Tracks: Impressions of America
& Oregon’s Content Standards for Social Studies

Tracks: Impressions of America is a 12-part video series available from PBS stations across the country. Rights to record off-air, duplicate, distribute and utilize this series for education are renewed annually. Teacher guides and a CD-ROM are available by contacting OPB or by calling the Agency for Instructional Technology customer services at 1-800-457-4509 or by visiting visiting the AIT website at www.ait.net.

National Social Studies Strands Time, Continuity & Change Culture; Individual Development & Identity People, Places & Environments; Global Connections Production, Distribution & Consumption; Science, Technology & Society Power, Authority & Governance; Individuals, Groups & Institutions Civic Ideals & Practices
Oregon’s Content Standards Understand and interpret relationships in history, including chronology, cause, effect, change and continuity over time. Understand and event, issue, problem or phenomenon from multiple perspectives Understand the importance & lasting influence of issues, events, people and development in U.S. History

Identify & explain physical & human characteristics of places & regions, the processes that have shaped them, and their geographic significance.

Understand how the U.S. government interacts with other nations.

Understand the distribution and movement of people, ideas & products.

Understand how the U.S. market economy functions as a system to address issues of resource allocation, including production, consumption, and exchange of goods & services.

Understand the organization, functions, & interrelationships of federal, state, & local government in the U.S

Identify and analyze characteristics, causes & consequences of an event, issue, problem or phenomenon.

Understand the principals & ideals upon which the government of the U.S. is based.

Understand the roles, rights & responsibilities of citizens of the U.S.

Tracks #1

Trekking Across Our Land

Era 1

-Development of diverse Native American cultures -Migration and immigration patterns as dynamic, positive forces. -Pre-Columbian migration of humans from Asia to North America -Agriculture as the driving force in determining settlement patterns of Native Americans -Settlements led to evolution of early Native American societies -Contributions of Native Americans to modern American lifestyles
Tracks #2

Spain Comes to America

Era 2

-European explorers sought to exploit and control North America -The conflict between European nations in North America -Impact of European settlers on Timucuan people of Florida -Early Atlantic trade routes -Spain & England battle for control of America -The role of the soldier in European expansion.
Tracks #3

Early European Settlements

Era 2

-Interactions between Europeans and Powhatans -The motivation and goals of Jamestown, VA settlers -Selection of location for the Jamestown settlement -Evolution of a plantation economy dependent on slavery

-The economic boom of tobacco

-How indentured servants were eventually replaced by African slaves -Early examples of racism
Tracks #4

Seeds of Revolution

Era 3

-How New England settlements differ from other regions -Pilgrims & Puritans promote concepts of religious freedom & human equality -Religious persecution in Europe drives ideologies of New England settlers -Shipbuilding drives development of Boston

-Trade an important factor even in earliest settlements

-The Boston Tea Party -Revolutionaries organize in Faneuil Hall
Tracks # 5

Independence!

Era 3

-The Declaration of Independence -Loyalists views conflict with revolutionary colonists -Taxation without representation -Economic forces fuel revolutionary fervor -The Continental Congress and creation of a Continental Army -The ideals of personal liberty as presented in the Declaration of Independence
Tracks # 6

A New Nation

Era 3

-U.S. Constitution and the Bill of Rights -The War of 1812 -The selection of Washington D.C. as the nation's capitol -Jefferson's passion for science and technology -The Connecticut Compromise establishes the bicameral legislature -Patriotism & the new Nationalism
Tracks # 7

Westward Ho!

Era 4

-Settlement moves westward

 

-Contrasting views of European settlers and Native Americans toward the land -Mexican-American War and Louisiana Purchase -Causes of the spread and entrenchment of slavery

-The establishment of transportation routes to the west

-The Trail of Tears and the establishment of Indian reservations -19th Century Federal policy toward Native Americans
Tracks # 8

Divided & United

Era 5

-The American Civil War -Southern values and politics are contrasted with the industrialized North -Racial discrimination -The role of the cotton gin on southern agricultural economy -Abolitionism - The modern Civil Rights movement
Tracks # 9

The Urbanization of America

Era 6

-The Industrial Revolution -Increased immigration brings cultural diversity -Shift from rural to urban societies -Mechanization fuels the American economy

-Evolution of the labor force from agricultural-based to manufacturing-based

-Organized labor -Pluralism and cultural diversity become key characteristics of national identity.
Tracks # 10

The Road to Mt. Rushmore

Era 7

-Westward expansion -Spanish influence in the West -Devastation of native buffalo herds & other environmental damage from westward expansion -Railroads to the west encouraged ranching, farming & mining development

-Gold Rush

-Homestead Act -Mt. Rushmore monument epitomizes expansionist values
Tracks # 11

America at War

Era 8

-Manifest Destiny -America as a world military power

WWI & WWII

-The Great Depression -The Atomic Age -The New Deal -Military patriotism
Tracks # 12

Changing Times and Modern Industries

Eras 9 & 10

-The Cold War

-20th Century industrial diversification

-NATO

-Modern Asian immigration

-The break-up of the Soviet Union

-The Marshall Plan

-Modern advances toward racial and gender equality

-The emergence of a global economy

-Cold War sparks industrial and technological growth

-Sustainable resources

-Cuban Missile Crisis

-Civil Rights legislation

-The U.S. role in promoting the spread of democracy

©1999 Agency for Instructional Technology
For permission to use this document, contact: AIT Broadcast Services, 1-800-457-4509, Box A, Bloomington, IN 47402-0120.

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