Why using GRAPES Doesn't Work: A Better Way to Teach Ancient Civilizations to 6th Graders
For several years now, we’ve been hearing that using GRAPES (Geography, Religion, Achievements, Politics, Economy, and Social Structure) is the best, maybe even the ONLY way to teach 6th grade social studies. I just saw another post with the same message, selling the same pitch. And since everyone seems to be saying it, it must be true. Right?
Uhh… no.
I think most of this advice is coming from a place of good intentions. But it’s easy advice. And not only does one specific method or strategy not work for everyone, like technology for students 100% of the time - hello, does anyone even remember 2020? - it definitely isn’t the best option out there.
Also, how do you know that the “experts” are following their own advice? Or that they’re getting great results from using this GRAPES structure?
It seems to me that you can spend a lot of time feeling frustrated or like a failure because the strategy isn’t working for you when you’re not the problem!
Uhh… no.
I think most of this advice is coming from a place of good intentions. But it’s easy advice. And not only does one specific method or strategy not work for everyone, like technology for students 100% of the time - hello, does anyone even remember 2020? - it definitely isn’t the best option out there.
Also, how do you know that the “experts” are following their own advice? Or that they’re getting great results from using this GRAPES structure?
It seems to me that you can spend a lot of time feeling frustrated or like a failure because the strategy isn’t working for you when you’re not the problem!
I know because back when I started teaching 6th grade social studies, I tried using the GRAPES method, and I just didn’t get great results.
In fact, my students seemed to be more confused than anything. They weren’t feeling confident, and they weren’t enjoying social studies class.
I also didn’t feel like using the GRAPES structure was meeting my students where they were at. And believe me, your students lose all interest when you’re speaking over their heads.
Always remember that the more you break down complex concepts, the more your students will be able to not only understand the concepts, but thrive when learning about the material.
What’s Not So Great About Using GRAPES
Here’s the thing. Using GRAPES isn’t a good idea because even the terms in the acronym are actually quite confusing for 6th graders.
So what can you do to teach ancient civilizations with structure? Fortunately, there’s a better way. Instead of filling your classroom with plastic fruit, try something else.
Wouldn’t you rather spend your time doing something that feels like it’s easier for students to understand that’s also crazy effective at helping students find success? Well, now you can. And it doesn’t have to be confusing or overwhelming.
- You’ll waste time and energy just trying to get students to understand the word “economy” for starters.
- All your students will think about when you say “politics” will be the last presidential election.
- The plastic grapes around your classroom and bulletin boards will be extremely cheesy in your students eyes and they will disengage before your lesson even starts.
- It may be an easy acronym to remember - but it doesn’t break things down enough for the 11 year old brain.
So what can you do to teach ancient civilizations with structure? Fortunately, there’s a better way. Instead of filling your classroom with plastic fruit, try something else.
Wouldn’t you rather spend your time doing something that feels like it’s easier for students to understand that’s also crazy effective at helping students find success? Well, now you can. And it doesn’t have to be confusing or overwhelming.
Step #1: What Do You Want for Your Students?
I got clear about my ultimate goals: find an easy-to-use structure that will allow me to teach ancient history with confidence, covering essential concepts, and to engage my students to the point that social studies becomes their favorite class.
Seeing my students struggle, really was the biggest motivator for me.
I also came to realize that there was a direct connection between my students’ performance and level of comfort with the curriculum.
As many of you already know, as regular readers of the blog, I have never been a history buff. All of my degrees are in education. In fact, history was a big challenge for me as a student.
I really, really, didn’t want my students to suffer the way I did. As I reflected back, I knew that a big reason I struggled was because I had no idea what I was supposed to be learning.
So I knew that having a structure would not only help my students learn, but also help me teach.
Step #2: Looking Far and Wide
I spent a lot of time pouring through supplemental teaching materials, any textbook I could get my hands on, and the few and far between blog posts that were out there on what others were doing in their classrooms.
I was looking for gaps in popular thinking, strategies my fellow teachers had tried, what seemed to work, as well as what didn’t seem to work.
Again and again I was seeing the GRAPES structure, but I was also seeing teachers struggling to get their students to engage and get excited about social studies class.
You have to know your audience, in this case it was the 11 year old - and the plastic fruit just wasn’t cutting it.
What many teachers tend to forget, is that although 6th graders may be the oldest at the elementary school, they desperately want to be teenagers. And even though they are the youngest in middle school, they desperately want to fit in with the already teenaged 7th and 8th graders.
So of course they aren’t going to get excited about using a mnemonic device like GRAPES. It’s time to leave the elementary style approaches behind, but also give students a structure that provides direction and subsequently builds confidence in the history classroom.
Step #3: My Answer
As it happened, one day I came across the answer. I found a style that was different from what I’d seen before, and it came from the History Alive! Textbook.
I noticed that some lessons were using labels or categories to organize the type of information within the text. It made me pause and take notice.
It was the timelines that really sparked the idea - they were using these categories to guide students in recalling particular facts and using them to create timelines. What I really liked was that the categories were simplified, and not overly complicated - like the politics and economy portion of GRAPES.
And so I thought, why not use these categories to guide students to learning about an entire civilization?
Next Steps...
The GRAPES framework (Geography, Religion, Achievements, Politics, Economy, and Social Structure) is often promoted as the best way to teach ancient civilizations, but it can be confusing and ineffective for 6th graders. The terms themselves are complex, and the structure doesn’t always align with how young students learn best. Instead, I have found success using a simplified structure that helps students organize information in a way that is easier to understand and more engaging.
Curious to know more about this structure?
Read my post: A Dynamic Way to Teach Ancient History and get all the details!
Check out some of my other blog posts on teaching ancient civilizations and keep challenging yourself to find a way to reach your students and get them excited about history.
In them, you’ll find teaching strategies, some of my favorite activities, easy-to-use lesson materials, and more.
- How to Teach Ancient Civilizations the Easy Way
- Discover Ancient History Lesson Materials
- 5 Lesson Plans for Teaching Timeline Skills
- 5 Low-Prep Student Projects and Activities for your Ancient Mesopotamia Unit
Current wisdom can be little more than fads that don’t stand the test of time. Many won’t even get you where you want to go.
The good news is, you can absolutely engage your students in a way that feels authentic to you. You just need the right roadmap - and a little independent thinking.
If you want more help here, check out my FREE Ancient History Planning Guide just for you, to help you find the same success I have with teaching ancient history.
Welcome! I'm Hillary Midgley, a veteran 6th grade teacher.
I create educational materials and develop curriculum for other teachers. I specialize in teaching students how to learn through my Study Skills Curriculum. I have established fundamental classroom systems and structures for teachers to help them streamline their classroom. And my passion is teaching ancient history through engaging activities with foundations in academic skills. Here you will find resources on all of these topics and more. Learn more about me here.
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