Missouri Council of the Social Studies Annual Conference: Full Schedule

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7:45am CST

Registration; Breakfast

Friday February 21, 2025 7:45am - 8:25am CST

This breakfast is sponsored by the University of Missouri–St. Louis in appreciation of our dedicated social studies educators who uphold and strengthen our democracy.

Speakers

Kerri Flynn

Executive Secretary, Missouri Council of the Social Studies

Before becoming the Education Director for The Genocide Education Project, Kerri Flynn was a high school social studies and English teacher in Missouri for 25 years. She taught dual credit Psychology and Sociology, Modern U.S. History, and Human Rights and Genocide, a course she developed. Flynn received the University of Chicago Outstanding Educator award... Read More →

Friday February 21, 2025 7:45am - 8:25am CST
Lobby

All

8:30am CST

Meeting the Holocaust Education Mandate

Friday February 21, 2025 8:30am - 9:20am CST

Matsun

This session will explore the new Missouri Holocaust Education Mandate which is required in public and charter schools for grades 6-12. The session will include an overview of effective teaching strategies, access to key resources such as survivor testimonies and historical materials, and time for educators to begin developing or refining their own Holocaust education plans. By the end of the workshop, attendees will be equipped to meet the mandate’s objectives with confidence.

Speakers

Helen Turner

Friday February 21, 2025 8:30am - 9:20am CST
Matsun

All

8:30am CST

"We the Missourians: Diverse Changemakers" in Grade 3 History—Teaching Missouri’s Complexities and Cultivating Civic Agency through Civic Honesty

Friday February 21, 2025 8:30am - 9:20am CST

Calhoun

This session will present the Grade 3 Missouri History Unit, "We the Missourians: Diverse Changemakers," developed in collaboration with local teachers and aligned with the state standards and the Educating for American Democracy (EAD) Roadmap. The unit engages students in historical inquiry, exploring Missouri’s complex history through diverse changemakers using primary and customized secondary sources. "Changemakers" refers to civic participants who pursue a healthy constitutional democracy from a broad ideological spectrum. This unit highlights diverse experiences of social, racial, and economic groups in Missouri, helping young students relate this local history to their own lives and become capable changemakers.

Speakers

Chaebong Nam

Friday February 21, 2025 8:30am - 9:20am CST
Calhoun

Elementary

8:30am CST

Crime Scene! Foster Student-Based Inquiry with a Primary Source Mystery

Friday February 21, 2025 8:30am - 9:20am CST

Augusta

Inquiry-based activities and primary sources, necessary for social studies standards but also a teacher favorite! Join us for a fun way to challenge your students in the classroom with a primary source crime scene mystery! The activity shared in this session will build the foundation for primary source analysis throughout the year. Students commonly misunderstand the nuanced nature of primary source documents, images, and artifacts. They want a group of primary sources to fit together perfectly, like a jigsaw puzzle, to tell a single, “true” account. Students want primary sources to be true or false, right or wrong, but historical research is never that easy.

Speakers

Kimberly Fudge

Friday February 21, 2025 8:30am - 9:20am CST
Augusta

Middle School

8:30am CST

People and the Environment: Hands-on World History, Geography, and Environmental Literacy

Friday February 21, 2025 8:30am - 9:20am CST

Rocheport

Human impact on the environment is a theme that can be carried through instruction on World History and Geography. In this hands-on session, engage in activities that enable students to explore questions about how the environment has been affected by major shifts of civilizations including population growth, the spread of agriculture and cities and global interdependence. Presented activities include cooperative group problem solving, graphing and analysis, and role-playing simulations. Receive electronic lesson plans and background resources matched to state standards.

Speakers

Brian Keller

MCSS

Friday February 21, 2025 8:30am - 9:20am CST
Rocheport

Middle School High School

9:30am CST

Conference Welcome and Keynote Speaker

Friday February 21, 2025 9:30am - 10:30am CST

Windsor

Speakers

Lynne Jackson

The Dred Scott Heritage Foundation

As the great-great grandaughter of Dred and Harriet Scott, Lynne Jackson has worked tirelessly to maintain the legacy of Dred Scott’s eleven-year fight for freedom. Ms. Jackson founded the Dred Scott Heritage Foundation which raised the funds for the Dred and Harriet Scott statue... Read More →

Friday February 21, 2025 9:30am - 10:30am CST
Windsor

All

10:40am CST

World Peace Through Geography Knowledge

Friday February 21, 2025 10:40am - 11:30am CST

Calhoun

Attendees will get access to a package of free online geography games that can help them and their students learn names and countries of the world.

Speakers

Bob Reynolds

Friday February 21, 2025 10:40am - 11:30am CST
Calhoun

All

10:40am CST

The Process: A Legislative Process Simulation

Friday February 21, 2025 10:40am - 11:30am CST

Rocheport

The Process is a board game teaching players steps of the Missouri legislative process in an interactive fashion! Through exciting gameplay, educators use the Process teaching students how legislation is made and advocacy actions. The Process was created in response to low civics comprehension and outdated instruction materials. Using the engaging elements of board game play, the Process gains the attention of even the least attentive student, educating them on this important community decision making procedure. In the session, educators will learn how to use the game to engage students in legislation and inspire interest in civics education!

Speakers

Colby Crowder

Friday February 21, 2025 10:40am - 11:30am CST
Rocheport

High School

10:40am CST

Using AI to Teach Traumatic History: Balancing Sensitivity and Depth in the Classroom

Friday February 21, 2025 10:40am - 11:30am CST

Augusta

Teaching traumatic history, like the Holocaust, can be tough. This presentation will show educators how to use AI, like ChatGPT and other AI models, to help. We’ll talk about strategies for using AI to make lessons engaging and how to navigate the ethical challenges of using this technology.

Speakers

Bill Edney

Friday February 21, 2025 10:40am - 11:30am CST
Augusta

High School

10:40am CST

Aligning Best Practices in Writing and Source Analysis Across Social Studies and English Language Arts.

Friday February 21, 2025 10:40am - 11:30am CST

Matsun

This session explores the unique demands of social sciences versus ELA writing and the impact of unified instruction. Through best practices in writing and source analysis, educators will gain strategies and scaffolding techniques to elevate student writing, foster skill transfer, and build cross-disciplinary language for critical thinking and analytical expression.

Speakers

Betty Roberts

Friday February 21, 2025 10:40am - 11:30am CST
Matsun

Middle School High School

11:30am CST

Lunch and Teacher of the Year Awards

Friday February 21, 2025 11:30am - 1:00pm CST

Windsor

The techniques shown during this presentation are directly applicable to assisting educators in complying with the State of Missouri's Holocaust education mandate. This presentation will show how the guidelines produced by the Missouri Holocaust and Education Awareness Commission can be used to inform AI models to assist educators in the classroom.

Speakers

MCSS President Brian Keller and Past President Linnet Early

Friday February 21, 2025 11:30am - 1:00pm CST
Windsor

All

1:00pm CST

“DBQ-In-A-Day”: Incorporating Document-Based Skills and Strategies within Daily Instruction

Friday February 21, 2025 1:00pm - 1:50pm CST

Rocheport

"DBQ-In-A-Day" will focus on ways to utilize bits-and-pieces of a DBQ unit in short one- or two-day lessons. The training will feature various strategies to help students with document analysis and increase writing skills through "DBQ Quick Writes." The goal is for participants to leave with a better sense of how they can utilize the DBQ resources beyond full units, worksheet packets and within their daily instruction.

Speakers

Tyler Adams

Friday February 21, 2025 1:00pm - 1:50pm CST
Rocheport

All

1:00pm CST

“I don’t have time for social studies!” Teaching Elementary U.S. History with new BRI resources

Friday February 21, 2025 1:00pm - 1:50pm CST

Calhoun

Discover dynamic U.S. History resources enriched with primary sources, tailored for grades 3-5 and beyond. Immerse yourself in Bill of Rights Institute’s new elementary curriculum, exploring a lesson on the causes of the Civil War that fosters literacy and history. Gain practical strategies and ready-made lesson plans to reclaim valuable social studies time. This session equips teachers with tools for effective cross-curricular literacy instruction in upper elementary classrooms. Engage with BRI's innovative resources and participate in a lesson on the causes of the Civil War featuring text coding, primary sources, and informative paragraph writing.

Speakers

Lori Rech

Friday February 21, 2025 1:00pm - 1:50pm CST
Calhoun

Elementary

1:00pm CST

Martin Luther Sticks it to the Church

Friday February 21, 2025 1:00pm - 1:50pm CST

Matsun

Use stick figure graphic novel notes to teach the story of Martin Luther and how it led to the Protestant Reformation. Engage the kids with this unique story with a fun note-taking style.

Speakers

Becky Harrold

Friday February 21, 2025 1:00pm - 1:50pm CST
Matsun

Middle School High School

1:00pm CST

What Fires Together Wires Together: The Science of Simulations

Friday February 21, 2025 1:00pm - 1:50pm CST

Augusta

Learn how simulations that involve physical movement, creativity, and problem-solving enhance student engagement, recall, and learning. This session will explore the science behind simulations and provide practical strategies for designing and implementing them in social studies classrooms. Avoid common pitfalls and discover how simulations can connect cultures, ideas, and histories to create dynamic, real-world learning experiences that foster critical thinking and deeper understanding.

Speakers

Bill Norton

Friday February 21, 2025 1:00pm - 1:50pm CST
Augusta

Middle School High School

2:00pm CST

MO HiStory: Missouri History Through the Lives of Its Entrepreneurs

Friday February 21, 2025 2:00pm - 2:50pm CST

Calhoun

Every elementary student in Missouri studies state history. Although popular Missouri textbooks include important information about the state's geography, institutions, explorers, politicians, and military heroes, little – if any – mention is made of the individuals whose entrepreneurial spirit led to the development of business and the growth of cities and towns throughout the state. The MO HiStory curriculum fills this gap by providing lessons based on age-appropriate biographies about 20 diverse entrepreneurial Missourians. Lessons include activities that apply skills in language arts, research, and critical thinking. Participants receive a free set of ready-to-use lessons to engage students.

Speakers

Grant Black

Friday February 21, 2025 2:00pm - 2:50pm CST
Calhoun

Elementary

2:00pm CST

Armenian Genocide: Then and Still Today

Friday February 21, 2025 2:00pm - 2:50pm CST

Augusta

The Armenian Genocide was committed by the Ottoman Turks during the midst of World War I from 1915 to 1917. Not only did the genocide include the murders, the remaining people were enslaved, abandoned in the desert, “reeducated,” or became refugees in other countries. The genocide continues as Turkey still has not acknowledged the event even occurred and is assisting Azerbaijan to systematically wipe Armenia from the map. Although this is a historical topic on the surface, it impacts our world today despite the lack of media coverage.

Speakers

Derek Frieling

Friday February 21, 2025 2:00pm - 2:50pm CST
Augusta

High School

2:00pm CST

Every Teacher Is a Literacy Teacher: Practical Strategies for Daily Lessons in Social Studies

Friday February 21, 2025 2:00pm - 2:50pm CST

Matsun

In this session, participants will be introduced to numerous structured literacy practices that can be quickly and easily implemented in Social Studies classrooms in order to develop content knowledge, facilitate critical thinking, assess student achievement, and improve reading fluency and comprehension. Attendees will have multiple opportunities for deliberate practice, meaningful collaboration, productive discussion, and active learning.

Speakers

Matt Loomis

Friday February 21, 2025 2:00pm - 2:50pm CST
Matsun

Middle School High School

2:00pm CST

Getting Nast-y with Political Cartoons in your classroom!

Friday February 21, 2025 2:00pm - 2:50pm CST

Rocheport

Help students understand history through political cartoons. Explore techniques for interpretation and analysis, opening a new world of primary documents. Empower students to grasp historical concepts effectively.

Speakers

Lori Rech

Friday February 21, 2025 2:00pm - 2:50pm CST
Rocheport

Middle School High School

3:00pm CST

Keynote Speaker: Brent Trout

Friday February 21, 2025 3:00pm - 3:50pm CST

Windsor

Speakers

Brent Trout

Manager, St. Louis County Library

Brent Trout is the manager of the Emerson History & Genealogy Center at St. Louis County Library Clark Family Branch. With a background in museums, Brent previously served as the executive director of museums in Oklahoma and Florida. His interest in genealogy developed while in Oklahoma... Read More →

Friday February 21, 2025 3:00pm - 3:50pm CST
Windsor

All

4:00pm CST

Holocaust Composer Stories Screening

Friday February 21, 2025 4:00pm - 5:00pm CST

Windsor

Join us for a screening of the first installment of Holocaust Composer Stories, a free, digital education program from the St. Louis Symphony Orchestra. Holocaust Composer Stories offers middle and high school social studies and music teachers a new entry point for teaching about the Holocaust. Each story in this series features a composer with a different experience of the Holocaust. Students will listen to their music, hear their stories, and deepen their own understanding of historical events.
Created in partnership with the St. Louis Kaplan Feldman Holocaust Museum.

Friday February 21, 2025 4:00pm - 5:00pm CST
Windsor

All

6:30pm CST

Trivia Night Sponsored by BRI

Friday February 21, 2025 6:30pm - 8:00pm CST

Windsor

Speakers