History and Social Science (Grade 5)

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In Fifth Grade, students build on earlier learning by connecting community, state & national studies. The curriculum highlights how history, geography, civics, government, and economics connect across time and place. Students practice evaluating primary sources, comparing perspectives, and forming their own informed opinions. Instruction emphasizes respectful dialogue and helps students develop the skills they need to participate thoughtfully in civic life.

Core Resources

Primary Source, Straight From the Source

Straight from the Source is an elementary curriculum that embodies an inquiry-driven, close reading philosophy, aiming to cultivate fundamental literacy skills by putting students directly in contact with original historical evidence. This resource provides structured exercises for closely analyzing culturally diverse primary sources (texts, images, etc.), with the goal of building students' ability to read complex informational texts, find evidence, and understand different perspectives, thereby transforming their role from passive recipients of history into active, critical investigators.

Cornerstones for Civic Engagement

Cornerstones for Civic Engagement is a set of curriculum units for grades 3-5 that centers on a philosophy of foundational civic literacy and active, responsive citizenship through historical context. These units use primary sources to explore core civics topics, multiple historical perspectives, ensuring that content is culturally responsive and integrated with social studies and literacy standards; the program's ultimate aim is to equip young students with the knowledge and "cornerstone" skills necessary to become thoughtful, informed, and engaged participants in their local and global communities.

Units by Term

Term 1:

Early Colonization and Growth of the Colonies

Resistance and Enslavement in the Colonies
Triangular Trade and Life in the Colonies

(begin) Reasons for Revolution, the Revolutionary War, and the Formation of Government

Events Leading to American Revolution

Term 2:

Reasons for Revolution, the Revolutionary War, and the Formation of Government

American Revolution

Principles of United States Government

Constitution

Bill of Rights

Term 3:

Growth of the Republic

Slavery, the legacy of the Civil War and the Struggle for Civil Rights for All

Report Card Standards

Competency in these report card standards are the end-of-year goals.

History and Geography

Uses map skills to explain the significance of the 13 colonies with colonial regions
Explains the relationship of the English settlers to the indigenous peoples
Describes the enslavement of Africans, their treatment in North America, and their contributions to early American society
Explains the important events that led to the American Revolution

Civics and Government

Describe the responsibilities of government at the federal, state, and local levels
Describes the basic political principles of American democracy

Economics

Describes examples of how changes in supply and demand affected prices in colonial history