We’re as shocked as anyone that some students in Connecticut are reading a whitewashed history of Connecticut (http://m.ctpost.com/news/article/Fourth-grade-textbook-s-take-on-Connecticut-10779004.php?cmpid=fb-desktop#photo-12002718).
Luckily help is on the way. CT Explored will be launching a pilot of Where We Live: Connecticut, a social studies textbook and web site about Connecticut for third/fourth grade, in January 2017 with the intent of a full roll-out for the 2017-2018 school year. We have been working with state social studies consultant Steve Armstrong, curriculum specialists, and teachers to develop this resource. It is designed to work with the new social studies frameworks and inquiry arc methodology. We are designing it to be a platform on which school districts may build a dynamic, relevant social studies curriculum.
We anticipate providing Where We Live: Connecticut free or at very low cost through private fundraising. (Foundations and a grant from the Connecticut Council for the Social Studies have funded the initial development.)
Teachers and curriculum specialists interested in more information should email us at publisher [at]ctexplored.org.
As a social studies text, Where We Live: Connecticut will cover the geography, history, economics, and civics of Connecticut. The companion web site will be designed to enable students to research their questions by providing extensions texts written at grade level. Teachers and curriculum specialists have been part of the organizing team and have drafted much of the text.
We are reaching out to organizations across the state to partner with us and provide content or links to education programs they are doing. This is a collaborative effort.
See sample layouts below and click on the link for a flyer.
Elizabeth Normen
Publisher
Connecticut Explored
CLICK HERE FOR TABLE OF CONTENTS
Sample Layouts 
