On February 17 Teaching Social Studies majors in EDSE 4244 Social Studies Methods will have the opportunity to meet and work with exemplary teacher Ms. Sharon Shelerud, the National Council for Geographic Education 2015 National K – 12 Distinguished Teacher Award recipient. Ms. Shelerud is a 35-year veteran teacher from the Burnsville School District in Minnesota. Sharon has been very active in the development of the Links to Geoliteracy project that is sponsored by the Minnesota Alliance for Geographic Education (MAGE). This project is designed to help ensure the Minnesota High School Geography Standards are being taught in the most effective way possible. It is also designed to help teachers develop their Human Geography course curriculum. Sharon is also the co chair of MAGE's Strategic Planning Committee, the coordinator of the High School Round Tables. Sharon has presented at NCGE and MCSS multiple times. She has hosted NCGE webinar's on teaching AP to 9th graders. She has been a Reader and Table Leader at the AP Reading the last six years, where she also presented lessons and wrote curriculum for a Teaching Africa project. Sharon has also written lessons for MAGE, the AP Reading CD, the University of Minnesota's Center for Austrian Studies, AP lessons for the Minnesota Department of Education and multiple lessons for Geographische Rundschau Journal International Edition, Westermann Publishing. Ms. Shelerud will take the Teaching Social Studies students through a curriculum process of planning a Geography course and distinguishing between regional geography and human geography curriculum. She will talk with students about recent legislation that impacts K-12 Social Studies and Geography education and how they as beginning teachers can advocate for their field. Students will have the opportunity to ask questions to gain insight about teaching in Social Studies from this extraordinary teacher.
