Social Studies

World History

45.08300 | 10th grade | full year | 1 credit

Students will be exploring the history of human beings on this planet. The course explores the cultures, religions, wars, and stories of the people from all over the world. Students will leave the class with a more sophisticated understanding of the world we live in. Students will work on the development of reading skills, note taking skills, essay writing (esp. thesis statements), geography skills, and critical/historical thinking skills.

US History

45.08100 | 11th grade | full year | 1 credit

US History explores the history of this land – our people, our institutions, and our actions. We will take a chronological approach to the study of US History, and explore each time period by looking at intellectual/cultural history, social/economic history, and political/diplomatic history. The course will balance a “birds-eye view” perspective (through the use of current scholarship on major themes in US History) with an “up- close-and-personal” look at historical documents (letters, transcripts) and cultural products (paintings, photographs, and excerpts from literature). Additionally, students should expect to revisit and further develop understanding and mastery of key social studies concepts and skills from their 11th grade year.

AP US History

45.28200 | 11th grade | full year | 1 credit

AP US History is designed to be the equivalent of a college-level freshman US History course and prepare students for the AP Examination in May. An emphasis is placed on analytical skills, the acquisition of factual knowledge, interpretation of documents, and writing critical essays. Students who do what is required of them will become better writers and more sophisticated critical thinkers. As a bonus, students who pass the AP US History exam will be recognized by nearly every university in the country as worthy of being awarded college credit. This is a college course in every way.

Government and Civics

45.05700 | 12th grade | half-year | .5 credit

This one-semester course will explore American government and students will learn how to become active citizens in our democratic republic. The course is designed around three “dimensions” of citizenship: 1) Studying Government, 2) Observing Government and Political Behavior, and 3) Ongoing Civic Action and Participation. All of our readings, activities, research, and action will be geared toward developing these dimensions of citizenship. As a senior-level, culminating Social Studies course, students will also need to demonstrate mastery and understanding of key Social Studies concepts and skills.

Economics and the Modern World

46.06100 | 12th grade | half-year | .5 credit

Economics—usually 2nd semester Senior Year—focuses on global topics: 1) the globalized nature of economics in the 21st century, and 2) the individual’s role as a globally-informed citizen of the United States. Therefore, the topics and units of this course are designed to both help students analyze and understand the universal principles of the market economy and also to provide the skills necessary to be lifelong learners in the field of Social Studies.