History and Social Studies Grade Expectations - Grades 7-8

independent research and incorporate concepts of personal,

community, or global relevance (e.g., What are the

causes of low voter turnout? What are the most effective

ways to improve voter participation?).

action, or exploring relationships between facts and/or

including primary and secondary sources.

managing, and examining information, including a plan

for citing sources (e.g., establishing a time line or schedule

for research, identifying places to find possible sources).

Point, hypercard, report, graph, etc.).

human resources.

quantity of information gathered (e.g., judging the accuracy

of different accounts of the same event).

notecards, videotape, tape recorders, journals, or databases.

and/or information, as needed.

to the research statement through tables graphs, maps,

dioramas, charts, narratives, posters timelines, models,

simulations, and/or dramatizations.

or information.

information, such as comparing and contrasting, summarizing,

illustrating, generalizing, sequencing, synthesizing,

analyzing, and/or justifying (e.g., analyzing information to

determine why two historical accounts of the same event

might differ.)

reflection, peer critique, expert opinion, etc.

based on evidence.

research statement.

and asking additional questions.

suggesting improvements (e.g., identifying additional

types of information that could strengthen an investigation).

for various audiences.

objects in the United States and/or the world, evaluating

how the use of the object and the object itself changed

over time, (e.g., comparing modes of transportation used

in past and present exploration in order to evaluate impact

and the effects of those changes). i

world has both changed and stayed the same over time;

and explaining why these changes have occurred (e.g., In

what ways would the life of a teenager during the American

Revolution be different from the life of a teenager

today? What factors have contributed to these differences?).

ideas (democracy, for example) have shaped the United

States and the world, and hypothesizing how different

influences could have led to different consequences (e.g.,

How did the ideals of Greek democracy impact the world?

How has European colonialism influenced race relations

in Africa?). i

sources (for example, visual, literary, and musical

sources), and evaluating the possible biases expressed in

them (e.g., analyzing Paul Revere’s engraving of the Boston

Massacre). i

same event(s) (e.g., account of the Revolutionary War

from a colonist’s perspective vs. British perspective; the

bombing of Hiroshima from the perspective of a Japanese

citizen vs. an American soldier). i

different historical contexts (e.g., examining how religious

values have influenced historic events). i

of history (e.g., DNA evidence, forensic analysis

of a battle site). i

narrative or story.

in the nation and world, designating appropriate

equidistant intervals of time and recording events according

to the order in which they occurred.

months, years, decades, centuries, and millennia (e.g.,

How long ago did people first come to North America?).

Chinese) and reasons for their organizational structures

(e.g., political, historic, religious).

of the past and the present (e.g., after analyzing

past events, determining what steps can impact the future).

world, and describing multiple causes and effects of those

time (e.g. independence of African nations) as well as

those that occurred as a result of a pivotal event (e.g., the

invention of the automobile and the light bulb).

how they cause us to reorder time (e.g., the explosion of

the atom bomb and the beginning of the nuclear age; September

11, 2001).

using resources such as landmarks, models, different

kinds of maps, photographs, atlases, internet, video, reference

materials, GIS and mental mapping. i

and global land use (e.g., agriculture, forestry, industry) to

understand why particular locations are used for certain

human activities. i

United States and the world (e.g., Sub-Sahara, Middle

East, Eurasia).

importance (e.g., Palestine; Moscow).

mountain ranges, major rivers, and major climate and

vegetation zones and the effects of these on settlement

patterns (e.g., Appalachian Mountain’s effect on westward

movement; overgrazing; Palestinian/Israeli conflict).

earth such as maps, globes, and photographs and project

future changes (e.g., physical, political, topographic, computer

generated, and special purpose maps). i

g., longitude and latitude).

using geographic resources (e.g., comparing water usage

between nations). i

changed the environment in the U.S. and world for specific

purposes (e.g., development of urban environments,

genetic modification of crops, flood control, reforestation).

i

activities on the physical environment (for example,

through field studies, mapping, interviewing, and using

scientific instruments) in order to draw conclusions and

recommend actions (e.g., damming the Yangt ze River). i

the U.S. and world (e.g., debating drilling for oil in a national

wildlife refuge). I

and the environment (e.g., population size, farmland, and

food production). i

in the U.S. and world.

the U.S., and the world through analysis of various

modes of expression such as poems, songs, dances, stories,

paintings, and photographs (e.g., identifying how the Japanese

art of Gyotaku [fish printing] reflects history and culture).

i

the world, both past and present. i

spread of cultural traits (e.g., comparing clothing, food,

religion/values, government, and art across four ancient

cultures in relation to location). i

the world has changed and may change in the future (e.g.,

the spread of Islam). i

another country to those of the U.S (e.g., after reading

accounts of elections in news articles, compare voting

rights) i

U.S. (e.g., birth, naturalization).

global community (e.g., collecting used textbooks for

countries in need).

(e.g., working with a group to design a lesson teaching

younger students about rights and responsibilities).

the effects of a course of action in the local community,

state, nation, or world.

that affect themselves and society, using information

gained from reputable sources (e.g. communism vs. democracy;

war vs. economic sanctions). i

one’s own. i

and elections provide opportunities for citizens to

participate in the political process. i

about change locally, nationally, or internationally (e.g.,

interview someone involved in civil union legislation). i

allegiance to shared political values and principles, and

how these are similar and different to other peoples (e.g.

Northern Ireland/Republic; socialism; capitalism). i

community, and defending them (e.g., dress code policies,

establishing a skate board park). i

in a simulation about creating a new law).

and where to find them (e.g., Declaration of Independence,

Bill of Rights, U.S. Constitution).

to their lives. i

governments within the United States.

g., right to life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness; responsibility

for the common good; equality of opportunity

and equal protection of the law; freedom of speech and

religion).

state, national and international levels. i

rights, and explaining how the values of the time or place

influenced the issue (e.g. Kosovo, China, Vietnam). i

subculture (e.g., political parties, religious groups). i

and nongovernmental international organizations (e.g., the

United Nations, NATO, International Red Cross, Amnesty

International).

defining and defending the rights and needs of others in

the community, nation, and world (e.g. AIDS in Africa;

One Child Policy in China; nuclear waste disposal). i

arise from factors such as cultural, ethnic, racial, economic,

and religious diversity, and describe their costs and

benefits. i

has led to change. (e.g., immigration of Cubans into Miami).

i

nations (e.g., transportation systems).

groups and governments (e.g., lowering trade barriers).

to tensions and/or conflict within and among individuals,

communities, and nations (e.g., investigating the

relationship between poverty and conflict). i

(e.g., assimilation /separatism; affirmative action;

diplomacy).

access to various institutions, and describing the impact

(e.g., Property ownership for voting, ageism, access to

education; affirmative action, due process, petition). i

belief systems and government policies and laws, and

identifying ways these tensions can be reduced (e.g., Gambling

on reservations; neutrality of Switzerland; humanitarian

aid) i

places (e.g., writing a persuasive essay about the effects of

importing oil, exporting labor, etc.). i

used natural, human, and capital resources to produce

goods and services, and predicting the long term effects of

these uses (e.g., describing how the use of petroleum products

will impact the production of hybrid vehicles; examining

how the use of human resources in the U.S. has

changed over time). i

and/or world (e.g., decisions to build "box" stores and new

roads). i

national, and international governmental and/or nongovernmental

organizations (e.g., Red Cross, UN peacekeeping

efforts, etc.). i

programs to both individuals and groups (e.g., debate the

pros and cons of welfare programs). i

goods and services in the U.S. and/or world (e.g.,

how much of the federal budget is devoted to international

aid?).

their own currency for use as money (e.g., examining foreign

currency for cultural and political symbols).

relative price of goods and services between two countries

(e.g., track the cost in dollars of ordering a Big Mac in

Paris over a three week period). i

and demand, price, market and/or opportunity cost in an

investigation of a regional, national, or international economic

question or problem (e.g., In Colombia, what could

be an alternative agricultural product to coca?). i

needs and/or wants exceeding their available resources,

and proposing possible solutions (e.g., examining long

term effects of population issues in China and India).

peers). i

or service (e.g., developing a business plan for community

fundraising). i