Social Studies

Rhode Island Social Studies Standards

Revised Rhode Island Rhode Island Social Studies Standards were endorsed by the Council for Elementary and Secondary Education in February 2023. LEAs are working toward making their shifts to align with the new Standards. Shifts should be completed for full implementation of the new Standards by the 2026-2027 school year.

The full Standards document is available for download in PDF format:

• FULL Rhode Island Social Studies Standards 

The Standards document is also broken into segments for easier access below:

• Introduction
• Anchor Standards 
• Content Standards Overview and Grade Progressions
• How to Read Content Standards 

Kindergarten – Grade 8

• Kindergarten – Living and Working Together in Schools, Families, and Neighborhoods
• Grade 1 - Living and Working Together in Local Communities 
• Grade 2 - Living and Working Together in Global Communities 
• Grade 3 - Living and Working Together in the Regions of the United States 
• Grade 4 - Living and Working Together in Rhode Island 
• Grade 5 - United States History: Pre-European Contact to Reconstruction 
• Grade 6 - Ancient to Medieval World History and Geography 
• Grade 7 - Early Modern to Modern World History and Geography 
• Grade 8 - Government and Civic Life in the United States and Rhode Island 

High School

• Civics 
• United States History I: Pre-European Contact to Reconstruction 
• United States History II: Late 19th Century to the Present 
• World History I: Ancient to Medieval 
• World History II: Early Modern to Modern 

Informational Slides and Recording

The Rhode Island Social Studies Informational Standards Session has been recorded and is available here. This recording was created in May of 2023. 

A slide deck from the Rhode Island Social Studies Standards Informational Session is available for educators to share with their teams whether at the LEA or school level. It can be used to help with understanding of and planning for the implementation of the new Social Studies Standards. See the notes sections for talking points.  

LEAs are expected to review the revised Standards, identify grades requiring shifts, and develop a timeline for aligning curriculum and instruction by the fall of 2026.  RIDE will provide supports to LEAs in developing and implementing their timelines for the shifts they will need to make.  RIDE will also be putting together guidance documents including the Social Studies Frameworks, guidance on civics instruction, guidance on implementing and supporting the student-led civics project, guidance on the use of ELA materials where they can act as supplements to social studies materials, and guidance on core and supplemental curricular resources. In addition, RIDE will provide professional learning opportunities for educators.

With the release of the new Rhode Island Social Studies Standards, there have been numerous questions about how they affect social studies curriculum and instruction in Rhode Island. Please see this Social Studies Standards FAQs document to find answers to many of those questions.

The Social Studies Curriculum Framework provides guidance around the implementation of the Rhode Island Social Studies Standards, particularly as it relates to the design and use of curriculum materials, instruction, and assessment. 

The frameworks streamline a vertical application of standards and assessment across the K–12 continuum within Tier 1 of a Multi-Tier System of Support (MTSS), increase opportunities for all students, including multilingual learners and differently-abled, to meaningfully engage in grade-level work and tasks, and ultimately support educators and families in making decisions that prioritize the student experience. These uses of the curriculum frameworks align with RIDE’s overarching commitment to ensuring all students have access to high-quality curriculum and instruction that prepares students to meet their postsecondary goals. 

Informational Slides and Recordings

A Social Studies Curriculum Framework slide deck has been created based on the one used for the informational sessions. This slide deck is designed to serve as a turn-key tool for educators to share with their teams whether at the LEA or school level. It can be used to help with understanding and planning for the implementation of the Social Studies Standards. Slides can be hidden depending on relevance to the audience. Speaker notes are included.

The informational session for the Social Studies Curriculum Framework has been recorded and is available below through a series of videos, one for each of the four sections of the Curriculum Framework document. Three additional videos that focus on the guidance for implementing  the Social Studies Standards in elementary, middle, and high school are listed with Section 2 of the Curriculum Framework. These recordings were created in May of 2024.

• Section 1: Introduction (Length – 9:40) 
• Section 2: Implementing High-Quality Curriculum (Length – 19:51) 
• Section 2a: Implementing the Standards in the Elementary Grades (Length – 8:16) 
• Section 2b: Implementing the Standards in the Middle Grades (Length – 5:47) 
• Section 2c: Implementing the Standards in High School (Length – 10:23) 
• Section 3: Implementing High-Quality Instruction (Length – 13:51) 
• Section 4: High-Quality Learning Through Assessment (Length – 15:42)

 

RIDE Social Studies Documents Associated with the Social Studies Curriculum Framework

• Connections between RI Social Studies Standards and ELA HQIM – as referenced in pages 30 and 34 of the Social Studies Curriculum Framework
• Connections: RI Social Studies Standards and RI Core Standards for Mathematics – as referenced on pages 45-46 of the Social Studies Curriculum Framework
• Connections: RI Social Studies Standards and Next Generation Science Standards – as referenced on page 46 of the Social Studies Curriculum Framework
• Rhode Island Guide for Assessing Curriculum Materials in Social Studies for High Quality – as referenced on page 53 of the Social Studies Curriculum Framework
• Rhode Island Social Studies Review Tool for Selecting High Quality Curriculum Materials [PDF], and
• Rhode Island Social Studies Review Tool for Selecting High Quality Curriculum Materials  [Fillable Word Document] – as referenced on page 53 of the Social Studies Curriculum Framework
• Rubric Template and Examples for Assessing Student Performance on the Rhode Island Social Studies Standards [PDF], and
• Rubric Template and Examples for Assessing Student Performance on the Rhode Island Social Studies Standards [Fillable Word Document] – as referenced on pages 166-117 of the Social Studies Curriculum Framework

The Civic Learning Guidebook: Instructional Guidance for All Teachers outlines the vision for civic learning in Rhode Island to ensure that all Rhode Island students are civic ready upon graduation. Using research-based practices that enrich social studies instruction, the guidance aims to support educators in cultivating powerful, relevant, and localized learning experiences for students from kindergarten through high school, preparing students to be informed, thoughtful and active citizens. The Guidebook offers practical suggestions and strategies to ensure that civics education is a relevant, authentic, and cohesive part of the social studies curriculum that helps teachers draw direct and meaningful connections from classroom to community. 

To realize the instructional vision for civic learning, the Guidebook provides guidance on Civic Learning Practices along with instructional tools and resources that support students in meeting the civics proficiency requirements established by RIDE’s Secondary Regulations. Additionally, the Guidebook offers detailed guidance for the implementation of civic action projects, including the student-led civics project required by legislation {RIGL §16-22-2}.

A Civic Learning Guidebook slide deck has been created based on the one used for the informational sessions. This slide deck is designed to serve as a turn-key tool for educators to share with their teams whether at the LEA or school level. It can be used to help with understanding and planning for the implementation of civic learning. Speaker notes are included.

The Civic Learning Guidebook informational session recording is also available.

Please refer to this Civic Learning in Rhode Island FAQs document for answers to commonly asked questions about civics learning, civics proficiency requirements, and student-led civics projects.

Take the Civic Learning Guidebook Professional Learning Series asynchronous course through Canvas. The course is tailored for educators teaching kindergarten through high school in Rhode Island and complements the Civic Learning Guidebook. The course is structured for individual or team participation and provides comprehensive resources, including learning materials for all Civic Learning Practices, self-assessment tools, discussion protocols, and planning guides. These resources support participants in reflecting on their current knowledge and experiences to identify actionable next steps for implementation. Individuals can join the course using this link.

In September 2019, the Rhode Island Department of Elementary & Secondary Education invited Rhode Island educators to participate as members of a new Rhode Island History & Social Studies Advisory Committee (RIHSSAC). Through an application process, RIDE selected approximately 30 social studies, history, civic education, and elementary teachers from across the state to form this new advisory.

This Committee acts as advisors to RIDE and ambassadors to the education community on matters of history, civics, and social studies education. This committee also serves as a working group for a variety of initiatives, including work on the revised Social Studies Standards along with forthcoming Frameworks and other materials to support the Standards.

For more information on the RIHSSAC, please email: Social Studies

Stay informed about social studies – related information through the Rhode Island Social Studies Newsletter. Issues are regularly published on the first Thursday of the month with some exceptions. Newsletter entries include professional learning opportunities, conference announcements, open-source teaching resources, information to join academic competitions, enrichment ideas, opportunities to share with students, and other items that are specific to Social Studies or related disciplines.

• Sign up to receive the RIDE Social Studies Newsletter
• Newsletter submissions should be emailed to socialstudies@ride.ri.gov. Please review the submission guidelines in this document. Submissions that do not meet the guidelines will not be published.
• View the RIDE Social Studies Newsletter Archive to review previous newsletters

Questions can be directed to: Social Studies

In 2023, the Rhode Island Department of Education published the revised Rhode Island Social Studies Standards which are grade level specific and are a change from the previous Grade Span Expectations. In addition, the new Social Studies Curriculum Framework, published in early 2024, identifies what high quality curriculum should look like in social studies. New content and expectations of high quality prompted the need for Rhode Island’s Local Education Agencies (LEAs) to review existing instructional materials for standards alignment and quality or to adopt new materials.

In Rhode Island, LEAs purchase instructional materials that are best for their local communities since those closest to students are best positioned to decide which instructional materials are appropriate for their district and classrooms. To support LEAs in making their decisions, the Rhode Island Department of Education created the Rhode Island Social Studies Review Tool for Selecting High Quality Curriculum Materials along with a review protocol outlined in the Rhode Island Guide for Assessing Curriculum Materials in Social Studies for High Quality. In addition, RIDE conducted state-supported reviews of core curriculum materials to provide reports to help LEAs make their adoption decisions. Core materials are those that support a full course of study. No set of materials is perfect, and it is expected that supplemental materials will be needed. LEAs are not required to select materials that have been reviewed through RIDE’s review process.

Materials reviewed by RIDE were submitted by vendors through a Request for Curriculum. Review teams were formed through an application process and were comprised of Rhode Island educators from throughout the State. The submitted materials were reviewed over the course of three phases. Phase 1 review teams assessed materials submitted for Rhode Island’s grade 8 and the five high school courses as outlined in the Social Studies Standards during the summer and fall of 2023. Phase 2 review teams assessed materials submitted for Rhode Island’s grades 5 to 7 standards during the fall of 2023 through the winter of 2024. Phase 3 review teams assessed materials submitted for Rhode Island’s Kindergarten through grade 4 standards at the beginning of 2024. Teams used the Social Studies Review Tool for Selecting High Quality Curriculum Materials along with the review protocol outlined in the Rhode Island Guide for Assessing Curriculum Materials in Social Studies for High Quality.

The reviews linked below are those that were found by review teams to have met the minimum requirements for consideration by districts. A core curriculum is considered to have met minimum requirements for consideration by districts if it has been determined that it meets most indicators as outlined in the first two areas of the Review Tool and has otherwise scored well across the indicators.

Although RIDE staff may have edited reviews for clarity and sentence structure, the views expressed in the reports are those of review team members and not of RIDE staff.

Review reports are to be used by LEAs as guides only. LEAs are encouraged to conduct their own reviews of the materials using the Review Tool and review protocol before making their final adoption decisions. Educators should be able to receive preview access to materials by contacting the vendor.

For more information about the review process and phases of the work, an informational session was recorded, and the slide deck is available. 

Kindergarten IMPACT Social Studies – Kindergarten: Learning and Working Together, Rhode Island Edition McGraw Hill myWorld Interactive Social Studies Kindergarten Savvas	Grade 1 IMPACT Social Studies – Grade 1: Our Place in this World, Rhode Island Edition McGraw Hill myWorld Interactive Social Studies Grade 1 Savvas	Grade 2 IMPACT Social Studies – Grade 2: Exploring Who We Are, Rhode Island Edition McGraw Hill
Grade 3 IMPACT Social Studies – Grade 3: Regions of the United States, Rhode Island Edition McGraw Hill	Grade 4 IMPACT Social Studies – Grade 4: Our Communities, Rhode Island Edition McGraw Hill	Grade 5 U.S. History American Stories - Beginnings to 1877 Cengage / National Geographic U.S. History Making a New Nation, Rhode Island Edition McGraw Hill
Grade 6 World History – Great Civilizations Cengage / National Geographic World History, Voices and Perspectives, Early Ages, Rhode Island Edition McGraw Hill myWorld Interactive World History Early Ages Savvas	Grade 7 World Civilizations HMH Exploring World History and Geography for Rhode Island McGraw Hill myWorld Interactive World History Survey Savvas	Grade 8 Civics and Citizenship Cengage / National Geographic Exploring Government and Civic Life in the United States and Rhode Island McGraw Hill
HS Civics American Government Cengage / National Geographic United States Government and Civics, Rhode Island Edition McGraw Hill Magruder’s American Government Interactive Savvas We the People W.W. Norton	HS United States History I U.S. History: America Through the Lens Cengage / National Geographic Social Studies American History HMH	HS United States History II U.S. History: America Through the Lens Cengage / National Geographic Social Studies American History HMH
HS World History I World History, Rhode Island Edition McGraw Hill	HS World History II World History Modern Times, Rhode Island Edition McGraw Hill

Content Required by Legislation 

African American History Resources 

Asian American, Native Hawaiian, and Pacific Islander Study Resources

Holocaust and Genocide Education Resources