MIDDLE SCHOOL HISTORY AND SOCIAL STUDIES

In the Middle School history and social studies curriculum, students expand their learning about geography, history, economics, government / civics, world cultures and current events. With history at the center of the curriculum, students study ancient civilizations, classical civilizations, world and United States history. Comprehension skills, including note-taking, outlining, pre-reading are all taught. Critical thinking skills such as comparing and contrasting, drawing valid conclusions, recognizing cause and effect, predicting, and analyzing evidence from primary and secondary sources are also taught. Inquiry-based lessons allow students to draw on their inquisitive sides. Hands-on projects and simulations allow students to "experience" history in the classroom.

Grade 6:  World Cultures and Geography, Ancient Civilizations

• World religions study
• Five-part definition of civilization (stable food supply, division of labor, social classes, culture, and government)
• Mesopotamia: the first civilization
• Ancient Egypt
• Build scale model of the Nile River
• Field trips to the Museum of Science and Museum of Fine Arts' Egyptian galleries
• Ancient China
• Integration of world geography and cultures throughout the year

Grade 7:  Classical Civilizations and the Roots of American Democracy

• Classical Greece
• Roman Republic and Roman Empire
• Middle Ages and feudalism
• Research paper with multiple sources
• Field trip to the Higgins Armory in Worcester
• American colonies and colonial government
• The American Revolution

Grade 8:  United States History: Choices

• United States Constitution
• The Bill of Rights
• Westward Movement and impact on Native Americans
• The North, and The South- growing tensions
• Abolitionism
• Civil War and Reconstruction
• Era of big business and the progressive era
• World War I
• Roaring Twenties and the Great Depression
• Facing History & Ourselves (Holocaust studies and World War II)