Harcourt Brace & Co. Social Studies - America's Story: United States, Canada, Latin America. 1997. Boehm et. al. New York

Houghton Mifflin - America Will Be.

I. Interdisciplinary Organization and Conceptual Approach:

Both the Houghton Mifflin and the Harcourt Brace texts (hereafter referred to as HM and, HB respectively) integrate the main social studies themes; geography, history, political science, and economics. Both texts utilize other subject areas within the lessons. For example, HB asks students to make journal entries or write from the perspective of historical figures. HM asks students, in Chapter 15, lesson 4, to make a health connection to smallpox. The students are to research smallpox and either write an essay or make a presentation of their findings. Both texts also encourage the use math in their problems involving maps and charts. Review questions at the end of each lesson focus on comprehension, as well as critical thinking.

II. Learning Aids and Motivational Devices:

Throughout both texts, there are maps, charts, and graphs, which display various data. Both texts also make use of paintings from the particular time period being studied. HM uses political cartoons taken from publications of the period and asks students to theorize what the people of the era may have been thinking or feeling. HB uses Story Cloths depicting significant events of the era to be studied. Before students begin the unit, they are to analyze the Story Cloth and make predictions or share prior knowledge. At the end of each unit, the students again refer to the Story Cloths to evaluate what misconceptions they may have held and what they learned about the era. Both texts try to motivate learners by using creative activities, such as role-play, which is used in HM page 434. This particular activity asks students to act out conversations between frontiersmen and the Shawnee Indian Chief. Also in HM students are encouraged to learn and understand the history and role of the United States, in order to become better citizens. The HB teacher's edition provides lists of supplementary literature, software, and videos, as well as information on where teachers can obtain free and inexpensive supplementary materials. HB uses literature and primary sources extensively throughout lessons and units to motivate and interest students.

III. Readability and Ease of Comprehension:

Both texts offer activities that will appeal to all types of learners. However, the focus questions in HM are geared more toward auditory learners. Maps, graphs, pictures, charts are clearly marked with explanations, which allow students to easily understand the contents of the texts. HB uses a combination of direct definitions and context to introduce and illustrate new vocabulary. According to Fry's Readability Formula, HM is on a fifth grade reading level. Students, who are below grade level in reading, may have some difficulty. HB is a bit higher on the Readability Formula, but difficult vocabulary is made clear either within the text, or by direct definitions. The teacher edition provides the teacher with many activities to engage students with many different learning styles.

IV. Analytical Mode and Question Levels:

Questions are dispersed throughout HB to encourage students' critical thinking skills. For example, on page 580, students are referred to a map of Cuba and asked, " Why do you think the aircraft carriers were placed where they were?" At the end of each lesson, HM uses a set of questions for the reinforcement of certain issues. Most of the questions can be answered directly from the text. One question at the end of each lesson is devoted to stimulating the student's critical thinking skills. The questions often begin "Why do you think...?" Many graphs and maps are displayed in both texts and students are asked to make inferences from this data. Both texts use the questions in the section reviews to ask students to make connections between events in the chapter and events during other time periods, including our own. Students are also asked to draw conclusions by analyzing primary sources, such as historical documents.

V. Social Issues and Minorities:
 

HB does a fairly good job of representing many races and ethnicities, as well as both genders and people from other cultures. There are photos that show and explain people from various countries going about their daily routines. This text also does a good job of representing history from the points of view of minorities. HM also shows representations of different races and genders. However, these representations tend to be stereotypical. Women are portrayed as nurturers in lesson 4 of chapter 13, in the discussion of "changes in the family." African Americans are primarily depicted as slaves in HM. Whereas in HB, students can see people of different races in various roles and are even asked to consider their points of view. Neither text treated subjects such as drug abuse, ethnocentrism, or environmental problems.

VI. Skill Development:

Both texts use a variety of media to encourage skill building. Both HM and HB encourage students to use timelines, charts, graphs, maps, and more to learn lessons. Learners are often asked to analyze data from an earlier time period and compare that to the current data. Students are also expected to cross-curricular lines into such subjects as math, reading, writing, art, and music. Each chapter in HB includes skill-building activities. For example, students learn how to use a time zone map as they learn about the expansion of the railroad.

VII. Relationship to the Learner:

HM includes a section in each chapter review called "Preparing for Citizenship." This section takes historical events and alters them and has the student to write a reflection on how they might handle the situation. For example, in the review of chapter 13, groups of students relate modern television shows to a historically significant situation. HB asks students to take another person's perspective. For example, unit 6 begins by asking students to think about what might motivate them to move from one region to another. They are also asked to infer what might happen to Native Americans as European settlers move west.

VIII. Concluding Summary:

Both textbooks have strengths and weaknesses. However, because of the better representation of minorities, and the use of literature and primary sources, and the encouragement of higher order thinking skills, HB seems to be a better choice for fifth grade social studies.