Explore White Oak School's comprehensive Social Studies and History curriculum for grades 4-12, aligned with MA Curriculum Frameworks and Common Core. Covers U.S. History, World History, Geography, Civics, and more, focusing on language skill development, critical thinking, and primary source analysis.
The skills addressed at each level are in accordance with the MA Curriculum Frameworks and also correspond to the Common Core Curriculum.
Students will focus upon the political and intellectual origins of the American Revolution and the Constitution. First semester topics will include political, economic, intellectual, and historical factors leading to the Revolution, the major battles and characters of the Revolutionary War, key documents (the Mayflower Compact, Declaration of Independence, Articles of Confederation), Thomas Jefferson’s political philosophy, the Jacksonian Era and westward expansion. Second semester topics focus on sectionalism, the roots of the Civil War, Reconstruction, and the Jim Crow era. Primary source documents will be read and discussed throughout these studies. With an emphasis upon language skills as the foundation for content exploration, students will work on developing notetaking, writing, vocabulary, geography, research, group discussion, organization, and independent work skills.
Students will study world interactions, including interactions among regions, development and diffusions of religions and systems of belief, and political power, religion and cultural achievement. They will explore interactions with kingdoms and empires (1000 CE -1500 CE), including the political, economic and social development of kingdoms and empires, trade, the plague, the Crusades and the middle ages. A study of philosophy, art, science, and technology will also be explored, with a focus on Chinese inventions and technology, Indian economy and textiles, the European Renaissance, and the scientific revolution. Finally, a global exploration and philosophies of government will be studied, including the Treaty of Granada, the route to Asia by sea, missionaries, the Trans-Atlantic slave trade, the European Enlightenment period, and political philosophies. Primary source documents will be read and discussed throughout these studies. With an emphasis upon language skills as the foundation for content exploration, students will work on developing notetaking, writing, vocabulary, geography, research, group discussion, organization, and independent work skills.
Students study the rise of the nation state in Europe, the French Revolution, and the economic and political roots of the modern world. They study the origins and consequences of the Industrial Revolution, 19th century political reform in western Europe, and imperialism in Africa, Asia, and South America. They will explain the causes and consequences of the great military and economic events of the past century, including World War I, the Great Depression, World War II, the Cold War, and the Chinese and Rusian Revolutions. Finally, students will explore the rise of nationalism and the continuing persistence of political, ethnic, and religious conflict in many parts of the world. With an emphasis upon language skills as the foundation for content exploration, students will work on developing notetaking, writing, vocabulary, geography, research, group discussion, organization, and independent work skills.
In this course, students will explore the role of economics and ideologies in the modern United States, including scarcity and economic reasoning, supply and demand, national economic performance, the consequences of the Great Depression and the New Deal (1 & 2). They will also study the defense of democracy, with a focus on American Isolationism, the rise of fascism, American involvement in World War II, the long term consequences of World War II, factors that led to The Cold War, the rise of Communism, and the Vietnam War. During the second semester, topics covered include the Cold War and Civil Rights at home, with an emphasis on Truman and Eisenhower’s policies, domestic Cold War trends in the US, African American civil rights,and the civil rights movement. Finally, students explore the presidencies of JFK, LBJ, Nixon, and Regan, along with the failure of Communist economic policies, 21st century technology, and the US response to terrorism. Primary source documents will be read and discussed throughout these studies. With an emphasis upon language skills as the foundation for content exploration, students will work on developing notetaking, writing, vocabulary, geography, research, group discussion, organization, and independent work skills.
Utilizing the five themes of geography (location, place, human interaction with the environment, movement, and regions), students will study cultural and physical features of the United States today. Students will become familiar with immigrants and immigrants’ rights, resources (both natural and limited), and the different regions of the U.S. and their key geographic features. They will also learn about contemporary Canada, Mexico, Central America, and the island cultures in the Caribbean Sea. Geography skills include understanding and being able to utilize absolute and relative location, longitude and latitude, key terms, the compass rose, map keys, and map scales. With an emphasis upon language skills as the foundation for content exploration, students will work on developing notetaking, writing, vocabulary, geography, research, group discussion, organization, and independent work skills.
“Students study the major pre-Columbian civilizations in the New World; the 15th and 16th century European explorations around the world, in the western hemisphere, and in North America in particular; the earliest settlements in North America; and the political, economic, and social development of the English colonies in the 17th and 18th centuries. They also study the early development of democratic institutions and ideas, including the ideas and events that led to the independence of the original thirteen colonies and the formation of a national government under the U.S. Constitution.” (Massachusetts History and Social Science Curriculum Framework, Pg. 27) Geography skills include recognizing various types of maps and using timelines. With an emphasis upon language skills as the foundation for content exploration, students will work on developing notetaking, writing, vocabulary, geography, research, group discussion, organization, and independent work skills.
In part I, students examine how the perspectives of political science, economics, geography, history, and archeology apply to the study of regions and countries. They study the development of prehistoric societies and then focus on regional studies of Western Asia, the Middle East, North Africa, Sub-Saharan Africa, and Central America, the Caribbean Islands, and South America. Part II examines the physical and political geography and ancient societies of South and East Asia, Oceania, and Europe and concludes with a study of government in Greece and Rome, which serves as a prelude to the study of civics in 8th grade. Students will also focus upon comparing historical and modern maps, using primary and secondary sources, learning about multiple causes and effects, and learning new terms for economics and government. With an emphasis upon language skills as the foundation for content exploration, students will work on developing notetaking, writing, vocabulary, geography, research, group discussion, organization, and independent work skills.
Students will study the roots of the ideas that influenced the development of the U.S. political systems, how the framers of the new Constitution attempted to address issues of power and freedom in the design of the new political system, the Constitution, the three branches of government, the Bill of Rights, the rights and responsibilities of citizens, how the content of the Constitution evolved over time, the role of state and local government in the political system, and freedom of the press and current news. A prominent emphasis in this course also includes civics and civic engagement, with the eventual goal of a student-led, non-partisan civics project consistent with the History and Social Science curriculum Frameworks. With an emphasis upon language skills as the foundation for content exploration, students will work on developing notetaking, writing, vocabulary, geography, research, group discussion, organization, and independent work skills.
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