Shawnee Mission School District

Middle School Course Syllabus

Course Title / Social Studies 7 / Teacher:
Ms. Messmer
School:
Westridge Middle School
Department / Social Studies / Year:
2014-15
Course
Description / Seventh grade students study our nation’s history from the American Revolution to the Civil War. Students will learn key economic concepts and apply those to everyday life. Additionally, a study of Geography, the U.S. Constitution, and Kansas History are also included.
Primary
Objectives / The student will:
Compare and contrast the cultural differences between regions of the United States as it developed. Analyze how the territorial expansion affected relations with external powers and the American Indians (i.e. Louisiana Purchase, Manifest Destiny, land policies like Northwest Ordinance, Mexican-American War, and the Gold Rush).
Know the influence of religion in American history between 1500--1860.
Analyze the Declaration of Independence and the U.S. Constitution and identify essential ideas of American constitutional government.
Evaluate the historical impact of the constitutional interpretation of the Alien and Sedition Act and Louisiana Purchase.
Know and compare the rights and responsibilities of citizenship guaranteed by the federal and Kansas Constitutions for juveniles and adults.
Know the steps necessary to become an informed voter, such as recognize issues and candidates, recognize stands taken by candidates on issues, personal choice and voting.
Understand the structure of authority in the United States government as defined by the Constitution. Explain the distribution of power among the executive, legislative, and judicial branches, such as checks, balances, separation of powers.
Know the physical factors determining the location and development and growth of American cities.
Understand how political changes are made through political documents, laws, compromise, and war.
Compare and contrast local, state, and national governments regarding: making and enforcing laws, managing conflicts, defending the nation, education, health agency, fire department, police, care for local community property, parks and recreation.
Analyze the various forces affecting the historical development of Kansas territorial settlement: Indian Removal and Bleeding Kansas.
Analyze the importance of and give examples of Jacksonian Democracy. Include expansion of suffrage, appeal to the common man, justification of the spoils system, and opposition to elitism and the national bank system.
Evaluate the significance of principal routes and highways as they pertain to the growth of America and Kansas particularly.
Analyze the impact of the Indian Removal Act of 1830 on the way of life for emigrant Indian tribes relocated to Kansas. Include loss of land, customary resources, disease and starvation, assimilation, inter-tribal conflict.
Compare viewpoints of major political groups during major periods such as during the period immediate preceding the Civil War.
Know the individuals, groups, ideas, events and developments during the Kansas territory days. Include territorial disputes prompted by border ruffians, bushwhackers, jayhawkers, the Underground Railroad, free-staters, and abolitionists.
Understand how relative price, people’s economic decisions, and innovations influence the market system (e.g. cotton gin led to increased productivity, ore cotton produced, higher profits, and lower prices: steamboat led to increased distribution of goods, which brought down the price of goods and made goods more affordable.
Evaluate examples of economic factors in the North and South. Use capital sources, natural and human resources and know the geographic factors that influence world trade, and interdependence, such as location, advantage, resource distribution, labor cost, technology, trade networks and organizations.
Analyze how the territorial expansion of the U.S. affected relations with external owners and American Indians using the Louisiana Purchase, Manifest Destiny, Mexican –American War, and the 1849 California Gold Rush.
Know the influence of scientific and technical advancements through early American history.
Know the events leading to the American Civil War. Include the Compromise of 1820, Compromise of 1850, Kansas Nebraska Act, and Dred Scott v. Sanford.
Compare and contrast the changing patterns of trade on the historical development of the United States. Analyze the continuous role of government in developing the U.S. economy.
Demonstrate an understanding of the importance of value judgments in making economic decisions involving trade-offs and opportunity costs. Show how limited resources force purchase decisions which reflect values.
Know factors that might influence international trade. Include U.S. economic sanctions, weather, exchange, rates, war, boycotts, embargos.
Using historical documents, artifacts, and other primary sources, note the credibility of specific events related in Kansas history, such as census reports, diaries, photographs, and letters.
Know renewable and nonrenewable sources and their patterns of distribution, such as fossil fuels, minerals, fertile soil, water power, and forests. Know the geographic factors that influence world trade and interdependence (e.g., location advantage, resource distribution, labor cost, technology, trade networks and organizations.
Demonstrate the use of maps to locate and describe landforms and geographic features. Know ways in which technologies have modified the physical environment of various world cultures using dams, levees, aqueducts, irrigation, roads, bridges, as modifications.
Textbook Used / INTRODUCTION TO GEOGRAPHY
ECONOMICS
AMERICA: HISTORY OF OUR NATION
KANSAS JOURNEY
Major Topics Covered by Quarter
(projected schedule) / Quarter 1 and 2:
Pathway Strategies
Geography
Economics
Quarters 3 and 4:
Overview of the road to the American Revolution
The American Constitution – civics/government
Kansas Government
Local Government
American History through Jackson
Westward Expansion
Method of Evaluation / Seventh grade students study our nation’s history from the American Revolution to the Civil War. Students will learn key economic concepts and apply those to everyday life. Additional units of study are: North American Geography, the U.S. Government/ Constitution, and very early Kansas History.
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Formative Assessments
Performance Assessments
Summative Assessments: Quizzes/Tests
Student Expectations/ Responsibilities / Be on time.
Come to class prepared.
Participate in class.
Practice the “Westridge Way” – Safe, Respectful, Responsible

Course Syllabus