Program of Studies MS Alternative Program

HISTORY

U.S. History I
US History I covers Pathway 3: US History I, 1763-1877 described in the Massachusetts Frameworks. Students examine the historical and intellectual origins of the United States during the Revolutionary and Constitutional eras. They learn about the important political and economic factors that contributed to the outbreak of the Revolution as well as the consequences of the Revolution, including the writing and key ideas of the U.S. Constitution. Course instruction will also include the study of the basic framework of American democracy and the basic concepts of American government such as popular sovereignty, federalism, separation of powers, and individual rights. Students will then move into American’s westward expansion, the establishment of political parties, and economic and social change. Finally, students will learn about the differing economic, political and cultural development in the North and the South between 1800 and 1860 and how it affected the growth of sectional conflict leading to the Civil war. Consequences of the Civil War, including the Reconstruction period that followed will also be explored. Students will utilize text, extensive map work, quarterly papers and other projects relative to this time period. All course work and expectations will be aligned with Massachusetts Curriculum Frameworks and delivered via multimodal lesson plans.

Ancient and Classical Civilizations
This course will cover the origins of human beings in Africa and the early civilizations that flourished in the Mediterranean area. Students will study the religions, governments, trade, philosophies, and the art of these civilizations as well as the powerful ideas that arose in the ancient world which profoundly shaped the course of world history. These ideas include monotheism, democracy, the rule of law, individual worth, personal responsibility, the alphabetic principal for a writing system, and scientific reasoning. Students will utilize text, internet, smart board, map work and other multimodal means of delivery in accordance with Massachusetts Curriculum Frameworks.

World History I
World History I is designed to offer students the ability to study the development of world civilizations after the fall of the Roman Empire. Students study the history of the major empires and political entities of this period: the Ottoman Empire, the Moghul Empire, the Chinese Dynasties, the Byzantine Empire, and the major pre-Columbian civilizations that existed in Central and South America. Students will examine the important political, economic, and religious developments of this period, including the development of Christianity and Islam, the conflicts between them in different parts of the world, and the beginnings of European influence on the Western Hemisphere. Finally, students study the development of democratic, scientific, and secular thought in the major events and developments of European History. To the extent practical, students study the origins and development of major civilizations in Africa, India, and East Asia.

World Geography
In this course, students will study the world outside of the United States and North America. Students systematically learn geography around the world continent by continent, similar to the way in which atlases are organized. They will also learn about each continent in an order that reflects, first, the early development of the river valley civilizations and then the later development of maritime civilizations in the Mediterranean area and in Northern and Western Europe. Students will address standards that emphasize physical and political geography and embed five major concepts: location, place, human interaction with the environment, movement, and regions. Location refers to both absolute location, and to relative location. The concept of place refers to the physical and manmade characteristics of a place. Human interaction with the environment encompasses the ways in which people have adapted to their surroundings. The movement of people, goods, and ideas is the fourth concept. Region refers to the ways of categorizing areas of the Earth, such as by climate or religion.