Mr. Soto’s 8th Grade American History II Procedures
Contact Information: (708)588-8843
Email: ssoto@district95.org
Be sure to check the district website, www.district95.org for teacher profiles, web-pages, & contact
information.
Supplies – Students are expected to come to class everyday with the following supplies:
1. Your assigned textbook, when required. 5. The assigned pocket folder, with notebook
2. A red pen for grading.
paper, (or spiral) specifically for SocSt.
3. A highlighter for note taking.
6. A 75 - 100 pg. composition book for
and making corrections.
journal writing and notes.
4. A writing utensil, pen or pencil.
* Students who are regularly unprepared for class may receive detentions during lunch
or after school. Regular unpreparedness can directly impact a student’s grade.
Homework - Students will be expected to come to class with their homework accurately completed.
Late assignments - Students will have until the end of a unit or quarter (whichever comes first) to turn
in late assignments and/or make corrections to improve their grade for a reduced grade at the teacher’s
discretion. See Homework Policy sheet.
Students who miss several assignments, or regularly turn in late assignments, or have a considerable amount
absences in a given period of time, may be held back from lunch, kept after school, held back from reward
days, or assigned to an after school guided study program to help the student get caught up with their
studies and late and missing assignments.
Tests/Quizzes - Tests are mostly made up of short answer, multiple choice & fill in the blank style
questions, and will usually be accompanied by written extended response, or essay style questions.
Retakes -Students may re-take a test once, outside of class, and during a scheduled
appointment. (See Test Re-take Contract for more information.)
Notebook - Students will be expected to keep a neat and organized folder, with all the assigned &
collected materials for a given unit to properly prepare for the unit test.
- Folders may be collected periodically for a determined notebook grade.
- Folder Clean Out -Students will be given time to clean out and dispose of unnecessary or old
materials to prepare for an upcoming unit.
Effort & Conduct Grades – “Effort” reflects homework completion and good test preparation,
while “conduct” reflects classroom behavior and participation. Scores represent:
1 – Student demonstrates exceptional behavior, preparedness, effort & class participation.
2 - Student demonstrates satisfactory (average to good) behavior, preparedness, effort & class
participation.
3 – Student demonstrates poor, inappropriate, or unacceptable behavior and little effort or sense of
urgency.
Final Quarter Grade - The final quarter grade will consist of a combination of test or project grades
(approx. 75 - 85%) and homework or quiz grades (approx. 15 - 25%).
Extra Credit - There will be several extra credit opportunities offered throughout the course of the year,
including Saturday Field Trips, Research Assignments and After School Movies, giving students the
opportunity to raise & maintain their grades. It is the student’s responsibility to take advantage of these
opportunities when they occur.
Mr. Soto’s 8th Grade American History Curriculum
Contact Information: (708)588-8843
Email: ssoto@district95.org
Be sure to check the district website, www.district95.org for teacher profiles, web-pages, & contact
information.
I. An Intro to U.S. History & Culture:
“Who Are You?” & “History Is…”
II. Remembering 9/11: Cause & Effect
Life before and after 9/11. Liberty vs. Security
III. The 5 Themes of Geography:
Geography’s influence on the history of
Chicago and the U.S., including its
regions & demographics, the 50 States,
continents and major countries.
IX. National Geographic Geography Bee
X. 1920s- the rise of American popular
culture, Prohibition, the crash of the
U.S. economy.
XI. The 1930s - the Great Depression
and FDR’s New Deal.
XII. The 1940s - World War II & U.S.
culture
IV. Remembering our Veterans & The
History of Veterans Day
*Community Service opportunities.
XIII. The 1950s - the rise of the Soviet
Union & the Cold War.
V. Immigration: Ellis Island immigrants
& immigration today.
XIV. Martin Luther King & the Civil
Rights Movement
VI. The 2nd Industrial Age: The rise of the
inventors, industrialists & unions.
Capitalism and the Stock Market.
XV. The 1960s - Vietnam, Berlin,
Kennedy, & chaos.
VII. The Progressive Era: Teddy Roosevelt
& women’s suffrage.
XVI. The 1970s & 80s – Nixon and the end
of Vietnam & the Cold War
VIII. America Expansion Over Seas & World War I
* Current Events will always be discussed, and possibly formulated into mini-units, at my
discretion, throughout the year as current history unfolds. The 2016 presidential primaries in
January and February are a good example of this.
Extra Credit - There will be several extra credit opportunities offered throughout the course of the year,
including Saturday Field Trips, Research Assignments and After School Movies, giving students the
opportunity to raise & maintain their grades. It is the student’s responsibility to take advantage of these
opportunities when they occur.
Due to time constraints and unforeseen, historic (current) events that will occur this year, any of
the units listed above may be cut, condensed or discussed in a different order than appears
above.