Alignment of Benchmarks and Indicators
SOCIAL STUDIES
6 - 8



History Standard
People in Societies Standard

Geography Standard

Economics Standard

Government Standard

Citizenship Rights and Responsibilities Standard

Social Studies Skills and Methods Standard

 

History Standard

Students use materials drawn from the diversity of human experience to analyze and interpret significant events, patterns and themes in the history of Ohio, the United States and the world.
 
Benchmark A: Interpret relationships between events shown on multiple-tier time lines.

 
Grade Six
Chronology
 1. Construct a multiple-tier time line from a list of events and interpret the relationships between the events.
 2. Arrange dates in order on a time line using the conventions of B.C. and A.D. or B.C.E. and C.E.
 Grade Seven
Chronology
 1. Group events by broadly defined historical eras and enter onto multiple-tier time lines.
 Grade Eight
Chronology
 1. Select events and construct a multiple-tier time line to show relationships among events.
 
Benchmark B: Describe the political and social characteristics of early civilizations and their enduring impact on later civilizations.
 Grade Six
Early Civilizations
 3. Describe the early cultural development of humankind from the Paleolithic Era to the revolution of agriculture including:
a. Hunting and gathering;
b. Tool making;
c. Use of fire;
d. Domestication of plants and animals;
e. Organizing societies;
f. Governance.
 4. Compare the geographic, political, economic and social characteristics of the river civilizations in the Tigris and Euphrates (Mesopotamia), Nile (Egypt), Huang Ho and Indus valleys before 1000 B.C. including:
a. Location;
b. Government;
c. Religion;
d. Agriculture;
e. Cultural and scientific contributions.
 Grade Seven
Early Civilizations
 2. Describe the enduring impact of early civilizations in India, China, Egypt, Greece and Rome after 1000 B.C. including:
a. The development of concepts of government and citizenship;
b. Scientific and cultural advancements;
c. The spread of religions;
d. Slavery and systems of labor.
 Grade Eight
 No indicators present for this benchmark.
 
Benchmark C: Describe the characteristics of feudal societies and the transition to the Renaissance and Reformation in Europe.

 Grade Six
 No indicators present for this benchmark.
 Grade Seven
Feudalism and Transitions
 3. Describe the conditions that gave rise to feudalism, as well as political, economic and social characteristics of feudalism, in Asia and Europe.
 4. Explain the lasting effects of military conquests during the Middle Ages including:
a. Muslim conquests;
b. The Crusades;
c. The Mongol invasions.
 5. Describe the impact of new ideas and institutions on European life including:
a. The significance of printing with movable type;
b. Major achievements in art, architecture and literature during the Renaissance;
c. The Reformation.
 Grade Eight
 No indicators present for this benchmark.
 
Benchmark D: Describe the effects of interactions among civilizations during the 14th through the 18th centuries.

 Grade Six
The First Global Age
 5. Describe the characteristics of Maya, Inca, Aztec and Mississippian civilizations including:
a. Location;
b. Government;
c. Religion;
d. Agriculture;
e. Cultural and scientific contributions.
 Grade Seven
The First Global Age
 6. Describe the importance of the West African empires of Ghana, Mali and Songhay including:
a. Trade routes;
b. Products;
c. The spread of the Arabic language;
d. The spread of Islam.
 7. Describe the causes and effects of European exploration after 1400 including:
a. Imperialism, colonialism and mercantilism;
b. Impact on the peoples of sub-Saharan Africa, Asia and the Americas.
 Grade Eight
The First Global Age
 2. Describe the political, religious and economic aspects of North American colonization including:
a. Reasons for colonization, including religion, desire for land and economic opportunity;
b. Key differences among the Spanish, French and British colonies;
c. Interactions between American Indians and European settlers, including the agricultural and cultural exchanges, alliances and conflicts;
d. Indentured servitude and the introduction and institutionalization of slavery;
e. Early representative governments and democratic practices that emerged, including town meetings and colonial assemblies;
f. Conflicts among colonial powers for control of North America.
 
Benchmark E: Explain the causes and consequences of the American Revolution, with emphasis on both Colonial and British perspectives.

 Grade Six
 No indicators present for this benchmark.
 Grade Seven
 No indicators present for this benchmark.
 Grade Eight
Revolution
 3. Identify and explain the sources of conflict which led to the American Revolution, with emphasis on the perspectives of the Patriots, Loyalists, neutral colonists and the British concerning:
a. The Proclamation of 1763, the Stamp Act, the Townshend Acts, the Tea Act and the Intolerable Acts;
b. The Boston Tea Party, the boycotts, the Sons of Liberty and petitions and appeals to Parliament.
 4. Explain the results of important developments of the American Revolution including:
a. A declaration of American independence;
b. Character and significance of the military struggle in the North in the early years of the war and the shift of the battle to the South after 1779;
c. Creation of state constitutions;
d. Impacts on women, African-Americans and American Indians.
 
Benchmark F: Explain the political and economic challenges faced by the United States after the Revolutionary War and the actions that resulted in the adoption of the U.S. Constitution.
 Grade Six
 No indicators present for this benchmark.
 Grade Seven
 No indicators present for this benchmark.
 Grade Eight
A New Nation
 5. Explain major domestic problems faced by the leaders of the new republic under the Articles of Confederation including:
a. Maintaining national security;
b. Creating a stable economic system;
c. Dealing with war debts;
d. Collecting revenue;
e. Defining the authority of the central government.
 6. Explain the challenges in writing and ratifying the U.S. Constitution including:
a. Issues debated during the convention resulting in compromises (i.e., the Great Compromise, the Three-Fifths Compromise and the compromise over the slave trade);
b. The Federalist/Anti-Federalist debate;
c. The debate over a Bill of Rights.  
 7. Describe the actions taken to build one country from 13 states including:
a. The precedents established by George Washington, including the cabinet and a two-term presidency;
b. Alexander Hamilton’s actions to create a financially strong country, including the creation of a national bank;
c. The establishment of an independent federal court system.
 
Benchmark G: Analyze the causes and consequences of the American Civil War.
 Grade Six
 No indicators present for this benchmark.
 Grade Seven
 No indicators present for this benchmark.
 Grade Eight
Civil War and Reconstruction
 8. Describe and analyze the territorial expansion of the United States including:
a. Northwest Ordinance;
b. The Louisiana Purchase and the Lewis and Clark expedition;
c. Westward movement including Manifest Destiny;
d. The Texas War for Independence and the Mexican-American War.
 9. Explain causes of the Civil War with emphasis on:
a. Slavery;
b. States’ rights;
c. The different economies of the North and South;
d. The extension of slavery into the territories, including the Dred Scott Decision and the Kansas-Nebraska Act;
e. The abolitionist movement and the roles of Frederick Douglass and John Brown;
f. The addition of new states to the Union and their impact on the balance of power in the Senate, including the Missouri Compromise and the Compromise of 1850;
g. The emergence of Abraham Lincoln as a national figure in the Lincoln-Douglas debates, the presidential election of 1860, and the South’s secession.
 10. Explain the course and consequences of the Civil War with emphasis on:
a. Contributions of key individuals, including Abraham Lincoln, Robert E. Lee and Ulysses S. Grant;
b. The Emancipation Proclamation;
c. The Battle of Gettysburg.
  11. Analyze the consequences of Reconstruction with emphasis on:
a. President Lincoln’s assassination and the ensuing struggle for control of Reconstruction, including the impeachment of President Andrew Johnson;
b. Attempts to protect the rights of and enhance opportunities for the freedmen, including the basic provisions of the 13th, 14th and 15th Amendments to the U.S. Constitution;
c. The Ku Klux Klan and the enactment of black codes.
 

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People in Societies Standard

People in Societies Standard
Students use knowledge of perspectives, practices and products of cultural, ethnic and social groups to analyze the impact of their commonality and diversity within local, national, regional and global settings.
Students use materials drawn from the diversity of human experience to analyze and interpret significant events, patterns and themes in the history of Ohio, the United States and the world.

Benchmark A: Compare cultural practices, products and perspectives of past civilizations in order to understand commonality and diversity of cultures.
 Grade Six
Cultures
 1. Compare the cultural practices and products of the societies studied including:
a. Class structure;
b. Gender roles;
c. Beliefs;
d. Customs and traditions.  
 2. Compare world religions and belief systems focusing on geographic origins, founding leaders and teachings including:
a. Buddhism;
b. Christianity;
c. Judaism;
d. Hinduism;
e. Islam.
 Grade Seven
Cultures
 1. Analyze the relationships among cultural practices, products and perspectives of early civilizations. 
 2. Explain how the Silk Road trade and the Crusades affected the cultures of the people involved.
 Grade Eight
 No indicators present for this benchmark.
 
Benchmark B: Analyze examples of interactions between cultural groups and explain the factors that contribute to cooperation and conflict.
 Grade Six
Interaction
 3. Explain factors that foster conflict or cooperation among countries:
a. Language;
b. Religion;
c. Types of government;
d. Historic relationships;
e. Economic interests.
 Grade Seven
  No indicators present for this benchmark.
 Grade Eight
Interaction
 1. Trace the development of religious diversity in the colonies, and analyze how the concept of religious freedom has evolved in the United States.  
 2. Describe and explain the social, economic and political effects of:
a. Stereotyping and prejudice;
b. Racism and discrimination;
c. Institutionalized racism and institutionalized discrimination. 
 3. Analyze how contact between white settlers and American Indians resulted in treaties, land acquisition and Indian removal. 
 4. Analyze the economic, geographic, religious and political factors that contributed to:
a. The enslavement of Africans in North America;
b. Resistance to slavery. 
 5. Describe the historical limitations on participation of women in U.S. society and their efforts to gain equal rights.
 
Benchmark C: Explain how contact between different cultures impacts the diffusion of belief systems, art, science, technology, language and forms of government.
 Grade Six
 No indicators present for this benchmark.
 Grade Seven
Diffusion
 3. Give examples of contacts among different cultures that led to the changes in belief systems, art, science, technology, language or systems of government.
 4. Describe the cultural and scientific legacies of African, Greek, Roman, Chinese, Arab and European civilizations.
 Grade Eight
Diffusion
 6. Explain how the diverse peoples of the United States developed a common national identity.
 

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Geography Standard

Students use knowledge of geographic locations, patterns and processes to show the interrelationship between the physical environment and human activity, and to explain the interactions that occur in an increasingly interdependent world.
 
Benchmark A: Identify on a map the location of major physical and human features of each continent.
 Grade Six
Location
 1. Place countries, cities, deserts, mountain ranges and bodies of water on the continents on which they are located. 
 2. Use coordinates of latitude and longitude to locate points on a world map.
 Grade Seven
Location
 1. For each of the societies studied, identify the location of significant physical and human characteristics on a map of the relevant region. 
 2. On a map, identify places related to the historical events being studied and explain their significance.
 Grade Eight
 No indicators present for this benchmark.
 
Benchmark B: Define and identify regions using human and physical characteristics.

 Grade Six
Places and Regions
 3. Explain the distribution patterns of economic activities and how changes in technology, transportation, communication and resources affect those patterns including:
a. Agriculture;
b. Mining;
c. Fishing;
d. Manufacturing.   
 4. Identify and describe a variety of physical and human regions by analyzing maps, charts and graphs that show patterns of characteristics that define regions.
 Grade Seven
Places and Regions
 3. Describe changes in the physical and human characteristics of regions that occur over time and identify the consequences of such changes.
 Grade Eight
Places and Regions
 1. Compare places and regions in the United States as they existed prior to 1877 with the same places and regions today to analyze changes in land use and population, political, social and economic characteristics.
 
Benchmark C: Explain how the environment influences the way people live in different places and the consequences of modifying the environment.

 Grade Six
Human Environmental Interaction
 5. Describe ways human settlements and activities are influenced by environmental factors and processes in different places and regions including:
a. Bodies of water;
b. Landforms;
c. Climates;
d. Vegetation;
e. Weathering;
f. Seismic activity.
  6. Describe ways in which human migration has an impact on the physical and human characteristics of places including:
a. Urbanization;
b. Desertification;
c. Deforestation.
  7. Describe ways humans depend on and modify the environment and the positive and negative consequences of the modifications including:
a. Dam building;
b. Energy production/usage;
c. Agriculture;
d. Urban growth.
 Grade Seven
Human
Environmental Interaction
 4. Use physical and historical maps to analyze the reasons that human features are located in particular places.
 Grade Eight
Human Environmental Interaction
 2. Analyze how physical characteristics of the environment influenced population distribution, settlement patterns and economic activities in the United States during the 18th and 19th centuries.
 
Benchmark D: Explain reasons that people, products and ideas move from place to place and the effects of that movement on geographic patterns.
 Grade Six
Movement
 8. Explain push and pull factors that cause people to migrate from place to place including:
a. Oppression/Freedom;
b. Poverty/Economic opportunity;
c. Cultural ties;
d. Political conflicts;
e. Environmental factors.
  9. Identify and explain primary geographic causes for world trade including the uneven distribution of natural resources.
 Grade Seven
Movement
 5. Describe the geographic factors and processes that contribute to and impede the diffusion of people, products and ideas from place to place including:
a. Physical features;
b. Culture;
c. War;
d. Trade;
e. Technological innovations.
 Grade Eight
Movement
 3. Explain how colonization, westward expansion, immigration and advances in transportation and communication changed geographic patterns in the United States.
 

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Economics Standard

Students use economic reasoning skills and knowledge of major economic concepts, issues and systems in order to make informed choices as producers, consumers, savers, investors, workers and citizens in an interdependent world.
 
Benchmark A: Explain how the endowment and development of productive resources affect economic decisions and global interactions.

 Grade Six
Scarcity and Resource Allocation
 1. Explain how the availability of productive resources and entrepreneurship affects the production of goods and services in different world regions. 
 2. Explain that most decisions involve trade-offs and give examples.
 Grade Seven
Scarcity and Resource Allocation
 1. Compare the endowment of productive resources in world regions and explain how this endowment contributed to specialization, trade and interdependence in ancient times.
 Grade Eight
Scarcity and Resource Allocation
 1. Explain how the uneven distribution of productive resources influenced historic events such as the Civil War.
 
Benchmark B: Explain why trade occurs and how historical patterns of trade have contributed to global interdependence.
 Grade Six
Markets
 3. Explain why trade occurs when individuals, regions and countries specialize in what they can produce at the lowest opportunity cost and how this causes both production and consumption to increase. 
 4. Identify goods and services that are imported and exported and explain how this trade makes countries interdependent. 
 5. Describe how supply and demand help to set the market clearing price for goods and services and how prices reflect the relative scarcity of goods and services.
 Grade Seven
Markets
 2. Describe the growth of cities and the establishment of trade routes in Asia, Africa and Europe; the products and inventions that traveled along these routes (e.g., spices, textiles, paper, precious metals and new crops); and the role of merchants.
 Grade Eight
Markets
 2. Discuss how mercantilism and the establishment of colonies led to increased global trading during the 17th and 18th centuries. 
 3. Explain the purpose and effects of trade barriers such as tariffs enacted before the Civil War.
 
Benchmark C: Identify connections between government policies and the economy.
 Grade Six
Government and the Economy
 6. Distinguish between goods and services typically produced by the private sector and the public sector.
 Grade Seven
 No indicators present for this benchmark.
 Grade Eight
Government and the Economy
 4. Explain how lack of power to regulate the economy contributed to the demise of the Articles of Confederation and the creation of U.S. Constitution.
  5. Explain how governmental protection of property rights and regulation of economic activity impacted the development of the U.S. economy.

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Government Standard

Students use knowledge of the purposes, structures and processes of political systems at the local, state, national and international levels to understand that people create systems of government as structures of power and authority to provide order, maintain stability and promote the general welfare.
 
Benchmark A: Explain why people institute governments, how they influence governments, and how governments interact with each other.
 Grade Six
Role of Government
 1. Explain reasons for the creation of governments such as:
a. Protecting lives, liberty and property;
b. Providing services that individuals cannot provide for themselves.
 2. Describe how the world is divided into countries that claim sovereignty over territory, and countries may be further divided into states or provinces that contain cities and towns. 
 3. Explain the ways that countries interact with each other including:
a. Diplomacy;
b. Treaties;
c. International meetings and exchanges (e.g., United Nations);
d. Military conflict.
 Grade Seven
 No indicators present for this benchmark.
 Grade Eight
Role of Government
 1. Analyze the principles of self-government and natural rights expressed in the Declaration of Independence and their relationship to Enlightenment ideas.  
 2. Explain how political parties developed as a result of attempts to resolve issues in the early years of the United States including:
a. Payment of debt;
b. Establishment of a national bank;
c. Strict or loose interpretation of the Constitution;
d. Support for England or France.
 
Benchmark B: Explain how the Declaration of Independence, the U.S. Constitution, including the Bill of Rights, and the Northwest Ordinance have provided for the protection of rights and the long-term future of a growing democracy.
 Grade Six
 No indicators present for this benchmark.
 Grade Seven
 No indicators present for this benchmark.
 Grade Eight
Rules and Laws
 3. Explain how events and issues demonstrated the need for a stronger form of governance in the early years of the United States:
a. Shays’s Rebellion;
b. Economic instability;
c. Government under the Articles of Confederation. 
 4. Explain the political concepts expressed in the U.S. Constitution:
a. Representative democracy;
b. Federalism;
c. Bicameralism;
d. Separation of powers;
e. Checks and balances.
 5. Explain how the U.S. Constitution protects the rights of citizens, regulates the use of territory, manages conflict and establishes order and security.
 6. Explain how specific provisions of the U.S. Constitution, including the Bill of Rights, limit the powers of government in order to protect the rights of individuals with emphasis on:
a. Freedom of religion, speech, press, assembly and petition;
b. Right to trial by jury and the right to counsel;
c. Due process and equal protection of the laws.  
 7. Explain how the Northwest Ordinance established principles and procedures for the orderly expansion of the United States.  
 8. Describe the process by which a bill becomes a law. 

Benchmark C: Compare the defining characteristics of democracies, monarchies and dictatorships.
 Grade Six
Systems of Government
 4. Describe the defining characteristics of democracies, monarchies and dictatorships.
 Grade Seven
Systems of Government
 1. Compare direct and representative democracy using examples of ancient Athens, the Roman republic and the United States today. 
 2. Describe the essential characteristics of the systems of government found in city-states, kingdoms and empires from ancient times through the Middle Ages.
 Grade Eight
 No indicators present for this benchmark.

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Citizenship Rights and Responsibilities Standard

Students use knowledge of the rights and responsibilities of citizenship in order to examine and evaluate civic ideals and to participate in community life and the American democratic system.

Benchmark A: Show the relationship between civic participation and attainment of civic and public goals.
 Grade Six
Participation
 1. Explain how opportunities for citizens to participate in and influence the political process differ under various systems of government.
 Grade Seven
Participation
 1. Explain how the participation of citizens differs under monarchy, direct democracy and representative democracy.
 Grade Eight
Participation
 1. Show the relationship between participating in civic and political life and the attainment of individual and public goals including:
a. The Sons of Liberty and Committees of Correspondence/American independence;
b. The Underground Railroad and the abolitionist movement/Abolition of slavery.
  2. Explain how the opportunities for civic participation expanded during the first half of the 19th century including:
a. Nominating conventions;
b. Expansion of the franchise;
c. Active campaigning.

Benchmark B: Identify historical origins that influenced the rights U.S. citizens have today.
 Grade Six
Rights and Responsibilities
 2. Compare the rights and responsibilities of citizens living under various systems of government.
Grade Seven
Rights and Responsibilities
 2. Describe the rights found in the Magna Carta and show connections to rights Americans have today.
 Grade Eight
Rights and Responsibilities
 3. Evaluate the role of historical figures and political bodies in furthering and restricting the rights of individuals including:
a. Jefferson and the contradiction between the ideals of the Declaration of Independence and his role as a slave owner;
b. State constitutional conventions and the disenfranchisement of free blacks;
c. Jackson and his role in Indian removal;
d. Frederick Douglass and the abolitionist movement;
e. Elizabeth Cady Stanton and women’s rights.
  4. Show connections between the rights and responsibilities of citizenship including:
a. Voting and staying informed on issues;
b. Being tried by a jury and serving on juries;
c. Having rights and respecting the rights of others.
Citizenship Rights and Responsibilities Standard
Sd.tudents use knowledge of the rights and responsibilities of citizenship in order to examine and evaluate civic ideals and to participate in community life and the American democratic system.

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Social Studies Skills and Methods Standard

Students collect, organize, evaluate and synthesize information from multiple sources to draw logical conclusions. Students communicate this information using appropriate social studies terminology in oral, written or multimedia form and apply what they have learned to societal issues in simulated or real-world settings.
 
Benchmark A: Analyze different perspectives on a topic obtained from a variety of sources.
 Grade Six
Obtaining Information
 1. Use multiple sources to define essential vocabulary and obtain information for a research project including:
a. Almanacs;
b. Gazetteers;
c. Trade books;
d. Periodicals;
e. Video tapes;
f. Electronic sources.
 Grade Seven
 No indicators present for this benchmark.
 Grade Eight
Obtaining Information
 1. Compare accuracy and point of view of fiction and nonfiction sources about a particular era or event.
 
Benchmark B: Organize historical information in text or graphic format and analyze the information in order to draw conclusions.
 Grade Six
Thinking and Organizing
 2. Analyze information from primary and secondary sources in order to summarize, make generalizations and draw conclusions.  
 3. Organize information using outlines and graphic organizers. 
 4. Read and interpret pictographs, bar graphs, line graphs, circle graphs, tables and flow charts.
 Grade Seven
Thinking and Organizing
 1. Describe historical events and issues from the perspectives of people living at the time in order to avoid evaluating the past in terms of today’s norms and values.
 Grade Eight
 No indicators present for this benchmark.
 
Benchmark C: Present a position and support it with evidence and citation of sources.
 Grade Six
Communicating Information
 5. Complete a research project that includes a bibliography. 
 6. Communicate a position on a topic orally or in writing and support the position with evidence.
 Grade Seven
Communicating Information
 2. Compare multiple viewpoints and frames of reference related to important events in world history. 
Grade Eight
Communicating Information
 2. Construct a historical narrative using primary and secondary sources. 
 3. Write a position paper or give an oral presentation that includes citation of sources. 

Benchmark D: Work effectively in a group.
Grade Six
Problem Solving
 7. Work effectively to achieve group goals:
a. Engage in active listening;
b. Provide feedback in a constructive manner;
c. Help establish group goals;
d. Take various roles within the group;
e. Recognize contributions of others.
 Grade Seven
Problem Solving
 3. Establish guidelines, rules and time lines for group work.  
 4. Reflect on the performance of a classroom group in which one has participated including the contribution of each member in reaching group goals.
Grade Eight
Problem Solving
 4. Organize and lead a discussion. 
 5. Identify ways to manage conflict within a group.

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Early Learning Writing
K - 2 Writing
3 -4  Writing
5 - 7  Writing 8 -10  Writing
11 - 12Writing
Early Learning Reading
K - 3 Reading
4 -7  Reading
8 -10  Reading
11 -12 Reading

Early Learning Math
K - 2 Math 3 - 4 Math 5 - 7  Math
8 -10 Math
11 - 12 Math
Early Learning Social  Studies
K -2 Social  Studies 3 - 5 Social  Studies
6 - 8 Social  Studies
9 -10 Social  Studies
11 - 12 Social  Studies
Early Learning Science
K -2 Science 3 -5  Science
6 -8  Science
9 -10 Science
11 - 12 Science

All of the information on this site is available in pdf and/or Word format at  the  Ohio Department of Education Web Site at http://www.ode.state.oh.us/  

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