American History
EQ: How should I live my life as an American?
This required course examines United States history from the turn of the 20th century to the present. Reading, writing, research, and document analysis are required. There is a focus on critical thinking, decision making, data gathering, and effective human relations. Click on the unit name or picture to bring you a course resource page.
This unit is a review of how America made it from the founding fathers up to the Gilded Age. It is not an especially long portion of the course, but it does require quite a bit of effort.
This unit handles the three major topics of Imperialism, Progressivism, and the First World War. The Progressives were a driving force in the battle against political corruption, the problems associated with immigration and urbanization, and the ills caused by industrialization. As America sought to be a world power, it built strength through acquisition of new lands. It did so through purchase, claim, and war. Students will determine for themselves the level that racism played in the acquisition of these new lands. Nationalism, imperialism, alliances, and militarism led to the First World War. America’s original aim to stay neutral was thwarted by many domestic and international factors that invariably caused the US to enter the war and play a deciding role in its outcome. The war catapulted America into a new position of world power.
Many nicknames came about from the American 1920’s: the Roaring 20’s, the Jazz Age, and the Lost Generation to name a few. We will explore the roots to the various nicknames and the influence of this time on subsequent American generations. Additionally, the cultural reaction to the horror of the Great War and accompanying economic boom set the stage for the toughest of American times: the Great Depression. This will be followed with an examination of the causes of the Great Depression and the subsequent effects on both America and the world.
In this unit, students will explore the war in both the Pacific and European theaters, the American home front, and the Holocaust.
This unit also introduces the roots of how the United States and the Soviet Union began what is referred to as the “Cold War”, an ideological war for world domination, and how it would have far reaching repercussions on every aspect of American life.
This unit has two main focus areas: Civil Rights and The Cold War.
Civil Rights:
Before departing the sixties and seventies, we take a look back on the progress made by African Americans in the century prior. This unit reviews African American life from 1865 to 1854, describes the difficulties they faced in 1954, and explores how these conditions combined with people and events to trigger the Civil Rights Movement. We address those supported the movement, how they thought to achieve their goals and to what degree they achieved success. Then, we will examine how the lives of women changed throughout the early century, what they had accomplished, and what the feminist movement felt still needed to be accomplished in the 50’s and 60’s. We will conclude with a discussion of the Women’s Rights Amendment failed and why it was rejected.
The Continuing Cold War
This unit explores the Vietnam war, not only as part of the Cold War, but as a pivotal event that changed our nation forever. It will explore how it impacted different social and racial groups, created a generation gap, fostered social division, and eroded many American’s faith in their government.
In this unit, we will study the condition of the nation in the post-Vietnam era. We will recount the major events and examine the immense challenges that Ford and Carter ultimately failed to deal with. We will then explore how Reagan, and the conditions of the 1980’s brought a revival of American hope, faith in their government, and general optimism… for most people. Special attention will be paid to Reagan’s foreign policy and the end of the Cold War. In this unit, we will briefly cover he important events of the Bush and Clinton administrations. Special focus will be placed on the current condition of the nation and world and how the actions of these men and the events of the last two decades have created the world as we know it.