Social Studies 8: United States and South Carolina History Syllabus

Greenville County Schools Virtual Program


INSTRUCTOR: Charles Titus

E-mail: CTitus@greenville.k12.sc.us

Google Voice Phone Contact: (864) 659-0592

Website: www.MrTitus.com

To schedule an appointment time with me, please call the number above, email me, or use the scheduling app below:

Course Description: Students of 8th grade Social Studies will focus on the history of South Carolina and the role of our state and its people in the development of the United States as a nation. Students will learn about our state’s development from its settlement to present day. Instruction will emphasize inquiry based learning using historical thinking skills and the themes of history as outlined in the 2020 South Carolina Social Studies College and Career Ready Standards.

SUGGESTED MATERIALS FOR 2020:

  • GCSD issued Chromebook (fully charged daily)
  • 3 ring binder/loose notebook paper (if you like to print your notes from the Google Classroom or need to plan out a writing response)
  • pencils/pens
  • colored pencils
  • highlighters
  • an agenda for staying organized
  • There will be other small project supplies you’ll need throughout the year (I’ll give notice of those as they arise)

Academic Expectations and Policies:

  • Assignments turned in on time will be graded for full credit.
  • Work will be accepted after the due date with points deducted for each day late. I will take it no later than 5 days late and 5 points will be taken off each day that it is late.
  • Students will begin each class with a Daily Attendance Question (DAQ) and a Starter question. DAQ’s are very important and must be turned in daily for attendance to be recorded. Starters will be collected at the end of the week and will be graded periodically.
  • This class will have an inquiry-based approach to learning social studies. Students will do a combination of individual, partner, and group work. Students need to be organized and responsible. Assessments will be given in the form of a project, quiz, and/or Digital Interactive Notebook in place of a standard paper and pencil test due to being in a virtual setting.
  • Digital Interactive Notebooks (DIN) will be graded at the discretion of the teacher and will need to be maintained daily. The DIN is a critical portion of the class for organizing information, studying for quizzes and tests, and ensuring mastery of content.
  • Students will complete several small project-based assignments for class. Projects are major grades unless stated otherwise by the teacher. While we will usually start these projects in class, some projects may require work outside of class. Students will have all instructions and rubrics explained in class to ensure understanding of expectations.

Grading: Major assessments will make up 50% of the nine weeks grade and includes tests and projects.

There will be 3-4 per quarter.

Minor assessments will make up 50% of the nine weeks grade and includes quizzes, group work,

classwork, and any homework assigned. There will be at least 9-12 per quarter.

All grades should be taken seriously and given efforts to the fullest extent. I rarely give extra credit

work, therefore, the original work needs to be deemed as the most important task for class.


Homework: Assignments will be announced in class each day and posted on the daily slides in Google Classroom. There are three pieces that a student needs to complete each day for class or they become homework. This includes the DAQ, the Starter Question, and the written activity for class. Written assignments are typically given everyday for this class either as a graphic organizer or an activity in the DIN. If any part of the above is not completed in class, then it will carry over to homework. For proficiency in social studies, students should review their notes most school nights. Highlighting vocabulary terms and creating flash cards of important facts throughout the unit will enhance student performance. Most assignments will be checked for a daily grade. When assignments are checked, they will be checked for accuracy, not just completion.

Absences: Students do get sick and will most likely miss some days. Students that have an excused absence will need to scan/email a doctor’s note to the homeroom teacher or the attendance clerk for the Virtual Program. If the absence is excused, the student then has 5 days to make up any missed work. If the absence is unexcused, work is due when the student returns to school and the late policy could apply. While out, the student should check Google Classroom to see what we are doing in class. I will post the recorded daily lesson under the current unit of study. I will also post the daily slides with an assignment checklist under the topic “In Class This Week”. Students should be responsible for answering the Daily Attendance Question, the Starter, and the written portion of their work for the day. It is the student’s responsibility to obtain and make up missing work. Failing to make up work will result in an NHI in the grade book. Students are welcomed and encouraged to make an appointment with me during office hours for additional help.

Student Records: Grades and attendance will be maintained in both the teacher’s grade book and computer. Parents are urged to keep up with their student’s progress by checking the Parent Portal regularly. Please contact me via email or phone if there are any problems concerning grades and I will address them as quickly as possible.

Grading Scale: A=90-100 B=80-89 C=70-79 D=60-69 F= 59 and below

Grading Terms to be Familiar With:

NHI—Not Handed In INC—Incomplete GFA—Grading Floor Applied

ABS—Absent EX—Excused (acts as if the grade were not there)


DISCIPLINE: Consequences for students from Mr. Titus who choose not to be a part of creating an excellent learning environment include:

  • Verbal warning by teacher
  • Phone call home to parent/guardian
  • Phone call home to parent by the administrator
  • Referral to administration & could result in no longer attending the LIVE Google Meets; student would have to watch the video recordings and make appointments with the teacher for any help with work.

From Mrs. Dailey--the 8th Grade Administrator for the Virtual Program

Google Meet Disruptions:

  • 1st offense: Student is muted and parent is notified by teacher
  • 2nd offense: Student is muted and administration is notified
  • 3rd offense: Student is muted and student is placed on probation with parent notification by administration.
  • 4th offense: Student will no longer be able to be part of the live meets and must watch recordings and set up office hours with the teacher for extra help.


Eighth Grade Social Studies Standards

Standard 1:

Demonstrate an understanding of the development of South Carolina during the settlement and colonization of North America in the period of 1500–1756.

Standard 2:

Demonstrate an understanding of how South Carolinians and Americans created a revolutionary form of government during the period of 1757–1815.

Standard 3:

Demonstrate an understanding of conflict and compromise in South Carolina, the Southern region, and the United States as a result of sectionalism between the period 1816–1865.

Standard 4:

Demonstrate an understanding of South Carolina’s role in and response to the dynamic economic, political, and social developments in the United States and around the world during the period 1862–1929.

Standard 5:

Demonstrate an understanding of the impact of world events on South Carolina and the United States from 1929 to present.


Eighth Grade Units of Study

Unit 1: Thinking Like a Historian: Students will be introduced to the six historical thinking skills that will be used throughout the year. These historical thinking skills are aligned with the Profile of the South Carolina Graduate, with a focus on world-class knowledge, world-class skills, and life and career characteristics. The indicators of standard one represent the skills utilized by students in each grade level to further explore the content. These skills have been deconstructed to aid in the scaffolding of student thinking and are not to be taught in isolation.

Unit 2: Settlement: The Carolina colony was composed of indigenous, immigrant, and enslaved populations. Various factors across North America and the Carolina colony facilitated the eventual emergence of an American national identity. In Unit 2, students will use inquiry and historical thinking to learn about the Natve American experiences in South Carolina before and after the arrival of European settlers. They will also explore the early years of European settlement and the development of three distinct colonial regions

Unit 3: Colonial Development: Through an abundance of natural resources and enslaved labor, South Carolina emerged as a prosperous colony. Students will use inquiry and historical thinking to analyze the events and institutions that developed in the colony prior to the American Revolution. Students will focus on the social, economic, and political factors that impacted the individuals, events, and institutions within the time period.

Unit 4: Revolution: Political and economic developments underscored how the colonists in British North America had become uniquely American, prompting the development of a new nation. Drawing on their experience under British rule, the founding generation created a government with shared powers between the state and federal institutions. In unit 4, students will use inquiry and historical thinking to explore the impact of the American Revolution on various groups of people.

Unit 5: Foundation: Independence from Great Britain resulted in a new national government and individual state governments. As students progress through unit 5 they will utilize standards-aligned historical thinking skills and inquiry-based learning to demonstrate their understanding of how and why these governments were created, and South Carolina’s role in the development of the new national government.

Unit 6: Compromise: As the nation expanded, regional differences were exacerbated creating sectionalism which threatened South Carolina’s identity and American unity. As students progress through unit 6, they will utilize historical thinking skills, inquiry, and content specific themes to demonstrate their understanding of the multiple causes of the Civil War, and how South Carolina came to be at the center of this conflict.

Unit 7: Conflict: The outbreak of the Civil War was the culminating event in a decades-long series of regional issues that threatened American unity and South Carolina’s identity as one of the United States. As students progress through Unit 7,they will utilize standards-based historical thinking skills, inquiry, and content specific themes to demonstrate their understanding of the events that lead to the Civil War, events of the Civil War, and their impact on South Carolina and the nation.

Unit 8: Reconstruction: During Reconstruction, South Carolina searched for ways to revitalize the economy and determine the social and political status of its population. As students progress through Unit 8,they will utilize standards-aligned historical thinking skills, inquiry, and content specific themes to understand turning points that defined this period and evaluate the political, economic, and social effects of Reconstruction.

Unit 9: Progressivism & WWI: In the late nineteenth century, South Carolina realized a need to diversify its economy. Industrialization had a significant impact on the state’s society and politics. Unit 9 focuses on the changes South Carolina experienced during this era. Students will utilize standards-aligned historical thinking skills, inquiry, and content-specific themes to understand South Carolina’s experience as representative of its region and the United States as a whole during this period.

Unit 10: Economics and Global Politics: After World War I, post-war prosperity came to a halt with the stock market crash. With the economy in free-fall, top political leaders in South Carolina and throughout American were tasked with transforming the economy back into an economic powerhouse. As the national struggled in the 1930’s a revitalized and militarized Germany eyed European dominance. The United States was pulled into the second world war. The United States transformed its wartime economy into a force to be reckoned with. After the war, the United States continued to be a world leader both politically and economically. Students will utilize standards-aligned historical thinking skills, inquiry, and content-specific themes to understand South Carolina’s experience as representative of its region and the United States as a whole during this period.

Unit 11:Progress: Students will engage in inquiry and apply historical thinking skills to explore the relationship between national leadership, protests, and events and South Carolina’s leadership, protests, and events during the period referred to as the Civil Rights Movement. They will learn about the impact of civic participation of different individuals and groups and how people used the court system and legislation to affect South Carolina’s identity following World War II.