Prince William County Public Schools

World History and Geography to 1500 AD Pacing and Units of Study

Quarter 1

Unit 1: Human Origins

Anthropologists and Archaeologists have studied artifacts and fossils to discover that the earliest humans originated in East Africa and migrated to follow their food.  The characteristics of the hunter and gatherer societies of the Paleolithic era changed because of the Neolithic Revolution, which allowed for stable communities and the rise of early civilizations.  Prehistory is defined as the time before writing.  Although there is no written record to document the events of the prehistoric period, historians are confident in their ability to understand the culture of prehistoric peoples.

Includes Standards WHI. 2 (a-d)

Unit 2: Patterns of Civilization

This unit studies several key river valley civilizations, including Mesopotamia, Egypt, the Indus River Valley, China, and the Hebrews and Phoenicians. The unit reviews geography, social, political, religious, and economic patterns, origins, and customs.

Includes Standards WHI.3 (a-e)

Unit 3: Early Civilizations (Persia, India, and China)

Large empires and dynasties were built on already existing Asian and Mediterranean civilizations.  Geography and growing regional interactions due to trade routes impacted these civilizations' growth, development, and contributions. This unit looks at several early civilizations, including Persia, India, and China. The unit reviews geography, social, political, religious, and economic patterns, origins, and customs.

Includes Standards WHI.4 (a-f)

Standards of Learning (SOLs) set by the Virginia Department of Education. 

World History and Geography from 1500 Pacing and Units of Study

Quarter 1

Unit 1: World Religions

By 1500 CE, five major world religions had spread across the Eastern Hemisphere, and their impacts on culture and civilization greatly impacted interactions between civilizations. Religions spread across the world. However, their followers tended to concentrate on specific areas.  This unit focuses on identifying major geographic locations throughout the year. Additionally, we will examine the major players in the Eastern Hemisphere in 1500 C.E. We will map the major states and empires we will discuss for most of the course until we reach our unit on Imperialism. We will review the items and information exchanged on all the major trade routes and discuss the impact of cultural diffusion on these cultures.

Includes Standards WHII.2 (a, c-e), WHII.15 (a,b)

Unit 2: Major States and Empires

This unit focuses on the major empires in the Eastern Hemisphere around 1500 C.E. During this period of time, the major states in the East were the Ottomans in Asia Minor, the Mughals in Northern India, and the Qing Dynasty in China and Japan. Major states in Africa include Songhai, Asante, Ethiopia, Kongo, and Zulu. These states and empires contributed to global trade patterns in the East along major trade routes such as the Silk Road and Trans-Saharan routes. Due to their dominance in trade, these states and empires amassed wealth and prestige in the Eastern Hemisphere. The success of these states and empires can be attributed to their geographic location, dominance, and bureaucratic systems.

Includes Standards WHII.6 (a-f), WHII.7 (a-d)

Unit 3: Renaissance and Reformation

In this unit, we’ll be studying the impact of two major social movements that both emerged in part thanks to the invention of the Printing Press. The Reformation was a movement that aimed at reforming the Roman Catholic Church. Instead, it resulted in a tumultuous schism that put an end to the unity of the Western Christian world. The Protestant Reformation led to a restructuring of the social system of Europe and changed the face of Christianity. The Reformation is the root of all the branches of modern-day Protestantism.

Includes Standards WHII.2 (b), WHII.3 (a-c), WHII.5 (f-g)

Unit 4: Age of Exploration

This unit focuses on how increasing global interaction accelerates innovation within countries and the national and international economic implications of competition among countries. From 1450 to 1750, global interactions had both positive and negative effects, including spreading disease. Motivation for Global Interactions: European exploration of Asia, Africa, and the Americas resulted in meetings with different cultures. Europeans were excited about the new places, but more importantly, they wanted the riches they could obtain from those places. They realized that to get those riches, they needed to travel directly to the sources, so new trade routes began to emerge. Explorers also wanted to spread Christianity to non-believers in the lands they explored, making that an important factor in exploration around the world. Spread of disease: Because of increased global interactions, diseases began to spread to areas where natives were not immune. This caused populations to decrease and a need for science to defend against such diseases. This affected economies, politics, and social aspects around the world. Competition between countries: Countries compete to be the best in the world. There is competition in the sciences for discoveries and competition for land to obtain resources to help maintain and grow economies. Technology did as well; the innovations in mapping and the creation of tools like the compass helped explorers navigate to new places.

Includes Standards WHII.4 (a-d)

Virginia and United States History Pacing and Units of Study

Quarter 1

Unit 1: The New World

This unit focuses on laying the groundwork for the study of American and Virginia history. Students will review the basic geography of both Virginia and Colonial America. Students will study and interpret maps of Colonial America and Virginia. Students will explore the physical features and characteristics of the land while examining how European settlement patterns were influenced by geographic conditions such as access to water, harbors, natural protection, arable land, natural resources, and adequate growing season and rainfall. Students will examine a variety of primary sources to determine why colonists were drawn to a particular region of the country.

Includes Standards VUS.2 (a-b), VUS.3 (a-c)

Unit 2: Revolution

In this unit, students will explore the early colonial political, economic, and cultural history of the thirteen colonies to understand the development of the United States of America.  Students will first study the Enlightenment period and the ideas of philosopher John Locke so that they can discover how these ideas influenced the colonists in the creation of the American government.  Students will also study how tension was built between the British and the colonists.  From there, students will examine major issues, events, and people of the Revolutionary War.  Finally, students will learn about the factors that aided in the colonial victory and the outcomes of the war.

Includes Standards VUS.4 (a-e)

Unit 3: New Nation

In this unit of study, students will identify Americans' two attempts to establish a workable government based on republican principles.  Students will explore how the Constitution established a government that shared power between the national government and state governments and provided a system of orderly change through amendments.  Students will also examine the significance of the Bill of Rights and its connection to earlier Virginia statutes.  Finally, they will compare the arguments of federalists and anti-federalists, including their debate over the size and role of government and the protection of individual rights. 

Includes Standards VUS.5 (a-c)

Unit 4: Expansion

The focus of this unit is to help students understand the broad concepts and the important details surrounding America’s settlement of its Western Territories, as well as the expansion of the United States' global role. Students will also consider the changing role of the US government as the United States expanded geographically. Studying Westward Expansion helps students understand how the United States exploded in both size and population during the mid-1800s. This was an era where Americans yearned to expand and explore, backed by the concept of Manifest Destiny.  The resulting territorial clashes with indigenous populations often resulted in conflict and forced relocation on reservations.  The rapid expansion also resulted in conflict with other nations as new territories were gained through conquest. The Expansion unit also considers the regional differences that led to a second war against Great Britain and the resulting changes brought about by better transportation of canals and railroads.  Unit 4 also looks at Virginia’s major influence on the national government, including John Marshall and the formation of a more powerful Supreme Court.  Students will examine the court's major decisions, including Marbury v. Madison, McCulloch v. Maryland, and Gibbons v. Ogden.

Includes Standards VUS.5 (d), VUS.6 (a-f)

Virginia and United States Government Pacing and Units of Study

Quarter 1

Unit 1: Civic Life

In a constitutional democracy, productive civic engagement requires knowledge of the history, principles, and foundations of our American democracy, as well as the ability to participate in civic and democratic processes. This unit focuses on how people demonstrate civic engagement when addressing public problems individually and collaboratively and maintaining, strengthening, and improving communities and societies. Thus, civics is, in part, the study of how people participate in governing society.

Includes Standards GOVT.16 (a-j)

Unit 2: Foundations of American Government

The study of modern politics in the United States requires students to examine the kind of government established by the Constitution, paying particular attention to federalism and the separation of powers. Understanding these developments involves both the knowledge of the historical situation at the time of the Constitutional Convention and an awareness of the ideological and philosophical traditions on which the framers drew. Students should become familiar with a variety of theoretical perspectives relating to the Constitution, such as democratic theory, theories of Republican Government, democratic consensus, and pluralism.

Includes Standards GOVT.2 (a-f), GOVT.3 (a-f), GOVT.4 (a-e)

Unit 3: Principles of Federalism

Within this unit of study, students will examine the complex and changeable relationship between the national and state governments. Students will focus on the conflicts between national and state powers to delve deeper into the nature of governmental power in the American system. Through primary and secondary source documents, students will also examine the purposes behind a federal government system. Students will become familiar with the organization and powers of both the national and state governments.

Includes Standards GOVT.5 (a-d)

Unit 4: Elections

While the Constitution created the structures and functions of the U.S. Government, our traditions and the interpretations of the founders have created ways in which people can influence government and enact policy change. Being involved in an election is a way for individuals and groups to engage with the government. There are many players and moving parts in an election process, and all of them are important in helping people influence the government. In this unit, students will grapple with the following questions-- Why are elections important? Who are the major players involved in an election? How do elections influence the government? How do elections impact individual citizens and groups of citizens? And what are the different ways that people can get involved with elections?

Includes Standards GOVT.9 (b), GOVT.6 (a-f), GOVT.16 (d, f, g)