Social studies in Year 7: what Lärkompis practises
In Year 7 of Swedish school (around age 13), Lärkompis practises 15 skills in social studies (geography, history, religion and civics), linked to 21 of 58 items in the core content of Lgr22, the Swedish national curriculum, for Years 7–9. The areas are methods and tools of geography; geographical conditions, patterns and processes; societal transformations: the emergence of civilisations and industrial societies; imperialism and world wars, approximately 1850–1950; religions and other worldviews; rights and the administration of justice; individuals and communities; and decision-making and political ideas. Each skill has five difficulty levels, and the skills are practised in 3 mini-games, including Kunskapsjakten (Knowledge Hunt), Labbet (The Lab) and Tidslinjen (The Timeline).
Lgr22 sets out core content for each stage (Years 7–9), not for each year. So Lärkompis spreads the skills across the years using its own time windows, and these are estimates. For Year 7, this means that 10 skills start this year and 5 skills started earlier and are still being practised. The figure 21 of 58 counts the items in the core content from Skolverket (the Swedish National Agency for Education) that at least one skill links to; it does not mean the whole item is covered.
What Lärkompis practises in Year 7
The 15 skills in social studies in Year 7 are grouped into 8 areas following Skolverket's syllabus. Under each skill you can see the first and the last difficulty level, so you know how far the exercises go.
Methods and tools of geography
- Reading position and compass direction between European capitals on a map Level 1: The main compass direction between two capitals, with three to compare. Level 5: Five capitals in order.
- Map projections, Mercator, GIS, GPS and satellite images Level 1: Choose from three options. Level 5: Mixed, in all formats.
Geographical conditions, patterns and processes
- The Earth’s crust, volcanoes and earthquakes Level 1: Questions with at most three clearly different options. Level 5: Match four question–answer pairs, plus mixed yes/no questions.
- Names and locations of places and regions that matter for the geography topics Level 1: Choose from at most three answers. Level 5: Match four pairs, plus ordering tasks with more steps.
- Vulnerable places: floods, droughts and earthquakes, and how risks are reduced Level 1: Choose from at most three answers. Level 5: Match four pairs, plus ordering tasks with more steps.
Societal transformations: the emergence of civilisations and industrial societies
- Early civilisations in Africa, the Americas and Asia, and antiquity and its importance today Level 1: Choose from at most three answers. Level 5: Match four pairs, plus ordering tasks with more steps.
- The Industrial Revolution, the steam engine, trade unions and urbanisation Level 1: Choose from three options. Level 5: Mixed, in all formats.
Imperialism and world wars, approximately 1850–1950
- Interpreting historical sources with the criteria of source criticism: authenticity, time, dependence and bias Level 1: Choose from all the answers, with the most common examples. Level 5: Mixed examples from the whole skill.
Religions and other worldviews
- The Trinity, hajj, the Sabbath, nirvana and karma Level 1: Choose from three options. Level 5: Mixed, in all formats.
- Similarities and differences between and within religions, and their main branches Level 1: Choose from all the answers, with the most common examples. Level 5: Mixed examples from the whole skill.
- Religious symbols, and what religion can mean for a sense of meaning, community and identity Level 1: Choose from at most three answers. Level 5: Match four pairs, plus ordering tasks with more steps.
- How religions began and spread, and where they are found today Level 1: Choose from at most three answers. Level 5: Match four pairs, plus ordering tasks with more steps.
Rights and the administration of justice
- Human rights, freedom of expression, the rule of law and discrimination Level 1: Choose from three options. Level 5: Mixed, in all formats.
Individuals and communities
- Welfare, unemployment insurance, parental benefit, pensions and financial assistance Level 1: Choose from three options. Level 5: Mixed, in all formats.
Decision-making and political ideas
- Where decisions are made (municipality, region, Riksdag, EU), and local, national and global social issues Level 1: Choose from all the answers, with the most common examples. Level 5: Mixed examples from the whole skill.
What the syllabus says, in short
The Lgr22 core content for Years 7–9 in social studies, summarised in our own words for the parts Lärkompis practises in Year 7. Read the full text in Skolverket's English translation of Lgr22.
- Vulnerable places on Earth, global trade flows and population changes.
- Early civilisations, colonisation and the slave trade, industrialisation and revolutions.
- What religion and other worldviews can mean to people, and similarities and differences within and between religions.
- Identity, welfare and migration in Sweden today.
- Rights and the justice system, the media and looking critically at social issues.
How to help at home with social studies in Year 7
Year 7 starts the last stage (Years 7–9), with more teachers and more to keep track of. For many, help with planning (what needs doing when, and what counts as a test) is worth more than help with the tasks themselves. Let your teenager lead: choices within limits strengthen motivation. Follow a news story or a topic for a week and ask “why did it happen, and what happens next?”. Ask your child to show where they read something and why they trust the source.
- Better questions than “how was school?”. Try: “What was the most fun/hardest thing today?”, “What made you laugh?”, “Tell me something you learned that I don’t know.” Give it time and wait. Silence is an answer too. As a conversation: about 5 minutes.
- Pause when things boil over. Nobody learns anything in the heat of the moment. Say “let’s take a break: water and five minutes”. Come back with a smaller piece. Your relationship is worth more than the homework. When it is hard going: about 5 minutes.
- Offer choices within limits. Ask “do you want to do your homework before or after your snack?” instead of “sit down now”. Choices within limits strengthen a sense of control without the rules disappearing. As a conversation: about 5 minutes.
- Write to the teacher when homework isn’t working. If homework often takes an unreasonably long time, ends in tears or can’t be done without you, write a few lines about what happened. The school needs that information to be able to adapt. When it is hard going: about 5 minutes.
How you can tell it has clicked in Year 7
- Religious symbols, and what religion can mean for a sense of meaning, community and identity: Your child recognises the symbols of the five world religions.
- Human rights, freedom of expression, the rule of law and discrimination: Your child can explain why the rule of law matters.
- Welfare, unemployment insurance, parental benefit, pensions and financial assistance: Your child can explain how welfare is paid for.
- The Earth’s crust, volcanoes and earthquakes: Your child can explain why earthquakes happen.
Common pitfalls in Year 7
- Where decisions are made (municipality, region, Riksdag, EU), and local, national and global social issues: Thinks the Riksdag decides everything.
- Reading position and compass direction between European capitals on a map: Thinks London is east of Paris.
- Map projections, Mercator, GIS, GPS and satellite images: Thinks a map can show the earth with no distortion at all.
- Names and locations of places and regions that matter for the geography topics: Mixes up regions and countries.
If social studies practice in Year 7 often ends in tears or takes far too long, stop for the day and write a few lines to the teacher about what was hard. That is useful information for the school, not a failure.
Games that practise it
In Year 7 social studies, Lärkompis uses 3 mini-games. In these games, playing is the practice, so your child learns while they play. There are no points or streaks, and no ads.
Kunskapsjakten (Knowledge Hunt)
A quiz show in a TV studio, where Vera leads the questions up a ladder. There are lifelines but no points: the ladder fills up with the questions your child has worked through. In Year 7, the game practises 15 skills: reading position and compass direction between European capitals on a map; the Earth’s crust, volcanoes and earthquakes; map projections, Mercator, GIS, GPS and satellite images; names and locations of places and regions that matter for the geography topics; and more.
Labbet (The Lab)
Guess first, then find out. The tasks are based on checked facts. In Year 7, the game practises 14 skills: the Earth’s crust, volcanoes and earthquakes; map projections, Mercator, GIS, GPS and satellite images; names and locations of places and regions that matter for the geography topics; vulnerable places: floods, droughts and earthquakes, and how risks are reduced; and more.
Tidslinjen (The Timeline)
Your child puts cards on a line in the right order, for example events, steps or numbers. A card in the right place turns over and shows the answer. In Year 7, the game practises 3 skills: reading position and compass direction between European capitals on a map; early civilisations in Africa, the Americas and Asia, and antiquity and its importance today; and how religions began and spread, and where they are found today.
Questions about social studies in Year 7
What does Lärkompis practise in social studies in Year 7?
Lärkompis has 15 skills in social studies in Year 7, for example “Reading position and compass direction between European capitals on a map”; “The Earth’s crust, volcanoes and earthquakes”; “Map projections, Mercator, GIS, GPS and satellite images”; “Names and locations of places and regions that matter for the geography topics”; and “Vulnerable places: floods, droughts and earthquakes, and how risks are reduced”. Each skill has five levels. In “Reading position and compass direction between European capitals on a map”, for example, level 1 is “The main compass direction between two capitals, with three to compare” and level 5 is “Five capitals in order”. The app adjusts the level to how your child is doing.
What comes after Year 7 in social studies?
In Year 8, Lärkompis practises 28 skills in social studies, and new that year are “Demography, population density, population pyramids, birth rates and migration”; “Globalisation, imports, exports, tariffs and free trade”; and “The Earth’s crust, volcanoes and earthquakes”. Most of it builds on what your child practised in Year 7.
Which mistakes are common in social studies in Year 7?
Common mistakes that Lärkompis covers include “Thinks the Riksdag decides everything” in “Where decisions are made (municipality, region, Riksdag, EU), and local, national and global social issues” and “Thinks London is east of Paris” in “Reading position and compass direction between European capitals on a map”. When an answer is wrong, the app shows how to think it through instead of just marking it wrong, and the parent panel shows what your child is practising right now.
Does Lärkompis follow Lgr22 in social studies in Year 7?
Yes. Every exercise in social studies in Year 7 is linked to an item in the Lgr22 core content for Years 7–9; 21 of 58 items in social studies (geography, history, religion and civics) have at least one linked skill. Lärkompis is a complement at home and does not replace teaching.
How much does it cost to practise social studies in Year 7 with Lärkompis?
Lärkompis costs SEK 49, once, for all subjects and every child in the family, with future updates included. You can try social studies in Year 7 for free first, without an account.
More years and subjects
The same year in other subjects:
