Engaging high school social studies lessons and videos

January 2, 2024
Katie Choi
Education Tips & Tricks, Lessons and Ideas

In the age of social media, AI, and the 24-hour news cycle, social studies lessons are an essential part of the high school curriculum. But what is social studies in high school, exactly, and how can educators get students engaged and excited about learning? Flocabulary’s collection of videos and lesson activities can help.

Social studies topics for high school students are wide ranging, including ancient and modern world history, US history, civics, geography, economics, and current events. This vast subject provides students with a mirror to their own community and their place in it, along with a window into different cultures and histories they may not be familiar with. The ultimate goal of any high school social studies curriculum is for students to become informed, engaged, and empathetic citizens of the world.

Explore Flocabulary social studies lessons

For students to learn effectively, they must be authentically engaged, both in their classroom community and in the curriculum. Authentic engagement happens when educators teach with their students’ lives, interests, and culture in mind—in other words, when learning is rooted in culturally responsive pedagogy. Being encouraged to use their natural learning tools, like music and video, in the classroom gives students the emotional preparedness and confidence to process new content and take on more rigorous work, explains educator Zaretta Hammond. Students who are authentically engaged understand both what they are learning and why it matters to them and their community.

Flocabulary is based on teaching through the culture of hip-hop, the most popular genre of music for young people around the world. Not only does hip-hop engage students through memorable rhymes, wordplay, and beats, but the genre is educational at its core, exploring sensitive personal topics and examining broader issues in current events and history. These qualities make hip-hop especially well suited for teaching social studies; an emotional connection with the content can help high school students fully grasp the historical context, as well as make connections between the past and present. Flocabulary Plus users can also access Nearpod Original Videos, which are not rapped but are created with hip-hop culture in mind. These social studies lesson videos ask questions that curious students might naturally have, make relatable real-world connections, and feature a diverse cast of hosts who help students see themselves in what they are learning. All videos on the Flocabulary site include a suite of lesson activities and assessments designed with Bloom’s Taxonomy in mind, including Vocab Cards, Vocab Game, Break It Down, Read & Respond, Quiz, Lyric Lab, and a custom printable activity.

Here is an example of the style of videos you can find on Flocabulary:

New to Flocabulary? Teachers can sign up for a trial to access our lesson videos and assessment activities. Administrators can get in touch with us to learn more about unlocking the full power of Flocabulary through Flocabulary Plus.

Teachers: Sign up for Flocabulary

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Historical figures

At its heart, social studies is about people. Personal stories are key to humanizing historical events: A list of names and dates may be difficult for students to memorize, but hearing about a real person’s experience creates an emotional connection that sticks in the brain. This approach not only makes history engaging but also encourages empathy and deepens understanding. For example, some high school students might think of the civil rights movement as a long-ago period in time that is no longer relevant to them. Textbooks often illustrate civil rights units with black-and-white photos and focus on landmark legislation like Supreme Court cases and Congressional bills.

Supplementing high school social studies lesson plans with Flocabulary and Nearpod Original videos instantly brings that important history to life. Consider Flocabulary’s video about Emmett Till, the 14-year-old Black boy who was brutally murdered by two White men in Mississippi in 1955. The vivid animation, rapped lyrics, and emotional hook (“Let the people see what I’ve seen,” a quotation from Emmett’s mother, Mamie) create a compelling narrative that students will remember.

Similarly, Flocabulary’s Yuri Kochiyama video illustrates how Kochiyama’s experience in a Japanese American internment camp during World War II inspired her to join the civil rights movement. Its sung hook speaks directly to today’s students, emphasizing intersectionality and the importance of coming together to create a better world: “All in this together, now, / Only we can make it better now. / Consciousness is power; it’s yours, for real. / Yuri said tomorrow’s world is yours to build.”

The biography videos on Flocabulary’s Historical Figures lessons let high school students experience history through different perspectives—from renowned authors and artists, to technological innovators, to political and cultural leaders.

Here are some lessons we recommend exploring:

Flocabulary’s historical figures lessons also offer a unique opportunity to celebrate student engagement and voice. Each year, for Black History Month and Hispanic Heritage Month, students can submit a rap about a deserving historical figure of their choice who does not yet have a Flocabulary video. Our team selects one elementary and one secondary school winner for each contest. Secondary winners include videos about John Lewis, Sor Juana Inés de la Cruz, Rigoberta Menchú Tum, and Fannie Lou Hamer.

Explore historical figures lessons

Ancient world history

Studying the ancient civilizations that made our world what it is today is a key part of the high school social studies curriculum. Ancient cultures around the world have made enduring contributions to science, mathematics, religion, philosophy, architecture, agriculture, politics, and more. Flocabulary’s Ancient World History lessons provide students with a window into this vast swath of human history beginning with the Neolithic Revolution. These social studies videos have catchy beats, rhyming lyrics, and bright animation that breathe life into these civilizations, some of which are thousands of years old.

What makes Flocabulary’s ancient world history offering so compelling is its global diversity. In addition to lessons touting the great pyramids of ancient Egypt and the development of democracy in Greece and Rome, students learn about the Mauryan and Gupta empires, an important trade route connecting China to Tibet, and the agricultural innovations of the Inca. Students may be fascinated to learn that salt was worth as much as gold during the Mali Empire, or that the creation of numerals originated from Ancient India.

Here are some lessons we recommend checking out to support vocabulary activities for high school:

Explore historical figures lessons

Modern world history

Flocabulary’s Modern World History lessons begin with the exploration of the New World and continue to the present day. The political, social, and cultural themes in these video-based lessons provide students with the background of the world we live in today, enabling them to make connections between events and periods of time. For example, students can compare and contrast the exploration movements of different European countries, or trace how the ideals of the Renaissance and Enlightenment in Europe led to revolutions around the world, from France to Haiti, Mexico, Bolivia, and Cuba. Rich in primary source material and complemented by thought-provoking discussion questions, these video-based lessons are worth adding to social studies activities for high school.

The power of music to engage emotions is particularly powerful in Flocabulary’s modern world history lessons. In the Russian Revolution song, we hear the perspectives of a poor peasant, a Bolshevik, Tsar Nicholas II, and Vladimir Lenin, each giving a first-person account of the conditions leading up to the February and October Revolutions. The Vietnam War lesson is also told from different points of view, including an American politician, a soldier, a peace activist, and a Vietnamese civilian. By presenting history through differing perspectives instead of one straightforward narrative, students get a more complete picture of these conflicts and can come to their own conclusions about them.

Here are some lessons we recommend exploring:

Explore modern world history lessons

U.S. History

United States history is a foundational topic for high school social studies, requiring two years of study in most states. Flocabulary’s U.S. History lessons offer several video-based lessons on the nation’s founding, including the Declaration of Independence and the American Revolution. Students can follow the thread of history through the War of 1812, westward expansion (including the Monroe Doctrine and the California Gold Rush), and so on through the present day.

United States history has been rife with controversy since even before the country’s official founding. As a particularly large and diverse nation, it has seen many heated discussions over the years about what it means to be truly “American.” Flocabulary’s high school social studies lessons capture this complexity, offering multiple perspectives on many of the events and eras that defined America. In a song about Christopher Columbus, the explorer crows that he has discovered America—to which the Indigenous people who had already inhabited the land for thousands of years retort, “You didn’t discover it. We were already here.” Flocabulary handles these and other sensitive topics like slavery and the civil rights movement with respect and care for the students learning about them.

The variety of video types available on Flocabulary’s US History topic page provide rich opportunities for cross-curricular learning and differentiated learning. While studying the Civil War, students can also watch a rapped adaptation of Abraham Lincoln’s Gettysburg Address and analyze the speech as a primary source literary text. Students can watch both a song and a narrated video about the Chinese Exclusion Act and about Plessy v. Ferguson (narrated video).

Here are some lessons we recommend exploring:

Declaration of Independence video lesson

Explore U.S. history lessons

Civics

As high school students prepare to graduate and become citizens of the world, education in civics is essential. In its broadest sense, civics is “the lifelong process that makes people into active, responsible, and knowledgeable members of their communities—which range from their schools and towns or neighborhoods to the whole nation and even the world,” according to cross-partisan civics coalition CivXNow. As a subject, civics is cross-curricular in nature, comprising political science, U.S. history, and even Constitutional law.

Flocabulary’s Civics lessons include video-based lessons in all of these topics. Students can broaden their understanding of governments around the world and explore an early version of democracy in the Roman Republic. They can then delve into the history of the Constitutional Convention and learn about the seven principles that guided the creation of that document and its amendments, including the Bill of Rights. Encourage students to become active and engaged members of society when teaching about the election process.

Watch a preview of our Three Branches of Government lesson!

Here are some lessons we recommend exploring:

Explore civics lessons

Economics

Economics—the study of the production, distribution, and consumption of goods and services—is another high school social studies topic with far-ranging connections in math, political science, geography, environmental studies, and more. Flocabulary’s Economics lessons help demystify real-world terms students see and hear in the news, like GDP and supply and demand. Students also learn about different economic systems around the world, including market economies (capitalism), command economies (communism), and mixed economies (socialism), which may help them better understand global trade wars.

Explore economics lessons

Week in Rap

While current events are not listed under Social Studies, but as its own subject at Flocabulary, we believe that integrating current events into social studies instruction is a powerful strategy that keeps students engaged and helps them grasp the relevance of history and social studies in their daily lives. Students learn to connect contemporary events with historical background, helping them see the direct impact history has on their world today. This approach encourages students to become informed and responsible citizens who are better prepared to make decisions in an increasingly complex and interconnected world.

Flocabulary drops new current events videos called The Week in Rap each Friday. Week in Rap lessons deliver five to seven news stories in Flocab’s signature hip-hop video style, with topics ranging from world events and U.S. politics to science, the environment, and entertainment. Like all Flocabulary videos, the Week in Rap includes supporting activities like Vocab Cards, Vocab Game, Quiz, and Lyric Lab, giving students a chance to demonstrate mastery over terms they see and hear in the news. Make it a part of your classroom’s Friday routine to watch and stay informed! If you’re interested in learning more, check out how the Week in Rap is created!

Explore the Week in Rap

By embracing the role of music and video in the high school social studies curriculum, educators provide opportunities for authentic engagement, meaningful discussions, and cross-curricular connections. Social studies is more than just a subject in school; it’s a compass that guides students on a lifelong learning journey. With Flocabulary’s lessons in history, civics, economics, and current events, teachers can help students become informed, empathetic, thoughtful citizens of the world.

Teachers: Sign up for Flocabulary

Administrators: Learn about Flocabulary Plus

Katie Choi

Katie Choi is a senior curriculum manager at Nearpod.

What are social studies topics for high school students?

How to make social studies engaging

Use Flocabulary in your high school social studies curriculum