US History for 6th Through 8th Grades Part 2: Democracy Put to the Test

Students will learn the history of the United States from 1860 through 2008. They will also learn about primary sources versus secondary sources versus historical fiction. They will improve their writing and presentation skills as they complete writing assignments and present their semester project to the class.

I have taught the topic of war and revolution to children of various ages, and I am very careful to discuss only what is age appropriate, while being careful to share as clear a picture of the history as possible. I have a Bachelor's degree in History, and during my studies, I took several courses on Native American history, and wrote a part of my thesis on the movements of several tribes from the eastern United States to the west for their survival.

Homework will consist of the following: a short weekly writing assignment, and readings of primary resources. Throughout the semester, they will read two historical fiction novels, one nonfiction text, and complete a semester project. Work will be completed individually, but if they would like to coordinate their project with another student, they may. They will not be asked to read from the textbook. Each historical fiction novel will be around 150 pages. Homework should take anywhere from 2 to 5 hours per week depending on how they spread out their novel reading and project work.

Each learner will be provided with a written report at the end of class focused on effort and progress made. A grade will be given to students upon request. 

1 hour 15 minutes per week in class, and an estimated 2 - 4 hours per week outside of class.

As a framework for my teaching, I will use The American Yawp: a Massively Collaborative Open U.S. History Textbook from Stanford University Press. This text is used in many AP U.S. History classrooms, and was written in collaboration by hundreds of respected historians from across the country. As this text is too advanced for most middle schoolers, it will be primarily used to guide us through time and important events and peoples. Students will not be reading directly from the text. We will make use of its list of primary resources whenever possible. The American Yawp is free and available for anyone to read online. Students will not have homework assignments from the textbook, though they may use it to aid them in their writing assignments. One of the main purposes of our class will be to distinguish between primary and secondary sources and to examine how historians came up with theories and explanations of events. We will avoid inaccuracies and biases in any secondary sources, but when they come up, we will address them and discuss other possible explanations from different perspectives. 
We will also read two historical fiction works: THE JOURNEY OF LITTLE CHARLIE by Christopher Paul Curtis and BROWN GIRL DREAMING by Jacqueline Woodson. We will be careful as we read these books to identify them both as historical fiction rather than nonfiction. We will also read Steve Sheinkin's riveting story of the creation of the atomic bomb: BOMB: THE RACE TO BUILD—AND STEAL—THE WORLD'S MOST DANGEROUS WEAPON.