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Social Studies Curriculum

I. Philosophy

As a K-12 department, we employ a wide range of developmentally appropriate content and skills in our teaching of social studies in the Children's, Middle and Upper Schools. All of the diverse coursework detailed below is cumulative in scope and sequence and is united by the goal of instilling our students with both an intuitive and analytical appreciation for the struggles of groups and individuals in the past. Upon completion of our programs, students have well-developed research, writing, presentation and analytical skills and an excellent knowledge base in the topics and themes below.

II. Performance Goals and Objectives

The goals and performance objectives for the History Department are as follows:

  1. To develop the knowledge, skills, and values necessary for comprehension of and participation in a democratic republic
  2. Study what constitutes a culture, how cultures change over time, appreciate the legacies of both the Western and non-Western cultures
  3. Understand basic economic terms and theories such as production, distribution and consumption of goods and services and be able to apply an informed economic interpretation to historical events
  4. Understand basic political science terminology and concepts relating to power, authority and governance
  5. See beyond the inequalities in the historical record to appreciate the role of women and minorities, and non-Western, non-traditional cultures.
  6. Understand the basic issues of historiography and hves the ability to read primary sources critically
  7. Understand the complex and inescapable relationship between developments in science, technology and society
  8. Understand the following geographical concepts and skills; reading maps and globes, land masses, oceans and climatic zones of the Earth, and human interaction with the environment
  9. Write historical essays that display mastery of the material and independent analysis
  10. Work both individually and in groups to complete long-term projects that show mastery of complex topics and significant editing and redrafting in order to produce a quality piece of work

III. Instructional Strategies

The instructional strategies employed by all grades to accomplish these goals are as follows:

  1. Traditional Strategies
    1. Listening and note taking
    2. Individual student presentations
    3. Guest speakers
    4. Relevant multi-media; films, music, slides
    5. Long term group projects
    6. Reading primary sources
    7. Reading secondary sources
    8. Posing purpose setting questions
    9. Preparing written research assignments
    10. Group presentations
    11. Seminar style discussions
    12. Drawing, examining, assessing, and comparing maps
    13. Examination of current events in newspapers and magazines
    14. Thematic units that incorporate history and significant works of literature
    15. Analyzing various forms of artwork and cartoons
    16. Analyzing historical photographs
  2. Experience-based Strategies
    1. Historical re-enactment, e.g., Ellis Island immigration experience
    2. Fieldtrips
    3. Group writing projects, e.g., newspaper project
    4. Simulations, e.g., trial of Woodrow Wilson
    5. Guest speakers
    6. Group fieldwork, e.g., archeology digs
    7. Group presentations, e.g., news broadcast from 1917

IV. Assessment Techniques

To assure that our department and students are meeting these goals, the following assessment techniques are applied:

  1. Short answer questions
  2. In-class essays
  3. Peer teaching
  4. Questions posed during class discussion
  5. Informal teacher observations
  6. Research papers
  7. Student projects
  8. Performance assessment tasks
  9. Journals
  10. Presentations
  11. Role playing simulations
  12. Drawing pictures
  13. Creating timelines
  14. Multiple choice questions
  15. Short essays
  16. Primary source identification essays
  17. Primary source analysis essays
  18. Take home essays
  19. Graded discussions

Upper School History Courses

Courses that have been offered over the past few years:

Required
World History
Geography (History 9)
Western Civilizations (History 10)
United States History / Geography (11th Grade)

Electives
AP Comparative Government and Politics
AP European History
Introduction to the History of Philosophy
Introduction To Psychology
Micro Economics
AP Micro Economics
AP Macro Economics
Ethics
Latin American History
Modern African Studies
Twentieth Century History
Art History