• NOTE: I am no longer keeping this page up to date on course materials. Students are best served by finding materials through Google Classroom. I often receive emails from other teachers asking for help in designing their courses or requesting access to my materials. What you’ll find here is likely older versions. Please feel free to send me an email at ASterchi@psd202.org if you need anything!
• SEMESTER 1: Progressivism through WWII (1897-1945)
  • Book Used:  The Americans (2014)
  • Modules 14-22
  • Course Calendars (Subject to change):
• Introductory Materials:
  • About Me [Intro Lecture]
  • The Importance of Skepticism [Intro Lecture]
  • Reading like a Historian [Intro Lecture]
  • What is a Historian [Reading]
  • What Do We Do in US History [Handout]
  • Organizing Yourself for Digital Learning (Videos: Note Taking Strategies, How to Organize Yourself Digitally)

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Unit 1: The Progressive Era
Corresponds to Textbook: Module 14
Guiding Question(s): What were social problems Americans faced in the early 20th century? What types of reform were Progressives advocating for? What were the impacts and legacies of the movements?
Academic skill in focus: Cause & Effect, Note-taking, Organizing yourself for learning
C3 Standard(s) in focus: (D2.His.3.9-12) Use questions generated about individuals and groups to assess how the significance of their actions changes over time and is shaped by the historical context.

• [1.1] – The Progressive Era
  • Assignment: The Triangle Shirtwaist Factory Fire
• [1.2] – Roosevelt and the Square Deal
  • Assignment: Welcome to the Jungle: Primary Source Analysi
• [1.3] – Progressivism Under Taft
  • Unit 1 Study Guide
  • Unit 1 Exam

Unit 2: America Claims an Empire: US Imperialism

Corresponds to Textbook: Module 15
Guiding Question(s): Isolationism vs. Interventionism: How has the the United States’ foreign policy changed over time? Colonialism vs. Imperialism: What’s the difference? How did the United States forge an Empire? Pros and Cons of Empire Building and Management?
Academic skill in focus: Cause & Effect, Compare/Contrast of Policy
C3 Standard(s) in focus: Determining causal relationships, Evaluation of government, Historical interpretation

• [2.1] – Imperialism and America
• [2.2] – The Spanish-American War
  • Assignment: US Imperialism – Primary Source Analysis
• [2.3] – Acquiring New Lands
• [2.4] America as a World Power
  • Unit 2 Study Guide
  • Unit 2 Exam

Unit 2: World War I

Corresponds to Textbook: Module 16
Guiding Question(s): What were the and causes of World War I? How is understanding historical context crucial in interpreting historical events? What was the impact and aftermath of the war?
Academic skill in focus: Independent Research Skills & Citation
C3 Standard in focus: (D2.His.3.9-12) Use questions generated about individuals and groups to assess how the significance of their actions changes over time and is shaped by the historical context.

• [3.1] – Marching Toward War
• [3.2] – A Global Conflict
• [3.3] – A Flawed Peace
  • Assignment: 1917 – Historical Film Analysis
  • Unit 3 Study Guide
  • Unit 3 Exam

Unit 4: The Roaring Twenties (1918-1929)
Corresponds to Textbook: Module 17
Guiding Question(s): How did the World War I’s end impact the lives of Americans? What led to the new brand of Republicanism during the 1920s? Was the prosperity of the 1920s superficial?
Academic skill in focus: Independent Research Skills & Citation
C3 Standard in focus: (D2.His.3.9-12) Use questions generated about individuals and groups to assess how the significance of their actions changes over time and is shaped by the historical context.

• Unit 4 Intro
• [4.1] – The Business of America
• [4.2] – Postwar Issues  
  • Assignment: 1920s Primary Source Activity   Sources PDF
• [4.3] – Changing Ways of Life & Women
• [4.4] – Education, Popular Culture, and the Harlem Renaissance
  • Project: Roaring Twenties Creative Research Project  1920s Project RubricSources PDF
  • Unit 4 Study Guide
  • Unit 4 Exam

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Unit 5: The Great Depression (1929-1939)
Corresponds to Textbook: Module 18
Guiding Questions: Did Hoover do too much or too little? What is the role of government in society and in crisis?
Academic skill in focus: Independent Research Skills & Citation
C3 Standard in focus: Determining causal relationships, Evaluation of government, Historical interpretation

• Unit 5 Intro
• [5.1] – The Nation’s Sick Economy
• [5.2] – Hardship & Suffering during the Great Depression
  • Assignment: Unit 5 Historical Film Analysis – Great Depression – Cinderella Man
  • Unit 5 Study Guide
  • Unit 5 Exam

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Unit 6: The New Deal (1932-1941)
Corresponds to Textbook: Module 19
Guiding Questions: How did FDR’s presidency and the New Deal reshape the government’s role in American society? What are the lasting implications of this shift in responsibility?
Academic skill in focus: Time, Continuity & Change; Primary source analysis

• Unit 6 Intro
• [6.1] – A New Deal Fights the Depression
  • Assignment: The Soup Song – Primary Source Analysis   
  • 6.2] – The New Deal Affects Many Groups
  • Unit 6 Study Guide
  • Unit 6 Exam

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Unit 7: World War II  & The Aftermath (1938-1949)
Corresponds to Textbook: Module 20
Guiding Questions: What were the “seeds of conflict” that led to WWII? How did the war end and what impact did particular events have in the postwar world? How did the Green River Ordnance Plant represent the Home Front (microcosm)?
Academic skill in focus: Causal relationships (“Seeds of conflict”), Primary source analysis (Quarantine Speech, Their Finest Hour, Green River Ordnance Plant Activity), Student self-evaluation

• Unit 7 Overview
• [7.1] – War Breaks Out  
  • Assignment: Dictators Web Diagram
• [7.2] – War in Europe    
  • Assignment: Historical Role-taking – Their Finest Hour
• [7.3] – America Moves Toward War
• [7.4] – Mobilizing for Defense
• [7.5] – The Home Front – The Green River Ordnance Plant
  • Assignment: Green River Ordnance Plant – Primary Source Analysis
• [7.6] – War in Europe, Africa, & Asia
  • Unit 7 Study Guide
  • Unit 7 Historical Film Analysis: Saving Private Ryan

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Module 21: The Cold War (1944-1991)
Corresponds to Textbook: Module 21
Guiding Questions: What were the “seeds of conflict” that led to WWII? 
Academic skill in focus: Inquiry and Research Skills, Student-led chapter, Student Semester Self-Evaluation

Unit 8 – Group Presentations

Cold War Presentation Rubric

Unit 8 Study Guide

MIDTERM: See Google Classroom for Study Guide! Come to Class for Review Sessions and Games!

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SEMESTER 2:  Cold War through Present (1945-2017)
*Note: At present (2023), the below information reflects an antiquated version of the course. I will get around to updating it, but with the current use of Google Classroom it’s low-priority.
Book Used:  The Americans          ** Note: Most assignments found within the notes

Chapters: 26-35, Epilogue (Not from textbook)

Course Calendars (Subject to change):

Module 22: The Postwar Boom (1950-1959)
Guiding Questions: What was the “American Dream” during the 1950s? What is the “American Dream” today? What do 1950s PSA’s reveal about 1950s culture?
Academic skill in focus: Time, Continuity & Change (American Dream); Primary source analysis (PSA videos)

Module 22 Intro

Module 22.1 – Postwar America

Module 22 – Sect 2,3,4 – The American Dream

1950s Culture Essay     Video Resources for Culture Essay

Module 22 – Study Guide

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Module 23: An Era of Social Change(1960-1969)
Guiding questions: How did JFK and Nixon differ during the election of 1960? How did JFK’s “New Frontier” differ from LBJ’s “Great Society?” How did the 1940s and 1950s set the stage for the Civil Rights Movement of the 1960s?
Academic skill in focus: Compare & Contrast (JFK/Nixon, JFK/LBJ), Causal relationships

Module 23 Intro

23.1 – Kennedy and the Cold War

23.2 – The New Frontier & The Great Society

23.3 – Hippies & Counterculture

Module 23 Study Guide

—————-NOTE: ALL LESSONS BEYOND THIS POINT HAVE NEW VERSIONS THAT NEED TO BE UPDATED

Module 24 The Civil Rights Era (1950s-1969)
Guiding Questions: When did the Civil Rights Era begin? When did it end… or did it?
Academic Skill in focus: Source Analysis

Chapter 29.1 – Civil Rights Era Introduction

Chapter 29 Sect 2,3,4 -Legacy of the Civil Rights Movement

Ch 29 Discussion Questions

Ch 29 Study Guide

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Chapter 30: The Vietnam War Years (1954-1975)
Guiding Questions: 1. Who won the Vietnam war? In other words, who met the goals that they set out to accomplish? 2. What effects did the Vietnam war have on American society?
Academic Skill in focus: Source Analysis, Time, Continuity & Change

Ch 30 Sect 1 – Moving Toward Conflict

Ch 30 Sect 2 &3 – US Involvement & Escalation

Ch 30 Sect 4&5 – The End of the War

1960s Song Analysis [Activity]

Sterchi – Ch 30 Study Guide

Chapter 31: An Era of Social Change
Guiding question: What were other Civil Rights issues and how did other groups fight to solve them?
Academic Skill in Focus: Political cartoon analysis, Defining socio-political movements, Essay construction

Ch 31 – Sect 1&2 – Latin Americans, Native Americans, and Women

Ch 31 – Sect 3 – Hippies & Counterculture

1970s Civil Rights Political Cartoons

Ch 31 Study Guide

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Chapter 32: An Age of Limits
Guiding question: How did the turbulence of the 1960’s affect American society, culture, and politics?
Academic Skill in Focus:

Ch 32.1 – The Nixon Administration

Ch 32.2 – Watergate

Ch 32.3 – The Ford and Carter Years

Chapter 32 Study Guide

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Chapter 33: The Conservative Tide
Guiding question: How did the age of conservatism change the direction of the United States? How did this new direction affect society?
Academic Skill in Focus: Compare/Contrast how various Presidents respond to social, political, and economic crises.

Ch 33.1 – A Conservative Movement Emerges

Ch 33.2 -Conservative Policies Under Reagan & Bush

Ch 33.3 – Social Concerns in the 1980s

Ch 33.4 – Foreign Policy After the Cold War

Ch 33.5 – The Persian Gulf War

Ch 33 Study Guide

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Chapter 35: Epilogue – 
Guiding question: What should the government’s role be in our daily lives? 
Academic Skill in Focus: