Mrs. Ryan:  Social Studies

8th Grade Homeroom

Grade 6 Social Studies is based on the geography and history of the Eastern Hemisphere, including the development of cultures, civilizations, and empires, interactions between societies, and the comparison of trends in government and economics. It also incorporates some elements of other social sciences.

The students have learned geographic skills which has provided them the opportunity and foundation to make connections between the past and the present. Students are also provided the opportunity to explore belief systems across time and to examine the foundations of democracy.

Grade 7 Social Studies is arranged chronologically and incorporates geography as well as economic, social, and political trends. The course content is divided into eight key ideas, tracing the human experience in the United States from pre-Columbian times until the Civil War. 

TOPICS INCLUDE: 

• Native Americans
  •  How physical environment and natural resources influenced the first settlements 
• Colonies
  • Reasons for their development and the study of how they each developed differently based on economic, social and geographic factors
• American Independence
  • Political and economic issues that sparked the movement for independence from the British
• The historical development of the Constitution 
• The Constitution in practice and as a living document
  • The Constitution as the foundation of the United States government
  • The rights of citizens
• Westward expansion
  • Political and economic motives
• Reform movements and resistance efforts caused by social, political, and economic inequalities
• A nation divided
  • Sectionalism
  • Causes of the Civil War

Grade 8 Social Studies is arranged chronologically, beginning with the Civil War and Reconstruction and ending at the present. The course incorporates geography as well as economic, social and political trends. 

TOPICS INCLUDE: 

• The Civil War and Reconstruction
  • Causes and aftermath of the Civil War
• A changing society
  • Industrialization, urbanization, immigration
  • Calls for reform
• Expansion and imperialism
  • Economic, political, and cultural factors that were responsible for the westward movement
  • A changing foreign policy
• World War I and post war America 
• The Great Depression
  • Causes
  • The changing role of the government
• World War II and the transformation of warfare and society
• The Cold War, containment, communism and the Middle East
• Post World War II demographic changes
• Domestic politics and civil rights reform to address social, legal, economic, and environmental problems