Social Studies
Social Studies
The GMS Social Studies Department uses the Massachusetts History and Social Science Curriculum Framework as a foundation for our courses. We use a student-centered approach with the goal of helping students become informed, prepared, and proactive citizens. The curriculum emphasizes historical and critical thinking, a focus on developing literacy skills, opportunities for students to make connections to the material they are learning, and exploring different perspectives.
6th Grade
Students begin the year reviewing geography and map skills. Next, they study Early Humans during the Paleolithic and the Neolithic Eras. They continue the year by studying regions of the world by examining physical geography, nations in the region today, selected ancient and classical societies before 1000 CE. The regions for grade six are:
The Middle East and Northern Africa
Sub-Saharan Africa
Central America, the Caribbean, and South America
Students investigate guiding questions such as, “How does geography affect how societies develop and interact?” and “How have human societies differed from one another across time and regions?” In studying these topics, students apply grade 6 reading, writing, and speaking and listening skills. Moreover, they learn vocabulary in context and concepts related to history and social science.
7th Grade
Essential Question: How does where we live affect how we live?
This year we will continue our global exploration in the regions of Asia, Oceania and Europe through the lens of geographical and historical studies. Our goal is not just to improve our knowledge and understanding of the world around us and the past, but also to learn how to become culturally competent global citizens and critical thinkers. Through the development of map skills and geography skills, students examine how the world looks today and how things like climate and landscape impact how humans live from region to region. Using their historical, literacy, and critical thinking skills, students investigate how the oldest civilizations of these regions developed and made lasting advancements that humans still use to this day. Whether it's discovering more about how Earth’s landscape has affected global history or debating the causes of the fall of Rome, this class will take us on a journey across continents and time while teaching us more about the rich array of human experiences that have shaped our world today. To become an informed, prepared and positively proactive global citizen.
8th Grade
Essential Question: How do we become informed and active participants in a democratic society and a complex world?
In 8th Grade Civics, students will develop the knowledge and skills necessary to become informed and active participants in a democratic society and a complex world. Through the use of primary documents, current events and varied sources, students will explore diverse perspectives, analyze how and why government institutions developed, explore how government evolves through legislation and court decisions, and how individuals exercise their rights. Furthermore, they will analyze the role media plays in the communication and consumption of important events happening around them. Students will place themselves in the curriculum by examining their role in society and how current events and government institutions and actions shape their experience. They will practice researching, reasoning, making logical arguments, and thinking for themselves as they come to their own conclusions. The students will participate in a culminating Civic Action Project that asks students to apply what they have learned to issues that they care about personally. This will allow them to demonstrate their understanding of how civic responsibilities maintain a healthy democracy in the nation and the Commonwealth.