Introduction to Humanities & Social Sciences EC Activities - List of History-Related Activities

Today, I will be posting about the Humanities, History, and Social Studies EC activities that many of you have been asking about.

Let’s start with a brief overview of the activities related to Humanities, History, and Social Studies. I have already provided detailed explanations in other videos and posts, so today I will quickly go through the overall structure.

EC activities are divided into 8 areas. During the orientation, I mentioned that it would be good to structure your activities in a way that touches at least 6 of these areas. Among these 8 areas, many of you have asked about what activities are available for Humanities & Social Science. So today, I will answer those questions.

Before starting EC activities, let’s look at what subjects would be good to learn through the general curriculum in the United States.

Just as you need mathematical knowledge before learning science, there are also basic subjects in the Humanities & Social Science section. These are US History and World History. Therefore, I recommend branching out into other areas once you have a certain level of study in History.

The sooner you study the basics of History, the better, and it would be good to finish US and World History around the 6th grade. It is necessary to study US History for 4-5 months in Session 1 and World History for 4-5 months in Session 2.

Once these two subjects have been studied, it is good to expand your interests. It is good to move on to other Social subjects with a basic knowledge of History, and I recommend having EC activities while studying.

Now, I will introduce the activities that can be done on the premise that US & World History has been studied.

These are competitions that you can apply for even if you haven’t studied up to the AP level.

In fact, you can say that you are fully prepared not only for history but also for geography.

Living in the United States, you will have many opportunities to advance to these two competitions. The difference between the History Bee and the Bowl is that the Bee is for individual participation and the Bowl is for team participation.

Students who perform well in these competitions will advance to the International History Olympiad.

To win an award at the International History Olympiad, it is important to study AP US History, AP World History, and AP Geography. If you win an award at this Olympiad, it will definitely be a helpful EC experience for college admissions.

This is a research-based competition.

It is not enough to study History subjects in Session 1 and Session 2 and study at the AP level in Session 3, but research must also be added.

This is a competition where you write a paper on a topic related to History and submit it, and if you are selected, your paper will be published. Therefore, The Concord Review is considered a very good activity for Non-STEM students.

ISSCY is also a research-based competition where you submit a paper.

While The Concord Review limits the topic to History, ISSCY allows for topics across all Social Sciences.

The John Locke Essay Competition is an Essay Competition where you choose a topic from 7 areas and write an essay, but it is not a simple Writing but an Essay Competition that includes Research.

This is a competition where you read the book Profile in Courage written by John F. Kennedy and submit an essay according to the given topic. The topic changes every year, but generally, students who are interested in History/ Politics apply a lot. This competition is also a contest based on research rather than simple writing.

Joseph S. Rumbaugh History Oration Contest by SAR - National Society of the Sons of the American Revolution Headquarters

The SAR-National Society of the Sons of the American Revolution Headquarters is an organization established in the 1890s and has a history and tradition of over 100 years. Winning a competition organized by such an organization is undoubtedly a very good activity for students. The Joseph S. Rumbaugh History Oration Contest is a good competition for students who like speech and debating and are interested in history.

This competition is limited to students residing in the United States. It is also a good EC activity that can show writing skills and background knowledge about History, and it is good for students who like to write and are interested in history.

These are competitions organized by DAR, Daughter of the American Revolution, a women’s public interest group, and you can apply divided into two depending on the student’s age. It is a contest that requires a patriotic essay for those who are interested in American history.

The Voice of Democracy competition also enhances patriotism. This competition is also an Essay Contest, but the unique point is that you have to submit a 3-minute recording file when submitting.

NHD is a competition that you can apply for from a school club, and the teacher in charge also has a chance to win an award. Students can apply in the area they want, and there are performances, websites, research papers, exhibits, etc. What is absolutely necessary in this competition is sufficient background knowledge. If you have History knowledge and knowledge related to the student’s topic, you will have an advantage in winning.

This competition, which international students can also participate in, is a competition where you write and submit a story with History-based Fiction added. Even if Fiction is added, remember that you must have historical background knowledge.

Connection with Writing-You may have noticed that most Humanities & Social Science competitions are often linked with Writing. There are few activities that simply measure Knowledge and look at it in the form of a test, and many cases are combined with Essay. Therefore, it will be a way to get good results by practicing writing a lot while studying History and Social Science together.

Today, we looked at the types of EC activities related to Humanities & Social Science.

If you have any questions, please contact us at A-One Institute.

Thank you.