History
An overview of our history curriculum
The goals of the history curriculum are to educate students about the past and to help them think more critically and contextually about present and future social, cultural and political issues. It is our hope that students will gain greater insights into the need to understand all cultures’ histories in order to be better prepared to engage with the world. The history program is committed to providing a variety of educational experiences, employing numerous teaching and learning modes, and supporting students in their struggle to make sense of the material.
- Critical thinking and discussion
- Assessing historical documents
- Differentiating between primary and secondary sources
- Essay writing
- Research paper skills
- Defending positions on topics orally and in writing
- Understanding and respecting different viewpoints
- Understanding controversy in history
- Test-taking skills
- Time-management skills
- Note-taking skills
Grade 9: Ancient History
The course focuses on a study of early human civilizations, including Mesopotamia, Egypt, Greece, Rome and the Middle Ages. Students learn about the history of social organization, early forms of law and government, geography, and how geography affected the rise of different civilizations and cultures. This course exposes students to various beliefs about where humans came from and helps students develop an understanding of how humans have evolved. This course focuses on foundational academic skills, including organization of materials and time, study skills, beginning note-taking skills, reading for comprehension and main ideas.
Grade 10: Global Studies
The purpose of this course is to expose students to the history and cultures of a variety of countries/states throughout the world. Students develop an understanding and appreciation of the interdependency of peoples and how each can have positive and negative effects on each other. This course includes a study of Africa, China, and Vermont. In addition to strengthening the academic skills that students learn in ninth grade, this course offers instruction in a variety of note-taking and organizational skills to help students learn how to organize and synthesize ideas. Students also learn test-preparation and test-taking skills.
Grade 11: U.S. History I
This course takes an in-depth look at the facts, myths, and complexities of the early history of the United States, from early explorers through post Civil War Reconstruction, including a unit on the formation and foundations of the government. This is a reading and writing intensive curriculum that teaches students how to write essays that organize complex information and coherently express their ideas. Some of the books and materials we use in this course include Lies My Teacher Told Me, by James Loewen; A People’s History of the United States, by Howard Zinn; In Our Defense, by Caroline Kennedy; and We The People by the Center for Civic Education, and Ken Burns’ text and video series about the Civil War. We also use primary sources whenever possible to learn about how history gets studied and written. Juniors, along with seniors, attend regular Neighborhood Planning Association meetings to gain an understanding of how government and community planning works on a local level.
Grade 12: U.S. History, 1933-present
The twelfth grade history course continues the study of U.S. History, with a focus on U.S. involvement and response to several major events in the twentieth century, including the Holocaust, the war in Vietnam, and various civil rights movements. Seniors, along with juniors, attend regular Neighborhood Planning Association meetings to gain an understanding of how government and community planning works on a local level. During the course of study, students read a variety of primary and secondary sources to develop their ideas and questions about issues and events. Writing assignments are geared toward helping students to enhance their skills of inquiry, explanation, persuasion, and defense of a position, as well as to gain research skills and to understand the basics of how to write a research paper and properly document sources.
