The Westfield Social Studies eighth grade curriculum provides students with opportunities to acquire knowledge about United States history and civics by

engaging students in activities that increase their capacities to think reflectively and to identify, interpret, assess, evaluate, and draw conclusions regarding the

continuing issues and problems that confront the United States. Students examine how a participatory democracy functions and the role of individuals and

groups in preserving natural rights. Students will also apply their understanding of natural rights and the loss of these rights in an interdisciplinary case study of

the Holocaust. Students are challenged to look at primary and secondary sources from multiple perspectives to answer analytical questions. Emphasis is

placed on themes present in their daily lives such as conflict, authority, and identity. As students think critically about past and present events, they examine

evidence, create inquiries, and analyze cause and effect relationships throughout history. The examination of social, political, geographic, and economic factors

through conflict analysis and context application provides students with the tools necessary for understanding the issues of our world today. In every unit,

students develop their argumentative writing using historical thinking skills of sourcing, close reading, contextualization, and corroboration. This is in

conjunction with New Jersey Student Learning Standards for Social Studies and English Language Arts.