7th Social Studies Family
Dear Seventh Grade Families;
Welcome to the Ann Arbor Public Schools Family Pages. We hope the information you find here assists you in supporting your child while s/he is learning important skills and concepts throughout the seventh grade year. Four key sources inform the middle school Social Studies program; (1) The Michigan Grade Level Content Expectations, (2) the C3 Framework for College, Career and Civic Life for Social Studies State Standards, (3) Social Studies Alive! and (4) History Alive!. The Michigan GLCEs define the state's expectations for what students should know and be able to do in Social Studies at the end of each grade level. Development of units in Atlas is in process. Check back for updates: Atlas: Seventh Grade Social Studies Mapping Labs and Foundations of Social Studies will be taught in both 6th and 7th grades. All other topics may be taught in either 6th or 7th grades and order may vary among the middle schools. Teachers will provide information on the order of topics in each grade.
Does Where We Live Determine How We Live?
Is It Better to Make Goods Here or There?
What's the Right Amount of People?
Are Social Structures Fair?
What Is the Best Form of Government?
Who Is Us? Who Is Them?
Contact:
Jared Auman
District Chair for Secondary Social Studies
aumenj@aaps.k12.mi.us
Seventh Grade Social Studies Units
"Who am I?" is a question all of us ask at sometime in our lives. It is an especially critical question for middle school students. Students often think about how their identity is formed. While many factors shape our identity, place is especially significant to explore in a World Geography and History course. During the first few days of school, students will explore how place shapes their identities and the identities of their classmates. Students will engage in several activities from the Facing History and Ourselves curriculum. According to Facing History, important questions for student to consider are:
1. How does our location shape who we are and what we believe?
2. How does the physical environment impact what we do and how we behave?
3. How does our location relative to other places influence our ideas about different cultures and our relationships with others?
Students will practice of mapping skills and reinforce history and geography concepts learned in prior years. Through the Create-a-Country project, students will develop and apply mapping skills to create and analyze projections of the Earth that reflect the relationship between physical features and human geography. Students will connect their own understanding of place and identity to these maps. Learn more on Atlas: Where We Live
Students will investigate the Silk Road to learn about the beginnings of globalization, and study the process of globalization, global trade, comparative advantage, design, sourcing, manufacturing and distribution. Students will consider if globalization results in more positive or negative contributions to our communities and society as whole.
Learn more on Atlas: Goods Here or There?
The number of people on the planet has grown to over seven billion. Population patterns in different countries differ. From personal experiences, students understand how a change in population might negatively or positive affect their lives and the lives of others. For example, students might receive less attention and resources in a classroom with a large population of students. Students will explore case studies of countries across the globe in order to understand population changes. Later, megacities become the focus. Using case studies from around the globe, students analyze photographs, infographics, maps, and other digital resources.
Learn more on Atlas: Right Number of People
Civilizations, both ancient and modern exhibit evidence of social hierarchies. In some civilizations, the social structure is implicit, while in other it is explicit and government-sanctioned. Some common social structure relationships include: women vs. men; rich vs. poor; rulers vs. subjects; powerful vs. powerless; majority vs. minority groups. Possible case studies include Egyptian social structure; social structure in South Africa during apartheid; fedualism; caste system in India; invention of race; colonization. Learn more on Atlas: Social Structures
Governments organize communities of people. Many types of governments have been implemented throughout history and exist today. Students will study benefits and drawbacks to each type of government. Class case studies may include monarchy, oligarchy, tyranny, democracy in ancient Greece, direct vs. representative democracy, republic, communism, and socialism.
Learn more on Atlas: Government?
Balancing the desires of self-governance with the common good is a timeless challenge for nations and their people. As evidenced with the development of the European Union, issues of tariffs, immigration, limited resources, religious identity, and nationalism can hinder cooperation. Ultimately, humans share common goals and needs, even if we pursue them in different ways. How do we move forward with our individual ambitions and pursuits while also collaborating to achieve common goals? Students will research public issues and take action. Learn more on Atlas: Who Is Them? Who Is Us?