Grade 7 : United States History - Prehistory through the Civil War
7th grade begins a two year study of American history, spanning from the time of the Native Americans through the American Civil War
Students will delve much more deeply into lessons learned in 5th grade and will spend an enormous amount of time working on their cross-curricular writing skills in preparation for the US history Regents exam
Students will begin working on the formation of DBQ's and thematic essays
Historical fiction studied during the first quarter of the year in ELA will supplement the curriculum
US Geography will also be extensively covered to ensure student understanding of the states and our neighboring North American nations
Grade 8: United States History - Reconstruction through the Modern Era
The two-year course in American history started in grade 7 will continue this year, picking up with the period immediately following the American Civil War, known as the Reconstruction Era, and spanning more modern history through the 1950's
Students will continue to develop mastery of the necessary writing skills needed to succeed on history Regents exams in high school
All novels read in ELA during 8th grade will supplement the history curriculum
Some study of current events will be undertaken
Students will extensively study the geography of Europe
Students will take their Regents exam in US History at the end of this school year rather than in 11th grade
Grade 9: Advanced Placement United States History - Prehistory through the Modern Era
Now that students have taken their US History Regents, they will be given the opportunity to take the Advanced Placement exam (APUSH)
This also gives students who did not take the Regents in 8th grade the chance to take that, as well, in June of their ninth grade year rather than waiting until 11th grade
While the curriculum itself is very fresh in students' minds having studied US History during both seventh and eighth grades, this course will require that they delve more deeply into certain topics, such as:
The formation of the US Constitution
US Civics
Minority Studies
Modern Allies, Wars, and Conflicts
Technological Advancements
Women's Studies
Students will also be exposed, with the help of the English department, to more advanced essay writing techniques
Students may opt to take the end of the year AP exam or opt out; a score of 4 or greater does usually result in collegiate credits, so this is their first opportunity to gather as many as 6 credits for college