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What does a student learn in ?

High school social studies is when students stop memorizing dates and start arguing with the past. Students read original documents, weigh who wrote them and why, and back up their own claims with evidence. They work through U.S. history from the Revolution to 2008, the Constitution and how courts have reshaped it, world history since 1300, and how maps and resources shape economies. By spring, students can read a primary source, judge how trustworthy it is, and defend a position in writing.

  • Primary sources
  • U.S. Constitution
  • U.S. history
  • World history
  • Civil rights
  • Economics and personal finance
  • World geography
Source: Louisiana Louisiana Student Standards
Year at a glance
How the year usually goes. Every school and district set their own curriculum, so treat this as a guide, not official pacing.
  1. 1

    Founding ideas and the new republic

    Students start with how the United States was built. They read the Declaration of Independence and the Constitution, look at the thinkers who shaped them, and work out why the founders set up branches that check each other.

  2. 2

    Growth, slavery, and Civil War

    Students follow the country west and into the conflict over slavery. They study Westward Expansion, the lives of enslaved people, the Civil War, and the Reconstruction years that followed.

  3. 3

    Industrial America and world wars

    Students trace the rise of factories, cities, and immigration, then move into World War I, the 1920s, the Great Depression, and World War II. They look at how everyday life and the role of government changed.

  4. 4

    Civil rights and the Cold War

    Students study the fight for civil rights at home and the long standoff with the Soviet Union abroad. They read King's letter and speech, follow key Supreme Court cases, and weigh the choices presidents made from Truman to Reagan.

  5. 5

    Modern America and the world

    Students bring the story up to 2008, including September 11, the Gulf War, new technology, and shifting global ties. They also look at how world regions, governments, and economies connect today.

  6. 6

    Civics and personal finance

    Students learn how government actually runs and how money works in their own lives. They study elections, the three branches, and the courts, then practice budgeting, using credit, and reading a bank statement.

Mastery Learning Standards
The required skills a student should display by the end of Grade 10.
Skills and Practices
  • Examine sources in order to

    9-12.SP1
    High School

    The official standard text appears to be cut off. Could you share the complete text for 9-12.SP1? That will help me write an accurate definition rather than guess at what the standard requires.

  • distinguish between primary, secondary

    9-12.SP1.a
    High School

    Students learn to tell the difference between a firsthand account (a letter, a photo, a speech), a secondhand summary like a textbook, and a reference work that compiles both. The goal is knowing which type of source they are holding before they use it.

  • determine the origin, author's point of view, intended audience

    9-12.SP1.b
    High School

    Students look at a primary or secondary source and ask four questions: Who made this, why did they make it, who was it made for, and can it be trusted?

  • analyze the meaning of words, phrases

    9-12.SP1.c
    High School

    Students read primary sources, news articles, and historical documents closely enough to explain what key terms and phrases actually mean in context, not just their dictionary definitions.

  • Use a variety of primary and secondary sources to

    9-12.SP2
    High School

    Students find and compare original documents like letters or photographs alongside textbooks and articles to build a fuller picture of what happened and why.

  • analyze social studies content

    9-12.SP2.a
    High School

    Students read original documents, news reports, maps, and other sources to piece together a fuller picture of a historical event, issue, or trend. No single source tells the whole story.

  • evaluate claims, counterclaims

    9-12.SP2.b
    High School

    Students read arguments on both sides of a historical or current issue and judge which claims hold up based on the evidence behind them.

  • compare and contrast multiple sources and accounts

    9-12.SP2.c
    High School

    Students read two or more sources on the same event or topic, then explain where those sources agree, where they differ, and why that might matter.

  • explain how the availability of sources affects historical interpretations

    9-12.SP2.d
    High School

    Historians can only work with the sources that survive. Students examine how gaps in the record, such as lost documents or silenced voices, shape the conclusions we draw about the past.

  • Construct and express claims that are supported with relevant evidence from…

    9-12.SP3
    High School

    Students build an argument about a historical or social topic and back it up with real sources and logical reasoning, not just opinion.

  • demonstrate an understanding of social studies content

    9-12.SP3.a
    High School

    Students pull facts and ideas from primary and secondary sources to build an argument, then explain the reasoning behind it clearly enough that someone who disagrees could follow the logic.

  • compare and contrast content and viewpoints

    9-12.SP3.b
    High School

    Students read two sources on the same topic and explain what those sources agree on, where they differ, and why the differences matter.

  • analyze causes and effects

    9-12.SP3.c
    High School

    Students trace why a historical event or social pattern happened and what it led to, using sources and reasoning to connect the cause to the effect.

  • evaluate counterclaims

    9-12.SP3.d
    High School

    Students identify the strongest arguments against their own position, then explain why those arguments do not outweigh their evidence.

High School: Civics
  • Evaluate continuity and change in U.S

    HS.C.1
    High School

    Students trace how American government and civic life have shifted over time, looking at questions like who gets to vote, what rights citizens hold, and how courts have read the Constitution differently across different eras.

  • Analyze causes and effects of events and developments in U.S

    HS.C.2
    High School

    Students trace how major events in U.S. history changed laws, shaped government processes, or pushed people to get more involved in civic life. They look at what caused those changes and what happened as a result.

  • Compare and contrast events and developments in U.S

    HS.C.3
    High School

    Students look at two moments in U.S. history side by side and explain what they share and how they differ. The goal is to see patterns across time, not just memorize dates.

  • Explain connections between ideas, events

    HS.C.4
    High School

    Students connect moments in U.S. history to show how earlier events shaped later ones. They look for patterns that repeat across time, like cycles of protest, reform, or crisis, and explain what those patterns reveal about how American government works.

  • Use geographic representations, demographic data

    HS.C.5
    High School

    Students read maps, population charts, and location-based data to understand real civic questions, like where resources are distributed or how district boundaries are drawn.

  • Use a variety of primary and secondary sources to

    HS.C.6
    High School

    Reading historical documents, news articles, and expert accounts together helps students build a fuller picture of how government and civic life work. Students learn to compare sources and draw their own conclusions.

  • Analyze social studies content

    HS.C.6.a
    High School

    Students read primary sources like speeches and government documents alongside secondary sources like textbooks and news articles, then compare what each one reveals about a historical or civic topic.

  • Evaluate claims, counterclaims

    HS.C.6.b
    High School

    Students read arguments on a civic issue, then judge whether the evidence actually supports the claim and whether opposing arguments have been fairly addressed.

  • Compare and contrast multiple sources and accounts

    HS.C.6.c
    High School

    Students read two or more sources on the same topic and spell out what the sources agree on, where they differ, and why those differences matter.

  • Explain how the availability of sources affects historical interpretations

    HS.C.6.d
    High School

    Students examine why historians reach different conclusions about the same event. When key documents, letters, or records are missing or hard to find, the gaps shape what gets written and what gets left out.

  • Construct and express claims that are supported with relevant evidence from…

    HS.C.7
    High School

    Students build an argument about a civic issue and back it up with real sources like news articles, historical documents, or data. The standard covers how well students can connect their evidence to a clear, logical point.

  • Demonstrate an understanding of social studies content

    HS.C.7.a
    High School

    Students back a claim about a civic topic with facts and sources, then explain the reasoning that connects the evidence to the point they're making.

  • Compare and contrast content and viewpoints

    HS.C.7.b
    High School

    Students read two or more sources on the same topic and explain how the authors' viewpoints agree, differ, and why those differences matter.

  • Analyze causes and effects

    HS.C.7.c
    High School

    Students trace why a law, policy, or historical event happened and what changed because of it, using primary sources and evidence to back up their reasoning.

  • Evaluate counterclaims

    HS.C.7.d
    High School

    Students read opposing arguments and judge how well they hold up, looking for weak reasoning, missing evidence, or assumptions the other side hasn't proven.

  • Analyze factors that influenced the Founding Fathers and the formation and…

    HS.C.8
    High School

    Students examine what shaped the Founding Fathers' thinking, from Enlightenment philosophers to colonial experience, and how those influences shaped the government they built.

  • Describe the purpose of government and competing ideas about the role of…

    HS.C.8.a
    High School

    Students examine why governments exist and how thinkers have disagreed about how much power a government should hold over its people. They compare ideas ranging from minimal government to strong central authority.

  • Compare different systems and structures of government, including…

    HS.C.8.b
    High School

    Students compare how different governments are built and run, looking at who holds power, how laws get made, and whether citizens vote directly or through elected representatives.

  • Explain historical and philosophical factors that influenced the government of…

    HS.C.8.c
    High School

    Students trace how Enlightenment thinkers like Locke and Montesquieu shaped the structure of American government. They also examine how the Great Awakening changed colonial ideas about authority and individual rights.

  • Analyze the foundational documents and ideas of the United States government…

    HS.C.8.d
    High School

    Students trace how documents like the Magna Carta, the Declaration of Independence, and the Federalist Papers shaped the U.S. government. Each text left a visible mark on the Constitution or the rights Americans hold today.

  • Analyze the issues related to various debates, compromises

    HS.C.8.e
    High School

    Students examine the disagreements, deals, and competing proposals that shaped the 1789 Constitution, from how states would be represented in Congress to whether a bill of rights was needed before states would agree to ratify it.

  • Explain how the concept of natural rights that precede politics or government…

    HS.C.8.f
    High School

    Students examine the idea that people are born with certain rights no government can take away, and trace how that belief shaped the Declaration of Independence, the Constitution, and the limits Americans placed on government power.

  • Evaluate the fundamental principles and concepts of the U.S

    HS.C.8.g
    High School

    Students examine the core ideas the U.S. government is built on, from why elections matter and how power is split between branches, to what rights the government cannot take away and why no one, including the government, is above the law.

  • Analyze the structure, roles, responsibilities, powers

    HS.C.9
    High School

    Students break down how the federal, state, and local levels of U.S. government are set up, what each level is responsible for, and where each one's authority begins and ends.

  • Compare and contrast the powers and responsibilities of local, state, tribal

    HS.C.9.a
    High School

    Students compare what local, state, tribal, and federal governments can actually do, who pays for each level, and how those levels work together. They also look at how ordinary people interact with each layer of government in daily life.

  • Explain the structure and processes of the U.S

    HS.C.9.b
    High School

    Students explain how the federal government is organized: the three branches, how power is split between the federal and state governments, how a bill passes into law, and how the Constitution gets amended.

  • Analyze the structure, powers

    HS.C.9.c
    High School

    Students examine how Congress is organized and what it actually does: passing laws, approving budgets, and declaring war. They also study how individual members, committee chairs, and leaders like the Speaker of the House each fit into that work.

  • Analyze the structure, powers

    HS.C.9.d
    High School

    The executive branch runs the federal government day to day. Students examine what the president, vice president, and Cabinet actually do, how the president signs orders, negotiates with other countries, and what keeps the White House from having unchecked power.

  • Analyze the structure, powers

    HS.C.9.e
    High School

    Federal courts interpret laws and decide whether they follow the Constitution. Students examine how judges are nominated and confirmed, where the power of judicial review came from, and why courts generally follow earlier rulings when deciding new cases.

  • Evaluate the reasoning for Supreme Court decisions and their political, social

    HS.C.9.f
    High School

    Students read landmark Supreme Court rulings, weigh the Court's reasoning, and trace how each decision changed American law, politics, and daily life. Cases range from Marbury v. Madison in 1803 to Citizens United in 2010.

  • Analyze how the Constitution has been interpreted and applied over time by the…

    HS.C.9.g
    High School

    The Constitution does not explain every situation, so courts, Congress, and presidents have long disagreed about how literally to read it. Students study real cases and decisions that show how those interpretations have shifted and what difference they make today.

  • Analyze how federal, state

    HS.C.9.h
    High School

    Federal, state, and local governments collect money through taxes and fees, then decide where it goes: schools, roads, courts, and other public services. Students examine how those budget decisions get made and who has authority at each level.

  • Analyze continuity and change in the Louisiana State Constitution over time

    HS.C.9.i
    High School

    Louisiana has had multiple state constitutions. Students study how the current one has changed over time and what it shares with the U.S. Constitution, and where the two documents differ on rights, structure, and government powers.

  • Explain the historical connections between Civil Law, the Napoleonic Code

    HS.C.9.j
    High School

    Louisiana's legal system traces back to French and Spanish rule, not English common law. Students explain how the Napoleonic Code shaped Louisiana's civil law traditions and why the state's laws still differ from every other state in the country.

  • Evaluate how civil rights and civil liberties in the United States have…

    HS.C.10
    High School

    Students trace how rights like free speech, voting, and equal treatment have expanded or been defended over time through laws, court decisions, and constitutional amendments.

  • Explain how the U.S. Constitution protects individual liberties and rights

    HS.C.10.a
    High School

    The Constitution sets limits on what the government can do to individuals. Students study specific protections, like free speech and due process, and explain how those rules have shaped what rights Americans can and cannot claim.

  • Analyze the rights enumerated in the Bill of Rights and their application to…

    HS.C.10.b
    High School

    Students read the first ten amendments to the Constitution and trace how those rights, such as free speech or the right to a fair trial, have shaped real legal disputes from the founding era to today.

  • Evaluate restrictions and expansions of civil liberties and civil rights in the…

    HS.C.10.c
    High School

    Students trace how American rights have expanded and shrunk over time, examining landmark laws, court rulings, and presidential orders, from the post-Civil War amendments through the Voting Rights Act, and explaining what Congress, the president, and the courts each did to shape those changes.

  • Describe equal protection and due process as defined by the U.S

    HS.C.10.d
    High School

    Equal protection means the government must treat everyone the same under the law. Students examine how Jim Crow laws in the South defied that promise for decades, and how the Constitution's guarantees were twisted or ignored to keep Black Americans out of schools, courtrooms, and polling places.

  • Analyze political processes and the role of public participation in the United…

    HS.C.11
    High School

    Students examine how elections, lawmaking, and civic action shape government decisions. The focus is on what real participation looks like and why it matters.

  • Analyze the duties and responsibilities of citizens in the United States…

    HS.C.11.a
    High School

    Citizens in the United States have legal duties and civic responsibilities. Students examine what those look like in practice: filing taxes, showing up for jury duty, following the law, casting a ballot, and registering for the draft at 18.

  • Describe U.S. citizenship requirements and the naturalization process in the…

    HS.C.11.b
    High School

    Students learn what it takes to become a U.S. citizen, including the steps someone born outside the country must go through to earn citizenship through naturalization.

  • Explain historical and contemporary roles of political parties, special…

    HS.C.11.c
    High School

    Students explain what political parties, interest groups, and lobbyists actually do in U.S. politics, both today and in the past. The focus is on how these groups try to shape laws and elections.

  • Explain rules governing campaign finance and spending and their effects on the…

    HS.C.11.d
    High School

    Campaign finance rules set limits on who can donate money to a political candidate and how much. Students study how those rules shape which candidates can run competitively and who ends up winning local, state, and federal elections.

  • Explain election processes at the local, state

    HS.C.11.e
    High School

    Elections in the U.S. work differently depending on whether the race is local, state, or national. Students learn who can vote, how candidates qualify for office, how primaries work, and how the Electoral College shapes presidential elections.

  • Analyze issues and challenges of the election process, including gerrymandering

    HS.C.11.g
    High School

    Students examine real problems in how elections are run, such as how district lines get drawn to favor one party, who actually shows up to vote, and which rules make it easier or harder to cast a ballot.

  • Evaluate how the media affects politics and public opinion, including how…

    HS.C.11.h
    High School

    Students examine how news coverage, social media, and political advertising shape what the public believes, and how elected officials use those same outlets to push their message.

  • Evaluate the advantages and disadvantages of technologies in politics and…

    HS.C.11.i
    High School

    Students weigh how social media, news algorithms, and campaign ads shape what voters see and believe. They look at whether these tools make it easier or harder to find reliable information and take part in public debate.

  • Evaluate the processes for drawing Louisiana's congressional districts and…

    HS.C.11.j
    High School

    Students look at how Louisiana's congressional district lines are drawn, who draws them, and how those boundary decisions shape which candidates win local and national elections.

  • Describe local and parish governments in Louisiana, including police juries and…

    HS.C.11.k
    High School

    Students learn how Louisiana's local governments are set up, including what a police jury does (it's the governing body many parishes use instead of a county commission) and how some communities write their own home rule charters to set local rules.

  • Analyze the issues of foreign and domestic policy of the United States

    HS.C.12
    High School

    Students study how the U.S. government makes decisions at home, like taxes and healthcare, and abroad, like trade and military alliances. They look at why those choices get made and what happens when they do.

  • Distinguish between foreign and domestic policies

    HS.C.12.a
    High School

    Foreign policy covers how the U.S. deals with other countries; domestic policy covers decisions made at home. Students compare major examples of each, from immigration rules and healthcare law to foreign aid and military action abroad.

  • Analyze the development, implementation

    HS.C.12.b
    High School

    Students trace how a U.S. policy, such as a trade deal or immigration law, came to be, what changed because of it, and how pressure from other countries shaped the debate at home.

  • Analyze interactions between the United States and other nations over time and…

    HS.C.12.c
    High School

    Students trace how U.S. relationships with other countries have changed over time and what those shifts produced at home and abroad. Think wars, treaties, trade deals, and diplomatic standoffs.

  • Explain the origins and purpose of international organizations and agreements…

    HS.C.12.d
    High School

    Groups like the United Nations and trade agreements like USMCA exist for a reason. Students study why those organizations were created, what they are supposed to do, and how the United States works alongside other countries to solve political and economic problems together.

  • Describe the development of and challenges to international law after World War…

    HS.C.12.e
    High School

    Students study how countries tried to create rules for war, human rights, and genocide after World War II, and examine why those rules are hard to enforce when governments refuse to follow them.

  • Explain elements of the United States economy within a global context and…

    HS.C.13
    High School

    Students learn how the U.S. economy connects to the rest of the world and how basic economic principles apply to real financial choices, like budgeting, borrowing, and understanding trade.

  • Explain ideas presented in Adam Smith's "The Wealth of Nations," including his…

    HS.C.13.a
    High School

    Students read Adam Smith's core argument: that when people pursue their own economic interests, markets tend to produce goods and prices that benefit society without anyone planning it. This idea is the "invisible hand."

  • Compare and contrast capitalism and socialism as economic systems

    HS.C.13.b
    High School

    Students look at how capitalism and socialism work differently: who owns businesses, who sets prices, and how resources get distributed. The goal is to weigh the trade-offs of each system, not just name them.

  • Describe different perspectives on the role of government regulation in the…

    HS.C.13.c
    High School

    Students examine why some people think government should set rules for businesses and markets, while others think those rules do more harm than good. The focus is on understanding both sides, not picking one.

  • Analyze the role of government institutions in developing and implementing…

    HS.C.13.d
    High School

    Students examine how government decisions, like setting tax rates or regulating industries, shape what gets bought, sold, and produced. They also look at what happens when those policies produce results nobody planned for.

  • Explain the factors that influence the production and distribution of goods by…

    HS.C.13.e
    High School

    Market systems sort businesses into structures based on how much competition exists. Students learn how prices, supply, demand, credit, and the four factors of production shape what gets made, who makes it, and how it reaches buyers.

  • Explain ways in which competition, free enterprise

    HS.C.13.f
    High School

    Competition, free enterprise, and government rules all shape which goods get made, who gets them, and at what price. Students explain how those forces play out inside the U.S. economy and what happens abroad when they shift.

  • Explain the effects of specialization and trade on the production, distribution

    HS.C.13.g
    High School

    When countries or businesses focus on what they do best and trade for the rest, goods get produced more efficiently and spread more widely. Students explain how that process shapes what people can buy, what businesses sell, and what societies depend on from abroad.

  • Apply economic principles to make sound personal financial decisions, including…

    HS.C.14
    High School

    Students learn to make real financial decisions: how to handle a paycheck, build a budget, use credit without getting buried in debt, and start saving or investing for the future.

  • Explain the relationship between education, training

    HS.C.14.a
    High School

    Students examine how the level of education or job training a person completes connects to the kinds of jobs available to them and how much those jobs tend to pay.

  • Apply given financial data to real life situations such as balancing a checking…

    HS.C.14.b
    High School

    Students practice reading a bank statement, balancing a checking account, and spotting signs of consumer fraud. The goal is applying real numbers to real decisions before those decisions carry real consequences.

  • Explain the benefits and risks of using credit and examine the various uses

    HS.C.14.c
    High School

    Students learn how borrowing money through credit cards or loans can help cover large purchases but also lead to debt if not managed carefully.

  • Compare types of credit, savings, investment

    HS.C.14.d
    High School

    Students learn to tell apart credit cards, loans, savings accounts, and insurance plans, and figure out which banks, credit unions, or other institutions offer the best deal for their situation.

  • Create a budget and explain its importance in achieving personal financial…

    HS.C.14.e
    High School

    Students build a personal budget and explain how staying within it helps them reach financial goals and avoid debt or shortfalls.

High School: United States History
  • Analyze ideas and events in the history of the United States of America from…

    HS.US.1
    High School

    Students trace how key ideas and events in American history shifted, stayed the same, or built on each other from the founding era through the early 2000s.

  • Analyze connections between events and developments in U.S

    HS.US.2
    High School

    Students look at major moments in U.S. history and ask what was happening in the rest of the world at the same time. They practice seeing American events not as isolated facts but as part of a larger global story.

  • Compare and contrast events and developments in U.S

    HS.US.3
    High School

    Students look at two or more events from American history and explain what they had in common and how they differed. The comparison can span any period from the Revolution through the early 2000s.

  • Use geographic representations and demographic data to analyze environmental…

    HS.US.4
    High School

    Students read maps, graphs, and population data to explain why places look, work, and vote the way they do, and how those patterns shift over time.

  • Use a variety of primary and secondary sources to

    HS.US.5
    High School

    Primary sources are firsthand records like letters, speeches, and photographs. Secondary sources are accounts written later, like textbooks and articles. Students learn to read both types critically and use them together to build an argument about history.

  • Analyze social studies content

    HS.US.5.a
    High School

    Students read firsthand accounts, photographs, government documents, and history books to figure out what actually happened, why it happened, and what it meant.

  • Evaluate claims, counterclaims

    HS.US.5.b
    High School

    Students read historical arguments and weigh the evidence on each side, checking whether the facts actually support the claim and where the opposing view falls short.

  • Compare and contrast multiple sources and accounts

    HS.US.5.c
    High School

    Students read two or more sources covering the same event and explain where those sources agree, where they differ, and why the differences might exist.

  • Explain how the availability of sources affects historical interpretations

    HS.US.5.d
    High School

    When historians have only a few letters, photos, or records to work from, their conclusions are shaped by those gaps. Students learn why two accounts of the same event can differ based on which sources survived.

  • Construct and express claims that are supported with relevant evidence from…

    HS.US.6
    High School

    Students build an argument about a historical topic and back it up with real sources, like letters, photographs, or textbooks. The claim needs clear reasoning, not just a fact dropped on the page.

  • Demonstrate an understanding of social studies content

    HS.US.6.a
    High School

    Claims about history need more than an opinion. Students back up their arguments with facts drawn from sources like speeches, maps, photographs, or textbooks, then explain clearly why the evidence supports what they're saying.

  • Compare and contrast content and viewpoints

    HS.US.6.b
    High School

    Students read two sources on the same event or issue, then explain how the authors' main points and perspectives are alike and where they differ.

  • Analyze causes and effects

    HS.US.6.c
    High School

    Students trace what caused a major event in U.S. history and what happened as a result, backing up their explanation with primary or secondary sources and solid reasoning.

  • Evaluate counterclaims

    HS.US.6.d
    High School

    Students identify the strongest argument against their own position and explain why the evidence still supports their original claim.

  • Analyze the development of the United States from the American Revolution…

    HS.US.7
    High School

    Students trace how the United States went from declaring independence to building a working government, covering the Revolution, the Constitutional Convention, and the early decisions that shaped how the country runs today.

  • Explain the historical context of and the events leading to the signing of the…

    HS.US.7.a
    High School

    Students trace the chain of events that pushed colonists toward independence, from the Boston Massacre and Tea Party to Lexington and Concord, connecting each flashpoint to the frustrations that made the Declaration of Independence possible.

  • Explain the key reasons for the Patriots' improbable victory and analyze major…

    HS.US.7.b
    High School

    Students explain why the American colonists won the Revolutionary War despite long odds, and study turning-point battles like Trenton, Saratoga, and Yorktown to see how each shifted the course of the conflict.

  • Analyze the Declaration of Independence and evaluate how the ideas expressed…

    HS.US.7.c
    High School

    Students read the Declaration of Independence and examine what phrases like "inalienable rights" and "consent of the governed" actually meant. They consider how those ideas challenged rule by a king and shaped the government the founders built afterward.

  • Explain how America's founding, based on the words of the Declaration of…

    HS.US.7.d
    High School

    The Declaration of Independence and the Constitution introduced ideas about individual rights and self-government that no national founding document had spelled out before. Students explain what made those choices new and why they mattered.

  • Explain the inadequacies of the Articles of Confederation

    HS.US.7.e
    High School

    The Articles of Confederation was the country's first rulebook after independence, but it left Congress unable to collect taxes, settle disputes between states, or field a standing army. Students explain why those gaps made it nearly impossible to govern.

  • Analyze the purposes of the Preamble of the Constitution

    HS.US.7.f
    High School

    Students read the Preamble to the Constitution and explain what each phrase means in plain terms. The goal is to understand why the founders wrote it and what problems they were trying to solve.

  • Evaluate how the U.S

    HS.US.7.g
    High School

    Students examine how the Constitution splits power between branches of government and across levels so no single person or group can take control. The Bill of Rights names the specific freedoms government cannot take away.

  • Analyze major events and developments of U.S

    HS.US.7.h
    High School

    Students trace the big decisions made by America's first presidents: Washington's foreign policy choices, Adams's Alien and Sedition Acts, Jefferson's Louisiana Purchase, and Jackson's fight against the national bank.

  • Analyze how Alexis de Tocqueville's five values are crucial to America's…

    HS.US.7.i
    High School

    Students read Tocqueville's argument that five values, liberty, equality, individualism, popular rule, and limited government in the economy, explain why American democracy took hold and lasted.

  • Explain and evaluate the concept of American exceptionalism

    HS.US.7.j
    High School

    Students read arguments that America was founded on a unique mission or set of ideals, then weigh whether that belief holds up against historical evidence.

  • Analyze key events associated with Westward Expansion during the early to…

    HS.US.8
    High School

    Students examine the major events that pushed American settlers west between roughly 1800 and 1860, including land treaties, trails, and conflicts that reshaped the continent.

  • Explain the Louisiana Purchase and evaluate its effects on the United States

    HS.US.8.a
    High School

    Students examine why the U.S. bought a massive stretch of land from France in 1803 and what that purchase meant for the country's size, politics, and the people already living there.

  • Analyze the causes and effects of the Indian Removal Act and describe the role…

    HS.US.8.b
    High School

    Students examine why Congress passed the Indian Removal Act, what happened to Cherokee and other tribes forced off their land, and what Andrew Jackson and Cherokee leader John Ross each did during that conflict.

  • Analyze the causes and effects of the Mexican-American War

    HS.US.8.c
    High School

    Students trace what pulled the United States into war with Mexico in the 1840s and what changed afterward, including which lands shifted hands and how the conflict sharpened the debate over slavery's expansion.

  • Explain the concept of Manifest Destiny and evaluate its effect on Westward…

    HS.US.8.d
    High School

    Students explain what Manifest Destiny meant to Americans in the 1800s, the belief that the U.S. was meant to stretch from coast to coast, then weigh how that idea shaped decisions to push settlement westward, often at great cost to Native peoples already living on that land.

  • Analyze the development and abolition of slavery in the United States

    HS.US.9
    High School

    Students trace how slavery grew into a legal, economic, and social system across the colonies and early nation, then study the conflicts, movements, and political decisions that ended it.

  • Describe the origins of the transatlantic slave trade, Middle passage

    HS.US.9.a
    High School

    Students trace how the transatlantic slave trade began, what enslaved Africans endured on the voyage to the Americas, and how slavery took hold across the Western Hemisphere.

  • Describe the experiences of enslaved people on the Middle Passage, at slave…

    HS.US.9.b
    High School

    Students study what enslaved people endured during the Atlantic crossing, at the markets where they were sold, and on the plantations where they were forced to work. The focus is on the actual human experiences, not just the dates and policies.

  • Describe the significance of invention of the cotton gin and its effects on…

    HS.US.9.c
    High School

    Students explain how the cotton gin made separating cotton seeds faster and cheaper, which caused plantation owners to expand slavery rather than reduce it. A labor-saving machine made the demand for enslaved people grow.

  • Explain how slavery contributed to U.S

    HS.US.9.d
    High School

    Slavery powered much of the country's early economic growth. Students examine how enslaved people's forced labor built wealth in agriculture, trade, and manufacturing that shaped the United States into an industrial nation.

  • Explain the effects of abolition efforts by key individuals including Sojourner…

    HS.US.9.e
    High School

    Students examine how abolitionists like Sojourner Truth, Frederick Douglass, William Lloyd Garrison, and Harriet Beecher Stowe fought to end slavery and what changed as a result of their speeches, writing, and organizing.

  • Explain how slavery is the antithesis of freedom

    HS.US.9.f
    High School

    Students examine how slavery stripped people of every freedom that defined American ideals: the right to move, to work for oneself, to keep a family together, and to speak freely. Slavery and freedom could not coexist.

  • Analyze the causes and effects of the Missouri Compromise, the Compromise of…

    HS.US.9.g
    High School

    Three political deals tried to hold the country together by drawing lines around where slavery could expand. Students examine what pushed Congress to make each deal, and what happened after, including the violence and political fractures that pushed the country closer to civil war.

  • Explain the outcome of the Dred Scott v

    HS.US.9.h
    High School

    The Dred Scott decision ruled that enslaved people were property, not citizens, and that Congress had no power to limit slavery in new territories. Students explain why historians call this ruling a self-inflicted wound on the Supreme Court's own credibility.

  • Describe the purpose of the Emancipation Proclamation and its effects

    HS.US.9.i
    High School

    Students learn what the Emancipation Proclamation was, why Lincoln issued it during the Civil War, and what it actually changed. That includes which enslaved people it freed, how it shifted the war's meaning, and what it left unfinished.

  • Evaluate the significance and extension of citizenship rights to Black…

    HS.US.9.j
    High School

    The 13th, 14th, and 15th Amendments ended slavery, granted citizenship, and gave Black men the right to vote after the Civil War. Students weigh what those changes meant in law and where they fell short in practice.

  • Analyze the causes, course

    HS.US.10
    High School

    Students trace why the Civil War started, what happened during the fighting, and how the country tried to rebuild after the war ended. That includes slavery, key battles, and the political struggle over reuniting the nation.

  • Analyze the life of Abraham Lincoln including his debates with Stephen Douglas…

    HS.US.10.a
    High School

    Students trace Abraham Lincoln's career from his Senate debates with Stephen Douglas through his presidency: what he believed about the Union, what the Emancipation Proclamation did, and what his major speeches meant at the time he gave them.

  • Explain major and minor causes of the Civil War, especially the political…

    HS.US.10.b
    High School

    Slavery's expansion into new territories drove deepening political conflict between North and South. Students examine both the well-known and lesser-known causes that pushed the country toward war, from congressional debates over new states to the breakdown of national compromise.

  • Analyze major battles of the Civil War, including Shiloh, Antietam, Gettysburg…

    HS.US.10.c
    High School

    Students study five major Civil War battles and explain how each shifted the course of the war. That means reading maps, casualty figures, and primary accounts to connect what happened on the battlefield to what changed politically and militarily.

  • Compare and contrast resources of the Union and Confederate States and reasons…

    HS.US.10.d
    High School

    Students compare what the North and South each brought to the Civil War: factories, railroads, soldiers, and money. Then they explain why those differences helped the Union win.

  • Explain the social, political and economic changes that resulted from…

    HS.US.10.e
    High School

    Students study what Reconstruction actually produced after the Civil War: new laws and agencies meant to help formerly enslaved people, alongside Jim Crow laws, Black Codes, sharecropping, and the rise of the Ku Klux Klan.

  • Describe the economic and social development of the United States in the late…

    HS.US.11
    High School

    Students trace how the United States grew from a farm-based economy into an industrial giant between the 1870s and early 1900s, and how that growth pushed the country onto the world stage.

  • Describe how the physical geography of the United States affected industrial…

    HS.US.11.a
    High School

    Rivers, harbors, and natural resources shaped where factories were built and what goods moved where. Students explain how mountains, coastlines, and waterways pushed American industry to grow in certain places and not others.

  • Explain the economic principles and practices that corresponded with America's…

    HS.US.11.b
    High School

    After the Civil War, students explain how free markets, mass production, and monopolies shaped the U.S. economy as factories grew and big businesses gained control of entire industries.

  • Explain push and pull factors for immigration to the United States in the late…

    HS.US.11.c
    High School

    Students learn why millions of people left their home countries for the United States around 1900, what their daily lives looked like after they arrived, and how their work, culture, and communities shaped the country they found.

  • Analyze the challenges that accompanied industrialization, including pollution…

    HS.US.11.d
    High School

    Students look at how factories, mines, and meatpacking plants in the early 1900s created dangerous jobs, polluted cities, and put children to work, then examine how reformers pushed for laws to fix those problems.

  • Analyze the Monroe Doctrine, the Roosevelt Corollary

    HS.US.11.e
    High School

    Students learn how the U.S. went from staying out of foreign affairs to building an overseas empire. They study key turning points like the Spanish-American War, the Panama Canal, and the policies presidents used to justify American power abroad.

  • Analyze the life of Theodore Roosevelt, including his life in the West, the…

    HS.US.11.f
    High School

    Students study Theodore Roosevelt's life from his ranching days out West to his presidency, including leading the Rough Riders in Cuba, pushing U.S. power abroad, and setting aside millions of acres as protected land.

  • Describe engagements between the U.S

    HS.US.11.g
    High School

    After the Civil War, the U.S. government fought Native American tribes across the West, forcing them off their lands. Students examine key battles and a federal law that broke up tribal land ownership, reshaping Native life for generations.

  • Analyze the life of Booker T

    HS.US.11.h
    High School

    Students study Booker T. Washington's life from enslaved childhood to freedom, examining how he built the Tuskegee Institute into a major school and what he argued in his famous 1895 Atlanta speech about Black economic progress in America.

  • Explain the origins and development of Louisiana public colleges and…

    HS.US.11.i
    High School

    Students trace how Louisiana's public colleges were founded and grew, including schools created through federal land grants, universities built to serve Black students during segregation, and regional campuses that expanded higher education across the state.

  • Compare and contrast the philosophies of Booker T

    HS.US.11.j
    High School

    Students compare how three Black leaders disagreed on the best path forward for African Americans after Reconstruction. Booker T. Washington pushed for economic self-sufficiency, W.E.B. Du Bois demanded full civil rights, and Marcus Garvey called for a return to Africa.

  • Explain Elizabeth Cady Stanton's reasons for writing the Declaration of…

    HS.US.11.k
    High School

    Elizabeth Cady Stanton wrote the Declaration of Sentiments in 1848 to argue that women deserved the same rights as men. Students explain her reasoning and how she used the Declaration of Independence as a model to make that case.

  • Analyze the life of Susan B

    HS.US.11.l
    High School

    Students learn about Susan B. Anthony's life as a teacher, abolitionist, temperance advocate, and suffragist, tracing how each role shaped her push to expand rights for women and enslaved people in the decades after the Civil War.

  • Analyze ways in which the Suffrage Movement led to passage of the Nineteenth…

    HS.US.11.m
    High School

    Students trace how women organized marches, lobbied Congress, and pushed public opinion over decades until the Nineteenth Amendment gave women the right to vote in 1920.

  • Analyze the causes, course

    HS.US.12
    High School

    Students trace what sparked World War I, how the fighting unfolded across four years, and what the war left behind politically and economically when it ended.

  • Describe the causes of World War I

    HS.US.12.a
    High School

    Students identify what pulled Europe into war in 1914: the alliance system that turned one assassination into a continent-wide conflict, rising nationalism, imperial competition, and an arms buildup that left major powers ready to fight.

  • Explain the events leading to and reasons for U.S

    HS.US.12.b
    High School

    Students trace the steps that pulled the United States into World War I, from submarine attacks on American ships to political pressure at home, and explain why the country chose to enter the fight in 1917.

  • Describe the effects of major military events, the role of key people

    HS.US.12.c
    High School

    Students study turning points like the Meuse-Argonne Offensive, examine what leaders and commanders actually decided, and look at what soldiers experienced in the trenches and on the front lines.

  • Analyze the suppression of dissent during World War I

    HS.US.12.d
    High School

    Students examine how the U.S. government silenced critics of World War I, including laws used to jail or deport people who spoke out against the war or the draft.

  • Explain why the Allied Powers won World War I

    HS.US.12.e
    High School

    Students explain why the Allies won World War I, looking at factors like the entry of the United States, the collapse of the Central Powers, and the limits of Germany's military strategy.

  • Compare and contrast Wilson's Fourteen Points and the Treaty of Versailles

    HS.US.12.f
    High School

    Students compare Wilson's peace plan after World War I with the treaty that actually ended it, looking at where the two agreed and where they differed, especially on issues like national borders and blame for the war.

  • Analyze the political, social, cultural and economic effects of events and…

    HS.US.13
    High School

    Students study how World War I reshaped American life in the 1920s: why politics shifted, how cities and culture changed, and what drove the economic boom before the Depression.

  • Explain the origins, main ideas, contributors

    HS.US.13.a
    High School

    The Harlem Renaissance was a burst of Black art, music, literature, and culture centered in New York City during the 1920s. Students learn who shaped it, what ideas drove it, and how it changed American culture and the push for civil rights.

  • Describe changes in the social and economic status of women

    HS.US.13.b
    High School

    Women gained new rights and economic opportunities in the 1920s. Students examine how women entered the workforce in greater numbers, won the right to vote, and pushed against older social rules about how they were expected to live.

  • Analyze how life in the United States changed as a result of technological…

    HS.US.13.c
    High School

    New technologies in the 1920s reshaped everyday life. Students examine how the car, the airplane, and the radio changed where people went, how fast they traveled, and what they heard and believed.

  • Analyze the causes and events of the First Red Scare including the Bolshevik…

    HS.US.13.d
    High School

    Students examine why many Americans feared communist and anarchist radicals after World War I, looking at how bombings, a crackdown on immigrants, and government raids shaped a national panic in the early 1920s.

  • Analyze the rise in labor unions in the late nineteenth century and early…

    HS.US.13.e
    High School

    Students study why workers formed unions in the late 1800s and early 1900s, looking closely at major organizations like the AFL-CIO, the IWW, and the Brotherhood of Sleeping Car Porters, and what those groups were fighting to change.

  • Analyze the effects of changes in immigration to the United States and…

    HS.US.13.f
    High School

    Students examine how the Immigration Act of 1924 restricted who could enter the country and how the Great Migration reshaped American cities as Black Americans moved from the rural South to northern urban centers.

  • Describe Prohibition in the United States and its consequences, including the…

    HS.US.13.g
    High School

    Prohibition banned the sale of alcohol nationwide starting in 1920. Students explain how the ban was enforced, why it fell short, and how criminal networks grew to profit from illegal alcohol sales.

  • Describe the effects of racial and ethnic tensions, including the Chicago riot…

    HS.US.13.h
    High School

    Students examine how racial violence in the early 1920s reshaped Black communities, looking at events like the Chicago riot of 1919 and the destruction of Tulsa's Greenwood District, alongside the revival of the Ku Klux Klan.

  • Describe the effects of the Great Depression and New Deal policies on the…

    HS.US.14
    High School

    The Great Depression left millions of Americans without jobs or savings. Students study how those economic hard times reshaped daily life and how New Deal programs like Social Security and public works projects changed what the federal government does.

  • Explain the causes of the Great Depression, with an emphasis on how bank…

    HS.US.14.a
    High School

    Students learn what caused the economy to collapse in the late 1920s: banks failed, people borrowed money to buy stocks, factories made more than anyone could buy, and the 1929 stock market crash wiped out savings across the country.

  • Describe the effects of the Great Depression

    HS.US.14.b
    High School

    The Great Depression was a period of mass unemployment and widespread poverty in the 1930s. Students describe how it changed everyday life for American families, businesses, and farms.

  • Analyze the government response to the Great Depression, including actions…

    HS.US.14.c
    High School

    Students compare how Hoover and Roosevelt each responded to the Depression, from what the Federal Reserve and Congress did to the programs FDR launched. The focus is on what the government actually tried, and whether it worked.

  • Describe the causes and effects of the Dust Bowl, including natural disasters…

    HS.US.14.d
    High School

    The Dust Bowl was a drought made worse by decades of poor farming that stripped the soil bare. Students explain how the resulting crop failures and mass migration deepened the economic collapse already sweeping the country in the 1930s.

  • Analyze the purpose and effectiveness of the New Deal in managing problems of…

    HS.US.14.e
    High School

    Students examine whether New Deal programs like the CCC, WPA, and Social Security actually solved the problems of the Great Depression. They weigh what each program was meant to do against what it delivered.

  • Compare and contrast economic beliefs of Adam Smith, Karl Marx, John Maynard…

    HS.US.14.f
    High School

    Students compare the core ideas of four major economists and trace how those ideas shaped U.S. economic policy, from free markets to government spending to the role of the Federal Reserve.

  • Explain the causes, course

    HS.US.15
    High School

    Students trace what pulled the United States into World War II, how the war was fought on two fronts, and what changed politically and economically when it ended.

  • Explain the similarities and differences between totalitarianism and militarism…

    HS.US.15.a
    High School

    Students compare four pre-war governments, including Nazi Germany, Soviet Russia, Imperial Japan, and Mussolini's Italy, looking at how each seized control of its people and military. They also identify which countries fought on the Allied side and which on the Axis side.

  • Explain efforts made by the U.S

    HS.US.15.b
    High School

    Before officially entering World War II, the U.S. government took steps to support Allied nations and train its military. Students explain policies like Cash and Carry and Lend-Lease, plus large-scale military training exercises held in Louisiana in 1941.

  • Explain why Japan attacked Pearl Harbor and the response of the United States

    HS.US.15.c
    High School

    Students explain what pushed Japan to attack Pearl Harbor in 1941 and how the United States responded, including the declaration of war that pulled the country into World War II.

  • Describe the sacrifices and contributions of American service members in the…

    HS.US.15.d
    High School

    Students study the men and women who served in World War II, including Black fighter pilots, Japanese American infantry, Navajo radio operators, and women in uniform, and learn what each group did and gave up during the war.

  • Explain the causes and effects of the internment of Japanese Americans in the…

    HS.US.15.e
    High School

    Students learn why the U.S. government forced Japanese Americans into detention camps during World War II, what the Supreme Court ruled when that policy was challenged, and how Congress formally apologized and paid reparations decades later.

  • Explain how the U.S. government managed the war effort on the home front…

    HS.US.15.f
    High School

    Students learn how the U.S. government kept the country running during World War II. That meant asking civilians to ration food and gas, buy war bonds to fund the military, and shift factories from peacetime goods to weapons and supplies.

  • Explain the role of military intelligence, technology

    HS.US.15.g
    High School

    Students trace how the U.S. won World War II through code-breaking, the atomic bomb program, and battle-by-battle strategy, including the island campaigns in the Pacific and major fights at Normandy and the Battle of the Bulge.

  • Describe the roles of Franklin D

    HS.US.15.h
    High School

    Students study how Roosevelt and Truman led the country through World War II, from mobilizing the military and industry to the decisions that ended the war and shaped the Allied victory.

  • Analyze the decision for and effects of dropping atomic bombs on Hiroshima and…

    HS.US.15.i
    High School

    Students examine why the U.S. dropped atomic bombs on two Japanese cities in 1945 and what followed. They weigh the arguments for that decision alongside its immediate destruction, long-term health effects, and role in ending the war.

  • Explain the use of violence and mass murder as demonstrated by the Nanjing…

    HS.US.15.j
    High School

    Students study how mass atrocities unfolded during World War II, including the Nanjing Massacre, the Holocaust, and the Bataan Death March. They examine how and why civilian populations and prisoners of war were subjected to systematic violence.

  • Analyze the Holocaust, including the suspension of basic civil rights by the…

    HS.US.15.k
    High School

    Students examine how Nazi Germany systematically stripped millions of people of their rights, built a network of concentration camps, and carried out mass murder. The study covers who resisted, how the war ended it, and how survivors and courts tried to rebuild justice afterward.

  • Describe the establishment of the United Nations

    HS.US.15.l
    High School

    Students learn what the United Nations is, why countries created it after World War II, and how it has tried to prevent future conflicts and coordinate international responses to crises.

  • Analyze causes, major events

    HS.US.16
    High School

    Students trace what sparked the civil rights movement, which people led it, and which events pushed the country to change its laws. Think protests, court cases, and the leaders who drove them.

  • Analyze the origins and goals of the civil rights movement, the effects of…

    HS.US.16.a
    High School

    Students examine why the civil rights movement started, what its leaders were fighting for, and how laws and everyday habits kept Black Americans separated from white Americans in schools, buses, and public spaces.

  • Analyze how the ideas, work

    HS.US.16.b
    High School

    Students examine how Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. shaped the civil rights movement, from his leadership with the SCLC and his strategy of peaceful protest to key writings like "Letter from a Birmingham Jail" and his assassination.

  • Explain how key individuals and groups contributed to the expansion of civil…

    HS.US.16.c
    High School

    Students study how specific people, from Rosa Parks to Thurgood Marshall, pushed the country to extend equal rights to Black Americans. Each person's story shows a different path: courtrooms, marches, bus seats, and ballots.

  • Analyze the role and importance of key events during the civil rights movement…

    HS.US.16.d
    High School

    Students examine pivotal moments in the civil rights movement, from the murder of Emmett Till and bus boycotts in Baton Rouge and Montgomery to sit-ins, Freedom Rides, and the 1963 March on Washington, explaining why each event mattered and what it changed.

  • Analyze the role of the federal government in advancing civil rights, including…

    HS.US.16.e
    High School

    Students examine how Congress and the Supreme Court pushed civil rights forward, looking at landmark decisions and laws like the Civil Rights Act of 1964 and the ruling that ended school segregation.

  • Analyze the goals and outcomes of the American Indian Movement

    HS.US.16.f
    High School

    Students examine what the American Indian Movement fought for in the 1960s and 1970s and what changed as a result, including how a landmark federal law shifted control over schools and services from the government to Native American tribes themselves.

  • Analyze the goals and course of the women's rights movement of the mid- to late…

    HS.US.16.g
    High School

    Students trace how women fought for equal pay, equal access to education, and equal standing in the workplace from the 1960s onward, using specific laws and proposed amendments as the evidence of what changed and what didn't.

  • Explain major events and developments of the post-World War II era in the…

    HS.US.17
    High School

    Students trace how the U.S. expanded its global influence after World War II, covering events like the Cold War, the Korean War, and the space race. The focus is on what changed at home and abroad as America took on a larger role in world affairs.

  • Explain the causes and effects of the Marshall Plan and the formation of NATO…

    HS.US.17.a
    High School

    Students learn why the U.S. sent billions of dollars to rebuild war-torn Europe after World War II and how that decision led to two rival military alliances, one led by the U.S. and one by the Soviet Union, that shaped the Cold War for decades.

  • Analyze domestic policies of Dwight D

    HS.US.17.b
    High School

    Students study Eisenhower's presidency and what his administration actually did at home, including how the Federal Aid Highway Act of 1956 built the interstate highway system that still connects cities across the country today.

  • Compare ideas of the United States and Soviet Union during the Cold War…

    HS.US.17.c
    High School

    Students compare what the U.S. and Soviet Union each stood for during the Cold War, looking at how American ideals like individual rights and equal protection under the law differed from Soviet priorities.

  • Describe the role of and major events and developments associated with key…

    HS.US.17.d
    High School

    Students trace how each U.S. president from Truman through Reagan, along with Soviet leaders Khrushchev and Gorbachev, shaped the Cold War through their decisions, speeches, and standoffs with the other side.

  • Analyze the causes, course of

    HS.US.17.e
    High School

    Students trace how the rivalry between the United States and Soviet Union played out across decades of standoffs, proxy wars, and near-disasters, from the Berlin Airlift and Korean War through Vietnam and the Cuban Missile Crisis.

  • Explain the role of technology in the Cold War, including the Space Race…

    HS.US.17.f
    High School

    Students learn how the Space Race turned scientific breakthroughs into Cold War weapons and symbols, tracing how satellites like Sputnik and missions like Apollo shifted the balance of power between the United States and the Soviet Union.

  • Analyze the effects of the campaign, election, inaugural address, presidency

    HS.US.17.g
    High School

    Students examine how John F. Kennedy's rise to the presidency and his assassination shaped American politics and public life in the early 1960s.

  • Analyze the role of Lyndon B

    HS.US.17.h
    High School

    Students examine how President Lyndon B. Johnson shaped two defining conflicts of the 1960s: signing landmark civil rights laws while also escalating U.S. military involvement in Vietnam.

  • Explain the term "silent majority" in the context of Richard Nixon's…

    HS.US.17.i
    High School

    "Silent majority" was Nixon's term for Americans who quietly supported his policies without protesting. Students explain how Nixon used that idea to win support, then trace his presidency from opening trade with China to the Watergate scandal and his resignation.

  • Explain the outcome and consequences of key Supreme Court decisions in the late…

    HS.US.17.j
    High School

    Students study landmark Supreme Court rulings that reshaped everyday rights in America. Cases like Miranda v. Arizona changed how police treat suspects, while Roe v. Wade sparked a legal debate over personal rights that continues today.

  • Explain factors that led to the end of the Cold War, the fall of communism

    HS.US.17.k
    High School

    Students explain why the Soviet Union collapsed, connecting events like Reagan's "Tear Down this Wall" speech and the fall of the Berlin Wall to the economic and political reforms inside the USSR that ultimately ended the Cold War.

  • Explain how the failure of the communist economic and political policy…

    HS.US.17.l
    High School

    Students examine why the Cold War ended, looking at how Soviet economic collapse, U.S. foreign policy pressure, and American ideas about freedom and equality combined to bring down communist governments in the late 1980s and early 1990s.

  • Explain major U.S. events and developments in the late twentieth and early…

    HS.US.18
    High School

    Students trace the big turning points in American life from roughly 1980 to today, including shifts in politics, the economy, and foreign policy. Think the end of the Cold War, September 11, and the rise of the internet.

  • Analyze Ronald Reagan's political career

    HS.US.18.a
    High School

    Students study Ronald Reagan's rise in politics and the four economic policies he pushed as president: cutting taxes, pulling back federal spending, loosening business regulations, and controlling the money supply.

  • Explain the effects of major issues and events of the late twentieth century…

    HS.US.18.b
    High School

    Students examine how three crises shaped American life after 1980: the HIV/AIDS epidemic, the government's war on drugs, and the Challenger explosion. They explain what changed in public policy, daily life, and how Americans saw risk and tragedy.

  • Explain causes of the Gulf War, its major military leaders

    HS.US.18.c
    High School

    Students examine why the U.S. went to war in the Persian Gulf in 1991, who led the military effort, and how Americans at home responded to the conflict.

  • Explain the causes and effects of domestic incidents, terrorism

    HS.US.18.d
    High School

    Students trace what led to high-profile violent events on U.S. soil in the 1990s and what changed afterward. Cases include Ruby Ridge, the Waco siege, the Oklahoma City bombing, and the Columbine shooting.

  • Analyze the effects of advancements in technology and media during the mid- to…

    HS.US.18.e
    High School

    Students study how radio, television, and the internet changed the way Americans got their news and talked to each other, and what those shifts meant for politics, culture, and daily life.

  • Explain events leading up to the September 11th attacks, the attack on New York…

    HS.US.18.f
    High School

    Students trace the full story of September 11, 2001, from the events that led to the attacks through the government's response, the military operations that followed, and how the country changed in the aftermath.

  • Compare the judicial philosophies of Supreme Court justices of the twentieth…

    HS.US.18.g
    High School

    Students compare how Supreme Court justices have approached interpreting the Constitution, looking at figures like Antonin Scalia and Ruth Bader Ginsburg to understand how a judge's legal philosophy shapes major rulings.

  • Analyze the presidential administrations of George H.W

    HS.US.18.h
    High School

    Students examine three presidencies and the defining crises each faced: the Gulf War under George H.W. Bush, the Republican congressional takeover and Bosnia intervention under Clinton, and the September 11 attacks under George W. Bush.

  • Explain important issues of the 2008 presidential election and the significance…

    HS.US.18.i
    High School

    Students explain what was at stake in the 2008 presidential race and why Barack Obama's election was a turning point in American history.

High School: World History
  • Analyze ideas and events in world history from 1300 to 2010 and how they…

    HS.WH.1
    High School

    Students trace how major ideas and events across world history shifted, stalled, or built on each other over roughly seven centuries. The focus is on change and continuity, not just memorizing what happened.

  • Analyze connections between events and developments in world history within…

    HS.WH.2
    High School

    Students look at major events across world history and explain how they influenced each other, tracing cause and effect from the late medieval period through the early 21st century.

  • Use geographic representations and demographic data to analyze environmental…

    HS.WH.3
    High School

    Students read maps, charts, and population data to explain why places look, feel, and function the way they do, and how they change over time.

  • Use a variety of primary and secondary sources to

    HS.WH.4
    High School

    Reading firsthand accounts alongside historians' explanations, students piece together what actually happened and why, rather than accepting a single version of events.

  • Analyze social studies content

    HS.WH.4.a
    High School

    Students read firsthand accounts, textbooks, maps, and news reports to make sense of what happened in history and why. The goal is to look at more than one source before drawing conclusions.

  • Evaluate claims, counterclaims

    HS.WH.4.b
    High School

    Students read historical arguments and judge whether the evidence actually supports the claim, then consider the strongest case against it. This is the core of how historians decide what to believe about the past.

  • Compare and contrast multiple sources and accounts

    HS.WH.4.c
    High School

    Students read two or more sources on the same event and explain where they agree, where they differ, and why those differences matter.

  • Explain how the availability of sources affects historical interpretations

    HS.WH.4.d
    High School

    When only some records survive, historians draw different conclusions than they would with a fuller picture. Students examine why gaps in the historical record shape the stories we tell about the past.

  • Construct and express claims that are supported with relevant evidence from…

    HS.WH.5
    High School

    Students build an argument about a historical topic and back it up with real sources and clear reasoning. This standard covers how well students can take a position and defend it with evidence, not just what they know.

  • Demonstrate an understanding of social studies content

    HS.WH.5.a
    High School

    Students back a historical argument with facts drawn from sources, explaining how the evidence connects to the point they are making.

  • Compare and contrast content and viewpoints

    HS.WH.5.b
    High School

    Students look at two or more sources on the same event or topic and explain what those sources agree on, where they differ, and why each author may have seen things differently.

  • Analyze causes and effects

    HS.WH.5.c
    High School

    Students examine why major world events happened and what changed as a result, using primary sources and historical evidence to build a clear, reasoned explanation of the connection between causes and consequences.

  • Evaluate counterclaims

    HS.WH.5.d
    High School

    Students take a position on a historical event or issue, then seriously consider the strongest argument against it and explain why their own claim still holds up.

  • Evaluate the influence of science, technology, innovations

    HS.WH.6
    High School

    Students look at how inventions and scientific discoveries, from the printing press to the internet, changed the way people lived, worked, and governed themselves across seven centuries of world history.

  • Analyze causes and effects of events and developments in world history from…

    HS.WH.7
    High School

    Students trace why major turning points in world history happened and what changed afterward, from medieval trade routes and revolutions to industrialization, world wars, and the rise of a connected global economy.

  • Analyze the relationship between events and developments in Louisiana history…

    HS.WH.8
    High School

    Students connect events in Louisiana's past to larger patterns in world history, from the 1300s through 2010. They look at how global forces shaped Louisiana and how Louisiana's story fits into what was happening across the world.

  • Analyze the origins and emergence of economic principles such as feudalism…

    HS.WH.9
    High School

    Students trace how major economic systems, from feudalism to communism, took shape between 1300 and 2010 and changed the governments that ran alongside them.

  • Analyze the causes and effects of global and regional conflicts in the world…

    HS.WH.10
    High School

    Students trace why major wars and crises broke out across the world from the Black Death era to the present, and what changed as a result. The focus is on spotting patterns across centuries, not memorizing dates.

  • Analyze the causes, effects

    HS.WH.10.a
    High School

    Students examine why European powers seized control of lands across Africa, Asia, and the Americas, what that takeover meant for people living there, and how colonized populations responded.

  • Analyze causes and effects of political revolutions of the eighteenth…

    HS.WH.10.b
    High School

    Students examine what sparked major political revolutions across the last three centuries and what changed afterward. They look at why people rebelled against their governments and how those upheavals reshaped borders, laws, and daily life.

  • Analyze the development of political and social structures throughout the world…

    HS.WH.11
    High School

    Students examine how governments and societies were built and changed across the world during the 1300s through 1600s. That includes who held power, how laws were made, and how ordinary people lived under different kingdoms and empires.

  • Analyze how various religious philosophies have influenced government…

    HS.WH.11.a
    High School

    Religious ideas have shaped laws, leadership, and government policy for centuries. Students examine how faiths such as Islam, Christianity, and Hinduism influenced who held power and how rulers made decisions across different societies.

  • Analyze the development and contribution of enlightenment ideas such as…

    HS.WH.11.b
    High School

    Enlightenment thinkers argued that people are born with rights no government can take away. Students trace how those ideas shaped the laws, constitutions, and governing systems that followed over the next four centuries.

  • Analyze how civic ideals such as freedom, liberty

    HS.WH.11.c
    High School

    Students trace how ideas like freedom and equal justice shaped real governments over time, from early democratic experiments to modern constitutions. The goal is connecting the idea to the law or system it eventually produced.

  • Compare and contrast systems of governance, including absolutism, communism…

    HS.WH.11.d
    High School

    Students compare how different governments held onto power, from kings who ruled by force to elected bodies that governed by law. The focus is on what made each system work and why some lasted longer than others.

  • Analyze the historical connections between Civil Law, the Napoleonic Code

    HS.WH.11.e
    High School

    Students examine how ancient Roman law shaped Napoleon's legal code in the 1800s, and how that code still influences Louisiana's courts today. It's a direct line from Rome to a modern American state.

  • Explain the powers and responsibilities of local, state, tribal, national

    HS.WH.11.f
    High School

    Students examine how governments and political bodies at every level, from a town council to an international treaty organization, handle real problems like conflict, trade disputes, and inequality. The focus is on who holds power and what they are expected to do with it.

  • Describe various systems, laws

    HS.WH.12
    High School

    Students compare how different governments throughout history kept control over people, from kings who ruled by divine right to communist states, democracies, and fascist regimes. The focus is on what made each system work and what kept it in power.

  • Analyze the origins, consequences

    HS.WH.13
    High School

    Students trace how specific genocides began, what happened during them, and what lasting effects they left on survivors, nations, and the world. The focus spans events from the Armenian Genocide through the Rwandan Genocide.

  • Analyze the causes of decolonization, methods of gaining independence

    HS.WH.14
    High School

    Students examine why colonized peoples pushed for independence after World War II, how different countries won that independence, and what happened to global politics as dozens of new nations took shape between 1945 and 2010.

  • Analyze the roles of various countries during the Cold War and their roles in…

    HS.WH.15
    High School

    Students trace how countries picked sides or stayed neutral during the Cold War, then follow those same countries into the treaties and international bodies that shaped the world after the Soviet Union collapsed.

  • Analyze ideals and principles that contributed to the rise of independence…

    HS.WH.16
    High School

    Students look at the ideas, like freedom, self-rule, and equality, that pushed people around the world to break from colonial or foreign control. The standard covers movements from the late Middle Ages through the modern era.

  • Analyze goals, strategies

    HS.WH.17
    High School

    Students study real independence and civil rights movements from the 1900s and ask why leaders chose protest, negotiation, or armed struggle, and what actually changed afterward.

  • Describe how global, national

    HS.WH.18
    High School

    Economic policies, from trade rules to tax rates, shape the everyday choices people make: what job to take, where to live, whether to stay in school. Students examine how those policies play out differently depending on where and when a person lives.

  • Analyze the influence of fiscal policies such as taxation and tariffs, trade…

    HS.WH.19
    High School

    Students study how government decisions about taxes, tariffs, and spending shape a country's economy. They look at real examples of trade restrictions and budget choices to explain why those decisions made a nation richer, poorer, or more isolated.

  • Describe the causes of trade, commerce

    HS.WH.20
    High School

    From the Black Death to the Internet age, students trace why trade and industry expanded and what that growth did to governments, economies, and everyday life across 700 years of world history.

  • Explain the economic, demographic, social

    HS.WH.21
    High School

    Students examine how forced labor, including slavery and indentured servitude, shaped economies, population patterns, and cultures across different regions and time periods.

  • Analyze trends of increasing economic interdependence and interconnectedness in…

    HS.WH.22
    High School

    Students trace how economies around the world grew more tangled over seven centuries, from medieval trade routes to global supply chains. They look at why what happens in one country's markets increasingly shapes what people in another country can buy, sell, or earn.

  • Analyze the effects of natural resources on the development of the Louisiana…

    HS.WH.23
    High School

    Students examine how Louisiana's oil, gas, and seafood industries shaped the state's economy, and how that growth depended on trade and demand from other countries.

  • Analyze the effect that humans have had on the environment in terms of…

    HS.WH.24
    High School

    Students examine how human choices, like farming, industry, and migration, have changed natural resources and created problems such as deforestation, pollution, and climate change. The focus is on cause and effect at a global scale.

  • Explain the relationship between the physical environment and culture on local…

    HS.WH.25
    High School

    Students examine how geography shapes the way people live, including what they eat, build, trade, and believe. A river, a mountain range, or a dry plain can determine how a whole culture develops.

  • Analyze the causes and effects of the movement of people, culture, religion…

    HS.WH.26
    High School

    Students trace how trade routes, migrations, and conquests spread ideas, goods, and diseases from one civilization to another, then explain what changed as a result.

  • Explain how regional interactions shaped the development of empires and states…

    HS.WH.27
    High School

    Students trace how trade, war, and diplomacy between neighboring regions helped build, weaken, or reshape major empires over seven centuries. The focus is on connection: how what happened in one place changed what grew in another.

  • Explain the effectiveness of institutions designed to foster collaboration…

    HS.WH.28
    High School

    Students examine whether international bodies like the United Nations or the League of Nations actually kept peace and solved problems. They judge what made those institutions work or fall short, from the 1800s to today.

  • Analyze how advancements in communication, technology

    HS.WH.29
    High School

    Students trace how new tools (the printing press, the telegraph, the internet) and expanding trade routes changed the way people across the world connected, competed, and depended on each other over seven centuries.

  • Analyze patterns of population distribution and migration from 1300 to 2010

    HS.WH.30
    High School

    Students look at where people lived and why they moved, from the Black Death and Age of Exploration through the twentieth century. They explain what pulled people toward certain places and what pushed them out of others.

High School: World Geography
  • Describe economic, social, cultural, political

    HS.WG.1
    High School

    Students learn to describe what makes a country or region distinct, covering how people earn a living, what governments look like, and how geography, culture, and history shape daily life.

  • Analyze geographic patterns and processes using spatial knowledge of the…

    HS.WG.2
    High School

    Students read maps and data to explain why physical features like mountain ranges, rivers, and coastlines shape where people live, how countries form, and how regions connect across continents.

  • Connect past events, people

    HS.WG.3
    High School

    Students trace how a historical event or figure shaped something visible in the world today, then explain what that connection means now.

  • Describe how geographic tools, representations

    HS.WG.4
    High School

    Maps, satellite images, and GPS tools help geographers understand how the world is organized. Students learn how to read and use these tools to study places, patterns, and how people interact with their environment.

  • Create and use geographic representations, data

    HS.WG.4.a
    High School

    Students read maps, satellite images, graphs, and population pyramids to spot geographic patterns and track how places change over time. They also use digital tools like GIS and GPS to dig into location data.

  • Describe the influence of technology on the study of geography and gather…

    HS.WG.4.b
    High School

    Students use digital tools like satellite maps, GPS, and online databases to study how places, people, and environments are connected. The goal is to gather real geographic data, not just read about it.

  • Compare and contrast various types of maps and map projections

    HS.WG.4.c
    High School

    Students compare different map types and projections, then explain what each one distorts: shape, size, distance, or direction. No flat map shows the round Earth perfectly, and this standard asks students to say exactly where each projection falls short.

  • Analyze how maps and data illustrate territorial divisions and regional…

    HS.WG.4.d
    High School

    Maps divide the world into countries, regions, and zones to make patterns easier to study. Students read and analyze those divisions to understand how geographers organize the earth's surface and why those boundaries matter.

  • Explain the spatial relationships of human settlement, migration

    HS.WG.5
    High School

    Students explain where people have settled, why they move from place to place, and how population is spread across different regions of the world.

  • Explain the patterns and processes of human settlement and migration

    HS.WG.5.a
    High School

    Students study why people settle in some places and move away from others, tracing the routes and reasons behind human migration across regions and throughout history.

  • Analyze population growth over time and predict future trends

    HS.WG.5.b
    High School

    Students look at how the world's population has grown across decades and use that data to forecast what comes next, such as which regions will grow fastest or where populations may shrink.

  • Evaluate how historical processes, including cultural diffusion, colonialism…

    HS.WG.5.c
    High School

    Students examine how events like colonization, trade, and mass migration reshaped countries over time, looking at what changed in a region's culture, economy, and borders as a result.

  • Explain how landscape features and natural resource use can reflect cultural…

    HS.WG.5.d
    High School

    Students look at how a culture's beliefs, traditions, and economy shape the land around them. A farming terrace, a fishing village, or a city built around a coal mine each tells you something about the people who built it.

  • Evaluate the consequences of globalization, the acceleration of communication

    HS.WG.5.e
    High School

    Students examine how faster communication and global trade have changed the way ideas, products, and cultural practices spread across countries, and weigh what those changes cost and create for different communities.

  • Analyze geographic factors that influence economic development

    HS.WG.6
    High School

    Students study how a place's physical features, like rivers, coastlines, and natural resources, shape what its economy can do. A landlocked country with few resources faces different economic choices than one with access to ports and fertile land.

  • Explain the spatial patterns of industrial production and development

    HS.WG.6.a
    High School

    Students look at maps and data to explain why factories and industries cluster in certain places. They connect geography, like access to resources, ports, or transportation routes, to where manufacturing and economic growth take hold.

  • Analyze the distribution of resources and describe their influence on…

    HS.WG.6.b
    High School

    Students look at where natural resources like oil, farmland, or fresh water are found and explain how that location shapes what people can earn, what businesses can build, and how wealthy a country becomes.

  • Analyze factors that influence the economic development of countries

    HS.WG.6.c
    High School

    Students look at why some countries are wealthier than others, examining factors like natural resources, trade access, geography, and government policy.

  • Describe social and economic measures of development in various countries

    HS.WG.6.d
    High School

    Students compare countries using measures like income levels, life expectancy, and literacy rates to understand why some places have more economic opportunity than others.

  • Explain how economic interdependence and globalization affect countries and…

    HS.WG.6.e
    High School

    Students learn how trade, global supply chains, and economic ties between countries shape everyday life, from job availability to the price of goods on store shelves.

  • Analyze the historical and contemporary economic influence that Louisiana has…

    HS.WG.6.f
    High School

    Students study how Louisiana's ports, oil industry, and agriculture have shaped trade and supply chains across the country and around the world, both historically and today.

  • Analyze the historical and contemporary effects that globalization has on…

    HS.WG.6.g
    High School

    Students examine how global trade, foreign investment, and international markets have shaped Louisiana's economy over time, from its early port commerce to today's oil, shipping, and agricultural industries.

  • Analyze how governments and political boundaries affect people and places

    HS.WG.7
    High School

    Students look at how borders and governing decisions shape daily life, who gets resources, and how places develop over time.

  • Compare various systems of government in terms of division of power, economic…

    HS.WG.7.a
    High School

    Students compare how different countries divide power and control their economies, looking at who actually makes decisions and whether that authority is shared, concentrated in one place, or split between levels of government.

  • Analyze various economic philosophies including, capitalism, socialism

    HS.WG.7.b
    High School

    Students learn how capitalism, socialism, and communism work as ideas, then trace how those ideas shaped the governments and economies countries actually built.

  • Evaluate the purpose of political institutions at various levels, local to…

    HS.WG.7.c
    High School

    Students examine how political institutions work at every level, from city councils to international bodies like the United Nations, and compare what each one can and cannot do.

  • Analyze how political boundaries are created and how they affect political…

    HS.WG.7.d
    High School

    Political boundaries (borders between countries, states, or regions) are drawn through wars, treaties, and negotiations. Students study how those lines shape the governments and laws that form inside them.

  • Describe nations and states using appropriate terminology

    HS.WG.7.e
    High School

    Students learn the difference between a "nation" (a group of people who share history and culture) and a "state" (a country with its own government and borders), and practice using those terms correctly when discussing world regions.

  • Analyze actions in various regions taken by individuals, groups, regional…

    HS.WG.7.f
    High School

    Students study real examples of people, governments, and international groups working to expand rights and freedoms in different parts of the world, then analyze what those efforts achieved and why they succeeded or fell short.

  • Evaluate factors that contribute to cooperation and conflict, including trade…

    HS.WG.7.g
    High School

    Students examine why countries work together or clash, looking at what drives those decisions: who controls valuable resources, who wants more land, and who depends on whom for goods.

  • Explain the degree to which cooperation and conflict have affected countries…

    HS.WG.7.h
    High School

    Students examine how countries working together or clashing over resources, land, or power has shaped national borders, alliances, and daily life across different parts of the world.

  • Analyze how people have modified or adapted to the environment locally…

    HS.WG.8
    High School

    Students examine how humans have changed or adjusted to their surroundings, from a single town to entire continents. They look at examples like building dams, farming dry land, or settling along coastlines.

  • Analyze effects of human settlement patterns and land use on the natural…

    HS.WG.8.a
    High School

    Where people build cities, farms, and roads changes the land around them. Students study how those choices affect soil, water, wildlife, and ecosystems over time.

  • Identify ways in which people have attempted to mitigate the effects of natural…

    HS.WG.8.b
    High School

    Students examine real examples of how communities prepare for and recover from floods, earthquakes, and storms. That includes early-warning systems, building codes, and evacuation plans designed to reduce harm when disasters strike.

  • Analyze causes and effects of local, national, regional

    HS.WG.8.c
    High School

    Students trace why environmental problems start and what happens as a result, from a single city dealing with polluted water to countries negotiating climate policy together.

Common Questions
  • What does high school social studies actually cover this year?

    Students work through civics, U.S. history from 1776 to 2008, world history from 1300 to 2010, and world geography. They read primary sources, build arguments with evidence, and trace how ideas like rights, government, and economics show up across time and place.

  • How can families help with all the reading at home?

    Ask students to summarize what a source says in two sentences, then say who wrote it and why. Even ten minutes at the kitchen table builds the habit of checking the author and the purpose before trusting the information.

  • What does a strong written answer look like at this level?

    Students make a clear claim, back it with specific evidence from a document or event, and explain how the evidence supports the claim. They also address a reasonable counterclaim instead of pretending it does not exist.

  • How should teachers sequence civics, U.S. history, and world history across the year?

    Most schools spread these across separate courses, but the skills should build in the same order each term: source analysis, then claim and evidence, then comparison and causation. Anchor each unit in two or three documents students return to repeatedly.

  • Which content tends to need the most reteaching?

    Foundational government concepts (federalism, separation of powers, checks and balances) and the difference between economic systems show up again and again. Time spent solid on these in the first month pays off in every later unit on court cases, policy, and global conflicts.

  • How can a parent help if a student is struggling with court cases or amendments?

    Have students explain the case or amendment in their own words, then connect it to a current news story. If they can say what changed because of the ruling, they understand it well enough for class.

  • How much memorization do students need for dates, names, and cases?

    Students need to recognize key names, dates, and cases, but the test of understanding is whether they can explain why each one mattered. Flashcards help for recall, then conversation about cause and effect locks it in.

  • How do I know a student is ready to move on from high school social studies?

    They can read a primary source they have never seen, identify the author and purpose, pull out useful evidence, and use it in a written argument that handles a counterclaim. That skill set carries into college and into informed voting.

  • How should teachers handle sensitive topics like slavery, the Holocaust, and civil rights?

    Ground each unit in primary sources and clear historical context so the conversation stays on evidence rather than opinion. Set norms early in the year so students know how to disagree about ideas while respecting each other.