7th Grade Social Studies Unit 10

Big Idea:

Develop an understanding of the importance of the cattle industry and the shaping of Texas.

Student Expectations:

Priority TEKS

7.1(A) [Readiness] identify the major eras in Texas history, describe their defining characteristics, and explain why historians divide the past into eras, including Natural Texas and its People; Age of Contact; Spanish Colonial; Mexican National; Revolution and Republic; Early Statehood; Texas in the Civil War and Reconstruction; Cotton, Cattle, and Railroads; Age of Oil; Texas in the Great Depression and World War II; Civil Rights and Conservatism; and Contemporary Texas;

7.6(B) [Supporting] identify significant individuals, events, and issues from Reconstruction through the beginning of the 20th century, including the development of the cattle industry from its Spanish beginnings and the myths and realities of the cowboy way of life

Focus TEKS

7.1(B) [Supporting] apply absolute and relative chronology through the sequencing of significant individuals, events, and time periods;

7.6(A) [Supporting] identify significant individuals, events, and issues from Reconstruction through the beginning of the 20th century, including the factors leading to the expansion of the Texas frontier, the effects of westward expansion on American Indians, the buffalo soldiers, and Quanah Parker

7.6(D) [Readiness] explain the political, economic, and social impact of the agricultural industry and the development of West Texas resulting from the close of the frontier

7.9(C) [Readiness] analyze the effects of physical and human factors such as climate, weather, landforms, irrigation, transportation, and communication on major events in Texas

7.10(A) [Readiness] identify ways in which Texans have adapted to and modified the environment and analyze the positive and negative consequences of the modifications;

7.10(B) [Supporting] explain ways in which geographic factors such as the Galveston Hurricane of 1900, the Dust Bowl, limited water resources, and alternative energy sources have affected the political, economic, and social development of Texas.

7.20(C) [Readiness] analyze the effects of various scientific discoveries and technological innovations on the development of Texas such as advancements in the agricultural, energy, medical, computer, and aerospace industries;

Ongoing TEKS

7.8(A) [Supporting]create and interpret thematic maps, graphs, charts, models, and databases representing various aspects of Texas during the 19th, 20th, and 21st centuries;

7.8(B) [Supporting] analyze and interpret geographic distributions and patterns in Texas during the 19th, 20th, and 21st centuries.

7.20(A) [Supporting] compare types and uses of technology, past and present;

7.21(A) [Process] differentiate between, locate, and use valid primary and secondary sources such as computer software, databases, media and news services, biographies, interviews, and artifacts to acquire information about Texas

7.21(B) [Process] analyze information by sequencing, categorizing, identifying cause-and-effect relationships, comparing, contrasting, finding the main idea, summarizing, making generalizations and predictions, and drawing inferences and conclusions;

7.21(C) [Process] organize and interpret information from outlines, reports, databases, and visuals, including graphs, charts, timelines, and maps

7.21(D) [Process] identify points of view from the historical context surrounding an event and the frame of reference that influenced the participants;

7.21(F) [Process] identify bias in written, oral, and visual material

7.22(A) [Process] use social studies terminology correctly

7.22(C) transfer information from one medium to another, including written to visual and statistical to written or visual, using computer software as appropriate;

7.22(D) create written, oral, and visual presentations of social studies information

Student Learning Targets:

• I will identify the importance of the cattle industry.
• I will write cattle drive journal entries depicting life on a cattle drive.
• I will assess the role the cattle industry had on the formation of Texas.
• I will evaluate the importance of the different jobs on the cattle drives.
• I will explain how new innovations led to the end of the cattle drives.

Essential Questions:

• How did the booming cattle industry affect the economy and shaping of Texas?

Extra Information:

Adopted Textbook: Texas History - Houghton Mifflin Harcourt

District Grading Policy

Texas Gateway Online Resource Center