Maine Social Studies Standards

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Middle Grades (5-8), History

Students will use the chronology of history and major eras to demonstrate the relationships of events and people. Students will be able to:

• Describe the effects of historical changes on daily life.
• Identify the sequence of major events and people in the history of Maine, the United States, and selected world civilizations. (See suggested list below from "Secondary Grades".)
Eras in United States History
• The Americas to 1600
• The Colonial Era, 1500-1754
• The Revolutionary Era, 1754-1783
• Nation Building, 1783-1815
• The Expanding Nation, 1815-1850
• Civil War and Reconstruction, 1850-1877
• Development of the Industrial United States, 1865-1914
• The Progressive Era, 1890-1914
• Emergence of the United States as a World Power, 1890-1920
• The '20's: Prosperity and Problems
• Depression and The New Deal, 1929-1941
• World War II and Post War United States, 1939-1961
• Contemporary United States, 1961-Present

Eras in World History
• Emergence of Civilization to 1000 BC
• The Classical Civilizations of the Mediterranean Basin, India, and China, 1000 BC-600 AD
• The Expansion and Interaction of Civilizations, 600 AD-1450 AD
• The Early Modern World, 1450-1800
• The World in the Nineteenth Century
• The World in the Contemporary Era

• Trace simultaneous events in various parts of the world during a specific era.
• EXAMPLE: Select a significant figure from Maine history and research the period of his or her life to discover what events that person might have witnessed or participated in.
• Trace movements of pastoral peoples (e.g., the Hebrews, Turks, Huns, Mongols) by examining references to them in the chronologies of other peoples, using these references to build a time-line specifically for the group chosen.

Students will develop historical knowledge of major events, people, and enduring themes in the United States, in Maine, and throughout world history. Students will be able to:

• Demonstrate an understanding of the causes and effects of major events in United States history and the connections to Maine history with an emphasis on events up to 1877, including but not limited to:
• Declaration of Independence
• The Constitution
• Westward Expansion
• Industrialization
• Civil War
• Demonstrate an understanding of selected themes in Maine, United States, and world history (e.g., revolution, technological innovation, migration).
• Demonstrate an understanding of selected turning points in ancient and medieval world history and the continuing influence of major civilizations of the past.
• Demonstrate an understanding of selected twentieth century issues and events in United States and in Maine history including "modern" Maine history (1945 to present).

Students will learn to evaluate resource material such as documents, artifacts, maps, artworks, and literature, and to make judgments about the perspectives of the authors and their credibility when interpreting current historical events. Students will be able to:

• Judge the accuracy of historical fiction by comparing the characters and events described with descriptions in multiple primary sources.
• Explain why historical accounts of the same event sometimes differ and relate this explanation to the evidence presented by the author or the point of view of the author.
• Use information from a variety of primary and secondary sources to identify and support a point of view on a controversial historical topic.
• Identify ethnic and cultural perspectives missing from an historical account and describe these points of view.
• Formulate historical questions based on examination of primary and secondary sources including documents, eyewitness accounts, letters and diaries, artifacts, real or simulated historical sites, charts, graphs, diagrams, and written texts.