Roselle Public Schools
Social Studies Curriculum Units of Study Grade 8
Unit/Chapter Title: Unit 1 Expansion and Reform (1800-1860)
Course/Grade: 8th Grade Social Studies
Interdisciplinary Connection(s): ELA/Technology
Unit Length: 12 weeks
Standards:
6.2 World History/Global Studies All students will acquire the knowledge and skills to think analytically and systematically about how past
interactions of people, cultures, and the environment affect issues across time and cultures. Such knowledge and skills enable students to make
informed decisions as socially and ethically responsible world citizens in the 21st century.
6.3 Active Citizenship in the 21st Century All students will acquire the skills needed to be active, informed citizens who value diversity and
promote cultural understanding by working collaboratively to address the challenges that are inherent in living in an interconnected world.
Strands:
A. Civics, Government, and Human Rights
B. Geography, People, and the Environment
C. Economics, Innovation, and Technology
D. History, Culture, and Perspectives
CCSS ELA/ Literacy in History/Social Studies, Science and Technical Subjects
RH.6-8.1 Cite specific textual evidence to support analysis of primary and secondary sources
RH.6-8.2 Determine the central ideas or information of a primary or secondary source; provide an accurate summary of the source distinct from
prior knowledge or opinions.
RH.6-8.4 Determine the meaning of words and phrases as they are used in a text, including vocabulary specific to domains related to
Roselle Public Schools
Social Studies Curriculum Units of Study Grade 8
history/social studies.
RH.6-8.7 Integrate visual information (e.g., in charts, graphs, photographs, videos, or maps) with other information in print and digital texts.
RH.6-8.9 Analyze the relationship between a primary and secondary source on the same topic.
RH.6-8.10 By the end of grade 8, read and comprehend history/social studies texts in the grades 6-8 text complexity band independently and
proficiently.
WHST.6-8.2 Write informative/explanatory texts, including the narration of historical events, scientific procedures/ experiments, or technical
processes.
WHST.6-8.4 Produce clear and coherent writing in which the development, organization, and style are appropriate to task, purpose, and
audience.
WHST.6-8.6 Use technology, including the Internet, to produce and publish writing and present the relationships between information and ideas
clearly and efficiently
WHST.6-8.7 Conduct short research projects to answer a question (including a self-generated question), drawing on several sources and
generating additional related, focused questions that allow for multiple avenues of exploration.
WHST.6-8.9 Draw evidence from informational texts to support analysis, reflection, and research.
WHST.6-8.10 Write routinely over extended time frames (time for reflection and revision) and shorter time frames (a single sitting or a day or
two) for a range of discipline-specific tasks, purposes, and audiences.
SL.6.1 Engage effectively in a range of collaborative discussions (one-on-one, in groups, and teacher-led) with diverse partners on grade 6
topics, texts, and issues, building on others' ideas and expressing their own clearly.
L.6.1. Demonstrate command of the conventions of standard English grammar and usage when writing or speaking.
Roselle Public Schools
Social Studies Curriculum Units of Study Grade 8
21st Century Life and Careers Standards
9.1.8.A.1 Recognize a problem and brainstorm ways to solve the problem individually or collaboratively
9.1.8.B.1 Use multiple points of view to create alternative solutions.
9.1.8.C.1 Determine an individual’s responsibility for personal actions and contributions to group activities.
9.1.8.C.2 Demonstrate the use of compromise, consensus, and community building strategies for carrying out different tasks, assignments, and
projects.
9.1.8.C.3 Model leadership skills during classroom and extra-curricular activities.
9.1.8.B.6 Evaluate communication, collaboration, and leadership skills and how they might be further developed in preparation for a future
career through involvement in school, home, work, and extracurricular activities.
Interdisciplinary Connections:
English/Literacy:
WHST.6-8.2.A-E
Write informative/explanatory texts, including the narration of historical events, scientific procedures/ experiments, or technical processes.
Computer Technology:
CCSS TECHNOLOY 8.1.8.A.1
Create professional documents (e.g., newsletter, personalized learning plan, business letter or flyer) using advanced features of a word
processing program.
Roselle Public Schools
Social Studies Curriculum Units of Study Grade 8
Essential Questions
Enduring Understandings

1.) How did America expand beyond the Thirteen
Colonies?
 The United States expanded onto land acquired from other
2.) Did the United States, in its early years, follow an
isolationist or imperialist policy with its relations to
other nations?
 The early government of the United States faced crises that
3.) What challenges faced the new nation?
4.) How did Jefferson’s vision of America differ from that
of Alexander Hamilton’s?
5.) What was the policy of the U.S. government with
Native American nations?
6.) Why did America go to war with England again in
1812 and what happened?
7.) What lasting effects were seen as a result of the
election of 1824?
8.) What political development arose within the 1830’s?
9.) What qualities helped Jackson succeed through the
people?
10.) What caused Jackson to make war on the Bank of
the United States?
11.)
How did different groups of people understand and
colonial European powers, but these lands were already occupied
by Native Americans, who often resisted encroachment.
threatened its existence, including rebellion, debt, and foreign
policy.
 The United States went to war in 1812 to assert its economic
interests and its identity as an independent nation.
 Driven by the ideology of “Manifest Destiny,” Americans pushed
westward through a combination of diplomacy, settlement, and
warfare.
 The American West attracted a variety of settlers, and westward
expansion affected many different people in different ways, some
positive and some negative.
 As a nation or community grows, the values of that community
often trump the values of the communities that are engulfed by the
growth.
 The Industrial Revolution transformed the way goods were
produced in the US.
 Advances in technology led to new inventions that continued to
change daily life and work.
 The institution of slavery profoundly shaped the political and
territorial development of the United States in the early 19th
Roselle Public Schools
Social Studies Curriculum Units of Study Grade 8
experience westward expansion?
12.) How did Manifest Destiny affect the United States
geographically, politically, economically, and
socially?
century.
 The invention of the cotton gin made the South a one-crop
economy and increased the need for slave labor.
 Southern society centered around agriculture.
13.) What was the objective of the Lewis and Clark
Expedition?
 The slave system in the South produced harsh living conditions
14.) How did the Homestead Act and other events of
that time motivate families to move west?
 Sectional compromises associated with westward expansion of
15.) What were the hardships faced along the Oregon
Trail for tee settlers and Native Americans?
and occasional rebellions.
slavery, such as the Missouri Compromise and the continued
resistance to slavery by African Americans (e.g. Amistad Revolt)
helped understand how the struggle for civil rights come to a head
in the Civil War.
16.) What impact did the Gold Rush have on the Native  The territorial expansion of the United States resulted in the
massive displacement and death of indigenous people and ways of
Americans?
life.
17.) How did the railroad change life in the new
country?
 State and federal policies redirected various Native American
18.) How did the institution of slavery shape the
political territorial development of the United States in
the early 19th century?
 The early 19th century saw major changes to American political,
tribes to give up their traditional ways of life for American
progress.
social, economic, and intellectual life.
 Americans responded to these transformations by organizing
reform movements.
 These transformations and reform movements affected life in New
Jersey.
 The institution of slavery in the US, resistance to it, and New
Jersey’s role in the Underground Railroad highlights the struggle
between state and federal regulations.
Roselle Public Schools
Social Studies Curriculum Units of Study Grade 8
Student Learning Objectives
(What students should know and be able to do?)
What should students know?
CPI’s
6.1.8.A.4.a - Explain the changes in America’s relationships
with other nations by analyzing policies, treaties, tariffs, and
agreements.
6.1.8.A.4.b - Analyze how the concept of Manifest Destiny
influenced the acquisition of land through annexation,
diplomacy, and war.
What should students be able to do?
Skills

 Explain and evaluate how Americans used the concept of Manifest Dynasty
to justify westward expansion.

 Describe how the California Gold Rush caused California’s population to
both grow and become extremely diverse.
 Explain and describe how values drive national expansion.
6.1.8.A.4.c - Assess the extent to which voting rights were
expanded during the Jacksonian period.
6.1.8.B.4.a - Assess the impact of the Louisiana Purchase and
western exploration on the expansion and economic
development of the United States.
6.1.8.B.4.b - Map territorial expansion and settlement, as well
as the locations of conflicts with and removal of Native
Americans.
 Examine the benefits and drawbacks of national expansion.
 Analyze and describe life in North America during the early 1800s.
 Identify how the invention of the cotton gin sparked a boom in the U.S.
slave trade.

 Explain how cotton revolutionizes the southern economy, politics, and
culture.
6.1.8.C.4.a – Analyze the debates involving the National Bank,
 Describe slavery became essential to southern economics.
uniform currency, and tariffs, and determine the extent to
which each of these economic tools met the economic
 Summarize how slaves created a sense of community through music,
challenges facing the new nation.
stories, religion, and other cultural traditions.
Roselle Public Schools
Social Studies Curriculum Units of Study Grade 8
6.1.8.C.4.b - Explain how major technological developments
revolutionized land and water transportation, as well as the
economy, in New Jersey and
nation.
6.1.8.C.4.c - Analyze how technological innovations affected
the status and social class of different groups of people, and
explain the outcomes that resulted.
6.1.8.D.4.a - Analyze the push-pull factors that led to increases
in immigration, and explain why ethnic and cultural conflicts
resulted.
6.1.8.D.4.b - Explore efforts to reform education, women’s
rights, slavery, and other issues during the Antebellum
period.
 Explain how slavery had psychological effects upon both southern whites
and blacks.
 Analyze how the election of Lincoln in 1860 cause southern states to begin
seceding from the Union.
 Read the Declaration of Sentiments and analyze the text as you read.
 Research the needs, wants, conflicts/issues, and geographical discoveries of
the pioneers on this long journey (Oregon Trail).
 Evaluate the Indian Removal Act.
 Compare and contrast Lewis and Clark’s journal entries and experiences.
 Create a book detailing the causes and effects of the War of 1812.
6.1.8.D.4.c - Explain the growing resistance to slavery and
New Jersey’s role in the Underground Railroad.
Roselle Public Schools
Social Studies Curriculum Units of Study Grade 8
Instructional Strategies
Modifications/Extensions
Assessments
Resources/Technology
(How will the students reach
the learning targets?)
(How will I differentiate?)
(How will the students
demonstrate mastery?)
(What resources and materials will
students need?)
Reading/Writing:
 Close Reading of Texts
 Use Cornell notes while
reading
 Use graphic organizer to
identify main idea and
supporting details
 Compare and contrast events,
groups, or specific individuals
using a Venn Diagram
 Summarize
 Use context clues to decode
words and ideas
Scaffolds for Learning:
 Use a main idea organizer to
identify the essential and nonessential information.
Formative Assessments:
Teacher Observation
 Use an inference chart while
reading a story or a particular
event and draw conclusions
about what was read.
Quizzes/Test
Group Discussions
CCCS
http://www.state.nj.us/education/cccs/standards/1/index.ht
ml
 Pose questions
Logs, Journal Entries
21st Century Skills and Career Standards
http://www.state.nj.us/education/aps/cccs/career/
 Exit Tickets
 Using the RACER method to
respond to open-ended
Portfolios
 Skim and scan an assigned
Demonstrations
reading to identify text features
Constructed Responses
and structure.
 Create labeled illustrations
and/or illustrate vocabulary
terms.
 Take notes while reading
 Checks for Understanding
Presentation
 Create a biographical
dictionary for the people
describe in this unit.
Extensions:
 Identify and describe the
multiple causes and effects of
Socratic Seminar Questions: See
Appendix A
Performance Tasks: See
Appendix B
Summative Assessment: See
Appendix C
Text/s:
Holt McDougal – United States
History
Texts: See Appendix D
Websites:
Depths of Knowledge Levels
http://www.dese.mo.gov/divimprove/sia/msip/DOK_Char
t.pdf
http://commoncore.lacoe.edu/resources/training_121015/
DOK_technology.pdf
Amistad:
http://www.theamistadcommission.com/
Harcourt Online:
http:// http://www.eharcourtschool.com
History Channel:
http://www.history.com
Ancillary Materials
Student Portfolio


Social Studies Notebook
Journals
Roselle Public Schools
Social Studies Curriculum Units of Study Grade 8
questions
 Student created questions
the events described in this
unit.
 Respond to an open-ended
question based on an editorial
or any informational text read
in class.
 Complete a journal response
or Cornell notes with questions
that encourage critical
thinking. Then write a brief
summary of their questions at
the end of each journal
response or Cornell notes.









Print and Online Graphic
Organizers
Open-Ended Response Rubric
Word Walls
Internet
Various Writing Prompts
Exemplars
Student Portfolios
Feedback Worksheets
Anchor Charts
Key Terms/Vocabulary Words
Mountain men, Oregon Trail, Santa Fe Trail, Mormons, Brigham Young, Alamo, manifest destiny, Treaty of Guadalupe Hidalgo, Louisiana
Purchase, Gadsden Purchase, John Sutter, Donner party, forty-niners, prospect, placer miners, War of 1812, Industrial Revolution, textiles,
technology, mass production, Rhode Island system, Lowell system, trade unions, strikes, Transportation Revolution, Gibbons vs. Ogden, Samuel
F.B. Morse, telegraph, Morse code, John Deere, Cyrus McCormick, cotton gin, planters, cotton belt, factors, Tredegar Iron Works, yeomen,
folktales, spirituals, Nat Turner’s Rebellion, Nat Turner, middle-class, transcendentalism, Second Great Awakening, temperance movement,
Dorothea Dix, common-school movement, Horace Mann, Thomas Gallaudet, abolition, William Lloyd Garrison, American Anti-Slavery
Society, Fredrick Douglass, Sojourner Truth, underground railroad, Harriet Tubman, Susan B. Anthony, Elizabeth Cady Stanton, Seneca Falls
Convention, popular sovereignty, sectionalism, Free-Soil Party, secede, Fugitive Slave Act, Kansas-Nebraska Act, Pottawatomie Massacre,
Abraham Lincoln, Lincoln-Douglas Debates, Constitutional Union Party, Confederate States of America
Roselle Public Schools
Social Studies Curriculum Units of Study Grade 8
Appendix A
Socratic Seminar Questions
Declaration of Sentiments
Students will read and examine the Declaration of Sentiments by responding to the following questions citing textual evidence, of
course. Once you have responded to the questions and found quotes in the primary source to support your responses, come to class
prepared for a discussion. (http://www.nolo.com/legal-encyclopedia/content/decl-women-rights-doc.html)
Reading Passage:
(1)When, in the course of human events, it becomes necessary for one portion of the family of man to assume among the
people of the earth a position different from that which they have hitherto occupied, but one to which the laws of nature and of
nature's God entitle them, a decent respect to the opinions of mankind requires that they should declare the causes that impel
them to such a course.
(2)We hold these truths to be self-evident: that all men and women are created equal; that they are endowed by their Creator
with certain inalienable rights; that among these are life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness; that to secure these rights
governments are instituted, deriving their just powers from the consent of the governed. Whenever any form of government
becomes destructive of these ends, it is the right of those who suffer from it to refuse allegiance to it, and to insist upon the
institution of a new government, laying its foundation on such principles, and organizing its powers in such form, as to them
shall seem most likely to effect their safety and happiness. Prudence, indeed, will dictate that governments long established
should not be changed for light and transient causes; and, accordingly, all experience has shown that mankind are more
disposed to suffer, while evils are sufferable, than to right themselves by abolishing the forms to which they were accustomed.
But when a long train of abuses and usurpations, pursuing invariably the same object, evinces a design to reduce them under
absolute despotism, it is their duty to throw off such government and to provide new guards for their future security. Such has
been the patient sufferance of the women under this government, and such is now the necessity, which constrains them to
demand the equal station to which they are entitled.
(3)The history of mankind is a history of repeated injuries and usurpations on the part of man toward woman, having in direct
object the establishment of an absolute tyranny over her. To prove this, let facts be submitted to a candid world.
Roselle Public Schools
Social Studies Curriculum Units of Study Grade 8
He has never permitted her to exercise her inalienable right to the elective franchise.
He has compelled her to submit to law in the formation of which she had no voice.
He has withheld from her rights, which are given to the most ignorant and degraded men, both natives and foreigners.
Having deprived her of this first right as a citizen, the elective franchise, thereby leaving her without representation in the halls
of legislation, he has oppressed her on all sides.
He has made her, if married, in the eye of the law, civilly dead.
He has taken from her all right in property, even to the wages she earns.
He has made her morally, an irresponsible being, as she can commit many crimes with impunity, provided they be done in the
presence of her husband. In the covenant of marriage, she is compelled to promise obedience to her husband, he becoming, to
all intents and purposes, her master the law giving him power to deprive her of her liberty and to administer chastisement.
He has so framed the laws of divorce, as to what shall be the proper causes and, in case of separation, to whom the
guardianship of the children shall be given, as to be wholly regardless of the happiness of the women the law, in all cases,
going upon a false supposition of the supremacy of man and giving all power into his hands.
After depriving her of all rights as a married woman, if single and the owner of property, he has taxed her to support a
government, which recognizes her only when her property can be made profitable to it.
He has monopolized nearly all the profitable employments, and from those she is permitted to follow, she receives but a scanty
remuneration.
He closes against her all the avenues to wealth and distinction, which he considers most honorable to himself. As a teacher of
theology, medicine, or law, she is not known.
He has denied her the facilities for obtaining a thorough education, all colleges being closed against her.
He allows her in church, as well as state, but a subordinate position, claiming apostolic authority for her exclusion from the
ministry, and, with some exceptions, from any public participation in the affairs of the church.
Roselle Public Schools
Social Studies Curriculum Units of Study Grade 8
He has created a false public sentiment by giving to the world a different code of morals for men and women, by which moral
delinquencies, which exclude women from society are not only tolerated but deemed of little account in man.
He has usurped the prerogative of Jehovah himself, claiming it as his right to assign for her a sphere of action, when that
belongs to her conscience and to her God.
He has endeavored, in every way that he could, to destroy her confidence in her own powers, to lessen her self-respect, and to
make her willing to lead a dependent and abject life.
(4)Now, in view of this entire disfranchisement of one-half the people of this country, their social and religious degradation, in
view of the unjust laws above mentioned, and because women do feel themselves aggrieved, oppressed, and fraudulently
deprived of their most sacred rights, we insist that they have immediate admission to all the rights and privileges which belong
to them as citizens of the United States.
(5)In entering upon the great work before us, we anticipate no small amount of misconception, misrepresentation, and ridicule;
but we shall use every instrumentality within our power to affect our object. We shall employ agents, circulate tracts, petition
the state and national legislatures, and endeavor to enlist the pulpit and the press in our behalf. We hope this Convention will
be followed by a series of conventions embracing every part of the country.
At home in preparation of Socratic Seminar:
1.) Independently, summarize the key points identified in this reading.
2.) In 1-2 paragraphs, explain what the Declaration of Sentiments is about. Use details and information from the passage to
support your answer.
3.) Did anything in the document surprise you? Make sure to highlight or mark the text appropriately to share with the
class.
In class as part of our Socratic Seminar:
1.) With your assigned group, share your responses to the at home portion of the Socratic Seminar.
2.) Next, with your group, attempt to answer as many of the discussion questions as time will allow. Please make sure that
everyone is recording the answers to these questions or making notes so that a formal submission of the discussion
questions and your answers can be submitted at a later time.
Roselle Public Schools
Social Studies Curriculum Units of Study Grade 8
Discussion Questions:
1. What similarities do you see between this document and the Declaration of Independence?
2. Why do you think it is important that the people at the Seneca Falls Convention wanted to use the language
from the Declaration of Independence in their declaration?
3. Which abuse (paragraph 3) shocked you the most? Which did you have the strongest reaction to and why?
4. What are the authors saying in line 21, who are the people who might make fun of this document? What led
you to this conclusion?
5. Why would these people want to make fun of this document?
6. Why is this document still important today?
7. Do you think today that women are equal to men? Explain why you believe this to be true/untrue.
8. Where in the world are women not equal to men?
Grading: Refer to Open Ended Rubric and the Socratic Seminar Rubric found under Common Rubrics.
Roselle Public Schools
Social Studies Curriculum Units of Study Grade 8
Appendix B
Performance Task/s
Task #1: Lewis and Clark – The Corps of Discovery
In this activity, students will understand the experience of the Corps of Discovery through an analysis of excerpts from their journals,
analyzing and evaluating artifacts from their journey, and by mapping the trail of Lewis and Clark. In addition, students will evaluate
what they learned and write an essay response to the question – Would you have wanted to go on the journey with Lewis and Clark?
Making sure to include details from the journal, artifacts, and map to explain their reasoning.
Activity: Students will rotate through a series of three stations to better understand Lewis and Clark’s journey. Along the way
they will read and analyze excerpts from their journals, map the path taken by the Corps of Discovery, and evaluate artifacts
from the journey. Each station should take about 15-20 minutes to complete.
Station 1 – Read the excerpts from the journals aloud together. Students should fill in a graphic organizer created by the
teacher as they read, finding facts about discoveries made, adversities they faced, relations with Native Americans, and any
other interesting facts.
Access journal entry excerpts here: http://www.pbs.org/lewisandclark/archive/idx_jou.html
Suggested Journal Entries to use:
-
June 4, 1804 (William Clark)
-
July 20, 1804 (William Clark)
-
September 7, 1804 (William Clark)
-
September 17, 1804 (Meriwether Lewis)
-
September 26, 1804 (Patrick Gass)
-
September 28, 1804 (Joseph Whitehouse)
Roselle Public Schools
Social Studies Curriculum Units of Study Grade 8
Station 2 – Flip through the photographs/pictures of items related to Lewis and Clark’s journey. Try to determine what each
item is. Then flip the pictures over to read the information on the backside. After flipping through all of them, choose five of
the most interesting items and explain how each relates to the journey. Finally, add at least one interesting observation
regarding the item that your group discussed.
Access to artifact photos with explanation: http://www.lewisandclarkexhibit.org/cd_index_flash.html
Suggested Artifacts to use:
o Books taken on the expedition, 1754-1803
A few of the books Lewis is known or suspected to have brought with him. Clockwise from the bottom, they
are: A Practical Introduction to Spherics and Nautical Astronomy; Elements of Botany; Elements of
Mineralogy; A New and Complete Dictionary of Arts and Sciences.
o Coyote, 1819
Coyotes were new to explorers.
o Journals of Lewis and Clark, 1804-06
Lewis and Clark kept their journals in an assortment of small notebooks. Jefferson had instructed, “Several
copies…of your other notes should be made at leisure times, and put into the care of the most trustworthy of
your attendants, to guard, by multiplying them, against accidental losses to which they will be exposed.”
o Fiddle, 1795-1811
The journals frequently mention the men dancing to fiddle music. The fiddle also played an important
diplomatic role by entertaining villagers and putting them at ease.
o Corn mill, late 1700s
The corn mills brought by the expedition must have looked something like this English hand mill for grinding
coffee, corn, or beats. Lewis and Clark did not present it to the Mandan women, whose role it was to grind corn.
Instead, they gave it to the men, who promptly dismantle the mill to turn it into arrow points.
o Surveyor’s compass, c.1817
Roselle Public Schools
Social Studies Curriculum Units of Study Grade 8
o Lewis’s estimate of expenses, 1803
Like any federal project, the expedition had to have a budget. This document shows Lewis proposing a bargain
expedition only costing $2,500/ Once approved by Congress, Lewis proceeded to exceed his budget by 1420
percent. The final bill was more than $38,000, but Congress paid it.
o Medical instruments, early 1800s
These instruments correspond to some of the medical tools Lewis purchased for use on the expedition: a clyster
syringe (for enemas), surgical instruments, bilious pills (laxatives), a tourniquet, and two lancets for
bloodletting.
o 1804 Infantry captain’s uniform, reproduced 2002
Reproduction of U.S. Army full dress captain’s uniform for the 1st U.S. Infantry Regiment to which Lewis
belonged.
o Surveyor’s chain, 1800s
Lewis purchased this for $2.00. It was used to measure land.
o Jefferson Peace Medal (replica), 1801
o Medicine chest, 1804
Lewis paid the Philadelphia druggist Gillaspy and Strong $90.69 for a supply of medicines and a walnut chest
to hold them. Many of the drugs were believed to work by expelling impurities from the body. This one is likely
a bit more fancy than the one Lewis purchased.
o Set of dental tools, mid-1800s
Set of dental tool Lewis purchased for $2.25. They may have looked like this set, which contains forceps,
lancets, a blowpipe, as well as various blades and scalpels. Also shown is a pair of took keys for pulling teeth.
Lewis did not record whether he ever used his dental tools.
o Pocket chronometer, 1807-8
Purchased at $250, the chronometer was the single most expensive piece of equipment that Lewis purchased for
the voyage. It was a wonder of technology: a watch so accurate that, if properly cared for, it could be set to
Roselle Public Schools
Social Studies Curriculum Units of Study Grade 8
Greenwich time and vary at a predictable rate, so that a simple comparison tool of local noon to Greenwich
noon would yield the longitude. Unfortunately, it did not work accurately for the expedition.
Station 3 – Find each of the locations traveled by Lewis and Clark and chart them on the map provided. Use the classroom
atlas as a reference where needed. Connect each of the locations to find the route that Lewis and Clark followed to the Pacific
Ocean. When done, identify and analyze the geographic challenges of the path taken.
Access to map: http://mrnussbaum.com/lewis-clark/interactive
Introduce the Writing Assignment: Students will be asked to use specific facts that they have learned to answer the question - Would
you have wanted to go on the journey with Lewis and Clark? In a short essay, they should make a claim and then support their claim
by providing evidence and an explanation of their evidence to support their claim.
Task #2: The War of 1812
• Instructions:
1.) Using Google Presentation through your Google Drive students will create a book for the purpose of explaining the
causes and effects of the War of 1812.
2.) Each Google Presentation slide will be considered a page of the book.
3.) Each slide should be numbered and have a graphic image when appropriate to enhance understanding of the topic.
Appropriate fonts and backgrounds should be used.
4.) Neatness and accuracy is required.
5.) A front cover is required with a title, topic related graphic/illustration, your name & class period listed.
6.) Books should have a back cover message paragraph that explains what the reader would expect to learn by reading the
book.
7.) Keep looking back to the rubric to make sure you are fulfilling all requirements to receive the best grade possible.
8.) Go to your Google Drive
9.) Click Create, then click Presentation.
10.) Title the Presentation “your first initial/last name War of 1812 Book class period” (example: cpetrucelli War of 1812
Book 1/2)
Roselle Public Schools
Social Studies Curriculum Units of Study Grade 8
 The book will focus on the following three areas:
1. Causes of the war:
a.) Who supported the war?
b.) Why? (research ideas: what were the views of the different regions of the country- north, south, east, west?; James
Madison; War Hawks; etc.)
c.) Who opposed (against) the war? Why? (research ideas: federalists; New England states--this is the Northeast
region of the country)
d.) What events led up to the declaration of war? (Think impressment, Embargo Act of 1807, British Support Native
Americans, War Hawks)
2. Key events of the war:
a.) What were the key or major battles of the war?
b.) Who was fighting?
c.) Who were the leaders or heroes involved? (Oliver Hazard Perry; Andrew Jackson- explain their role/importance)
d.) Why was this event/battle or its outcome important? (Burning of the White House; Battle of Lake Erie, Battle of
Lake Champlain,Battle of New Orleans- Explain why this battle was significant)
e.) Who won the war? (Did the Americans win? Did the British win? Or...was the no clear winner at all?)
f.) How and why did the war end?
g.) What treaties were signed? When? (Explain the terms of the treaty!)
3. Effects or Results of the war:
a.) How did the war affect our borders? (Were the clear or unclear? Explain...)
b.) What were the conditions of the peace treaty? (Explain the Treaty of Ghent)
c.) What changes in our national image occurred internally and abroad? (How did Americans view our country after
the war? How did other countries view the US after the war? What is nationalism? Did the US have this? Why?)
d.) What changes in our economy occurred? (Did it lead to more manufacturing in the United States? Why? How did it
help start the American Industrial Revolution?)
e.) How did the war affect Native Americans? (What was the relationship like now between the United States and the
Native Americans? Explain...)
Grading: Refer to NJ Registered Holistic Scoring Rubric/Open Ended Scoring Rubric found under Common Rubrics.
Roselle Public Schools
Social Studies Curriculum Units of Study Grade 8
Appendix C
Summative Assessment
Unit 1
Title: Expansion and Reform
Subject: Social Studies
Grade Level: 8
_________________________________________________________________________________________________________
Instructional Focus:
Social Studies Standards:
6.1.8.A.4.a, 6.1.8.A.4.b, 6.1.8.A.4.c, 6.1.8.B.4.a, 6.1.8.B.4.b, 6.1.8.C.4.a, 6.1.8.C.4.b, 6.1.8.C.4.c, 6.1.8.D.4.a, 6.1.8.D.4.b, 6.1.8.D.4.c
Reading Standards:
RH.6-8.1, RH.6-8.2, RH.6-8.4, RH.6-8.7, RH.6-8.9, RH.6-8.10
Writing Standards:
WHST.6-8.2, WHST.6-8.4, WHST.6-8.6, WHST.6-8.7, WHST.6-8.9, WHST.6-8.10
Speaking and Listening Standards:
SL.6.1
Language Standards:
L.6.1
21st Century Life and Careers Standards:
9.1.8.A.1, 9.1.8.B.1, 9.1.8.C.1, 9.1.8.C.2, 9.1.8.C.3, 9.1.8.B.6
_________________________________________________________________________________________________________
Roselle Public Schools
Social Studies Curriculum Units of Study Grade 8
Essential Questions:
1.) What was the objective of Lewis and Clark’s expedition?
2.) How did their expedition change the United States?
3.) Why did America go to war with England again in 1812 and what happened?
4.) How did Manifest Destiny affect the United States geographically, politically, economically, and socially?
_________________________________________________________________________________________________________
Student Learning: Students will be able to complete the following:



Students will analyze historical documents.
Students will respond to questions based on the historical documents provided.
Students will compose an essay using their knowledge gained during this unit and information from the historical documents
provided.
 Students will arrange the information they have gathered to create a graphic organizer eventually leading to the composition of
a well-written essay.
 Students will utilize presentation skills to present their essay to the class.
 Students will write notes utilizing an outline/graphic organizer.
 Students will write a rough draft of their essay before composing a final draft or presenting their essay to the class.
 Students will participate in a presentation.
 Students will describe various events that effected westward expansion and the gradual boundary changes to the United States
maps.
__________________________________________________________________________________________________________
Introduction
This project is based on three accompanying documents. It is designed to test your ability to work with historical documents. Some of
the documents have been edited for the purposes of the question. As you analyze the documents, take into account the source of each
document and any point of view that may be presented in the document.
Task
In the early 1800s, people expressed their ideas about the growing American nationalism (pride in or devotion to the United States) in
a variety of ways. Conflicts as well as successes characterized the expansion of the United States from 1820 to 1860. Using
information from the documents provided, and your knowledge of social studies, answer the items that follow each document in Part
A. Your answers to the questions will help you complete Part B (an essay) in which you will be asked: 1.) In the early 1800s,
Americans felt a growing sense of pride in their new nation. How did this feeling help Americans define their identity as a people?
Roselle Public Schools
Social Studies Curriculum Units of Study Grade 8
What obstacles did they face in developing this national identity? 2.) In the years from 1820-1860, the United States grew to stretch
“from sea to shining sea.” What were some key developments that made this growth possible? What problems resulted from this rapid
and massive expansion?
Steps:
Step One – Complete Part A.
Part A – Short Answer Questions
Directions: Analyze the documents and answer the short-answer questions that follow.
-
Document 1: Thomas Jefferson, giving instructions to Meriwether Lewis and Lewis Clark for their journey of
exploration, in a letter (1803):
The goal of your journey is to explore the Missouri River, and such major streams of it, as, by its course and
communication with the waters of the Pacific Ocean, may offer the most direct water route across this continent
for the purpose of trade.
Your observations are to be taken with great pains and accuracy, to be entered carefully and intelligently for
others as well as yourself. Other objects worthy of notice will be the soil and face of the country, its plants, the
animals of the country, the mineral productions of every kind of climate, or every kind. In your meetings with
Native Americans, treat them in the most friendly manner with their own conduct admit.
1.) What were the chief goals of Lewis and Clark’s expedition?
2.) What kinds of records were Lewis and Clark instructed to keep and by whom were they instructed?
Roselle Public Schools
Social Studies Curriculum Units of Study Grade 8
-
Document 2 : Painting of British troops burning Washington, D.C. during the War of 1812.
1.) What are the people in the lower right-hand corner of this illustration doing?
2.) Who are the people in the lower left-hand corner of this illustration? How do you know?
3.) What feelings does the artist express about the burning of Washington? Explain.
Roselle Public Schools
Social Studies Curriculum Units of Study Grade 8
-
Document 3 : Mexican historian Justo Sierra, writing about events just before the Mexican War, in, The Mexican War:
Was It Manifest Destiny? (1963)
In the sphere of international law, Mexican diplomacy constantly got the better of the American. This
was shown in the conferences that took place between the United States and Mexico to settle claims
over boundaries. It was also seen in the notes with which Mexico called attention to the series of insults
permitted by the Washington government against the dignity of the Mexican Republic.
Even if the right of annexation could be claimed by Texas, it could only be claimed by the United States
by first settling the other issues with Mexico.
1.) How does Sierra compare Mexican government with American diplomacy?
2.) How does the historian view the behavior of the United States toward Mexico?
3.) Does Sierra approve of the annexation of Texas? Explain your answer.
Step Two – Write a well-organized essay that includes an introduction, several body paragraphs, and a conclusion. Use evidence from
the three documents in Part A. Support your response with relevant facts, examples, and details from the documents read and analyzed
in Part A. Include outside additional information learned in class as well.
Your essay should address the following questions:
In the early 1800s, Americans felt a growing sense of pride in their new nation. How did this feeling help
Americans define their identity as a people? What obstacles did they face in developing this national identity?
 In the years from 1820-1860, the United States grew to stretch from “sea to shining sea.” What were some key
developments that made this growth possible? What problems resulted from this rapid and massive expansion?
Grading: Refer to NJ Registered Holistic Scoring Rubric/Open Ended Scoring Rubric found under Common Rubrics.
Roselle Public Schools
Social Studies Curriculum Units of Study Grade 8
Rubric(s):
War of 1812 Book Rubric
Teacher Name:
______________________________________________________________________
Student Name(s):
______________________________________________________________________
Category
4 Points
3 Points
Cover/Title Page
Cover/title page has a graphic and uses
attractive and appropriate font (lettering),
has the title, author's name, and class
period. The topic of the book is obvious
from viewing the cover/title page. Includes
back cover message paragraph.
Illustrations or graphics are detailed,
attractive, creative, and relate to the text on
the page. Pages are appropriately supported
by an image, which enhances the
understanding of the text on the page. Font
& background are appropriate and enhance
pages.
Cover/title page has a title, graphic, author's
name, and class period which are easily
read. The topic of the book is obvious from
viewing the cover/title page.
Cover/title page has a title,
graphic, author's name,
and class period.
Cover/title page has a
title and/or author’s
name.
Illustrations or graphics are somewhat
detailed, attractive, and relate to the text on
the page. Most pages are supported by an
image. Font & background are
appropriate. Pages are easy to read.
Illustrations relate to the text
on some of the pages. Fonts
and/or backgrounds are
mostly appropriate for the
ease of reading the page
Illustrations are not
present OR they are not
related to the text on
the page.
Focus on
Assigned
Topic
(Causes/
Events/
Effects)
The entire story is related to the assigned
topic and allows the reader to thoroughly
understand the topic relative to the number
of pages allowed. Causes, Key Events, and
Effects of the war are insightfully covered.
All required project elements are completed.
Most of the story is related to the assigned
topic. and reader can still learn something
about the topic. Causes, Key Events, and
Effects of the war are covered. All required
project elements are completed.
Some of the story is related to
the assigned topic, but
required elements need
clarification or much about
the topic or information is
confusing.
No or little attempt has
been made to relate the
story to the assigned
topic.
Accuracy of
Facts
Key facts presented in the story are accurate
and insightful clarification is included in the
text.
Sufficient key facts presented in the story
and are accurate. Some clarification is
provided.
Some key facts presented in
the story are accurate but
some obvious errors exist.
There are several
major factual errors in
the story.
Grammar &
Spelling
No obvious errors exist.
Minor errors exist but do not distract from
the topic and the book is relatively easy to
read.
Errors make reading the
book somewhat difficult.to
read.
Errors are distracting
and make reading the
book difficult. to read.
Illustrations/
Graphics/Font/B
ackground
2 Points
1 Point
Roselle Public Schools
Social Studies Curriculum Units of Study Grade 8
Author’s Work
All information is presented in the author’s
own words and is not copied and/or pasted
from another source. Story has not been
plagiarized. Story is original and creative.
Most information is presented in the
author’s own words and is not obviously
copied and/or pasted from another source.
Story has not been plagiarized. Story is
original.
Some of the information is
presented in the author’s own
words. Story has not been
plagiarized.
Text has obvious copied
and pasted information.
Roselle Public Schools
Social Studies Curriculum Units of Study Grade 8
Oral Presentation Rubric
Teacher Name:
______________________________________________________________________
Student Name(s):
______________________________________________________________________
4
3
2
1
Speaks Clearly
Speaks clearly and distinctly all
(100-95%) the time, and
mispronounces no words.
Speaks clearly and distinctly all
(100-95%) the time, but
mispronounces one word.
Speaks clearly and distinctly
most ( 94-85%) of the time.
Mispronounces no more than
one word.
Often mumbles or cannot be
understood OR mispronounces
more than one word.
Volume
Volume is loud enough to be
heard by all audience members
throughout the presentation.
Volume is loud enough to be
heard by all audience members
at least 90% of the time.
Volume is loud enough to be
heard by all audience members
at least 80% of the time.
Volume often too soft to be
heard by all audience members.
Stays on Topic
Stays on topic all (100%) of the
time.
Stays on topic most (99-90%) of Stays on topic some (89%-75%) It was hard to tell what the topic
the time.
of the time.
was.
Content
Shows a full understanding of
the topic.
Shows a good understanding of
the topic.
CATEGORY
Posture and Eye Contact Stands up straight, looks relaxed Stands up straight and
and confident. Establishes eye
contact with everyone in the
room during the presentation.
Shows a good understanding of
parts of the topic.
Sometimes stands up straight
establishes eye contact with
and establishes eye contact.
everyone in the room during the
presentation.
Does not seem to understand
the topic very well.
Slouches and/or does not look
at people during the
presentation.
Roselle Public Schools
Social Studies Curriculum Units of Study Grade 8
Appendix D
Text/Articles and or Documents
Unit 1 – Expansion and Reform
Title
Genre/ Resource/ Page #
Lewis and Clark (Journal Excerpts)
Primary Source
Declaration of Sentiments
Primary Source
Painting of British troops burning Washington, D.C. during the
War of 1812
Visual Aid
The Mexican War: Was It Manifest Destiny? (1963)
Primary Source
Thomas Jefferson, giving instructions to Meriwether Lewis and
Lewis Clark for their journey of exploration, in a letter (1803)
Primary Source
Westward Expansion by Teresa Domnauer
Informational Text
Which Way to the Wild West? Everything Your Schoolbooks
Didn’t Tell You About Westward Expansion by Steve Sheinkin
Into the West: Causes and Effects of U.S. Westward Expansion by
Terry Collins and Joseph R. O’Neil
Westward Expansion: A History of the American Frontier by Ray
Allen Billington
Informational Text
Holt McDougal – United States History
Non-Fiction Text (Chapters 11-15)(Pages 342-503)
Informational Text
Informational Text