FIFTH GRADE SOCIAL STUDIES

Alaska Content Standards

 

HISTORY

 

Standard A.  A student should understand that history is a record of

                        human experiences that links the past to the present and

                        future.

Standard B.  A student should understand historical themes through

                        factual knowledge of time, places, ideas, institutions,

                        cultures, people, and events.

Standard C.  A student should develop the skills and processes of

                        historical inquiry.

Standard D.  A student should be able to integrate historical

                        knowledge with historical skill to effectively participate

                        as a citizen and as a lifelong learner.

 

 

GOVERNMENT AND CITIZENSHIP

 

Standard A.  A student should know and understand how societies

                        define authority, rights, and responsibilities through a

                        governmental process.

Standard B.  A student should understand the constitutional

                        foundations of the American political system and the

                        democratic ideals of this nation.

Standard C.  A student should understand the character of government

                        of the state.

Standard D.  A student should understand the role of the United States in international affairs.

Standard E.  A student should have the knowledge and skills necessary

                        to participate effectively as an informed and responsible

                        citizen.

Standard F.  A student should understand the economies of the United

                        States and the state and their relationships to the global

                        economy.

Standard G.  A student should understand the impact of economic

                    choices and participate effectively in the local, state,

                        national, and global economies.

 

 

         

GEOGRAPHY

 

Standard A.  A student should be able to make and use maps, globes,

                        and graphs to gather, analyze, and report spatial

                        (geographic) information.

Standard B.  A student should be able to utilize, analyze, and explain

                        information about the human and physical features of

                        places and regions.

Standard C.  Student should understand the dynamic and interactive

                        natural forces that shape the earth’s environments.

Standard D.  A student should understand and be able to interpret

                        spatial (geographic) characteristics of human systems,

                        including migration, movement, interactions of cultures,

                        economic activities, settlement patterns, and political units

                        in the state, nation, and world.

Standard E.  A student should understand and be able to evaluate how

                        humans and physical environments interact.

Standard F.  A student should be able to use geography to understand

                        the world by interpreting the past, knowing the present,

                        and preparing for the future.

 

 

COURSE CONTENT

The fifth grade social studies curriculum will focus on the history of the United States from early European explorations to the United States in the 20th century.  Students will study important U.S. documents to include treaties, the Constitution, Bill of Rights, Civil Rights legislation and federal regulations. 

 

CULTURE

·        Explain the celebrations relevant to United States history, colonization through Civil War

·        Examine the continuing blending of American people

·        Evaluate the cause and effects of immigration and migration

·        Identify the contributions of people of various racial, ethnic, and religious groups to the United States

·        Analyze the impact of slavery and discrimination on the development of the nation

·        Describe alternatives and analyze historical alternatives for dealing with social tensions and issues

CITIZENSHIP/GOVERNMENT

·        Understands the major provisions of the United States Constitution

·        Identifies the government bodies and branches that make laws (legislative), carry out laws (executive), and determine if laws have been violated (judicial)

·        Explain the rights and responsibilities of citizens in the United States Constitution, including the Bill of Rights

·        Give examples of citizens’ rights and responsibilities

·        Explain the benefits of working together

·        State reasons why individuals’ right to freedom of speech should be protected by the Constitution

·        Explain why it is difficult to interpret the law

·        Propose ways that individuals can influence community development

·        Explain the key ideals of a democratic form of government

HISTORY

·        Explain when, where and why groups of people colonized and settled in the United States

·        Explain how and why the Age of Exploration led to the European discovery of the Americas

·        Examine the reasons for the problems faced and the results of key expeditions of Portugal, Spain, France, the Netherlands, and England

·        Describe early European settlements in Colonial America

·        Identify reason people came to the Americas (e.g., economic opportunity, slavery, escape from religious persecutions, military adventure, and release from prison)

·        Describe the similarities and differences in the New England, the mid-Atlantic, and the southern colonies

·        Relate the contributions of important individuals and groups (e.g., John Smith, Puritans, Pilgrims, William Penn)

·        Examine sources and results of conflicts between England and Colonial America

·        Identify key individuals who contributed to the American Revolution

·        Identify and interpret the basic ideals expressed in and the reasons for writing the Declaration of Independence and the United States Constitution

·        Describe the struggles involved in writing the United States Constitution, its ratification, and the addition of the Bill of Rights

·        Examine the emergence of the two-party political system in the presidential elections of 1796 and 1800

·        Sequence the territorial exploration, expansion, and settlement of the United States

·        Relate some the major influences on westward expansion to the distribution and movement of people, goods and services

·        Understand the changing role of the United States in world affairs

·        Understand society in America during the Great Depression

·        Understand how the Cold War influenced domestic and international policies

·        Understand developments in foreign policy and domestic policies between the Nixon and Clinton presidencies

GEOGRAPHY

·        Use maps and map features, including directional orientation, maps symbols, and grid system to identify and locate major geographic features in Alaska, the U.S., and the world

·        Identify characteristics and purposed of maps, globes, and other geographic representations

·        Read and derive information from photographs, maps, globes, and graphs from computer resources

·        Construct maps and charts to adequately display information about human and physical features, including landforms, weather and climate, bodies of water, vegetation and soils, population distribution, languages, housing and economic activities

·        Use basic geographic vocabulary

·        Analyze how the diversity of the people of the United States can be seen in different regions

·        Explain the importance of natural resources to a nation

ECONOMICS

·        List causes and effects of human migration and settlement

·        Identify differences in economic development and quality of life among the countries in North America

·        Describe economic issues of the 1920’s and 1930’s

·        Explain how the American economy changed after World War II

·        Describe how inventions have influenced the development of United States economy

·        Identify the impact of consumerism on the United States economy

·        Distinguish between money and barter economics

·        Describe the relationship between taxation and government services

·        Give examples of the benefits of the free enterprise system in the United States

Textbook:
ISBN#:
Publisher:
Build Our Nation 0-618-20660-4 Houghton Mifflin
Geography Lv. 5 0-395-80648-8 Houghton Mifflin