Malcolm Wallop K-12 Curriculum Project

The Wallop Civic Engagement K-12 Curriculum Project is a partnership with the College of Education’s Trustees Education Initiative designed to provide a library of virtual multimedia resources for K-12 Social Studies and English Language Arts Teachers for their classroom use. This catalog provides short courses whose content areas line up with one or more of the six Wyoming Social Studies Content Standards:
 
• Citizenship (Government and Democracy)
• Culture, and Cultural Diversity
• Production, Distribution, and Consumption (Economics)
• Time, Continuity, and Change (History)
• People, Places, and Environments (Geography)
• Technology, Literacy and Global Connections
 
The English Language Arts catalog providesshort courses whose content areas focus on themes of 1) culture and people of the West, 2) identity, community, and rural life, and 3) rights, liberties, and civic responsibilities. Content areas line up with Wyoming English Language Arts Anchor Standards:
 
  • Reading
  • Writing
  • Speaking and Listening
  • Language 
 
These materials are available to teachers to be used as best suits their course needs. Each course module consists of a single video, supplementary handout/teaching guide, and opportunity to schedule chat-back for the class with the expert presenter.

The Wallop K-12 Curriculum Project represents a special commitment to reach out to the Wyoming education community. We received a prestigious grant from the National Endowment for the Humanities to support our K-12 project "Integrating the Humanities Across Civics Education in Wyoming." This project is just one of a few of the projects nationwide selected for the prestigious Humanities Initiatives at Colleges and Universities Program at the NEH. The associated two-year grant allows us to expand our existing Social Studies K-12 curriculum catalog and creat the new English Language Arts catalog. This project has been made possible, in part, by the National Endowment for the Humanities: Democracy demands wisdom. Any views, findings, conclusions, or recommendations expressed in the resource, do not necessarily represent those of the National Endowment for the Humanities. Special thanks to The Tucker Foundation, Rocky Mountain Power Foundation and our generous supporters for making this project possible. The K-12 Curriculum virtual catalog is available as of December 15, 2020 at https://civic.catalog.instructure.com/.

The catalog includes 90+ content modules which line up with various social studies and English language arts content and performance standards. Topics range from a discussion of Wyoming government and politics, religious freedom in the new republic, to current topics such as Bitcoin and U.S.-China relations. These resources are unique because each video presentation includes a teacher resource guide showing how the presentation addresses one or more of Wyoming’s standards and provides suggested discussion questions and/or class activities. It also includes an exciting option to schedule a live chat-back, an “Ask Me Anything” session with the expert presenters to delve deeper into each topic. Presenters are eager to share their knowledge with teachers and students in Wyoming.

The catalog also includes a Health Education catalog and Public Engagement catalog which includes past UW presentations sponsored by the Wallop Program, student research projects funded by the Wallop Program, and highlights public engagement programs from Saturday University.
 
In summer 2023 the Wallop Project hosted a virtual Social Studies and English Language Arts Professional Development Workshop, bringing 14 K-12 teachers from across the state together to discuss the Wallop content catalog. Uniting the talents of individual educators across the state, the group meeting in June focused on building relationships, getting feedback, and creating new content. Our focus on partnership development between K-16 educators and civics education is a long-term investment in the creation of a successful citizenry who are successful in their lives but also invested in their communities. For more information  UW’s Wallop Program Hosts Teachers from Around Wyoming (uwyo.edu)

 

The Malcolm Wallop Civic Engagement Program would like to thank the Wyoming School - University Partnership for helping to make the 2023 K-12 Curriculum Project resource and our K-12 Professional Development Workshop possible. 

 

Testimonial and updates

 

 

Educator Testimonial

 


Spring 2023

New Partnership

The K-12 catalog is now adding social student content through a partnershi with Wyoming Student Atlas, including content on migration, archaelogical sites, and more!

Additionally, through a partnership with Heart Mountain Interpretive Center, content on notable people of Heart Mountain has been added to the catalog, with more to come!

Spring 2022

New Partnership

The K-12 catalog is now adding energy content through a partnership with the School of Energy Resources, including content on personal production of energy, geothermal energy, and more!

 

NEH Seal

NEH Grant

We received a prestigious grant from the National Endowment for the Humanities to support our K-12 project “Integrating the Humanities Across Civics Education in Wyoming.” This project is just one of a few of the projects nationwide selected for the prestigious Humanities Initiatives at Colleges and Universities Program at the NEH. The associated two-year grant will allow us to expand our existing social studies K-12 curriculum catalog and create a new English Language Arts catalog. The catalog expansion will focus on three themes: 1) culture and people of the West, 2) identity, community, and rural life, and 3) rights, liberties, and civic responsibilities. The co-directors of this project, Jean Garrison and Jason McConnell (UW School of Politics, Public Affairs and International Studies), Colby Gull from the Wyoming School-University Partnership, and Curtis Biggs from the Division of Research and Economic Development will be working on this project with UW and community college faculty from the humanities, social sciences, and education along with Wyoming teachers in English language arts and social studies on issues important to civics in Wyoming. Check out https://bit.ly/nehwallop for more about this exciting opportunity.

This project has been made possible, in part, by the National Endowment for the Humanities: Democracy demands wisdom. Any views, findings, conclusions, or recommendations expressed in this resource, do not necessarily represent those of the National Endowment for the Humanities.

 

New Content Series

A new content series launched in Spring 2022 is "A Day in the Life" which highlights Wyoming workers and potential career paths for Wyoming students. For more information for if you'd be interested in sharing your "Day in the Life" check out that project page. 

 


Click the map below for more K-12 Project by the Numbers!

Materials in use in 19 of 23 Wyoming counties
and the Wind River Reservation

infographic download

83 Educators accessing social studies lessons and activities 

83 educators accessing materials


Summer Workshop

41 Wyoming K-12, UW and Wyoming Community College educators participated in a summer professional development workshop.  Placeholder image

 


Check out some of our available curriculum:

 

A Crash Course in Wyoming Politics: Culture and Participation

Dr. Jason McConnell-Assistant Professor, School of Politics, Public Affairs, and International Studies, University of Wyoming

This presentation examines the culture and political participation in Wyoming. Wyoming is similar to the nation when it comes to political culture and participation, with competing political ideologies and dominant political culture. The presentation outlines the factors affecting the culture and participation in Wyoming, including rurality, and then examines how Wyoming has a higher rate of political participation than the national average and nearby states. To wrap up the presentation, trends in political parties and elections in Wyoming are examined and discussed in comparison with the national trends.
 
Download the accompanying Resource Guide.

 

 

 

The “Pristine Myth" & Its Influence Today

Dr. Zoe Pearson-Assistant Professor, School of Politics, Public Affairs, and International Studies, University of Wyoming
 
Many of us learn or come to believe that “New World” environments were pristine, mostly untouched wilderness when European colonizers arrived on the continent—especially in the Amazon rainforest. This belief is known as the “pristine myth” and we now know it to be untrue. Yet, the power of the “pristine myth” persists in the present, shaping ideas about nature and society today. In this talk, I explain the myth and how it came to be, share some of the evidence that disproves the myth, and discuss why it can be problematic for people and nature.

Download the accompanying Resource Guide.

 
 
 
 

Fake News! Defining Misinformation 

Dr. Kristen Landreville-Associate Professor, Department of Communication and Journalism, University of Wyoming 
 
The terms “fake news” and “misinformation” are popular phrases among journalists, fact-checkers, politicians, partisans, and social media users. What do these terms actually mean? Do the definitions differ, depending on who is using the term? The video’s central question asks students to develop a clear, simple, and memorable definition of fake news and misinformation. This video first introduces the concepts of fake news and misinformation by relating them to rumors, a concept that students are likely familiar with. Next, a very brief history of fake news is presented, followed by a discussion of why fake news is different today due to social media. Finally, various types of fake news are considered, including satire, false information, and partisan news. The video concludes by asking students to find commonalities among these various sources and write a clear, simple, and memorable definition of fake news and misinformation. The video provides its own scholarly definition on the last slide for students to compare their definitions to.  
 

Download the accompanying Resource Guide. 

 
 

Bitcoin

Dr. Bradley Rettler-Assistant Professor, Philosophy and Religious Studies, University of Wyoming 
 
About a decade ago, the Bitcoin network was launched by its pseudonymous creator. It promised a revolution in how money works. Here at last, some thought, was an inclusive digital system for storing and transferring value -- a system that was inflation-proof, censorship-resistant, and independent of any central and commercial bank. Bitcoin has since spawned thousands of cryptocurrencies, and they command coverage in both popular media and technical research by computer scientists, economists, and lawyers. In this presentation, I briefly explain what the Bitcoin network is. Then I discuss the features money is standardly taken to have, and based on those features, whether Bitcoin is money. Finally, I talk about whether Bitcoin is good. If Bitcoin could be money, should we use it?

 Download the accompanying Resource Guide. 

 
 

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Contact Us

Malcolm Wallop Civic Engagement Program

School of Politics, Public Affairs, & International Studies (SPPAIS)

Dept. 3197

1000 E. University Ave.

Laramie, WY 82071

Phone: (307) 766-6119

Email: wallop@uwyo.edu

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