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Learning Standards Standards

What does a student learn in ?

This is the year students start seeing themselves as part of a community. They learn how to ask questions about the world around them, take turns in real discussions, and work out small conflicts with classmates. Students also begin to notice how life today is different from life long ago, and how families and traditions can look different from house to house. By spring, students can name a classroom rule, share why it matters, and describe one way people help their neighborhood.

  • Classroom community
  • Rules and fairness
  • Past and present
  • Families and cultures
  • Maps of familiar places
  • Solving conflicts
Source: Nevada Nevada Academic Content Standards
Year at a glance
How the year usually goes. Every school and district set their own curriculum, so treat this as a guide, not official pacing.
  1. 1

    Starting school as a community

    Students learn what it means to belong to a classroom. They ask questions about how the group works together and practice taking turns, listening, and talking through small problems.

  2. 2

    Rules, fairness, and getting along

    Students look at the rules that help people share a space at school and at home. They talk about honesty, respect, and responsibility through stories and everyday classroom moments.

  3. 3

    Families, cultures, and celebrations

    Students notice ways families are alike and different. They learn about holidays and traditions from many cultures and find some of them on a calendar.

  4. 4

    Our place and our past

    Students make simple maps of the classroom and home and talk about why people move from one place to another. They compare life today with life long ago in the community.

  5. 5

    Helping our community

    Students look at problems in the classroom, school, or neighborhood and talk about how people work to make things better. They practice making a group choice and think about why we cannot have everything we want.

Mastery Learning Standards
The required skills a student should display by the end of Kindergarten.
Building Community – Learning and Working Together

  • With prompting and support, generate compelling questions to explore how…

    SS.K.1

    Students practice asking questions about why people learn and work together. The focus is on what makes a classroom a community.

  • With prompting and support, generate supporting questions related to compelling…

    SS.K.2

    Students practice coming up with their own questions about a big topic the class is exploring together. A teacher helps them figure out what smaller questions might lead to answers.

  • With prompting and support, using a primary source from your school or…

    SS.K.3

    Students look at a real photo, letter, or object from their school or community and talk through who made it, when, where, and why. A teacher helps them think it through.

  • With prompting and support, construct responses to compelling questions using…

    SS.K.4

    Students answer a big classroom question by pointing to pictures, objects, or simple examples that back up what they think. A teacher or adult helps them get started.

  • With prompting and support, construct organized explanations for various…

    SS.K.5

    Students practice putting their thoughts in order before sharing them out loud, choosing words that make sense to whoever is listening.

  • With prompting and support, participate in a structured academic discussion…

    SS.K.6

    Students join a short class discussion, share a thought about the topic, and explain why they think that. A teacher guides the conversation and helps students stay on track.

  • With prompting and support, list and discuss group or individual actions to…

    SS.K.7

    Students name real problems in their neighborhood or the wider world and talk about what a person or group could do to help. The focus is on connecting everyday actions to real needs.

  • With prompting and support, use deliberative and democratic procedures to take…

    SS.K.8

    Students practice making group decisions the way communities do: by listening to different ideas, talking them through, and agreeing on a step to take together.

  • Compare life in the past to life today within the community

    SS.K.9

    Students look at old photographs, tools, or stories and describe what has changed in their community over time, such as how people traveled, worked, or went to school.

  • Share and discuss stories that illustrate honesty, courage, friendship, respect

    SS.K.10

    Students listen to stories about characters who tell the truth, help a friend, or do the right thing, then talk about what those choices look like in real life.

  • Explore strategies to resolve conflicts in the classroom

    SS.K.11

    Students practice simple ways to work out disagreements with classmates, like taking turns talking or finding a fair compromise.

  • Identify diverse cultural events, holidays

    SS.K.12

    Students learn about holidays and cultural celebrations from different communities and practice finding those dates on a calendar.

  • Describe ways in which students and families are alike and different across…

    SS.K.13

    Students look at how families across different cultures share some things in common and differ in others, like food, celebrations, or traditions. The goal is to see both what connects people and what makes each family unique.

  • Describe an action that exemplifies civic virtues, including but not limited to

    SS.K.14

    Students name something a person can do that shows good citizenship, like listening during a group discussion or treating everyone fairly.

  • Compare and contrast rules from different places and cultures

    SS.K.15

    Students look at rules from different places, like school rules and home rules, and talk about how those rules are the same or different.

  • Describe how people work to improve their communities

    SS.K.16

    People work together to make their neighborhood better. Students learn how neighbors, workers, and leaders pitch in to fix problems, care for shared spaces, and help each other out.

  • Use simple geographic models to describe spaces at school and home

    SS.K.17

    Students look at simple maps or drawings of their classroom, school, or home and use them to describe where things are.

  • Explain why and how people move from place to place in the community

    SS.K.18

    Students learn why people travel around their community and how they get there, whether by foot, car, or bus.

  • Give examples of choices that are made because of scarcity

    SS.K.19

    Scarcity means there is not enough of something for everyone. Students learn to explain why people have to make choices, like sharing one box of crayons between two tables because there are not enough for each student to have their own.

Common Questions
  • What does social studies look like at this age?

    Social studies this year is mostly about learning to be part of a group. Students talk about rules, fairness, friendship, and how to solve small problems together. They also notice how families and neighborhoods are alike and different.

  • How can families practice these ideas at home?

    Talk about why your family has the rules it has, and let students help solve small problems like sharing a toy or taking turns. Share stories from when you were little and ask what feels the same or different today. Five minutes at dinner is plenty.

  • How should the year be sequenced?

    Start with classroom community, rules, and getting along, since every other unit leans on those habits. Move into family and neighborhood comparisons in the middle of the year, then finish with simple maps, choices, and how people help their community.

  • What does mastery look like by the end of the year?

    Students can ask a question about their class or neighborhood, listen to others, and share a reason for what they think. They can name a rule, give an example of being honest or responsible, and point out something that has changed over time.

  • My child says they just talked and played today. Is that real learning?

    Yes. Structured talk, sharing, and turn-taking are the heart of social studies at this age. Students are practicing how to listen, disagree kindly, and explain their thinking, which is what later history and civics work is built on.

  • How much history and geography is expected?

    Not much in the textbook sense. Students compare life now to life a long time ago using pictures and stories, and they use simple maps of the classroom or home. Deep dates and places come in later grades.

  • Which parts usually need the most reteaching?

    Conflict resolution and structured discussion almost always need another pass after winter break. Students also tend to need more practice with the idea of scarcity, so concrete examples like one cookie and two friends work better than the word itself.

  • How do holidays and cultural events fit in?

    Students look at celebrations from different cultures across the year and find them on the calendar. The goal is noticing what families value and how they mark time, not covering every holiday. Inviting families to share a tradition works well.

  • How do I know my child is ready for first grade in this subject?

    They can follow classroom rules, take turns in a conversation, and give a reason for an opinion. They can also describe their family, point to where they live on a simple map, and tell a short story about something that happened in the past.