Photo: Seaview Pier, North Topsail Beach
Conclusion
Topsail Island contains many different perspectives that deal with social studies such as history, economics, geography and politics. Each of these perspectives displays how the island has changed from the very beginning to how the island is today. There is a vast amount of history about the island that many residents are not even informed about (Peters, 2013). Today, there is the Missiles and More Museum that has exhibits about the islands entire history that visitors can visit to learn about the island but unfortunately there are not many residents that have even been there to learn the history of their community (Peters, 2013). The geography is also an essential aspect of the island. Where the island is located and the three towns that make up the island is what attracted people to come to the island in the first place and has continued to attract people to the island today. The several different economic aspects over time, salt, fishing, piers, tourism, play an essential role in keeping the islands presence today. Lastly, the political aspects of the island are what keeps order in each of the towns and has allowed each of the towns to remain successful and keep order.
This topic of Topsail Island, North Carolina, contains a lot of history that you are not fully aware of unless you have truly looked into it. Timelines of what has occurred on the island would be a great way to gain new insights and understanding of how the island has changed from the beginning to how the island is today. However, further research about each of the perspectives mentioned could be problematic. Even with the vast amount of history concerning the island, there is not a lot of extra information written in books that I used throughout this paper or that is available on the internet. Topsail Island is truly a small island that is located on North Carolina’s coast; therefore there is not a lot of research about the island. A majority of the books and websites said the same information that was all along the same lines, so further in depth research could be a difficult task to accomplish.
This topic of Topsail Island, North Carolina, contains a lot of history that you are not fully aware of unless you have truly looked into it. Timelines of what has occurred on the island would be a great way to gain new insights and understanding of how the island has changed from the beginning to how the island is today. However, further research about each of the perspectives mentioned could be problematic. Even with the vast amount of history concerning the island, there is not a lot of extra information written in books that I used throughout this paper or that is available on the internet. Topsail Island is truly a small island that is located on North Carolina’s coast; therefore there is not a lot of research about the island. A majority of the books and websites said the same information that was all along the same lines, so further in depth research could be a difficult task to accomplish.
Reflection
Through this project, I have learned a vast amount of new and interesting information that I never learned by just visiting the island every summer. It was a surprise to learn that the place that you consider your favorite beach home was once a military base site that was used for testing missiles. The islands purposes has constantly changed over the years, so to learn that it has not always been a tourism site, really opened my eyes about the community. Going every summer and seeing a couple of buildings up and down the island, not realizing that those buildings were towers used for the military was extremely interesting. Also, to find out that some of those towers that were used for the military are now turned into homes was surprising to learn. Furthermore, it was fascinating to learn that even with all of the changes that have occurred in recent years to the island, this island remains a family oriented beach. It has not turned into a place like Myrtle Beach, South Carolina that has putt putts on every corner, but instead it is a place to bring your family and spend quality time and relax for a change.
The content from this project directly connects to the Common Core Essential Standards. This project deals entirely with the community of Topsail Island, North Carolina. Even though this place is not my hometown, this is like a second home to me and could potentially be a place that I could teach at in the future. Under 3.H.1 in the Common Core, it states that students will need to understand how events, individuals and ideas have influenced the history of local and regional communities. Therefore, as a part of the Common Core, it is important to know about a community’s history. Also, even if this is not my place of residence when I first teach, the Common Core also covers North Carolina History and different regions in the state (specifically all standards for fourth grade). Topsail Island is located in North Carolina and is on the coast, therefore as stated in the Common Core, information mentioned above can be helpful to use when teaching about this those two topics.
All of the information from creating this project will be helpful for me as an elementary classroom social studies teacher. To begin with, if I end up teaching at Topsail Island, I have a vast amount of knowledge about this community to teach the students about where they live. As mentioned before, even if I do not teach there until later on in my career, I could use this information for different concepts in social studies. In fourth grade, you cover North Carolina history. Topsail Island is located in North Carolina and can contribute to the history of this state. Another topic that this information could be useful for is when teaching about different regions. The island is located on the coast and contains different perspectives of geography, economics, etc. that could be discussed when teaching about different regions.Therefore, I know that there is several different ways that I could use the information from this project for when I become an elementary classroom social studies teacher.
The content from this project directly connects to the Common Core Essential Standards. This project deals entirely with the community of Topsail Island, North Carolina. Even though this place is not my hometown, this is like a second home to me and could potentially be a place that I could teach at in the future. Under 3.H.1 in the Common Core, it states that students will need to understand how events, individuals and ideas have influenced the history of local and regional communities. Therefore, as a part of the Common Core, it is important to know about a community’s history. Also, even if this is not my place of residence when I first teach, the Common Core also covers North Carolina History and different regions in the state (specifically all standards for fourth grade). Topsail Island is located in North Carolina and is on the coast, therefore as stated in the Common Core, information mentioned above can be helpful to use when teaching about this those two topics.
All of the information from creating this project will be helpful for me as an elementary classroom social studies teacher. To begin with, if I end up teaching at Topsail Island, I have a vast amount of knowledge about this community to teach the students about where they live. As mentioned before, even if I do not teach there until later on in my career, I could use this information for different concepts in social studies. In fourth grade, you cover North Carolina history. Topsail Island is located in North Carolina and can contribute to the history of this state. Another topic that this information could be useful for is when teaching about different regions. The island is located on the coast and contains different perspectives of geography, economics, etc. that could be discussed when teaching about different regions.Therefore, I know that there is several different ways that I could use the information from this project for when I become an elementary classroom social studies teacher.