This course explores American history from 1775 to the dawn of the 21st century and the War on Terrorism, through an interdisciplinary approach that includes literature, art, and biographies. Students are encouraged to integrate information, discover patterns, and develop critical thinking skills in their responses to significant issues and events in American history. Throughout this course, students are required to use information from the text and related sources to evaluate causes and explore values in history. All assignments are designed to help students think more widely, make connections, and reach their own conclusions. The following books are included with this course:
Oak Meadow U.S. History Syllabus
The American Vision (Glencoe)

This course covers all of the material outlined by the College Board as necessary to prepare you to pass the AP U.S. History Exam. Students will:

• Demonstrate comprehension of a broad body of historical knowledge.
• Express ideas clearly in writing.
• Work with classmates to research an historical issue.
• Interpret and apply data from original documents.
• Identify underrepresented historical viewpoints.
• Write to persuade with evidence.
• Compare and contrast alternate interpretations of an historical figure, event, or trend.
• Explain how an historical event connects to or causes a larger trend or theme.
• Develop essay responses that include a clear, defensible thesis statement and supporting evidence.
• Effectively argue a position on an historical issue.
• Critique and respond to arguments made by others.
• Raise and explore questions about policies, institutions, beliefs, and actions in an historical context.
• Evaluate primary materials, such as historical documents, political cartoons, and first-person narratives.
• Evaluate secondary materials, such as scholarly works or statistical analyses.
• Assess the historical significance and cultural impact of key literary works (e.g. Common Sense, Uncle Tom's Cabin).
  The American Pageant (Houghton Mifflin)

In addition to historical facts, students are introduced to the literature, artists, musicians, and influential people of historical periods. This course integrates geography throughout and emphasizes critical thinking, the development of research skills, and the analysis of relationships between people and events as a means of understanding current world events. Students are encouraged to interpret factual information, determine cause and effect, separate facts from opinions, explore values, synthesize, form hypotheses, and evaluate conclusions. The following books are included with this course:
Oak Meadow World History Syllabus
World History (Glencoe)

AP World History covers the history of the world from 600 C.E. to the present, with an introductory unit on the period before (covering around 8,000 B.C.E to 600 C.E.). The course emphasizes “patterns of change” and the connections between the various world cultures throughout the time period being studied. Students will gain an understanding of the global experiences of humanity, and be able to apply that knowledge to their growth and development as world citizens. The class has two major goals: to prepare students to be successful on the AP World History Exam, and to provide students with an understanding of why the world developed the way it did.
World Civilization: The Global Experience (Longman Publishing Group)
The Origins of the Modern World (Rowman & Littlefield Publishers, Inc.)

Based upon the premise that analyzing current information is essential to an effective citizenry, this course asks students to research, compare, contrast, and think critically about government-related issues. Students learn the ideals behind the American system of government and the mechanics of its operation in preparation for taking their places as independent thinking citizens of the nation. The following books are included with this course:
Oak Meadow U.S. Government Syllabus
Democracy in Action (Glencoe)

This course will survey the complex subjects of U.S. government and politics. Students will analyze the processes and institutions (both formal and informal) through which the political system functions and policy decisions are made. This analysis will include the Constitutional structure of government, participatory politics, the formal institutions of power, the extra constitutional influences on those institutions, and public policy and individual rights and liberties.
Edwards, Wattenberg, Lineberry, Government in America (Prentice Hall)
American Government: Readings and Cases (Longman)

This course presents a clear and comprehensive coverage of geography, encourages active learning, and introduces the tools and technologies used by geographers. The course is organized into eleven units by geographic region, with individual lessons on each region’s physical and cultural geography, and its place in the modern world. Throughout the course, students learn how geography has affected historical events in various regions of the world, and case studies provide opportunities to discuss the environmental challenges facing the world’s regions. The following books are included with this course.
Oak Meadow World Geography
World History (Glencoe)

This course is a study of the social, economic, cultural, intellectual, political, and diplomatic history of Modern Europe, and its place in the history of the world from the fall of Constantinople to the fall of the Berlin Wall and the Soviet Union. The course will be taught at a level and rigor equivalent to that required of students in a college freshman or sophomore Modern European History course. Students will develop an understanding of the major periods, ideas, movements, trends, and themes that characterize European history from approximately 1450—the high Renaissance—to the present. Students develop the ability to analyze historical evidence and express understanding and analysis in writing. The course will prepare students for the College Board examination in European History.
The Western Heritage: Since 1300 (Prentice Hall)

Macroeconomics is an emphasis on how the economic system works as a whole. Students study how the economy is measured using concepts such as gross domestic product (GDP) and other indicators. They examine concepts such as inflation, unemployment, world trade patterns, and the role of the Federal Reserve Bank. Students engage in decision-making processes to create an environment where high employment and a higher standard of living are achievable by using the economic tools of fiscal and monetary policy. This course prepares students for the AP Exam in Macroeconomics.
Macroeconomics (McGraw-Hill/Irwin)
AP Economics: Macroeconomics: Student Activity (National Council on Economic Education)

Microeconomics emphasizes how individuals make choices with limited resources. Students will examine concepts such as supply and demand, factors of production, roles of labor and management, the relationship between the environment and the economy, and the impact of the government on individual decision making processes. Students study the stock market as an investment option, and trace various stocks through the semester using the Wall Street Journal and the Internet as resources. This course prepares students for the AP Exam in Microeconomics.
Microeconomics (McGraw-Hill/Irwin)
AP Economics: Microeconomics: Student Activity (National Council on Economic Education)