American History I

In an effort to limit the use of excessive paper, I have posted the Syllabus and Guidelines for Monthly Papers on the following web pages.  Additionally, class rules and procedures along with the materials required for this course are listed under the Announcements tab.  Happy Learning!

SYLLABUS AND GUIDELINES FOR MONTHLY PAPERS

COURSE DESCRIPTION                                              

The focus of the course in United States History for Grades 9-12 is the immediate pre-Civil War era to the present (1850-present). However, for the high school end-of-instruction examination over “United States History,” the time frame is 1850-1975, or from approximately the Compromise of 1850 through the withdrawal of United States military and diplomatic personnel from Vietnam.

In United States History, the student will describe and analyze the causes, events, and effects of the Civil War and Reconstruction era; examine the impact of immigration and the Westward Movement on American society; and evaluate the economic effects of the Industrial Revolution and the changing role of the United States in world affairs at the turn of the twentieth century. He or she will also describe the social, cultural, and economic events between the World Wars; investigate and analyze the Great Depression, and the causes, events and effects of World War II; and assess the foreign and domestic policies of the United States since World War II. The student will continue to strengthen, expand, and put to use the full range of process and research skills in social studies.

GRADE WEIGHTS

Grading of tests, quizzes, assignments and a research paper/project is determined on a percentage basis of 100%.

Participation/Focus/Engagement                                                         10%

(recorded periodically)

Monthly Assignments                                                                                   20%

Quizzes and Classroom Assignments                                                  30%

Chapter Exams                                                                                                  40%

Research Paper/Project                                                                                  X

(may be worth up to three exams)

Semester Exam                                                                                                     X

(may be worth two exams)

What are monthly assignments?

Every second Tuesday of the month (or the second Friday of the month during blended learning when students are home on Fridays) you will be required to submit a one page typewritten summary (via turnitin) of something that relates to the period of American History we are covering.  This can either be taken from a book, magazine, newspaper or internet article, a news program or a television show. Your sources must be documented.  NO LATE PAPERS WILL BE ACCEPTED.” Should you choose to skip one monthly paper (month 4) I will accept TWO Clorox Wipes, TWO Hand Sanitizers, TWO reams of printer paper or a package of 48 pencils as a substitute for full credit. 

Weekly assignments will be required as deemed necessary by the instructor.

Research Project/Project - TBD

You will be required to submit one research paper or project, due the 2nd 9 weeks. Your paper or project  is to be typed double spaced and be at least three pages in length. You will also be required to do a 3-5 minute presentation on your research paper or project. Your research paper or project accounts for 20% of your 9 weeks grade. Research topics must be approved by the instructor.

Course Objectives

Note: This course is a semester long and leads into American History II. Standard I is the same for all courses and is addressed throughout the entire semester.

1st 9 weeks

Standard 2: The student will analyze causes, key events, and effects of the Civil War era.

2nd 9 weeks

Standard 3: The student will analyze the impact of immigration and the Westward

Movement on American Society.

Standard 4: The student will examine the effect of the Industrial Revolution on the economy of the United States. 

1. Identify the impact of new inventions and industrial production methods, including new technologies in transportation and communication.

2. Evaluate the significance of immigration on the labor supply movement to organize workers.

The following two sub standards are covered in relation to turn of the century. Elements of these standards that relate to the 1900’s are covered in American History II.

3. Describe the effects of the “muckrakers” and reform movements

    (e.g., women’s suffrage and temperance) that resulted in government

    policies affecting child labor, wages, working conditions, trade,

    monopolies, taxation and the money supply.

   4. Assess the impact of industrialization, the expansion of international  markets, urbanization, and immigration on the economy

Participation

· I strongly encourage you to participate in classroom discussions and activities. Students assist in creating the atmosphere and mood of the class. Please become actively involved when appropriate. Participation in a class such as American History I where we will be doing many demonstrations and activities will enhance your interest in the class and learning.

· You are encouraged to bring into class any materials, ideas, news, articles, artifacts, etc., that are relevant for classroom discussion.

· Positive class participation is expected. It includes: paying attention; not sleeping in class; looking interested in the class material; asking questions about the material you have read; bringing in cartoons, magazine, newspaper, and journal articles related to the topics studied; being willing to summarize the content for the class; and actually contributing something to the class activities for the day.

 · No course work from any class other than American History will be tolerated.

Extra Credit

I do not believe in extra credit because I give my students many ways to succeed. I feel extra credit may be earned only after all the required work is completed. If you are missing assignments, you are not eligible for extra credit. Extra credit will be available only at the instructor’s discretion.

Monthly Assignment Guidelines - See the statement above

                                                               DUE DATES FOR MONTHLY PAPERS

  NO AUGUST 2025 PAPER 

 Tuesday                       September 9, 2025                               1st Semester

Tuesday                        October 14, 2025                                 1st Semester

Tuesday                        November 11, 2025                            1st Semester

Tuesday                        December 9, 2025                              1st Semester

 NO JANUARY 2026 PAPER  

Tuesday                        February 10, 2026                               2nd Semester

Tuesday                        March 10, 2026                                    2nd Semester

Tuesday                        April 14, 2026                                       2nd Semester

Tuesday                        May 5, 2026                                         2nd Semester (early due to EOY)

 To document your sources properly, refer to the guide below.

1. Book with one author or editor:

 Bowker, Michael. Fatal Deception: The Untold Story of Asbestos.

       New York: Rodale, 2003.

2. Book with two authors or editors:

 Cohen, Andrew, and J.L. Granatstein, eds. Trudeau's Shadow: The Life and Legacy of Pierre Elliott Trudeau. Toronto: Random, 1998.

3. Article in an encyclopedia with an author:

        Kibby, Michael W. "Dyslexia." World Book Encyclopedia. 2000 ed.

4. Article in a magazine, journal, periodical, newsletter, or newspaper with one or more authors:

 Hewitt, Ben. "Quick Fixes for Everyday Disasters." Popular Mechanics Nov. 2004:   83-88

5. Documentary, Movie or Television Program:

Charlie and the Chocolate Factory. Dir. Tim Burton. Based on book by Roald Dahl. Perf. Johnny Depp. Warner, 2005.

ADDENDUM - Works Cited

Use, in this order, as many of these items are as relevant and useful for clearly identifying the source document.  

1. Author or editor's last name, then first name.

2. Title of the article in quotation marks.

3. Web site name, italicized. (Underlining is no longer used.)

4. Edition or version number.

5. Web site owner or sponsor if available.

6. Date of publication (DD MM YYYY as in 15 June 2009). If a publication date is not available, use n.d. for "no date."

7. The word Web and a period to indicate the publication medium.

8. The date you accessed the site and a period.

9. [If required by your instructor or if it's necessary to find the article, include the URL (uniform resource locator--that is, Web address) of the document <in angle brackets> followed by a period.]

 Note: Often you will not have all of these items. The site name will be available, but the Web site owner or sponsor will be the same or not known. Similarly, there may not be a version or edition number.

 EXAMPLE:  BASIC WEB SITE

Author.  “Article Title,” Title of Web Site.  Sponsor, copyright date.  Access date.

Green, Joshua.  “The Rove Presidency.”  The Atlantic.com  Atlantic Monthly Group, September 2007.  Web. May 15, 2008

PLAGIARISM

Any instances of plagiarism will result in a Zero (0) on your weekly papers.  There should be no duplicate papers – all papers should be original and in your own words.

It is your responsibility to keep all your monthly papers in your notebook or saved in turnitin.com

ADDITIONAL ASSISTANCE

To assist you in your research and success in writing your weekly assignments, find enclosed topics that are appropriate.

Chapter 2

mining                                                                 quart mining

Henry Comstock                                          Six-Mile Canyon, NV

Vigilance committees                               Great Plains

Texas longhorn                                             open range

Long drive                                                        Chisholm Trail

Barbed wire                                                    Stephen Long

Homestead Act                                             homestead

Dry farming                                                    sodbusters

Wheat Belt                                                      bonanza farms

Oklahoma Land Run                                  Census Bureau Report of 1890

Great Plains nomads                                  annuities

Little Crow                                                      Dakota Sioux

Fetterman’s Massacre                               Sand Creek Massacre

Indian Peace Commission                       George A. Custer

Nez Perce                                                        Chief Joseph

Assimilate                                                       allotments

Dawes Act

Chapter 3

Alexander Graham Bell                            gross national product

Edwin Drake                                                   laissez-faire

Entrepreneurs                                               Morrill Tariff

Thomas Alva Edison                                   inventions of late 1800’s

Pacific Railway Act                                      Union Pacific Railroad

Central Pacific Railroad                            Greenville Dodge

Leland Stanford                                              Cornelius Vanderbilt

Time-zones                                                        land grants

Jay Gould                                                            Credit Mobilier

James J. Hill                                                        stocks

Economies of scale                                         fixed costs

Operating costs                                               Consolidation of Industry

Andrew Carnegie                                            Bessemer process

Vertical integration                                        horizontal integration

Monopoly                                                             trust

Montgomery Ward                                         Sears, Roebuck

Deflation                                                              trade unions

Blacklist                                                                strikebreakers

Marxism                                                               anarchists

Lockout                                                                Knights of Labor

Arbitration                                                        Haymarket Riot

American Federation of Labor               Samuel Gompers

Women’s Trade Union                                  closed shops

Chapter 4

Steerage                                                          Ellis Island

Angel Island                                                   nativism

American Protective Association      Workingman’s Party of California

Chinese Exclusion Act                                skyscrapers

Louis Sullivan                                                 political machine

Party bosses                                                    George Plunket

Graft                                                                     Tammany Hall

Wm. M. Tweed                                               individualism

Herbert Spencer                                           Social Darwinism

Philanthropy                                                   realism

Ragtime                                                             Scott Joplin

Naturalism                                                       settlement houses

Jane Addams                                                  Americanization

Chapter 5

Patronage                                                        “Stalwarts”

“Halfbreeds”                                                   Pendleton Act

“Mugwumps”                                                  rebates

Interstate Commerce Commission    McKinley Tariff

Sherman Antitrust Act                                Populism

Greenbacks inflation                                    Grange

Cooperatives                                                    inflation

Deflation                                                            Farmers’ Alliance

People’s Party                                                 graduated income tax

  Wm. Jennings Bryan                                The Scopes Trial

Wm. McKinley                                               “Exodusters”

Colored Farmers’ National Alliance    poll tax

Jim Crow laws                                                grandfather clause

Booker T. Washington                                W.E.B. Du Bois

 Chapter 6 

Imperialism                                                         protectorates

Queen Liliuokalani                                          Pan-Americanism

Organization of American States (OAS)        Henry Cabot Lodge

Jose Marti                                                             Wm. Randolph Hearts

Joseph Pulitzer                                                  yellow journalism

George Dewey                                                   San Juan Heights

Theodore Roosevelt                                       “Rough Riders”

Foraker Act                                                          sphere of influence

Open Door policy                                             Boxer Rebellion

Great White Fleet                                            dollar diplomacy

Chapter 7

 Muckrakers                                                   

 Democracy and Progressivism

Suffrage                                                         

Nation American Woman Suffrage Association (NAWSA)  

Alice Paul

Temperance                                                    

Women’s Christian Temperance Union (WCTU) prohibition

Socialism                                                           Square Deal

Hepburn Act                                                   “The Jungle”

Upton Sinclair                                                 Meat Inspection Act

Children’s Bureau                                          Progressive Party

New Nationalism                                            New Freedom

Underwood Tariff                                           income tax

Federal Trade Commission                        unfair trade practices

National Association for the Advancement of Colored People (NAACP)

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