Intro to US History &

Geography
EQ: Why study History?
Basic Things you should know about the US
• How old is the US? When did it start?
• Answer...
• What does our flag represent?
• Answer…
• What is democracy?
• Answer…
• What is a republic?
• Answer…
• What is the 1) Declaration of Independence, 2)
The Constitution, & 3) The Bill of Rights?
• Answer…
 History & Geography?
Where something happened is just as important as when
Why Do We Study History?
• We study history to learn from the past & to
answer why things are happening today
• History is not about memorizing names and
dates (that’s not the point of the class); it’s
all about discovering people & their story
• History is the study of who we are, and
where we have come from
• History is all around us, and chances are
your favorite movie is based in a historical
setting
Religious questions, we should ask ourselves!
• What year do you think it is?
• B.C. & A.D.
• Does everyone in the world use our calendar?
• Why do we have school breaks when we do?
• How much does religion impact our culture &
our country?
• How many different religions are in our
country?
• Why have all presidents been white,
protestant Christians, & males? (things are
changing now)
Historical Perspective (Point of View):
• Write a title for
this picture
• History can be
very different,
depending on who
tells the story
• Every historic
event has
different points of
view
 There is Always Two Sides to Every Story
Historical Perspective:
Every group of people has
their own take on the
past…
Religion & Its Impact on Our Society
• Our country has been impacted by Judeo-
Christian ideas (Judaism & Christianity)
• What year do you think is it?
• What event happened that started time?
• The Biblical laws of Moses & the Ten
Commandments are still used in our modern
laws
• Judeo-Christian ideas pushed the idea that
even rulers were subject to laws
 History is like Dominos…
In History, one event always leads to another…
which leads to another… (Cause & Effect)
If you want to know why one thing happened you have to look at
what happened to cause it… (We always have to ask why…)
 The Cause & Effect of Historic Events

Cause Effect
Example of a
What caused this Historic Event: What happens
event to happen? because of it?
Pearl Harbor
(WWII)
Will affect what you
What you do today… can do tomorrow
 History: The Pieces of the Puzzle
To understand history we must see the
whole picture-not just the individual pieces
Chronology: putting the
pieces of the puzzle
together or it won’t make
sense…
Each part of the puzzle is
important, but only when it
is put together does it work!
What is History?
• History is the study of who we are, and the things
that make us, as a group of people, who we are
• Do you know anything about your families past?
• Where your family comes from? 
• We can learn lessons from history, so that we do
not make the same mistakes over and over again.
• We learn about history through records that people
leave behind (our ancestors)
• History is a big part of where we live, our town, our
state, & our nation (history is everywhere)
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