Social Science

Geography 7 – 7th grade – Full Year

Geography 7 will provide a balanced introductory presentation of the physical and cultural aspects of the eight major cultural regions of the world: the United States and Canada, Latin America, Western Europe, Russia and Eastern Europe, the Middle East and North Africa, Sub-Saharan Africa, Southern and Eastern Asia, and the Pacific. In addition, this course with examine the political and societal developments of our current world with current events and promote critical thinking with inquiry based projects.

Geography AP 

An introductory college-level course in human geography, this course is a study in how humans understand, use, and change the surface of the earth.

Students connect geographic concepts and processes to real-life scenarios using maps, charts, graphs, infographics, images, primary source documents, and landscapes. 

The course uses the tools and thining processes of geographers and social scientists to examine the patterns of human population, migration, land use, and human interaction with the environment.

This course is open to students in grades 9-12. 

History 8 – 8th grade – Full Year

History 8 will review critical events in U.S. history from the early Native American arrival to the present day. Cadets will become acquainted with the principles of democracy, will trace the westward expansion of the nation, will study the divergent development of different regions of the country, and will analyze the causes of the Civil War. Cadets will also examine the disappointments of Reconstruction in developing an America committed to racial equality, and will study the changing face of American foreign policy from Reconstruction through the Cold War. Connections between past and present are emphasized and daily current events, maps, and various projects are also utilized.

AP Psychology is an introductory college-level course in psychology (one semester).

Students will examine psychological concepts and theories, and then apply them to real-life scenarios. At the same time, they will be learning how to understand and interpret data within the field of psychology. 

Students will also learn the scientific study of behavior methods and gain an understandng of human mental processes.

Throught the year, students will examine the concepts of psychology through readings and discussion, as well as analyze data from psychological research studies.

This course is open to grades 11-12. 

United States Government – 12th grade- UC Approved Course – One Semester

This course is a study of the American Constitution with emphasis on congressional structure and function, powers of the President, and landmark decisions of the Supreme Court. The evolution of the American federal system through Constitutional amendment will also be examined, along with modern American politics and contemporary issues in the world today.

United States History – 11th grade – UC-Approved Course – Full Year

United States History is a survey course that covers the colonial beginnings to the present time. Emphasis is placed on political, economic, and cultural facets of the twentieth century. Topics covered include the European imprint in the New World, the American Revolution, the Confederation-Constitution-Federalist period, the rise of popular democracy, Sectionalism/Nationalism, Civil War & Reconstruction, Industrial Revolution, Imperialism, Progressivism, World War I & 2, the Jazz Age, the Great Depression, The New Deal, post-war America, and contemporary presidential administrations from Truman through Trump.

World History – 10th grade – UC Approved Course – Full Year

In this course, cadets examine the patterns of relationships and processes of both historical and cultural change across the world from pre-history to the present. Emphasis will be aimed at the different styles of civilization and to the effects of cultural contrast and diffusion. Ultimately, the cadet will not only know WHEN events happened but WHY those events happen and HOW those events affected the peoples lives.

AP European History – 10th grade – UC Approved Honors Course – Full Year

Pre-requisite: An “A” in World History or 8th Grade US History (or other 9th grade social science class) or a “B” in World History with instructor approval. Also, an “A” in English 9, or a “B” with instructor approval.

AP European History is equivalent to an introductory Western Civilization college course. It surveys the social, political, and economic evolution of the European people and institutions from 1450 to the present. The course emphasizes reading, writing, and discussion. In AP European History, students develop and use the same skills, practices, and methods employed by historians: analyzing primary and secondary sources; developing historical arguments; making historical comparisons; and utilizing reasoning about contextualization, causation, and continuity and change over time.

AP United States History – 11th grade – UC Approved Honors Course – Full Year

Pre-requisite: An “A” in both Geography and World History or a “B” in those courses with instructor approval.

The U.S. History AP course is designed to provide cadets with the analytical skills and factual knowledge necessary to deal critically with the problems and materials in US History. The program prepares cadets for intermediate and advanced level college courses by making demands upon them equivalent to those made by a full year introductory college courses. Cadets will learn to assess historical materials.