Willowbrook Social Studies Department
The goal of the Social Studies Department at Willowbrook High School is to prepare our students to be knowledgeable, informed and contributing citizens of our nation and the world.
The following priority Common Core Reading Standards will be the focus in Social Studies courses:
- Read closely to determine what the text says explicitly and to make logical inferences from it; interpret words and phrases as they are used in the text; and cite specific textual evidence when writing or speaking to support conclusions drawn from text.
- Determine central ideas of themes of a text and analyze their development; summarize the key supporting details and ideas; and analyze how and why individuals, events or ideas develop and interact during the course of a text.
- Integrate and evaluate content presented in diverse formats and media, including visually and quantitatively, as well as in words.
- Delineate and evaluate the argument, point of view and specific claims in one or more texts, including the approaches the authors take, validity of the reasoning and the relevance and sufficiency of the evidence.
- Read and comprehend complex literary and informational texts independently and proficiently.
The following priority Common Core Writing Standards will be the focus in Social Studies courses:
- Write arguments to support claims in an analysis of substantive topics or texts, using valid reasoning and relevant and sufficient evidence.
- Write informative/explanatory texts to examine and convey complex ideas and information clearly and accurately through the effective selection, organization and analysis of content.
- Produce clear and coherent writing in which a student develops, strengthens and organizes his or her writing through planning, revising, editing and rewriting or trying a new approach with the use of technology.
- Gather relevant information and assess its credibility and accuracy to support analysis and reflection, while conducting research projects based on focused questions.
- Write routinely throughout extended time frames and shorter time frames for a range of tasks, purposes and audiences.
As a result of his or her Social Studies education at Willowbrook, a student will:
- Understand social systems
- Understand world geography and the effects of geography on society
- Understand events, trends, individuals and movements shaping history
- Understand political systems
- Understand economic systems
- Identify and exhibit the qualities and ideals of individual rights and responsibilities and good citizenship
- Use the skills of reading, writing, listening and speaking to analyze, evaluate and communicate social science information
