Middle School Social Studies

The Middle School Social Studies curriculum emphasizes instruction in California’s core learning goals for Social Studies: History, Geography, Economics, Political Systems and Peoples and Nations of the World. Teachers utilize reading, discussion, writing and participation in various Social Studies skill sets, such as collaborative problem solving, visual discovery and experiential activities in order to challenge and engage students while increasing their understanding of history, politics, geography, economics and culture.

6TH GRADE

Mrs. Matautia, Mrs. Meyer, Mrs. Laborin, Ms. Rubacky

Students in grade six expand their understanding of history by studying the people and events that ushered in the dawn of the major Western and non-Western ancient civilizations. Geography is of special significance in the development of the human story. Continued emphasis is placed on the everyday lives, problems, and accomplishments of people and their roles in developing social, economic, and political structures, as well as in establishing and spreading ideas that helped transform the world forever.  Learners will develop important social studies and critical thinking skills including the construction of timelines, reading and analysis of primary and secondary sources, use of atlases and interpretation of visual sources. Through this work, students will be able to understand historical events, the process of social change, the impact of individuals and the relationship between historical issues and current events.

7TH GRADE

Ms. Wallace, Mrs. Mckibbin, Ms. Rubacky

Students in grade seven will be studying the social, cultural, and technological change during the period A.D. 500 - 1789. We start the year in Europe with a study of the fall of Rome, Europe during the High Middle Ages, and the turbulent age of the Renaissance, Reformation, and Scientific Revolution that ushered in the Enlightenment and the modern world. We then move away from Europe to investigate the Middle East and Islam, the civilizations of West Africa, the civilizations of East Asia, eventually ending up in the Americas to observe the rise of the Maya, Inca, and Aztec civilizations. In addition to these units, in seventh grade, students will study Geography and World Cultures. Learners investigate the world through an approach that considers modern issues framed through geographic, political, historical, social and economic lenses as well as confronting different customs, traditions, and other unique characteristics of people and places around the globe. Students build and extend their skills by creating and interpreting maps, constructing timelines, reading primary and secondary sources, using atlases, and interpreting cultural artifacts. 

8TH GRADE

Mr. Delaney, Mr. Kaufman, & Mrs. Allen

In Eighth grade United States History focuses on developing students’ understanding of American History from Colonization until the dawn of the 20th Century. In United States History students interpret historical evidence and identify significant trends and major turning points that define the first 300 years of the American experience. The study of United States History will enable students to understand the development and expansion of a market economy and the economic forces that drove the growth of a continental power. In addition, students will examine the foundational documents and democratic practices that define the growth of the American Republic. Students will analyze the processes and mechanisms that increased the body politic and the impact of different cultures on the development of an American identity. By considering events from multiple perspectives students will understand that women, African Americans, Native Americans and other minorities possess historical agency. Awareness of these processes assist student comprehension of the complicated nature of the American story.  

 

Updated 3/21/2024