Social Studies Sites

1) Social Studies for Kids
http://www.socialstudiesforkids.com
This site's home page starts out with a "This Week in History" article that is updated weekly. It also lets students research any topic any period of history they want. In addition, it has links to current events, games, maps, cultural and religious observances and much more.

2) Social Studies Sources
http://education.indiana.edu/~socialst/
This site is designed for K-12 teachers and students, but it can also be used by preservice teachers as well. This has links to subjects such as governments, history, global studies, geography and news. The site also links to other and recommends other sites. It is definitely a valuable tool for teaching social studies.

3) Gheos World Travel Guide
http://gheos.com/atlas/
Though not an "educational" site in the traditional sense, this site highlights a specific country each week and gives information about it's history, capital city, food, travel, religion and the best times to travel there. Clicking on images will open an interactive travel map that provides even more information about the locations on the map. It also has a "Question of the Day" feature that asks a trivia question about a country.

4) Social Studies Lessons
http://www.csun.edu/~hcedu013/
This site is a collection of social studies lesson plans, resources and online activities. It links to lesson plans, online activities, has advice on how to teach current events, and links to educational standards and curruculum frameworks.