D673 covers the content that elementary social studies teaching rests on. WGU describes an in-depth examination of key concepts and themes, with a multidisciplinary approach spanning history, geography, civics, economics and culture, plus standards in curriculum planning and civic engagement.
It sits in the B.S. Elementary Education program before the social studies methods course. Candidates often find the breadth demanding: you must be comfortable explaining ideas from several disciplines at an elementary level, and show you can analyze standards and resources rather than just recall facts.
Course at a Glance
| Item | Details |
|---|---|
| University | Western Governors University (WGU) |
| Course | D673, Elementary Social Studies Curriculum |
| Level | Undergraduate |
| Program | B.S. Elementary Education (3 CUs) |
| Subject area | Social studies content and curriculum |
| Typical work | Explaining disciplinary concepts and analyzing standards |
What D673 Covers
| Competency (summarized) | What it means in practice |
|---|---|
| Analyze standards and resources | Interpret elementary social studies standards and materials |
| Explain geography, anthropology and sociology concepts | Places, cultures, communities and social groups |
| Explain US history, government and civics concepts | Key events, institutions, rights and responsibilities |
| Explain world history and economics concepts | Early civilisations, trade, needs and wants, and exchange |
Key Concepts Explained
Disciplines as Lenses
Each discipline asks different questions. Historians ask what changed and why, geographers ask where and why there, economists ask how choices are made with limited resources, and civics asks how people take part in a community.
Example: A unit on a local market can use all four lenses. History: how has the market changed? Geography: why is it in this location? Economics: how do prices respond to supply? Civics: who makes the market rules? One topic, four angles.
Standards-Based Planning
Standards describe what pupils should know and do. Plan from them, choosing content and sources that make the expectation visible.
Civic Engagement
Young learners can take part through class decisions, community projects and respectful discussion. Link activities to concepts such as rights, rules and responsibility.
Core Content Across the Disciplines
The competencies group content into three clusters. Use this table to check your coverage, and confirm the details against your course materials.
| Cluster | Example ideas for elementary learners |
|---|---|
| Geography, anthropology, sociology | Maps and location, regions, culture, communities, groups and roles |
| US history, government, civics | Key events and people, branches of government, rights, rules and responsibilities |
| World history and economics | Early societies, trade, needs and wants, scarcity, producers and consumers |
For each cluster, practice explaining one big idea simply, naming one primary or visual source that could support it, and linking it to a standard.
Example: Big idea: scarcity means we cannot have everything we want. Source: a picture of a toy shop with a limited budget. Pupil activity: choose three items from a list of ten with a pretend budget, then explain what they gave up.
When you evaluate resources, check for balanced perspectives and age-appropriate language, and notice whose stories are missing.
Typical Work and How to Approach It
| Type of work | What it tests | How to approach it |
|---|---|---|
| Standards analysis | Interpreting expectations | Highlight verbs and content separately |
| Concept explanations | Content knowledge | Use simple language and a concrete example |
| Resource review | Judging alignment | Check accuracy, perspective and level |
| Curriculum sequence | Planning | Link ideas from simple to complex |
Where Students Get Stuck
- Breadth. Make a summary sheet for each discipline.
- Fact recall over concepts. Prioritize big ideas and examples.
- Single-perspective resources. Check whose voices are included.
- Vague standards analysis. Quote the standard and explain each part.
Study Tips for D673
- Use timelines and maps in your notes.
- Practice explaining concepts to a child in two sentences.
- Relate each concept to a local example.
- Check the rubric for the number of disciplines required.
Final Checklist Before You Submit
- Concepts from each required discipline are explained simply and accurately.
- Standards are quoted and analyzed.
- Resource reviews comment on perspective and age level.
- Examples connect to pupils' lives.
- Civic engagement is part of the planning.
- Terms are used consistently.
Tie each concept to a source or example. Abstract definitions alone rarely meet a rubric asking for explanation.
How We Help with D673
Send the task instructions, grade level, standards and rubric. A writer can explain concepts across the disciplines, edit your analysis, or provide a model for study. See our education assignment help guide for more.
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Frequently Asked Questions
History, geography, civics, economics and culture for elementary teaching, plus standards-based planning and civic engagement.
D673 focuses on content and curriculum; D674 focuses on teaching methods.
3 CUs in the B.S. Elementary Education guide.
The MAT program has its own social studies courses. Check your degree plan for the code.
The emphasis is on concepts and standards, though accurate examples help.
No. We tutor, edit and model; the work must be yours.