Americans All supports excellence in social studies instruction and promotes civic engagement to help ensure all students are prepared to participate in our nation’s democracy, economy and workforce. Our goal is to give all public and private K–12 schools nationwide free electronic access to the Americans All program resources. They reflect the importance of diversity in social studies instruction. This information includes ethnic and cultural texts, period-specific photographs and posters and a music publication. Our foundation invests a major portion of its membership fees in strengthening history and civics instruction. To simplify school registration, our contact database includes information on most of our nation’s public and private schools, and each is assigned an identification number. All schools need to do is designate a point of contact. Schools, students and students’ families and friends participate in Americans All at no cost and receive a free, one-year trial to our Social Legacy Network.
Americans All believes that simulations deepen students’ understanding of a subject and stimulate their critical- and creative-thinking skills. These hands-on learning events prompt students to respond, enact roles and consider the consequences of their actions and decisions. This model can also involve community members in teaching and learning.
The civic mission of social studies demands the inclusion of all students—addressing cultural, linguistic, and learning diversity that includes similarities and differences based on race, ethnicity, language, religion, gender, sexual orientation, exceptional learning needs, and other educationally and personally significant characteristics of learners. Diversity among learners embodies the democratic goal of embracing pluralism to make social studies classrooms laboratories of democracy.
