History

I love the opportunities that teaching history provides for pushing our students to be critical thinkers, to challenge their preexisting assumptions, and to develop greater empathy as they broaden their perspectives." –UPrep History Teacher

The Middle School History program introduces students to problem-solving, research, and critical thinking skills, as well as map reading, statistics, and graph and chart interpretation. Students distinguish between primary and secondary sources and assess them by a variety of methods. They also develop timemanagement skills and effective study methods and learn the proper form for research papers.

The primary focus of 6th grade is the United States and its place in the world. In 7th grade, students take a deep dive into U.S. government and Washington state history. In 8th grade, students explore the development of belief systems and ethics by looking at world religions in the past and present.

The PNW Book of the Dead Project

Read about how 8th grade students use their knowledge of ancient Egyptian traditions to create a modern Book of the Dead that reflects their own daily life in the PNW.

Black History Month

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Courses

America's Place in the World

6th grade
Required
Yearlong

In this course, students explore the geography of the United States, consider ways in which regional conflicts affected the nation’s growth and development, and examine its emergence as a global power. Projects, discussions/debates, primary source analyses, and various writing assignments aim to improve students’ geographical literacy, critical thinking, writing, and research skills. Thoughtful consideration of both the United States’ domestic history and its role within the global community encourages students to become more responsible and informed citizens of the world.

AMERICAN Government

7th grade
Required
One semester

This course aims to prepare students to be informed and engaged participants in American democracy. Students explore the foundational documents and principles on which the United States was established, examine the structure and operation of government, and identify the rights, duties, and responsibilities of citizens. A core purpose of the course is to preserve and strengthen democracy by equipping students with the knowledge and skills to participate effectively in civic life.

Ancient Traditions

8th grade
Required
Yearlong

This course focuses on the religious and ethical traditions of ancient and pre-industrial cultures around the world. Our goals are for students to understand the key concepts and values that underlie these traditions and to consider the importance of religious and ethical thinking to the human experience. We examine the continued influence of these traditions on the modern world and, where possible, meet practitioners of contemporary forms of these traditions. We consider Mesopotamia and Egypt, Classical Antiquity, the Abrahamic Traditions (Judaism, Christianity, and Islam), as well as West African and East and South Asian traditions. Students also work on note-taking skills and the management, synthesis, and application of information, including practice with evidenced-based analytical writing.

Middle School Economics

7th–8th grade
Elective

George Stigler, Nobel Laureate in economics, once wrote: “The public has chosen to speak and vote on economic problems, so the only open question is how intelligently it speaks and votes.” Middle School Economics is designed to assist students in developing economic knowledge, an essential task in a democratic society like ours that depends so much on an informed populace. This course focuses on how basic economic decisions are made in the United States and provides a foundation for students to build upon later in Upper School Macroeconomics and Microeconomics. Students who choose to take this course will be better able to understand the perspectives of the producer and the consumer, and to understand the government’s role throughout the process.

Intensives

WASHINGTON STATE HISTORY

7th grade
Required

This three-week intensive course brings together classroom learning with experiential education. The first week of the intensive combines Pacific Northwest–focused classroom experiences with local field trips. During week two, students go on three-day, two-night excursions to different parts of Washington state. During the final week of the intensive, students participate in a project-based learning project, answering a self-created research question related to one or more of the experiences from their excursion. Students conduct research, create annotated bibliographies, write scripts, and present a visual presentation of their research to peers and faculty.

GLOBAL LINK: ALABAMA

Middle School
Elective

Global Link: Alabama is a domestic travel program that immerses students in cultural contexts beyond their home and school cultures and provides them with opportunities to connect with and learn from partner communities in Montgomery and Selma, Alabama. This course challenges students to learn about themselves in order to build relationships with others, to seek out opportunities to deepen their understanding of complex issues and histories, to embrace the unfamiliar and gain confidence in new experiences, and to work with their team to listen, collaborate, support, and share their experiences with the UPrep community.

Global Link: New Mexico

Middle School
Elective

Global Link: New Mexico is a domestic travel program that immerses students in cultural contexts beyond their home and school cultures and provides them with opportunities to connect with and learn from partner communities in Albuquerque and Santa Fe, New Mexico. This course challenges students to learn about themselves in order to build relationships with others, to seek out opportunities to deepen their understanding of complex issues and histories, to embrace the unfamiliar and gain confidence in new experiences, and to work with their team to listen, collaborate, support, and share their experiences with the UPrep community.