The Keystone School · grades 6–12
World & U.S. History / Civics
How we got here, and how we govern ourselves now — the long record of human decisions and the systems those decisions built.
A survey of the human past across continents — empires, exchanges, and the ideas that outlived them.
Syllabus · 3 units · ~30 hours
Unit I — Early Civilizations
River-valley civilizations · Classical Greece and Rome · Empires of Asia · Trade and the spread of ideas
Unit II — The Postclassical World
The rise of Islam · Medieval Europe and feudalism · African and American kingdoms · The Mongol connections
Unit III — Encounters & Upheaval
Renaissance and Reformation · The Columbian Exchange · The age of revolutions · Industrialization
The American story with its contradictions intact — founding, expansion, division, and reinvention.
Syllabus · 3 units · ~30 hours
Unit I — Founding a Nation
Colonial America · The Revolution and independence · The Constitution and early republic · Expansion and its costs
Unit II — Union & Division
Slavery and sectional conflict · The Civil War · Reconstruction · Industrial America and immigration
Unit III — The Modern Era
Progressive reform · The World Wars and the Depression · The Cold War and civil rights · America since 1975
How the machine of American government is meant to work, and how citizens are meant to work it.
Syllabus · 3 units · ~22 hours
Unit I — Foundations
Forms of government · The social contract and founding ideals · Federalism · Separation of powers
Unit II — The Three Branches
The legislative branch · The executive branch · The judicial branch · Checks and balances in practice
Unit III — Citizenship
Rights and responsibilities · Elections and voting · Political parties and interest groups · The media and public opinion
A century of war, decolonization, and technology — the making of the world you were born into.
Syllabus · 3 units · ~24 hours
Unit I — A World at War
The First World War · The interwar years · The Second World War · The Holocaust and human rights
Unit II — A Divided World
The Cold War · Decolonization and independence movements · The Chinese and other revolutions · Proxy conflicts
Unit III — A Connected World
The fall of the Soviet bloc · Globalization · Technology and information · Contemporary challenges
The founding argument that never ended — what the document says, and what Americans have fought over ever since.
Syllabus · 3 units · ~20 hours
Unit I — Writing the Constitution
The Articles of Confederation and their failure · The Constitutional Convention · The great compromises · Federalists and Anti-Federalists
Unit II — The Bill of Rights
Freedom of speech, press, and religion · Rights of the accused · The unenumerated rights · Incorporation to the states
Unit III — A Living Document
The amendment process · Landmark Supreme Court cases · Interpretation and originalism · Ongoing constitutional debates