Rebecca Smith

Class Overview

Welcome to Social Studies with Smith!

11th grade U.S. History offers a colorful and exciting section of Social Studies.  This required course introduces the themes of balance between unity and diversity, the shaping of democracy, the search for opportunity, and the influence of geographical factors.  This is a yearlong survey of American history from Reconstruction to the present.  Emphasis is placed on vocabulary, critical thinking skills, historical writing, graphing/mapping skills, and interpretation of original documents.  Besides listening to traditional lectures on important themes in U.S. History, students are expected to participate in class through discussions, debates of key issues, simulations, and mock trials.  Furthermore, students are expected to continually develop their writing skills, and maintain an interactive notebook.

12th grade Economics is a semester course aimed to help students understand what economics is, how it plays a part in their daily lives, and how it affects the world around us.  Students will gain insight into how to manage their money wisely by learning about financial planning, budgeting, and investing.

12th grade AP Government is a semester college-level nonpartisan introduction to key political concepts, ideas, institutions, polices, interactions, roles, and behaviors that characterize the constitutional system and political culture of the United States.  Students will study U.S. foundation document, Supreme Court decisions, and other texts and visuals to gain an understanding of the relationships and interactions among political institutions, processes and behaviors.  Underpinning the required content of the course are several big ideas that allow students to create meaningful connections amount concepts throughout the course.  Students will also engage in skill development that requires them to read and interpret data, make comparisons and applications, and develop evidence-based arguments.  In addition, they will complete a political science research and applied civics project.