Middle School Social Studies Courses
The Social Studies Department at Saint Thomas Academy designs its courses to provide a learning environment that promotes academic excellence and recognizes the uniqueness of each individual student. It is the objective of the Social Studies Department that the students will:
· Acquire geographical skills and be able to identify geographically major areas of the world.
· Acquire basic economic literacy of U.S. economic institutions in order to effectively pursue citizenship responsibilities and to enhance personal economic decision making.
· Acquire basic political literacy to enable students to effectively participate in the U.S. democratic process.
· Understand controversial issues and develop thinking skills through the use of position papers and position statement analysis on tests and in debates.
· Develop a multicultural awareness and sensitivity, recognizing that our judgments about people of different cultures are usually shaped and influenced by the standards and values of the culture in which we live.
· Develop the competency to acquire, organize, evaluate, and report information for the purposes of solving problems and clarifying issues.
· Emphasize study skills throughout the year in 7th and 8th grades.
Introduction to Geography
The first quarter explores the "Fives Themes of Geography" -- Location, Place, Movement, Human-Environmental Interaction, and Region. The balance of the course applies those themes to world regions (including the US and Canada, Latin America, Europe, Asia, Africa, and the Middle East) and to topics such as population, culture, politics and economics, agriculture, and disease. There is a strong emphasis on working with maps and other related social studies skills. In December, all 7th and 8th graders participate in the National Geographic Geography Bee.
Grade Level: 7
U.S. History 8
This course is designed to show the students the growth of the U.S. in economic, political, and social areas. The students analyze the great changes in American life since the birth of the nation, as well as elements that have endured to build American's heritage. Students also study political and military conflict and evaluate the role of America in the world. Students continue to build and use skills in geography and learn historical writing and data analysis skills. All 8th grade students participate in the History Day competition, using a U.S. History topic of their choice.
Grade Level: 8
