Social Studies Course Descriptions

EARLY MODERN UNITED STATES HISTORY

Semester - Grade 9

Early Modern United States History will focus on the period 1865 to 1930 in United States History. Areas of focus will include Reconstruction, beginnings of the African American civil rights movement, women's suffrage, western migration and Native Americans, Spanish-American War, World War I, and the growth of industry. Emphasis of this course will be on the development of the United States politically, geographically, and culturally. This survey course provides a broad overview of this time period but focuses on aspects of the 19th and early 20th centuries.

PREREQUISITE: None

EARLY MODERN WORLD HISTORY

Semester - Grade 9

Early Modern World History is a course for 9th grade students focusing on developing students' understanding of world history from approximately 1350-1800 within the context of the Renaissance, Reformation, Exploration, Absolutism, Scientific Revolution and Enlightenment. In Early Modern World History students interpret evidence and significant trends in order to understand major developments across the globe. Students will explore how humans have thought, behaved and interacted across the time period in order to develop an understanding of global patterns of change and continuity.

PREREQUISITE:  None

HONORS EARLY MODERN UNITED STATES HISTORY

Semester - Grade 9

Honors Early Modern United States History will focus on the period 1865 to 1930 in United States History. Areas of focus will include Reconstruction, beginnings of the African American civil rights movement, women's suffrage, western migration and Native Americans, Spanish-American War, World War I, and the growth of industry. Emphasis of this course will be on the development of the United States politically, geographically, and culturally. This survey course provides a broad overview of this time period but focuses on aspects of the 19th and early 20th centuries.

Honors Early Modern United States History is specifically designed to provide students with a learning experience to prepare students for future Advanced Placement history courses. In addition to covering the topics that comprise Early Modern United States History, students will have the opportunity to develop and refine a number skills necessary for a successful transition into Advanced Placement courses including independent note-taking and writing responses graded with AP rubrics. Students will also learn to analyze point of view and change over time; construct, support, and evaluate arguments; and manage time and organization in a faster-paced learning environment.

PREREQUISITE:  None

HONORS ANCIENT WORLD HISTORY                                  

Semester - Grade 9

Honors Ancient World History is a course for 9th grade students focusing on developing students' understanding of world history from ancient times to about the 14th Century within the context of the different cultures in different parts of the world. In Honors Ancient World History students interpret evidence and significant trends in order to understand major developments across the globe. Students will explore how humans have thought, behaved and interacted across the time period in order to develop an understanding of global patterns of change and continuity.

Honors Ancient World History is specifically designed to provide students with a learning experience to prepare students for future Advanced Placement history courses. Students will have the opportunity to develop and refine a number skills necessary for a successful transition into Advanced Placement courses including independent note-taking and writing responses graded with AP rubrics. Students will also learn to analyze point of view and change over time; construct, support, and evaluate arguments; and manage time and organization in a faster-paced learning environment.

PREREQUISITE:  NONE

HONORS EARLY MODERN WORLD HISTORY

Semester - Grade 9

Honors Early Modern World History is a course for 9th grade students focusing on developing students' understanding of world history from approximately 1350-1800 within the context of the Renaissance, Reformation, Exploration, Absolutism, Scientific Revolution and Enlightenment. In Honors Early Modern History students interpret evidence and significant trends in order to understand major developments across the globe. Students will explore how humans have thought, behaved and interacted across the time period in order to develop an understanding of global patterns of change and continuity.

Honors Early Modern History is specifically designed to provide students with a learning experience to prepare students for future Advanced Placement history courses. In addition to covering the topics that comprise Early Modern History, students will have the opportunity to develop and refine a number skills necessary for a successful transition into Advanced Placement courses including independent note-taking and writing responses graded with AP rubrics. Students will also learn to analyze point of view and change over time; construct, support, and evaluate arguments; and manage time and organization in a faster-paced learning environment..

PREREQUISITE:  NONE

MODERN WORLD HISTORY

Full Year - Grades 10

Modern World History is a year-long, required course that is taken at the sophomore level. The course examines the development of the modern world by exploring social, political and economic changes and developments throughout the 18th, 19th and 20th centuries. Students will learn about the French Revolution and Napoleon, Industrial Revolution, Imperialism, and World War I. Studying Modern World History is important for students to better understand the development of the modern world. They will do this by examining major world events and the lasting impact they have created. Students will participate in a variety of learning mechanisms, such as research, problem based learning, activities, and assessments.

PREREQUISITE: None

AP® EUROPEAN HISTORY

Full Year - Grades 10-12

Advanced Placement (AP) European History focuses on developing students’ understanding of European history from approximately 1450 to the present. In this course students investigate the content of European history for significant events, individuals, developments and processes in four historical periods and develop and use the same thinking skills and methods employed by historians when they study the past. The course also provides seven themes that students explore throughout the course in order to make connections among historical developments in different times and places. Within each period, key concepts organize and prioritize historical developments and Historical Thinking Skills describe what students should be able to do while exploring key concepts. Historical Thinking Skills allow students to make connections and identify patterns and trends over time. Students are expected to take the AP European History exam. College credit is available depending on the score a student receives on the AP test.

PREREQUISITE:  Honors World History 1 or 2, Honors Ancient World History, Honors Early Modern History, or Honors Early Modern United States History; 3.2 GPA, or teacher recommendation.

MODERN U.S. HISTORY   

Full Year - Grade 11

In the first semester of this course, junior-level students will study American History from the late 19th through the early 21st century. Students will focus on the social, political, and economic trends and developments that continue to shape the United States. This course will examine the growth of the federal government, the rise of American military power, the emergence of the United States as a global leader, and continuities and changes in American society. By examining these themes, students will gain an understanding of the complex issues that continue to shape the United States. 

In the second semester of this course, junior-level students will study American History from the 20th through the early 21st century. Students will focus on the social, political, and economic trends and developments that continue to shape the United States. This course will examine the growth of the federal government, the rise of American military power, the emergence of the United States as a global leader, and continuities and changes in American society. By examining these themes, students will gain an understanding of the complex issues that continue to shape the United States.

PREREQUISITE:  None

MODERN UNITED STATES HISTORY-PERSONALIZED LEARNING

Full Year-Grade 11

Students in this course will cover the same topics as Modern US History but will demonstrate their learning through personalized learning projects. Student projects will focus on the social, political, and economic trends and developments that continue to shape the United States. In the first semester of this course, junior-level students will study American History from the late 19th through the early 21st century. This course will examine the growth of the federal government, the rise of American military power, the emergence of the United States as a global leader, and continuities and changes in American society. By examining these themes, students will gain an understanding of the complex issues that continue to shape the United States. Students should choose to take this course because they have an interest in using the principles of personalized learning demonstrate their progress.

PREREQUISITE: None

AP® UNITED STATES HISTORY

Full Year - Grades 11-12 

The Advanced Placement (AP) United States History course covers important content and major themes of American history from European Exploration to Reconstruction. Students will utilize historical reasoning skills to develop an understanding of the political institutions, social and cultural developments, diplomacy, and economic trends in American history. Because this course is the equivalent of a college course, textbooks and instruction will follow the recommendations of the College Board. Students are expected to take the AP United States History exam. College credit is available depending on the score a student receives on the AP test.

PREREQUISITE: 3.2 GPA, or  teacher recommendation

GOVERNMENT

Semester - Grade 12

Government class studies the structure of the United States Government and the requirements and responsibilities of United States citizenship. Students will also study the politics and elections process of the government as well as study Missouri's state government. It fulfills the state requirements that students pass a course on the United States Government and also fulfills the requirement that students pass the United States and Missouri Constitution Tests and the United States Citizenship test requirement.

PREREQUISITE:  None

AP® UNITED STATES GOVERNMENT

Full Year - Grade 12 

Advanced Placement (AP) United States Government and Politics provides a college-level, nonpartisan introduction to key political concepts, ideas, institutions, policies, interactions, roles, and behaviors that characterize the constitutional system and political culture of the United States. Students will study United States foundational documents, Supreme Court decisions, and other texts and visuals to gain an understanding of the relationships and interactions among political institutions, processes, and behaviors. They will also engage in disciplinary practices that require them to read and interpret data, make comparisons and applications, and develop evidence-based arguments. Because this course is the equivalent of a college course, textbooks and instruction will follow the recommendations of the College Board. Students are expected to take the AP United States Government and Politics exam. College credit is available depending on the score a student receives on the AP test.

PREREQUISITE:  3.2 GPA, OR 2.8 GPA with Teacher Recommendation

AFRICAN AMERICAN HISTORY              

Semester - Grades 10-12

African American History is an elective, social studies course. This course will help students acquire knowledge and skills to think analytically about how the political and social struggles of African Americans have shaped modern society. The purpose of this course is to help students understand the African American experience from the end of the 1400s to the dawn of the new millennium.

PREREQUISITE: None

ANTHROPOLOGY

Semester- Grade 9-12

This course is an introduction to the discipline of Anthropology. Anthropologists explore and try to understand humanity in all its biological and cultural diversity. To do that, anthropologists study people and their societies both in the past and present. Anthropologists study all aspects of humans, including our evolution, cultures, languages, histories, health, and genetics. This course will provide students with a broad overview of the discipline and explores questions about what it means to be human.

PREREQUISITE:  None

College Credit/AP® PSYCHOLOGY

Full Year- Grades 11-12

The Advanced Placement (AP) Psychology course introduces students to the systematic and scientific study of human behavior and mental processes. While considering the psychologists and studies that have shaped the field, students explore and apply psychological theories, key concepts, and phenomena associated with such topics as the biological bases of behavior, sensation and perception, learning and cognition, motivation, developmental psychology, testing and individual differences, treatments of psychological disorders, and social psychology. Throughout the course, students employ psychological research methods, including ethical considerations, as they use the scientific method, evaluate claims and evidence, and effectively communicate ideas. The AP Psychology course is designed to be the equivalent of the Introduction to Psychology course usually taken during the first college year. Students are expected to take the AP Psychology exam. College credit is available depending on the score a student receives on the AP test.

PREREQUISITE:  Junior or senior with teacher recommendation

AP AFRICAN AMERICAN STUDIES 

Year Long-Grades 10-12

Advanced Placement African American Studies in an interdisciplinary course that examines the diversity of African American experiences through direct encounters with authentic and varied sources. Students explore key topics that extend from early African kingdoms to the ongoing challenges and achievements of the contemporary moment. This course foregrounds a study of the diversity of Black communities in the United States within the broader context of Africa and the African diaspora. Because this course is the equivalent of a college course, textbooks and instruction will follow the recommendations of the College Board. Students are expected to take the AP African American Studies exam. College credit is available depending on the score a student receives on the AP test.

PREREQUISITE: Teacher Recommendation

COMPARATIVE STUDIES IN GENOCIDE

Semester - Grade 11-12

This course will examine the development, rationale, underlying causes, evolution, varieties, and strategies of confronting and coming to terms with genocide. We will discuss the phenomenon of genocide by examining topics such as the mass murder of Armenians in the Ottoman Empire, Stalin’s terror, the Jewish Holocaust, Cambodia and the Khmer Rouge, Bosnia and Kosovo, Rwanda, and Darfur.

PREREQUISITE:  “Junior” standing due to the maturity needed to address the aspects of these events.

CONTEMPORARY ISSUES

Semester - Grades 9-12

In this course students will learn about and reflect on the issues of today. Students will learn about social issues, political issues, and economic issues to become better informed about the United States and the world and the ways in which these complex issues interact and impact people, cultures, and regions. Students will use media sources such as television, radio, newspapers, magazines, and journals to explore social institutions, controversial issues, change in the modern world, and perceptions and perspectives of people within that world.

PREREQUISITE:  None

ECONOMICS

Semester - Grades 9-12

In this course students will learn about economics at the international, national, local, and personal level to provide a better understanding of the production, consumption, and transfer of wealth. Students will learn about basic economic theory and will apply it to real-life situations. Students will learn about economic systems, the law of supply and demand, and the role of the Federal Reserve.

PREREQUISITE:  None

GEOGRAPHY

Semester - Grades 9-12

This semester-long elective course will delve into geography through two major areas of study. In the first third of the course students will learn about the techniques and tools of geography and how the earth developed over time. Students will study how earth evolved to its present day state and how geography describes the present world. The last two-thirds of the course will include a study of the earth by region providing students the opportunity to gain a basic knowledge of the major regions of the earth.

PREREQUISITE:  None

HISTORICAL ANCESTRY

Semester - Grades 11-12

Historical Ancestry is a research-based course for 11th and 12th graders. Students will utilize electronic, print, and human resources to build an in-depth family history. Through the course of research students will discover facts about their own ancestry and the events that shaped and impacted that history. Students will present and publish their research at the conclusion of the course. Students taking Historical Ancestry need to have the ability to work independently, utilize good research skills, manage their work time wisely.

PREREQUISITE: None

HISTORY OF ST. LOUIS

Semester - Grades 10-12

This course will provide an expansive overview of the history of St. Louis. Students will trace the course of development of this small 18th century French trading post as it develops into a major metropolis during the Gilded Age in American history. The end of the course will be an examination of the city, as it now exists through successes and failures. The course will discuss individuals who were important to the development of the city, but will emphasize the significant contributions (e.g.: architecture, music, art) of the culturally diverse people who have made the city of St. Louis what it is today. The course will conclude with ideas of how conflict and cooperation have played key roles in the development of social, political, and economic systems and movements in contemporary and future issues that have and could further develop the city and surrounding communities.

PREREQUISITE: None

HISTORY THROUGH ART                                  

Semester - Grades 10-12 (Not an NCAA approved course)

This course offers the motivated student the opportunity to explore, in depth, the history of art from ancient times to the present and across the globe. Through readings, research, slides, videos, and museum visits, students will view significant artworks from around the world that match designated themes. Once each theme is presented, students will have the opportunity to research additional works that interest them and match the assigned topic. Using student choice and personalized learning strategies, students will get to research pieces, artists, and subjects that directly interest them. Research and writing skills will be important in the description, analysis, and comparison of these works. Students will be responsible for a digital portfolio that follows the thematic layout of the class. The digital portfolio in addition to midterm and final presentations will serve as the major grades/assessments for the course.

PREREQUISITE: None

MYTHOLOGY

Semester - Grades 9-12

Mythology is a semester long elective course that is offered through the Social Studies department. The course includes a survey of major myths of Greek, Roman, and Norse antiquity, including the appropriate gods, heroes and heroines. The mythology will be explored in various ways, including reading primary source, epic poems, classical plays, art, and the architecture of ancient Greece and Rome. Students will learn appropriate names and terms important to the study of Greek, Roman, and Norse mythology. Students will examine how mythical allusions, archetypes, and themes enrich literature, art, and film.

PREREQUISITE: None

POST WORLD WAR II AMERICAN CULTURE   

Semester - Grades 11-12

This junior and senior level course is an in-depth study of American culture in the mid to late 20th century. Students will focus on the historical and social events that impact American culture and explore how cultural products from the time reflected or influenced the dominant cultural trends. Students will identify and analyze music, film, television, and other cultural products to gain an understanding of the continuities and changes in American culture in the decades following World War II.

PREREQUISITE: Modern United States History, or currently enrolled

PSYCHOLOGY

Semester - Grades 11-12

Psychology is a semester-long course offered to juniors and seniors who are interested in human behavior and learning. Students will explore psychology methods and research, biology and behavior, learning, memory and disorders. Studying psychology is important in order to better understand how and why people think and behave as they do. Students will learn in a variety of ways: readings, videos, research, discussion, problem based learning, simulations, activities, and assessments. Students who enjoy and perform well in this course will be prepared to take Psychology 2.

PREREQUISITE:  None

PSYCHOLOGY 2

Semester - Grades 11-12

Psychology 2 is a semester-long course offered to juniors and seniors who are interested in human behavior and learning. Students will continue their exploration of topics begun in Psychology. They will explore goals, methods and breakdowns of adapting to life in a modern society. Topics discussed will include, motivation, emotion, stress, and psychological disorders. Students will learn in a variety of ways: readings, videos, research, discussion, problem based learning, simulations, activities, and assessments.

PREREQUISITE:  Completion of Psychology  with a “C” or better

SOCIOLOGY

Semester - Grades 10-12

This is an era of unprecedented growth in the size, pressure and complexity of human society. In any society today, there are people who want to preserve the status quo and there are others who want to make drastic changes. This course offers ways to recognize and understand conflicts, ways to evaluate our own membership in the many groups to which we belong, and ways to promote and influence our future. This course studies culture and how groups function in our culture. Students examine such topics as the process of socialization, development of culture, social institutions, collective behavior, social problems, social change, and conformity. Students will do independent study in areas of their own interest and then share the results of such study in small group discussion and/or class discussion.

PREREQUISITE:  None

TURNING POINTS: CASE STUDIES IN AMERICAN HISTORY

Semester-Grades 11-12

Turning Points: Case Studies in American History is a course modeled after the Harvard Business School Case Method. Cases cover key topics across American history from the Constitutional Convention to the modern Civil Rights Movement and beyond. Each case is centered around a historical dilemma or challenge to American democracy. Using inquiry skills, students act as historical investigators to uncover the facts of the case and have to decide a course of action for each historical dilemma. This course offers a collaborative approach to American history and promotes life long civic engagement.

PREREQUISITE: None

WORLD WAR II

Semester - Grades 10- 12

The World War II course will present a detailed study of the greatest conflict in human history from 1939 to 1945. The course will concentrate on the causes of World War II, the course of the war in Asia, Africa, Europe, and America, and the war's aftermath. Additionally the course will focus on social, technological, and political changes the occurred as a result of the war.

PREREQUISITE:  None

YOUTH AND LAW

Semester - Grades 9-12

This course examines the individual and his/her relationships to the legal system, the effect of such relationships, and how the legal system can be changed. Also studied are the following agencies: the courts, police, law-making bodies, and the government, which have an effect on the individual.

PREREQUISITE:  None