District Approved Social Studies Resources

Board Approved Materials for District Social Studies Adoption as of 2008:
The adoption budget will provide Primary texts for each building. Supplemental materials will go on an “approved” list of materials that may be purchased by individual buildings with their own funds.

Primary Texts:

7th Grade Medieval World History / Washington State History

The Medieval World and Beyond (TCI)
The State We’re in: Washington (League of Women Voters)

Rationale:
1. The Medieval World and Beyond (TCI) explores the legacy of civilizations from Europe, Africa, and the Middle East to Asia and the Americas. It’s content address the 7th Grade Washington State Social Studies EALRS and provides ample critical thinking opportunities for students. In addition, the student workbooks and auxiliary teacher materials allow teachers to develop hands-on learning opportunities while emphasizing the content standards.
2. The State We’re in: Washington, League of Women Voters: Provides a comprehensive approach to Washington State Government, Economic and Tribal issues. It supports critical thinking and analysis, addresses issues of multiculturalism and provides opportunities for cross-disciplinary studies.

8th Grade United States History through 1900

United States History (Holt)
The United States through Industrialism (TCI)

Rationale:
No single text reviewed was unanimously agreed upon, therefore, we are recommending the adoption of classroom sets of both the Holt and TCI text. Classroom sets of the two textbooks are being recommended in order to most effectively balance the needs of the middle school students and teachers. Together, the two texts offer a comprehensive, student-centered approach to social studies education as well as opportunities to integrate other subject areas, a variety of resources that complement the learning styles of students and teaching styles of educators, and online access to texts to provide further flexibility for instruction. Holt and TCI are symbiotic. Holt offers traditional in-depth and detailed accounts of events, while TCI offers newer perspectives on those same events. Together they help students develop a holistic and realistic understanding of American history.

Grade 9-10 World History

World History (Prentice Hall)

Rationale:
This text meets both the district and state scope and sequence and standards. It is appropriate to grade level, includes graphics, state of the art technology and available support, including an on-line text version. It supports critical thinking and analysis, addresses issues of multiculturalism and provides opportunities for cross disciplinary studies. The text will integrate well with both the state’s CBAs and the district’s anchor tasks and GPTs. It includes a series of DBQs and suggestions for project based learning. The publisher offers a variety of state of the art ways of addressing the needs of diverse learners and reading development. The graphics in particular support WASL like math activities, and the writing prompts focus on persuasive and expository writing skills, also important for WASL success. There is a whole host of support materials for teacher’s including power point presentations, test banks, games, simulations, and more. Both the text and the support materials are designed to encourage rigorous inquiry, discussion and research. Because of this, it facilitates the understanding of the world today in an historical context (Bryant) and connects with students by reflecting real-life issues and develops a consciousness for democratic citizenship (Parker).

Grade 11 United States History

United States History (Prentice Hall)

Rationale:
Prentice Hall’s, United States History meets both the district and state scope and sequence and standards. It is appropriate to grade level, includes graphics, state of the art technology and available support, including an on-line text version. It supports critical thinking and analysis, addresses issues of multiculturalism and provides opportunities for cross disciplinary studies. The text will integrate well with both the state’s CBAs and the district’s anchor tasks and GPTs. It includes a series of DBQs and suggestions for project-based learning. The publisher offers a variety of state-of-the-art
ways of addressing the needs of diverse learners and reading development. The graphics in particular support WASL-like math activities, and the writing prompts focus on persuasive and expository writing skills, also important for WASL success. There is a whole host of support materials for teachers including PowerPoint presentations, test banks, games, simulations, and more. Both the text and the support materials are designed to encourage rigorous inquiry, discussion and
research. Because of this, it facilitates the understanding of the world today in a historical context (Bryant) and connects with students by reflecting real-life issues and develops a consciousness for democratic citizenship (Parker).

Senior Social Studies: Grade 12

Living Democracy (Prentice Hall)
Economics (Complete Idiot’s Guide)
Gorman (Alpha/Penguin)
Current Issues (Close-Up Foundation)

Rationale:
This course is unique in that it addresses three distinct social science disciplines not specifically covered anywhere else in our curriculum (civics, Washington State History, economics) and then requires students to apply these skills in a semester long exploration of current world issues. Consequently, this course requires a variety of high-interest texts and support materials to facilitate instruction. Each text then requires its own rationale underneath this broad curricular umbrella.
1. Civics: Living Democracy, Prentice Hall: A comprehensive college entry level text that provides a standard review of basic civics and examines how government interacts with and shapes the world. As such, it is a text that works for both the government and contemporary world issues portions of the course. It follows the district and state scope and sequence and matches to the standards. The reading level is appropriate, though will require supplemental assistance for struggling students. It includes graphics, state of the art technology and available support, including an on-line text version. It supports critical thinking and analysis, addresses issues of multiculturalism and provides opportunities for cross disciplinary studies. There are publisher-provided support materials for teachers. Both the text and the support materials are designed to encourage rigorous inquiry, discussion and research and will integrate well with the state CBA requirements.
2. Economics: Economics (Complete Idiot’s Guide): A straight-forward, approachable and readable text for economics. It includes vocabulary and conceptual definitions, many useful graphics and explains complex concepts in understandable non-mathematical ways. It follows the district and state scope and sequence and matches to the standards. It supports critical thinking and analysis.
3. Global Issues: Current Issues, Close-Up Foundation: Contains a collection of readings built around current issues of interest to high school students and important to understanding the contemporary world. It follows the district and state scope and sequence and matches to the standards. It is designed for high schools students, so the reading level is appropriate. It supports critical thinking and analysis, addresses issues of multiculturalism and provides opportunities for
cross disciplinary studies.
 

Advanced Placement European History

A History of Western Society. McKay. (Houghton-Mifflin)

Rationale:
This college level survey text meets both the district and state scope and sequence and standards. It is a College Board approved A.P. textbook. It is designed to give students both a broad understanding of the issues of modern European history as well as to prepare students for the rigorous externally assessed Advanced Placement exams. It supports the scope and sequence required by both the College Board. It provides for critical thinking and analysis, addresses issues of
multiculturalism and provides opportunities for cross disciplinary studies. This text includes excellent graphics, offer online support materials and has a student workbook available. Built into the text are opportunities for developing AP skills such as original source document analysis (DBQs) and interpretation of secondary and primary materials. College Board has intensively researched and vetted the reliability and accessibility of these materials. It is an engaging, well written and thought-provoking text.

Advanced Placement Government

American Government and Politics Today (Thomson)

Rationale:
This college level survey text meets both the district and state scope and sequence and standards. It is a College Board approved A.P. textbook that is designed to give students both a broad understanding of the issues of world history as well as to prepare students for the rigorous externally assessed Advanced Placement exams. It supports the scope and sequence required by the College Board. It provides for critical thinking and analysis, addresses issues of multiculturalism and provides opportunities for cross disciplinary studies. Built into the text are opportunities for developing AP skills such as original source document analysis (DBQs) and interpretation of secondary and primary materials. The College Board has intensively researched and vetted the reliability and accessibility of these materials.

Advanced Placement United States History

American History: A Survey. Brinkley (McGraw-Hill)

Rationale:
This college level survey text meets both the district and state scope and sequence and standards. It is a College Board approved textbook. It is designed to give students both a broad understanding of the issues of American history, as well as to prepare students for the rigorous externally assessed Advanced Placement exams. This text includes excellent graphics and offer on-line support materials. It includes appropriate support materials. Built into the text are opportunities for developing AP skills such as original source document analysis (DBQs) and interpretation of secondary and primary materials. College Board has intensively researched and vetted the reliability and accessibility of this textbook.

Advanced Placement World History

World Civilization: The Global Experience, Stearns. Prentice Hall

Rationale:
This college level survey text meets both the district and state scope and sequence and standards. It is a College Board approved A.P. textbook that is designed to give students both a broad understanding of the issues of world history as well as to prepare students for the rigorous externally assessed Advanced Placement exams. It supports the scope and sequence required by the College Board. It provides for critical thinking and analysis, addresses issues of multiculturalism and provides opportunities for cross disciplinary studies. Built into the text are opportunities for developing AP skills such as original source document analysis (DBQs) and interpretation of secondary and primary materials. The College Board has intensively researched and vetted the reliability and accessibility of these materials.

International Baccalaureate History of the Americas (2 year course)

American History: A Survey. Brinkley (McGraw-Hill)
Latin America: A Concise Interpretive History. Burns (Prentice Hall)
Canadian History: Patterns and Interactions (Irwin)
The World in the 20th Century (Prentice Hall)
Rise to Globalism. Ambrose (Penguin)

Rationale:
These college-level survey texts meet both the district and state scope and sequence and standards. They are International Baccalaureate Organization approved textbooks. They are designed to give students both a broad understanding of the issues of the history of the Americas, as well as to prepare students for the rigorous externally assessed I.B. exams. They support the scope and sequence required by I.B.O. They provide for critical thinking and analysis, address issues of multiculturalism, and provide opportunities for cross disciplinary studies. These texts include
excellent graphics and offer on-line support materials. They include appropriate support materials. Built into the text are opportunities for developing IB skills such as original source document analysis (DBQs) and interpretation of secondary and primary materials. I.B.O. has intensively researched and vetted the reliability and accessibility of these materials.

Supplementary Materials:

All Middle School level

Debate, Voting and Elections (CD) (Glencoe)
Civics in America (McDougal-Littell)
Strategies for Active Citizenship (Prentice Hall)
The Growth of the U.S. (SS School Service)
Creating the Constitution (SS School Service)
Washington’s History: The People, Land, and Events (West Wind Press)
Speaking of America (Thomson)
NCHS Booklets (UCLA)
Bringing History Alive: A U.S. History Source Book (NC for History in the Schools)
Voices of the American Past—Volumes I & II (Thomson)
The Civil War: A Document Based Unit (SS School Service)
A History of the U.S. by Joy Hakim
Supplemental Binders for A History of the U.S. created by John’s Hopkins University

All High School level

Watson Choices Program materials (Brown University)
SPICE units (Stanford University)
INTERACT units
PBS Eyes on the Prize (DVD Series)
NCHS Instructional units (UCLA)
Taking Sides (series) (Glencoe)
Teaching for Justice in an Unjust World (Rethinking Schools)
History Series: Multimedia Classroom Set (History Channel)
Rethinking Globalization (Rethinking Schools)

Senior Social Studies:

Foundation for Teaching Economics Instructional Materials
National Council for Economic Education: Instructional Materials
Junior Achievement Instructional Materials
Economics for Everybody (Amsco)
Naked Economics: Undressing the Dismal Science (W. W. Norton & Company)
 

Special Education programs:

Voices from America's Past (National Geographic)
Seeds of Change (National Geographic)
U.S. History Shorts 1 & 2 (PCI Education)
World History Shorts 1 & 2 (PCI Education)

 

ELL

American History (Contemporary)
World History (AGS)
World Geography and Cultures (AGS)
Foundations: Economics (Prentice Hall)
Magruder’s American Government (Prentice Hall)
 

Advanced Placement European History:

Western Civilization Annual Editions (Glencoe)

Advanced Placement United States History and International Baccalaureate History of the Americas:

Canadian History for Dummies (I.B. Only)
A People’s History of the United States (Howard Zinn)
U.S. History—A Document Based Skillsbook (Peoples)
American Issues: A Documentary Reader (Glencoe)
The American Spirit (Houghton Mifflin)

International Baccalaureate Art History

Gardner’s Art through the Ages (Wadsworth)

Rationale for All Supplemental Materials:
We recommend the supplemental materials above based on the fact that these materials will assist teachers in meeting the needs of all learners, year to year and class to class. Best instructional strategies include a course that encourages discourse, inquiry and understanding of a variety of narratives, content that includes current social issues, historical vignettes, primary sources and recurring themes, authentic learning experiences and a rigorous and engaging curriculum. Supplementary course materials enable teachers to enrich a core text to support these needs.