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Course Standards
General Course Information and Notes
General Notes
M/J U.S. History - The eighth grade social studies curriculum consists of the following content area strands: American History, Geography, Economics and Civics. Primary content emphasis for this course pertains to the study of American history from the Exploration and Colonization period to the Reconstruction Period following the Civil War. Students will be exposed to the historical, geographic, political, economic, and sociological events which influenced the development of the United States and the resulting impact on world history. So that students can clearly see the relationship between cause and effect in historical events, students should have the opportunity to explore those fundamental ideas and events which occurred after Reconstruction.M/J Civics - The primary content for this portion of the course pertains to the principles, functions, and organization of government; the origins of the American political system; the roles, rights, responsibilities of United States citizens; and methods of active participation in our political system.
Mathematics Benchmark Guidance - Instruction of U.S. History should include opportunities for students to interpret and create representations of historical events using mathematical tables, charts, and graphs.
Special Notes: This course is meant as a means of combining the required M/J United States History content with remediation of the required M/J Civics content.
Additional content that may be contained in the NAEP Grade 8 United States History assessment includes material from all time periods on the following topics:
- Change and Continuity in American Democracy: Ideas, Institutions, Events, Key Figures, and Controversies
- The Gathering and Interactions of Peoples, Cultures, and Ideas
- Economic and Technological Changes and Their Relationship to Society, Ideas, and the Environment
- The Changing Role of America in the World
Additional content that may be included in the Grade 8 NAEP Civics assessment includes:
- Distinctive characteristics of American society
- Unity/diversity in American society
- Civil society: nongovernmental associations, groups
- Nation-states
- Interaction among nation-states
- Major governmental, nongovernmental international organizations
Instructional Practices
Teaching from well-written, grade-level instructional materials enhances students' content area knowledge and also strengthens their ability to comprehend longer, complex reading passages on any topic for any reason. Using the following instructional practices also helps student learning:
- Reading assignments from longer text passages as well as shorter ones when text is extremely complex.
- Making close reading and rereading of texts central to lessons.
- Asking high-level, text-specific questions and requiring high-level, complex tasks and assignments.
- Requiring students to support answers with evidence from the text.
- Providing extensive text-based research and writing opportunities (claims and evidence).
General Information
Student Resources
Original Student Tutorials
Learn more about Reconstruction and the amendments to the U.S. Constitution passed during the Reconstruction era with this interactive tutorial.
Type: Original Student Tutorial
Learn more about the abolition movement, the women's suffrage movement, and the role Sojourner Truth played with this interactive tutorial.
Type: Original Student Tutorial
Learn more about the abolition movement, the women's suffrage movement, and Lucretia Mott's civic participation in this interactive student tutorial.
Type: Original Student Tutorial
Learn about the civic and political participation of some of the Founders, including George Washington, Alexander Hamilton, and James Madison, with this interactive tutorial.
Type: Original Student Tutorial
Learn the historical arguments for and against the ratification of the U.S. Constitution with this interactive civics tutorial.
Type: Original Student Tutorial
Learn about the history of the women's suffrage movement and the important role that Elizabeth Cady Stanton played in the women's suffrage movement in this interactive tutorial.
Type: Original Student Tutorial
Learn how women displayed civic and political participation during Colonial times and in the Revolutionary War with this interactive tutorial.
Type: Original Student Tutorial
Learn about the Women's Suffrage Movement and Susan B. Anthony's life and role in the movement to grant all women the right to vote, in this interactive tutorial.
Type: Original Student Tutorial
Learn about the Lewis and Clark Expedition, including why they explored, who was involved, and how it shaped America. In this interactive tutorial, you'll also learn about examples of civic virtue on the expedition.
Type: Original Student Tutorial
Learn how important Colonial leaders demonstrated civic and political participation during the Revolutionary War and Colonial America with this interactive tutorial.
Type: Original Student Tutorial
Learn about the 1838 Florida Constitution and the 1868 Florida Constitution with this interactive tutorial.
Type: Original Student Tutorial
In this interactive tutorial, you'll learn about the Patriots' and Loyalists' views on government authority and tyranny.
Type: Original Student Tutorial
In this interactive tutorial, you'll compare the viewpoints of the two groups on opposite sides of the great debate over ratifying the U.S. Constitution: Federalists and Anti-Federalists.
Type: Original Student Tutorial
Learn to analyze and evaluate arguments for their soundness and relevancy. In this interactive tutorial, you'll read several short passages about raising the legal driving age. You'll practice examining the evidence presented to determine whether it's sound and relevant to the argument at hand.
Type: Original Student Tutorial
Investigate the limiting factors of a Florida ecosystem and describe how these limiting factors affect one native population-the Florida Scrub-Jay-with this interactive tutorial.
Type: Original Student Tutorial
Learn what genetic engineering is and some of the applications of this technology. In this interactive tutorial, you’ll gain an understanding of some of the benefits and potential drawbacks of genetic engineering. Ultimately, you’ll be able to think critically about genetic engineering and write an argument describing your own perspective on its impacts.
Type: Original Student Tutorial
Learn why Great Britain and her 13 American colonies split between 1763 and 1776 with this interactive tutorial. At the end of this time span, Britain and America were at war, and the Declaration of Independence had announced the United States of America as a brand new nation, no longer colonies of Britain.
Type: Original Student Tutorial
In this interactive tutorial, you'll learn how to analyze the ideas, grievances (complaints), and language found in the Declaration of Independence, one of the most important documents in the history of the United States.
Type: Original Student Tutorial
Analyze the Preamble to the U.S. Constitution -- line by line, word by word -- in this interactive tutorial.
Type: Original Student Tutorial
Learn about the Articles of Confederation, our nation’s first written constitution, in this interactive tutorial. You'll identify its major weaknesses and their consequences and explain the reasons why America's Founders replaced the Articles of Confederation with the government we still use today, the U.S. Constitution.
Type: Original Student Tutorial
Lesson Plan
In this lesson, students will read about the aftermath of the French and Indian War, acts passed by Great Britain, and the Boston Massacre. Students will answer questions as they read the passage and analyze the cause and effect of British policies and colonist reactions leading up to the Revolutionary War.
Type: Lesson Plan
Video/Audio/Animations
View a 10-part video on the Battle of Yorktown, the culminating battle of the Revolutionary War. With French aid, George Washington led American troops to a victory that ensured American independence.
In addition to the video, you will find primary source documents and a graphic organizer to help you analyze the Battle of Yorktown in greater detail.
Type: Video/Audio/Animation
This 3-part video from Mount Vernon details the struggles that led delegates from the 13 colonies to hold a Constitutional Convention in Philadelphia in 1787. At this convention, under the leadership of George Washington, the delegates rejected the Articles of Confederation in favor of a new, stronger federal government. After the Constitution's ratification, Washington become the new nation's first president.
Type: Video/Audio/Animation
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