These colorful "I CAN" statements are written for the newly updated 2019 Michigan Social Studies standards. Display in your room to increase visibility and make your student learning goals clearly visible for students, parents, and administrators. Please contact me for multiple use purchases as th...

Michigan. The Mitten State. Surrounded by the Great Lakes, filled with many natural wonders and a rich history. Learn about Michigan in our third grade offering from the Michigan Open Book Project.

What do you think makes Michigan special? You might be thinking that Michigan is special because it is your home. Maybe it is special because the people you care about live in Michigan. These are wonderful reasons. This resource will help you learn about many other ways that Michigan is special.

In the first chapter you learned about geography, one of the important areas of social studies. You explored the geography of Michigan and its many special natural characteristics. What do people do with the natural characteristics of Michigan? They put them to use! They plant crops in the soil. They use wood from trees to build houses. What do they do with water??? Lots and lots of things! There is a special name for things in nature that people find useful: natural resources. In this section you will learn how natural resources are important in another area of social studies: economics.

You have learned that there are different areas of social studies. You have learned about geography. You have also learned about economics. In this chapter you will learn about civics. You will discover that civics is the study of government. It is also the study of the role people play in government. But, wait! What is government?

You have learned that there are different areas of social studies. You have learned about geography. You have also learned about economics. In this chapter you will learn about history. You will discover that history is what happened in the past.

The fourth grade social studies book for the MI Open Book Project introduces students to geography, economics, history, and civics all through their study of the United States of America. Explore the regions and physical geography of the united states, learn about important economic concepts, and delve into the history of Michigan post statehood. A PASST performance task has also been included as students study the problems associated with sharing the water in the Great Lakes.

In third grade you learned about the geography of the state of Michigan. You may have studied the geography of Michigan by learning about what makes Michigan special. This year, in studying the geography of the United States, you will explore a similar question. It is centered around what makes the country in which we live special.

In previous grades you’ve learned a little about economics and that economics deals with choices. We all make choices every day. We make choices about what to buy. We make choices about whether to save or spend money. You will learn in this chapter that economics is about more than just choices. Economics is the study of how individuals and societies use resources to produce goods and services. It is about competition and prices and trade. As you learn you will be working as an economist, someone who studies economics.

You have learned that there are different areas of social studies and different kinds of social scientists. You learned that geographers study geography and economists study economics. This chapter is about civics, another important area of social studies. Civics is the study of government and the role people play in government. But who studies civics??? Civicsers? Civicsists? It’s a little more complicated this time. Political scientists study civics! Politics is just another name for government. But wait, what is government? Government is a system that people use to provide order and make decisions. It is also a system for distributing power like the power to make laws and the power to enforce laws. It is also a system for regulating the conduct of people, or how people
behave.

Should water from the Great Lakes be used in other places? The question of “who owns the water?” and “should it be used to help other places in the country that need it?” is one that our nation has been wrestling with for years. You will be responsible for writing an opinion essay on this very topic. You will be introduced to the topic of decreasing water levels in the Great Lakes by watching two videos and reading a short passage. Finally you will compose an opinion essay on the public issue: Should water be diverted from the Great Lakes to other parts of the United States that need water?