INSTRUCTIONAL FOCUS OBJECTIVES FOR 2ND SEMESTER:

Identify
MAJOR ERAS AND EVENTS IN U.S. HISTORY THROUGH 1877
Including, but not limited to
• Manifest Destiny
• Westward Expansion
• War With Mexico
• Annexation of Texas
• Gold Rush
ABSOLUTE AND RELATIVE CHRONOLOGY
Including, but not limited to
• Absolute Chronology
• Significant individuals, events & time periods
• Absolute chronology – exact date
• Relative Chronology
• Significant individuals, events & time periods
• Relative chronology – general time period or era
Explain
SIGNIFICANCE OF DATES
Including, but not limited to
• 1803 – Louisiana Purchase (and establishment of judicial review from Marbury v. Madison)
Explain
HOW THE NORTHWEST ORDINANCE ESTABLISHED PRINCIPLES AND PROCEDURES FOR
ORDERLY EXPANSION OF THE UNITED STATES
Including, but not limited to
• Orderly procedure for establishing territories and applying for statehood
• As a territory grew in population, it gained rights to self government
• To become a state, the following requirements had to be met:
• At least 5,000 men who owned at least 50 acres
• 60,000 people
• Established self-government
Explain
POLITICAL, ECONOMIC, AND SOCIAL ROOTS OF MANIFEST DESTINY
Including, but not limited to
• Economic
• New land for farmers; new trade routes and markets( Santa Fe Trail) ; new opportunities to start a
business
• Political
• Expansion of our nation’s borders/ territory; expansion of slavery
• Social
• Remove Native Americans; refuge for persecuted groups (Mormons)
Analyze
RELATIONSHIP BETWEEN THE CONCEPT OF MANIFEST DESTINY AND THE WESTWARD GROWTH
OF THE NATION
Including, but not limited to
• The U.S. government and its citizens believed that the nation’s destiny or fate was to expand
westward from sea to sea
Explain
CAUSES AND EFFECTS OF THE U.S.-MEXICAN WAR AND THEIR IMPACT ON THE UNITED STATES
Including, but not limited to
• Annexation of Texas
• Viewed as a “War of Aggression” by many Americans.
• Causes
• President Polk’s desire to expand the United States (Manifest Destiny)
• Border Dispute concerning the southern boundary of Texas (Rio Grande was claimed by Texas
and disputed by Mexico)
• Effects & Impact
• Treaty of Guadalupe Hidalgo (1848) ends the war, grants the United States the Mexican territory
of New Mexico, Arizona, and California
• United States paid Mexico $10 million for the Gadsden Purchase to help repay Mexico for the
annexation of Texas in 1845
Identify
AREAS THAT WERE ACQUIRED TO FORM THE UNITED STATES
Including, but not limited to
• Louisiana Purchase
• Texas
• Mexican Cession (New Mexico, Arizona, California)
• Gadsden Purchase
• Oregon Territory
• Alaska Purchase (Seward’s Folly)
Locate
PLACES AND REGIONS OF IMPORTANCE IN THE UNITED STATES DURING THE 17th, 18th, and 19th
CENTURIES
Including, but not limited to:
Sectionalism
• Regions – North, South, Midwest, West, Slave States, and Free States
• States – Texas, California, Kansas, Nebraska
• Cities – Washington, D.C
Analyze
PHYSICAL CHARACTERISTICS OF THE ENVIRONMENT AND INFLUENCE ON POPULATION
DISTRIBUTION, SETTLEMENT PATTERNS, AND ECONOMIC ACTIVITIES IN THE UNITED STATES
DURING THE 17TH, 18TH, AND 19TH CENTURIES
Including, but not limited to:
Manifest Destiny
• Gold in California – rush of settlers to California; pushed many American Indians off their lands;
population of California quickly rises to the amount required for statehood
• California’s proximity to Pacific Ocean led to an increase of immigration from Asian nations.
• Rocky Mountains’ location between eastern and western parts of the United States; resulted in need
for Gadsden Purchase to put in railroad for train transport of goods from East to West
CONTRIBUTIONS OF PEOPLE OF VARIOUS RACIAL, ETHNIC, AND RELIGIOUS GROUPS TO OUR
NATIONAL IDENTITY
Including, but not limited to
Immigrants from Europe (ethnic)
• Growth of new and older cities
• New customs and traditions (eg., German – Christmas tree, gymnasium, kindergarten)
Identify
EXAMPLES OF AMERICAN ART, MUSIC, AND LITERATURE THAT REFLECT SOCIETY IN DIFFERENT
ERAS
Including, but not limited to
Manifest Destiny (Era: Westward Expansion)
• Art – "American Progress," by John Gast, 1872
Differentiate, Locate, Use
VALID PRIMARY AND SECONDARY SOURCES
Including, but not limited to:
• Computer software
• Databases
• Media and news services
• Biographies
• Interviews
• Artifacts
STAAR Note:
These skills will be incorporated into STAAR test questions from reporting categories 1-4 and will be
identified along with content standard
Analyze
INFORMATION
Including, but not limited to:
• Sequencing
• Categorizing
• Identifying cause-and-effect relationships
• Comparing
• Contrasting
• Finding the main idea
• Summarizing
• Making generalizations and predictions
• Drawing inferences and conclusions
STAAR Note:
These skills will be incorporated into STAAR test questions from reporting categories 1-4 and will be
identified along with content standards
Organize, Interpret
INFORMATION
Including, but not limited to:
• Outlines
• Reports
• Databases
• Visuals
• Graphs
• Charts
• Timelines
• Maps
STAAR Note:
These skills will be incorporated into STAAR test questions from reporting categories 1-4 and will be
identified along with content standards.
Identify
POINTS OF VIEW
Including, but not limited to:
• From the historical context surrounding an event
• The frame of reference which influenced the participants
STAAR Note:
• These skills will be incorporated into STAAR test questions from reporting categories 1-4 and will be
identified along with content standards.
Support
POINT OF VIEW
Including, but not limited to:
• On a social studies issue or event
STAAR Note:
• These skills will be incorporated into STAAR test questions from reporting categories 1-4 and will be
identified along with content standards.
Create
THEMATIC
Including, but not limited to:
• Maps representing various aspects of the United States
• Graphs representing various aspects of the United States
• Charts representing various aspects of the United States
• Models representing various aspects of the United States
• Databases representing various aspects of the United States
Use
SOCIAL STUDIES TERMINOLOGY
Use
STANDARD
Including, but not limited to:
• Grammar
• Spelling
• Sentence structure
• Punctuation
• Proper citation of sources
Transfer
INFORMATION FROM ONE MEDIUM TO ANOTHER
Including, but not limited to:
• Visual and statistical to written or visual
• Using computer software as appropriate
Create
PRESENTATIONS OF SOCIAL STUDIES INFORMATION
Including, but not limited to:
• Written
• Oral
• Visual



INSTRUCTIONAL FOCUS OBJECTIVES FOR 1ST SEMESTER:

REASONS FOR GROWTH OF REPRESENTATIVE GOVERNMENT AND INSTITUTIONS DURING
COLONIAL PERIOD
IMPORTANCE OF MAYFLOWER COMPACT, THE FUNDAMENTAL ORDERS OF CONNECTICUT, AND
THE VIRGINIA HOUSE OF BURGESSES TO THE GROWTH OF REPRESENTATIVE GOVERNMENT

HOW RELIGION AND VIRTUE CONTRIBUTED TO THE GROWTH OF REPRESENTATIVE GOVERNMENT
IN THE AMERICAN COLONIES
IMPACT OF SLAVERY ON DIFFERENT SECTIONS OF THE UNITED STATES

PLACES AND REGIONS OF IMPORTANCE IN THE UNITED STATES DURING THE 17th, 18th, AND 19th
CENTURIES
CHARACTERISTICS
Including, but not limited to:
• Exploration and Colonization
• New England Region
• Examples of Physical Characteristics – Atlantic Ocean, subsistence farming, poor soil, cold
climate, forest
• Examples of Human Characteristics
• Economic factors – raw materials, logging, fishing, shipbuilding
• Political factors: town meetings, representative government
• Social factors small coastal towns(Boston only large city),
• Religious factors – Puritans,
• Middle Region
• Examples of Physical Characteristics – Rich soil; broad, deep rivers; more natural ports; river
valleys, mild winters, raw materials, Atlantic Ocean
• Examples of Human Characteristics
• Economic factors – large farms, logging, fishing, shipbuilding
• Political factors – more tolerance
• Social factors small coastal towns(Philadelphia, Baltimore, New York were large cities),
• Religious factors – Quakers, Catholics,
• Southern Region
• Examples of Physical Characteristics – Appalachian Mountains, navigable rivers, richer soil, warm
climate, raw materials,
• Examples of Human Characteristics
• Economic factors – plantations,
• Political factors: more slaves, more class-based society,
• Social factors small coastal towns (Savannah, Charleston were large cities),
• Religious factors – Church of England, Catholics (Maryland), more diverse,

PHYSICAL CHARACTERISTICS OF THE ENVIRONMENT AND INFLUENCE ON POPULATION
DISTRIBUTION, SETTLEMENT PATTERNS, AND ECONOMIC ACTIVITIES IN THE UNITED STATES
DURING THE 17th, 18th, and 19th CENTURIES
DIFFERENT IMMIGRANT GROUPS INTERACTION WITH THE ENVIRONMENT IN THE UNITED STATES
DURING THE 17th, 18th, and 19th CENTURIES
REASONS FOR THE DEVELOPMENT OF THE PLANTATION SYSTEM, THE TRANSATLANTIC SLAVE
TRADE, AND THE SPREAD OF SLAVERY
CAUSES AND EFFECTS OF ECONOMIC DIFFERENCES AMONG DIFFERENT REGIONS OF THE
Colonies
SELECTED RACIAL, ETHNIC, AND RELIGIOUS GROUPS THAT SETTLED IN THE UNITED STATES AND
THEIR REASONS FOR IMMIGRATION
POLITICAL, SOCIAL, AND ECONOMIC CONTRIBUTIONS OF WOMEN TO AMERICAN SOCIETY
DEVELOPMENT OF RELIGIOUS FREEDOM IN THE UNITED STATES