VA & US History
As part of our annual balanced assessment plan, students in Virginia and United States History will be assessed using a variety of formative and summative assessments including Performance Assessments (PAs). In addition, students requiring verified credit for graduation requirements will take the corresponding Standards of Learning (SOL) test.
To access the performance assessments, please click the link. If you are logged into your CCPS Google account, it will automatically create a copy in your Google Drive.
Colonial America Essay - Performance Based Assessment #1
You are an art critic. Just recently, a local art gallery has opened in downtown Charleston, S.C. where the work depicts images of Colonial America (along with different graphics about life in the Old South). As you tour the site, you take note of specific works of art you find compelling as it relates to the growth of slavery in your state.
Task: You will review the selected works of art and items (included in student resources) and make an argument about slavery in the south. Through your understanding of the content learned in class and the images being provided, write a 5-paragraph essay arguing that one of the factors - geographic, social, or economic - was most responsible for the growth of slavery. This essay would eventually be published in your art critic blog.
Rise of Sectionalism Timeline - Performance Based Assessment #2
Your historical research group will audition at the American History Museum to create an interactive timeline to be displayed within the new Antebellum exhibit wing. In order to be selected, your group will need to present an abbreviated timeline to museum staff. The presentation should focus on the rise of sectionalism that would result in the American Civil War.
WWI Memorial - Performance Based Assessment #3
You are an architect competing for a contract from the federal government in the creation of a new monument to commemorate U.S. involvement in the First World War. The government has stipulated that each bidder for the monument provide a design package that includes specific elements. Each proposal must include a hand-drawn design for the monument that includes dimensions and multiple views. The back of the blueprints should also include a map showing where the proposed memorial should be placed and why. A poem should be included to give the design meaning and help demonstrate the design purpose to the community as part of the dedication ceremony. Finally, your proposal should include a paragraph that describes why your firm chose that particular design.
We Didn’t Start the Fire - Performance Based Assessment #4
You are a songwriter, and your next single is a remake of Billy Joel’s “We Didn’t Start the Fire.” The song will be remade using lyrics that reflect the time period of 1990 to the Present. You should use the major events of the time period as a basis for your lyrics.
Civil Rights Video
You have been hired by the brand new National Museum of African-American History and Culture (NMAAHC) in Washington DC to create a small video program visitors will see when they enter the exhibit on the Civil Rights movement. The video should be no more than 8 minutes and describe the major components as described in the SOL.
Student-Facing Document
Grading Rubric
Lincoln's Position on Slavery - NCSS DBQ
An archivist has discovered new letters that provide insight to President Abraham Lincoln’s position on slavery and the preservation of the Union. As the documents were discovered within a collection from you community, you have been tasked with writing a summary for publication in the local paper. However, the purpose of the writing is an editorial. Since the discovery of these letters, some have judged them to be evidence that Abraham Lincoln was not an abolitionist, but a politician. Others have argued that he was not motivated to end slavery, but would have preferred to simply save the Union. It is your job to apply what you know about the causes of the Civil War and Lincoln’s true intent in these letters. Please write a 5-paragraph essay explaining your thoughts about the documents and your opinion about Abraham Lincoln.
