Subject: Advanced Placement United States History
Grade Level: 11
Unit Title: 5-Forging an Industrial Society
Big Idea/Theme: 1865 – 1898 – The Gilded Age
Understandings (AP Themes Covered):
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Culture
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Demographic Changes
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Economic Transformations
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Environment
Globalization
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War and Diplomacy
Essential Questions:
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Should government regulate business/economy or be its partner?
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Why do people work? Should everyone work?
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What does it mean to make a living?
 How does industrial growth influence people’s lives?
Timeframe Needed for Completion: (5 Weeks)
Grading Period:
Curriculum Goals/Objectives (to be assessed at the end of the unit/quarter)
COMPETENCY GOAL 6: Crisis, Civil War, and Reconstruction
(1848-1877) The learner will analyze the issues that led to the Civil
War, the effects of the war, and the impact of Reconstruction on the nation.
COMPETENCY GOAL 7: The Great West, the New South, and the Rise of the Debtor (1862-1896) The learner will evaluate the great westward movement, the emergence of the New South, and the impact of the agricultural revolution on the nation.
COMPETENCY GOAL 8: The Gilded Age (1877-1900) The learner will describe and analyze how industrialization, immigration, urbanization, political machines, and the new intellectual movements impacted America.
COMPETENCY GOAL 9: The Progressive Movement (1890-
1920) The learner will analyze the economic, political, and social reforms of the Progressive Period.

Essential Skills/Vocabulary:
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The Gilded Age
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Tariff controversy
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Railroad regulation
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Trusts
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Agrarian discontent
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Populism
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Silver question
Industrial growth: railroads, iron, coal, electricity, steel, oil, banks
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Laissez-faire conservatism
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Union movement

Knights of Labor and American Federation of Labor

Haymarket, Homestead, and Pullman

The new imperialism

Spanish-American War: Causes, Course, Consequences
Materials Suggestions:
Text: American Pageant, Chapters 23-26
Various Handouts
Assessment Tasks:
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Students will complete a chart on the Populist Movement including leaders, objectives and accomplishments

Students will take a unit exam, both object and essay
(document-based)
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Students will outline essay topics based on a rubric

Students will engage in group work on Unionism, Populism, and Reform.

Students will examine the rise of labor during the Gilded Ages and the concerns of agrarians
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DBQ: Agrarian Discontent (1880-1900)