com/education.

Below are the SRP History and Social Science Grants awarded for the 2021-22 school year (alphabetized by city): 

Laveen
Laveen Elementary School ($2,200):
Sixth graders can now use real tools and virtual reality to immerse themselves in the lives of archeologists and dig through bins of dirt filled with artifacts to learn about different ancient cultures. Students will use Google Maps, tools and graphing resources to plan the excavation of different cultures in China, Greece, Rome, India and Mesopotamia. Various subjects will be incorporated into one classroom as students use math with measurements and gridding; science to chemically clean artifacts and make inferences and observations; and literacy to record and analyze artifact findings.

Phoenix
Alta Vista Elementary School ($2,500):
Funds will be used to purchase 157 current and updated historical fiction titles to directly support and align with social and historical studies and state standards across all grade and readability levels. Alta Vista teachers and students will use these materials regularly to develop and enhance concepts, prompt discussion and writing, encourage research and investigation, enable comparison and debate as well as deepen their sense of understanding and empathy for their world. The new books will bring world history to life in a way all students can enjoy and relate to while enhancing their learning. The books will also be available to any residents who also utilize the library.

Campo Bello Elementary School ($2,500):
SRP grant money will be used to fund the Building a Community project, which is a multi-faceted project for second-grade students. First, they choose and research a community helper or occupation within the community. Next, they plan and build the building in which their community member works. Students then combine their buildings to create a three-dimensional (3D) town. Students also create a town map and prepare a presentation of their project, which includes all their research and maps created of their community.

Scottsdale
Tonalea K-8 School ($2,500):
Sixth, seventh and eighth grade students will have news materials to help develop critical-thinking skills. Funding supported the purchase of primary source documents, online lessons for distant learners and rigorous supplemental materials to support the new standards including primary sources for U.S. History and World History, project-based learning and document-based question activities. The supplemental materials will support social studies and English.

Surprise
Arizona Charter Academy ($2,500):
SRP History and Social Science funds will help more than 500 fifth to eighth graders participate in a new Historic Connections Project. The immersion-learning experience supports curriculum aimed at reinforcing social studies by simultaneously connecting it to coursework in science, music and art. Arizona Charter Academy teachers will use videos, art supplies, journals and sheet music to provide authentic project-based curriculum.

St. Johns
St. Johns Middle School ($2,500):
Sixth graders now have a new class set of World History textbooks and laminated desk maps. The textbook activities will enhance the curriculum, teach students how to use a textbook as a reference source and improve reading comprehension. The laminated desk maps will assist students in identifying geographical locations and allow them to draw on the maps and erase their work. The maps will be used throughout the academic year to teach other social studies concepts.

Queen Creek
Queen Creek Unified School District ($2,100):
New Ozobots will bring the Oregon Trail to life as fifth-grade students research, design and create a map with coded robot for the district’s Westward Expansion Unit. They will have an opportunity to engage in social studies-based projects. Students will use their knowledge of Westward Expansion to research important people and events related to the topic and create a 3D map of the Oregon Trail. The new tools will give them a better understanding of important historic and economic factors and events that shaped early American life.