UNITED STATES STUDIES
7th grade
Units of Instruction & Materials | Benchmark | Vocabulary | Daily Learning Objectives | Time | Assessments | Technology Alignment |
UNIT 1: Civics Discovery Education Techbook | 7.1.2.3.1 Identify examples of how principles expressed in the Declaration of Independence and Preamble to the Constitution have been applied throughout United States history, including how they have evolved (if applicable) over time. | Democratic Principles: liberty individual rights justice equality the rule of law limited government common good popular sovereignty majority rule minority rights | Students will be able to define the democratic principles. Students will be able to identify examples of the democratic principles in the Declaration of Independence. Students will be able to identify examples of democratic principles in the Preamble to the Constitution. Students will be able to identify weaknesses in the Articles of Confederation. | 3 Days | U.S. Capitol Assignment Articles of Confederation Comprehension Check | Digital Textbook |
7.1.4.6.1 Describe historical applications of the principle of checks and balances within the United States government. | checks and balances separation of powers Legislative branch Executive branch Judicial branch Virginia Plan New Jersey Plan | Students will demonstrate their knowledge of the compromises made at the Constitutional Convention. Students will be able to translate the language of the Preamble to the Constitution Students will be able to describe what the three branches of government are and draw a diagram showing how they interact. Students will be able to give a historical example of how each branch of government has checked the power of another branch. | 6 Days | Constitutional Convention Comprehension Check Constitution Quiz | Digital Techbook Virtual Vote simulation | |
7.1.4.7.1 Analyze how the Constitution and Bill of Rights limits the government and the governed, protects individual rights, supports the principle of majority rule while protecting the rights of the minority, and promotes the general welfare. 7.1.4.7.2 Describe the amendment process and the impact of key constitutional amendments. 7.1.3.4.1 Explain landmark Supreme Court decisions involving the Bill of Rights and other individual protections; explain how these decisions helped define the scope and limits of personal, political and economic rights. | Constitution Rule of Law Separation of Power Consent of the Governed Rights of the Minority Bill of Rights Amendment | Students will be able to describe the 5 limits on government. Students will be able to describe the amendment process. Students will be able to apply the amendments from the Bill of Rights to historical and hypothetical situations. Students will analyze examples of Supreme Court decisions, involving the Bill of Rights to define the scope of personal, political, and economic rights. | 3 Days | Bill of Rights Game Supreme Court Case Analysis Summative Vocabulary Quiz | iCivics.org | |
7.1.3.5.2 Compare and contrast the rights and responsibilities of citizens, non-citizens, and dual citizens. | Naturalization Selective Service Act | Students will be able to compare and contrast the rights and responsibilities of citizens and non-citizens. | 1 Day | Citizenship Test | iCivics.org | |
7.1.4.9.1 Analyze how changes in election processes over time contributed to freer and fairer elections. | 15th Amendment 19th Amendment 24th Amendment 26th Amendment Voting Rights Act of 1965 Grandfather Clause Poll Tax Literacy Test | Students will be able to identify what amendments were passed to make voting freer and fairer. | 1 Day | iCivics.org | ||
7.1.5.10.1 Describe diplomacy and other foreign policy tools; cite historical cases in which the United States government used these tools. | foreign policy treaty foreign aid | Students will be able to describe the three foreign policy tools. Students will categorize historical events based on what form of foreign policy was used. | 1 Day | Study Guide Summative Test on Unit | ||
UNIT 2: Expansion and Reform Discovery Education Techbook | 7.3.1.1.1 Create and use various kinds of maps, including overlaying thematic maps, of places in the United States; incorporate the “TODALSS” map basics, as well as points, lines and colored areas to display spatial information. 7.4.4.18.1 Describe the processes that led to the territorial expansion of the United States, including the Louisiana Purchase and other land purchases, wars and treaties with foreign and indigenous nations, and annexation. | 13 Colonies Treaty of Paris Louisiana Purchase annex Adams-Onis Treaty Texas annexation Oregon Country Treaty of Guadalupe-Hidalgo Gadsden Purchase Manifest Destiny Battle of the Alamo California Gold Rush Oregon Trail Trail of Tears | Students will be able to draw a compass rose, create a map key and label the U.S. territories acquired from 1783-1853. Students will be able to categorize territories based on how they were acquired; war, negotiation or purchase. Students will be able to use a map to describe the processes that led to the Louisiana Purchase. Students will be able to describe the concept of Manifest Destiny. Students will understand how expansion leads to conflicts with foreign nations and indigenous people. | 6 Days | 2 Mapping Activities Challenges of Expansion Comprehension Check Manifest Destiny Comprehension Check Expansion Events Worksheets | Digital Textbook |
7.4.4.18.2 Identify new technologies and innovations that transformed the United States’ economy and society; explain how they influenced political and regional development. | Industrial Revolution cotton gin power loom steam engine railroad textile factory immigrant Second Great Awakening | Students will be able to explain how new inventions change the way Americans live and work. Students will be able to identify the long term impacts of the Second Great Awakening on American society. | 2 Days | Industrialization Comprehension Check | Digital Textbook | |
7.4.4.18.3 Identify causes and consequences of Antebellum reform movements including abolition and women’s rights. | abolition Underground Railroad Seneca Falls Convention Temperance Movement Common School Movement suffrage | Students will be able to identify leaders of the Women’s Rights Movement and the Abolition Movement. Students will be able to identify the long term impacts of the Women’s Rights Movement and the Abolition Movement. | 3 Days | Reform Movements Comprehension Check Underground Railroad assignment Summative Unit Test | Digital Textbook | |
UNIT 3: Civil War and Reconstruction Discovery Education Techbook | 7.4.4.19.1 Cite the main ideas of the debate over slavery and states’ rights; explain how they resulted in major political compromises and, ultimately war. | Missouri Compromise Compromise of 1850 Kansas-Nebraska Act John Brown’s Raid Dred Scott Decision Nullification Crisis South Carolina Secedes Border State | Students will be able to define the causes of the Civil War. Students will be able to explain how state’s rights are related to the issue of slavery. Students will be able to describe the regional differences that exist between North and South before the Civil War Students will be able to identify and map the Union, Confederacy, and border states. | 4 Days | Regional Differences Comprehension Check Cause of War Comprehension Check | Digital Textbook |
7.4.4.19.2 Outline the major political and military events of the Civil War; evaluate how economics and foreign and domestic politics affected the outcome of the war. | Battle of Bull Run Battle of Gettysburg Sherman’s March to the Sea Battle of Vicksburg Battle of Antietam Battle of Shiloh Surrender at Appomattox Emancipation Proclamation Gettysburg Address Lincoln’s Assassination Anaconda Plan Total War | Students will be able to explain the significance of Civil War battles and map their locations. Students will be able to describe political events involving Abraham Lincoln during the Civil War. Students will be able to identify and explain the factors contributing to a Union victory. | 3 Days | Course of War Timeline Investigation Battles Comprehension Check | Digital Textbook | |
7.4.4.19.3 Describe the effects of the Civil War on Americans in the north, south and west, including liberated African-Americans, women, former slaveholders, and indigenous people. | Lincoln’s Plan (10% Plan) Johnson’s Plan Congressional Plan (Military Reconstruction) 13th Amendment 14th Amendment 15th Amendment Black Codes Sharecropping KKK Poll Tax Literacy Test Grandfather Clause | Students will be able to compare and contrast the different reconstruction plans. Students will be able to associate reconstruction amendments with positive and negative consequences. Students will be able to describe how different groups of Americans were impacted by the Civil War. | 3 Days | Impact of War Comprehension Check Summative Unit Test | Digital Textbook | |
UNIT 4: Development of an Industrial United States Discovery Education Techbook | 7.4.4.20.1 Explain the impact of the United States Industrial Revolution on the production, consumption and distribution of goods. | Bessemer Process Assembly Line John D. Rockefeller Andrew Carnegie Union Pacific Railroad Company Central Pacific Railroad Company Mechanical Reaper Tractor Telegraph Telephone Electricity | Students will be able to give examples of how acquiring raw materials changed after the Civil War. Students will be able to identify the impact of the Transcontinental Railroad. Students will be able to describe the impact of new inventions near the turn of the 19th century. | 3 Days | Inventions Comprehension Check | Digital Textbook |
7.4.4.20.2 Analyze the consequences of economic transformation on migration, immigration, politics and public policy at the turn of the 20th century. | Old Immigrants New Immigrants Push Factors Pull Factors Chinese Exclusion Act Ellis Island Angel Island Tenements Political Machines Tammany Hall Lobbyists Spoils System | Students will be able to identify the causes and effects of the different waves of immigration to the United States. Students will compare the immigration processing centers of Ellis Island and Angel Island. Students will be able to identify the causes and effects of urbanization. Students will be able to define how city politics were corrupt in the early 1900’s. | 4 days | Immigration Comprehension Check | Digital Textbook | |
7.4.4.20.3 Compare and contrast reform movements at the turn of the 20th century. | Individualism Child Labor Labor Movement Populism Progressive Movement Muckrackers Women’s Rights NAACP | Students will identify and explain the problems in city workplaces. Students will investigate the Progressive Movement. | 3 Days | Drawbacks of Industrialization Comprehension Check | Digital Textbook | |
7.4.4.20.6 Evaluate the changing role of the United States regarding its neighboring regions and its expanding sphere of influence around the world. | Imperialism Frontier Thesis Jingoism Militarism Platt Amendment Open Door Policy Monroe Doctrine Panama Canal Dollar Diplomacy | Students will be able to explain the motives for Imperialism. Students will be able to outline the causes and results of the Spanish-American War. Students will be able to identify examples of American imperialism and imperialist policies. | 2 Days | Digital Textbook | ||
7.4.4.20.7 Outline the causes and conduct of WWI, including the nations involved, major political and military figures, and key battles. | Militarism Alliances Imperialism Nationalism Lusitania U-boats Zimmerman Telegram Machine Guns Tanks Airplanes Trench Warfare Poison Gas | Students will be able to explain the event that started WWI as well as the long term causes leading up to it. Students will be able to explain why the United States joins WWI. Students will be able to identify new weapons used in WWI and explain trench warfare. Students will be able to explain the role the U.S. plays in an Allied victory. | 2 Days | Weapons of WWI Comprehension Check | Digital Textbook | |
7.4.4.20.8 Identify the political impact of World War I, including the formation of the League of Nations and renewed United States isolationism until World War II. | Treaty of Versailles League of Nations Bolshevik Revolution | Students will be able to explain post-war events to understand how the ending of WWI sets the stage for WWII. | 1 Day | Mapping Europe Activity Summative Unit Test | Digital Textbook | |
UNIT 5: Great Depression and WWII Discovery Education Techbook | 7.4.4.21.1 Identify causes of the Great Depression and factors that led to an extended period of economic collapse in the United States. | Recession Credit Stock Market Black Tuesday Bank Failures Hoovervilles Dust Bowl Okies New Deal | Students will be able to compare life in the United States during the 1920’s to life in the United States during the 1930’s. | 2 Days | Great Depression Causes Comprehension Check | Digital Textbook |
7.4.4.21.2 Describe the impact of the Great Depression on the United States society, including ethnic and racial minorities, and how government responded to events with New Deal policies. | New Deal WPA CCC AAA FDIC Social Security | Students will be able to describe the three phases of the New Deal, including examples of alphabet agencies. | 1 Day | Digital Textbook | ||
7.4.4.21.3 Outline how the United States mobilized its economic and military resources during World War II; describe the impact of the war on domestic affairs. | Hitler Mussolini Hitler Tojo Nazism Facism Communism Militarism Appeasement Peacetime Draft Japanese Trade Embargo Lend-Lease Act Attack on Pearl Harbor | Students will be able to explain how dictators rise to power in European nations before WWII. Students will be able to map early events of WWII in Europe. Students will be able to describe the events leading up to the United States joining WWII. | 3 Days | Early Events of War Comprehension Check | Digital Textbook | |
7.4.4.21.4 Outline the causes and conduct of World War II including the nations involved, major political and military figures and key battles, and the Holocaust. | Victory Gardens Bomb Shelters Rationing Executive Order 9066 Island Hopping Campaign Iwo Jima and Okinawa Battle of Stalingrad D-Day Anti-semitism Final Solution Nuremberg trials Battle of Berlin V-E Day Hiroshima Nagasaki | Students will be able to identify and describe different ways that the United States mobilized for war on the Homefront. Students will be able to outline the key battles in the European and Pacific Theaters of War. Students will be able to describe different aspects of the Holocaust. Students will be able to describe how WWII comes to an end in Europe and the Pacific. | 3 Days | Theaters of War Comprehension Check WWII Summative Project Summative Unit Test | Digital Textbook |