Social Studies Overview

All of the Middle School Social Studies courses offered are meant to follow the California State Content Standards for grades 6 – 8 and will vary slightly depending upon the student population for each particular class. Each course contains connections to current events, use of the computer including the Internet, and skills practice. These historical and Social Science analysis skills include chronological and spatial thinking, understanding research, evidence and point of view, and historical interpretation. In addition to the text, Middle School students learn through hands-on experiences, museum visits, guest speakers, group projects, story-telling, film and group discussions.

6th Grade World History and Geography: Ancient Civilizations
Students in grade six expand their understanding of history by studying the people and events that ushered in the dawn of the major western and non-western ancient civilizations. The course moves across time and space to include the Paleolithic Era, Mesopotamia, Egypt, Kush, the Ancient Hebrews, Greeks, Indians and Chinese. The historical journey comes to a close in Ancient Rome. Geography is of special significance in the development of the human story. Continued emphasis is placed on the everyday lives, problems and accomplishments of people, their role in developing social, economic and political structures, as well as in establishing and spreading ideas that helped transform the world forever. Students develop higher levels of critical thinking by considering why civilizations developed where and when they did, why they became dominant and why they declined. Students analyze the interactions among the various cultures, emphasizing their enduring contributions and the link, despite time, between the contemporary and ancient worlds.

7th World History and Geography: Medieval and Early Modern Times
Students in grade seven study the social, cultural, and technological changes that occurred in Europe, Africa, and Asia from 500 – 1789 AD. After reviewing the ancient world and the ways in which archaeologists and historians uncover the past, students study the history and geography of great civilizations that were developing concurrently throughout the world during medieval and early modern times. They examine the growing economic interaction among civilizations as well as the exchange of ideas, beliefs, technologies, and commodities. They learn about the resulting growth of Enlightenment philosophy and the new examination of the concepts of reason and authority, the natural rights of human beings and the divine right of kings, experimentalism in science and the dogma of belief. Finally, students assess the political forces let loose by the Enlightenment, particularly the rise of democratic ideas, and they learn about the continuing influence of these ideas in the world today. Increasing emphasis upon research and historical interpretation is placed on the Social Studies courses as the students reading and writing powers expand.

8th United States History and Geography: Growth and Conflict
Students in grade eight study the ideas, issues and events from the framing of the Constitution up to World War I, with an emphasis on America’s role in the war. After reviewing the development of America’s democratic institutions founded in the Judeo-Christian heritage and English parliamentary traditions, particularly the shaping of the Constitution, students trace the development of American politics, society, culture and economy and relate them to the emergence of major regional differences. They learn about the challenges facing the new nation, with an emphasis on the causes, course and consequences of the Civil War. They make connections between the rise of industrialization and contemporary social and economic conditions.