Kindergarten Social Studies

Kindergarten social studies was a lot of fun to teach. My kindergartner learned more about her community, the people and jobs within it, holidays, California, and the world around her. I think this subject helps young children begin to understand that there is a much bigger world beyond their home.

I did not feel like we needed a complete curriculum for kindergarten social studies, but there are many important topics that should be introduced. Be prepared for your child to ask a lot of questions about almost everything!

I recommend learning a little about your own community ahead of time. Find out how your city or town began, who lived there before, and how it has changed and grown over time. It is also helpful to refresh your knowledge of holidays, historical figures, national and state symbols, maps, community helpers, and local government.

Kindergarten social studies can be simple and hands on. Neighborhood walks, community events, library visits, conversations with community helpers, and local field trips can turn these topics into meaningful lessons your child can connect to the world around them.

As simple as some of these topics may sound, YouTube was very helpful when it came time to explain them to my kindergartner. Below are the websites I used most often, along with learning activities and field trip ideas.

Not every resource or activity is necessary. How deeply you explore each topic will depend on your child’s interest, understanding, and the number of questions they ask. Many of these topics will also be revisited in first grade and later grades, so there is no pressure to cover everything in depth right now.

Related Learning Locker Products

These books introduce children to different careers and important people through projects, activities, quizzes, stories, and creative challenges:

Some of these books are recommended for ages seven and older, so kindergarten students may need adult help with the reading and activities.

Amazon Favorites Links

180 Days of Social Studies

USA Wooden Map Puzzle

Earth Globe- The biggest youll ever see.

 

Main Kindergarten Social Studies Resources

The following websites are used throughout the Kindergarten Social Studies resource page:

YouTube – Educational videos about citizenship, communities, maps, jobs, history, holidays, and California.

Kindergarten Worksheets – Worksheets covering rules, historical figures, community helpers, calendars, holidays, and life long ago.

15 Worksheets – Worksheets about community helpers, positional words, maps, and traffic symbols.

Education.com – Activities about communities and comparing the past with the present.

Teachers Pay Teachers – Community map projects and American history resources.

Twinkl – Activities about heroes and comparing the past with the present.

Super Teacher Worksheets – California and holiday worksheets.

Kids Academy

Teacher to the Core

Some of these websites offer free resources, while others may require an account, subscription, or individual purchase. Availability and pricing may change, so please check each website for its current options.

I am not affiliated with any of these websites. I am simply sharing the resources I found useful while teaching kindergarten social studies. 

Below I have listed the California state standards for Kindergarten Social Studies along with the standards youll find a link to a website and/or a learning activity on how to approach teaching that specific standard. 

K.1: I can show that being a good citizen means acting in certain ways.

KidsAcademy Mobi Good Citizenship

15Worksheets Comunity Helpers

Field Trip Ideas

  • City Hall – Learn how local government serves the community and why good citizenship is important.
  • Local Library – Observe how people share community resources, follow rules, and help one another.
  • Pretend City Children's Museum – Practice cooperation, responsibility, and citizenship through hands-on role play.

Learning Activity
Draw a picture of yourself being a good citizen at home, school, or in your community.

 

K.1.1: I can follow the rules and I know what happens if I break the rules.

Kindergarten Worksheets Following Directions

Field Trip Ideas

  • Local Library – Learn how rules help everyone enjoy shared spaces.
  • Fire Station – Discover why firefighters follow rules to keep themselves and others safe.
  • Children's Museum – Observe how following rules helps everyone play safely and have fun.

Learning Activity
Create five family or classroom rules and explain why each one is important.

K.1.2: I can give you examples of people that were honest, courageous, determined, responsible, and patriotic from historical people that I have learned about in class.

KindergartenWorksheets.net Holiday Worksheets By Month 

Kindergartenworksheets.net Martin Luther King

Twinkl Describe a Hero Worksheets

Field Trip Ideas

  • Ronald Reagan Presidential Library – Explore the life of an American leader and discuss responsibility and leadership.
  • Local Veterans Memorial – Learn about courage, service, and patriotism.

Learning Activity
Choose a historical hero and draw a picture showing one character trait they demonstrated.

K.1.3: I can tell you about the beliefs of some people in the past. I can give examples of what happened because of the actions of those people.

Kindergartenworksheets.net Long Ago and Today

Education.com Long Ago and Today

YT Video Little Fox Long ago and today

Field Trip Ideas

  • Mission San Juan Capistrano – Learn how people lived long ago and how their beliefs influenced their daily lives.
  • Autry Museum of the American West – Explore how different cultures and beliefs helped shape California's history.
  • Local History Museum – Compare how people lived in the past with how we live today.

Learning Activity
Compare one thing people did long ago with how we do it today.

Symbols and Icons

K.2: I can tell you about national and state symbols and icons. 

American Flag Worksheet

YT Video US States California

Twinkl YT Video All About California

Superteacherworksheets.com California

Field Trip Ideas

Learning Activity
Design your own state or community symbol and explain what it represents.

Jobs

K.3: I can tell you about different types of jobs in my school, in my community, and in the past.

Vet Academy

Architect Academy

Engineer Academy

Entrepreneur Academy

Scientist Academy

Community Jobs

Education.com Community Worksheets

YT Video Jobs and Occupations

YT Video Community Helpers

YT Video Long Ago and Now

Field Trip Ideas

  • Pretend City Children's Museum – Explore a variety of careers through hands-on role play.
  • Local Fire Station or Police Station – Meet community helpers and learn about their responsibilities.
  • Local Veterinary Clinic – Discover how veterinarians care for animals.
  • Local Farm or Farmers Market – Learn about careers in agriculture and food production.

Learning Activity
Draw a picture of the job you would like to have and explain how it helps others.

Locations

K.4: I can tell you about things that are similar and different when talking about the locations of people, places, and environments.

YT Video KidsAcademy Urban and Rural

YT Video Types of Communities

Field Trip Ideas

  • Local Neighborhood Walk – Compare homes, parks, businesses, and natural areas.
  • Local Nature Center – Explore natural environments and compare them with urban areas.
  • Local Park – Observe similarities and differences between built and natural environments.

Learning Activity
Compare two places by naming three things that are the same and three things that are different.

K.4.1: I can look at two objects and tell you about the location of each one using the words near/far, left/right, and behind/in front. 

YT VIDEO Prepositions

15 worksheets prepositions

Field Trip Ideas

  • Local Playground – Practice using positional words while giving directions.
  • Children's Museum – Describe where objects are located using positional vocabulary.

Learning Activity
Hide an object and give directions using words like left, right, behind, and next to.

K.4.2: I can find land on a map or globe. I can find water on a map or globe. I can find places on maps. 

YTVideo Know Your Globe

YT Video Intro to Maps

15 Worksheets Reading a Map

Field Trip Ideas

  • Griffith Observatory – Learn how maps and globes help us understand Earth.
  • Local State Park Visitor Center – Practice reading maps to find trails and landmarks.
  • Local Beach – Use a map to locate land, water, and important features.

Learning Activity
Find your home, school, and a favorite place on a map or globe.

K.4.3: I can tell you what traffic symbols mean. I can tell you what map symbols mean.

YT Video Kids Academy Traffic Signs and Symbols

15 Worksheets Traffic Symbols

Field Trip Ideas

  • Local Neighborhood Walk – Identify traffic signs and explain their meanings.
  • Pretend City Children's Museum – Practice recognizing traffic signs in a child-sized community.
  • Local Police Station – Learn how traffic signs help keep people safe.

Learning Activity
Design a new traffic sign and explain what it means.

K.4.4: I can make a map of my community that shows the locations of important places.

YT Video How to make a Map 

TPT Community Map Project 

TPT Me on the Map

Field Trip Ideas

  • Local Neighborhood Walk – Observe streets, parks, schools, and businesses before drawing a map.
  • Local Visitor Center – Compare your map with a real community map.
  • Local History Museum – Explore how maps have changed over time.

Learning Activity
Draw a map of your neighborhood and label at least five important places.

K.4.5: I can show you where things are located in my community. I can tell you about the jobs done by people that work in my community.

Education.com Community Worksheets

YT Video Community Helpers

Field Trip Ideas

  • City Hall – Learn about the people who help operate the community.
  • Local Post Office – Discover how mail carriers serve the community.
  • Local Fire Station or Police Station – Meet community helpers and learn about their roles.

Learning Activity
Interview a community helper or family member about how they help the community.

Events

K.5: I can put events in order using a calendar. I can put the days of the week in the correct order. I can put the months of the year in the correct order. 

Days of the Week

Months of the Year

Field Trip Ideas

  • Local Library – Attend a scheduled story time or event using a community calendar.
  • Local Botanical Garden – Observe seasonal changes throughout the year.
  • Community Event – Use a calendar to plan and prepare for a local event.

Learning Activity
Create a calendar for one month and mark birthdays, holidays, and special events.

History

K.6: I can tell you what "history" means.

YT Video What is History

Field Trip Ideas

Learning Activity
Choose an item from home and explain what it tells about your family's history.

K.6.1: I can tell you why we celebrate different holidays that happen throughout the year

Holidays Worksheets

Super Teacher Worksheets- Holidays

Field Trip Ideas

  • Local Cultural Festival – Experience traditions celebrated by different cultures.
  • Mission San Juan Capistrano – Learn about historical celebrations and traditions.
  • Community Holiday Event or Parade – Observe how holidays are celebrated today.

Learning Activity
Create a timeline of holidays celebrated throughout the year.

K.6.2: I can tell you why important people in American history are so important.

Teachers Pay Teachers Resources

Teacher to the core American Heroes

Field Trip Ideas

Learning Activity
Choose an American hero and describe one way they made a difference.

K.6.3: I can talk about the similarities and differences between the people that lve in the past and the way that I live today.

Twinkl Past and Present

Long ago and Today

Field Trip Ideas

Learning Activity
Compare one object from long ago with the modern version and explain which one you would rather use and why.

 

© 2026 Learning Locker. This guide includes resources independently researched, selected, organized, and described by Learning Locker to help families spend less time searching. Please share a link to this page rather than copying or republishing the guide.

This page contains links to third-party websites for informational and educational purposes. Learning Locker is not affiliated with, sponsored by, or endorsed by these third parties unless expressly stated. Learning Locker does not claim ownership of their content, names, logos, or resources.

Third-party content, availability, pricing, policies, and terms may change without notice. Learning Locker is not responsible for the accuracy, accessibility, safety, or practices of external websites. Please review each website’s current terms, privacy policy, and content before using it with your family or students.

If you own a linked resource and would like the link or its description updated or removed, please contact support@mylearninglocker.org.

Back to blog

Leave a comment