-
Social Studies
Goals
The primary goal of Cartersville City School’s Social Studies Department is to prepare students to be productive members of their families, communities, and the world.
Grade-Level Expectations/What is my Child Learning?
-
Kindergarten: Foundations of America
- National Holidays and words/phrases related to chronology and time of the events
- Customs and celebrations of various American families and communities
- The difference between a map and a globe
- State their street address, city, state, and country in which they live
- Understand good citizenship by knowing how rules are made, why they are made, and why they should be followed
- Positive character traits of good citizens: honesty, patriotism, courtesy, respect, pride, and self-control
- People earn money by working; some jobs introduced include police officer, fire fighter, soldier, mail carrier, farmer, doctor, teacher
- How money is used to purchase goods and services and the difference in types of U.S. currency
- How people make choices in what to buy based on wants and needs
Map and Globe Skills
- Using a Compass Rose to identify cardinal directions is introduced
Information Processing Skills
- Compare similarities and differences
- Organize items chronologically
- Identify issues/problems and find solutions
-
First Grade: American Heritage
- Historical figures and their contributions—Benjamin Franklin, inventor/author/statesman; Thomas Jefferson, Declaration of Independence; Lewis & Clark and Sacagawea, exploration; Theodore Roosevelt, National Parks/environment; George Washington Carver, science; Ruby Bridges, civil rights.
- How everyday life of the above historical figures is the same and different from life today
- How the above historical figures were influenced by his or her time and place
- Identify and locate their city, county, state, country, and continent on a map and globe.
- Locate all continents and major oceans on a map and globe
- Identify and describe mountains, deserts, valleys, and coasts
- Patriotic concepts of brotherhood, liberty, freedom, and pride as seen in the songs My Country Tis of Thee and America the Beautiful
- Identify goods that are made and services that are provided
- Concept of scarcity
- People are producers and consumers
- People earn income by working and must make choices about saving and spending
Map and Globe Skills
- Use intermediate directions
- Use a map to explain impact of geography on world events
Information Processing Skills
- Distinguish between fact and opinion
- In social studies context, identify main idea, detail, sequence of events, cause and effect
- Use primary and secondary sources and know the difference between the two
- Interpret timelines, charts, and tables
-
Second Grade: Georgia, My State
- Historical figures and their contributions—James Oglethorpe, Tomochichi, Mary Musgrove, founding of Georgia; Sequoyah, Cherokee alphabet; Jackie Robinson, sportsmanship & civil rights; Martin Luther King, Jr., civil rights; Juliette Gordon Low, Girl Scouts & leadership; Jimmy Carter, leadership & human rights
- Creek and Cherokee cultures: tools, clothing, homes, ways of making a living, accomplishments, and how it is different from cultures of Georgia today
- Geographic regions of Georgia: Blue Ridge, Piedmont, Coastal Plain, Ridge & Valley, Appalachian Plateau
- Major rivers: Savannah, Flint, Chattahoochee
- For each above historic figure and the Creek and Cherokee, identify places on a map that were significant to their life and times
- How each above historic figure and the Creek and Cherokee adapted to and were influenced by their environments and how the region they lived in affected their lives. How were these regions alike and different from Cartersville?
- Regions where Creek and Cherokee lived and how they used their resources
- What is a government and why do we need rules and laws?
- Identify executive branch members and where they work—US President, Governor, Mayor
- How above historic figures and Creek and Cherokee demonstrated citizenship through honesty, dependability, trustworthiness, honor, civility, good sportsmanship, patience, compassion
- Scarcity forces people to make choices (opportunity cost)
- Goods and services are allocated through: price, majority rule, contests, force, sharing, lottery, authority, first-come-first-served, personal characteristics
- Money makes trade easier than barter
- Cost and benefit of saving and spending choices
Map and Globe Skills
- Use a letter/number grid system to determine location
- Natural, cultural, and political features on maps
- Use a map key/legend
Information Processing Skills
- Identify social studies reference sources for specific purposes
- Construct charts and tables
- Analyze artifacts
-
Third Grade: US History-American Indian Cultures through Colonization
- Locate regions where American Indians settled in North America and compare & contrast how they used their environments to get food, clothing, and shelter and why some regions lent themselves to permanent shelters and some did not
- How American Indians continue to contribute to American life through cultural contributions
- Reasons for and obstacles to European exploration of North America
- Accomplishments of major European explorers
- Cooperation and conflict between American Indians and European explorers
- Why the colonies were founded (religious freedom and profit)
- Compare & contrast the 3 regions of colonies (New England, Mid-Atlantic, Southern) in terms of education, economy, religion and how physical geography determined economies
- How early explorers did or did not adapt to their new physical environments
- Describe colonial life from the perspective of: large landowners, farmers, artisans, women, children, indentured servants, slaves, American Indians
- On a map, locate the Mississippi, Ohio, Rio Grande, Colorado, Hudson, and St. Lawrence Rivers and the Appalachian and Rocky Mountains
- Locate and describe the equator, prime meridian, and lines of latitude and longitude on a globe
- Describe the three branches of the national government, the three branches of the state government, and state the responsibility of each
- The importance of shared American democratic beliefs and principles—respecting the rights of others, promoting the common good, obeying laws/rules, participating in public (civic) life
- Four types of productive resources: Natural, Human, Capital, Entrepreneurship
- Governments provide some goods/services such as schools, roads, police/fire, military and pay for them with tax dollars
- Consumers and producers and interdependent
- Goods and services get allocated in the marketplace by price
- Some goods are made locally, some in other parts of the country, and some internationally
- Most countries create their own currency (money)
- Opportunity cost in relation to choices to spend or save
Map and Globe Skills
- Draw conclusions and make generalizations based on information on a map
- Use latitude and longitude to determine location
Information Processing Skills
- Draw conclusions and make generalizations
- Analyze graphs and diagrams
- Translate dates into centuries, eras, or ages
-
Fourth Grade: United States History-Revolution to Reconstruction
- Events that shaped the Revolutionary Movement: French and Indian War, 1765 Stamp Act, “no taxation without representation”, Sons and Daughters of Liberty, Boston Massacre, Boston Tea Party
- People and groups of American Revolution: King George III, George Washington, Benjamin Franklin, Thomas Jefferson, Benedict Arnold, Patrick Henry, John Adams, Paul Revere, Black regiments
- Major events of American Revolution and factors leading to American victory including Lexington and Concord, Saratoga, and Yorktown
- Declaration of Independence: who wrote it, how it was written, why it was necessary, how it was a response to tyranny and abuse of power
- Leaders of the Constitutional Convention: James Madison, George Washington, Benjamin Franklin
