U.S. History

Grade Level: Elementary (1st-4th grades)

Prerequisites: None

Text: Our Star-Spangled Story by Charlene Notgrass, Bethany Poore, and Mary Evelyn McCurdy

Curriculum Publisher: Notgrass History

Course Description:
This course is a one-year American history survey for students in grades one through four. The course discusses topics from the time of native peoples in North America at the time of European exploration and settlement into the 21st century. The curriculum features simple lessons with easy-to-follow instructions, full-color photographs and illustrations, and engaging supplemental activities. Star-Spangled Rhythms and Rhymes is a collection of poems, songs, and dances from throughout American history that students read as assignments. You also get access to audio recordings of the collection to stream or download. Students also complete other assignments, including those involving a timeline and a student workbook.

Course Content/Goals/Outline:
Native peoples in North America
European exploration
Settlement of the thirteen British colonies
American Revolution and Constitution
Westward expansion
Slavery and the Underground Railroad
Civil War and Reconstruction
Homesteading
Immigration to the United States
World War I
Great Depression and New Deal
World War II
Civil Rights
Conservation
Space exploration
Vietnam War
Cold War
Computers and the Internet
Persian Gulf War
September 11, 2001
Modern homeschooling movement
Many lessons highlight individuals who participated in American history in various ways (e.g., Thomas Gallaudet and education for the deaf; John Ross, a Cherokee chief; Clara Barton and the Red Cross; Liliuokalani, last Queen of Hawaii; and Ozzie and Harriet Nelson, radio and TV entertainers)

Types of Assessment Used:
Creative writing/drawing assignments
Map assignments
Projects
Review quizzes