The social studies units meet the Massachusetts state frameworks in history and geography, but also incorporate many interdisciplinary skills. All of our units engage students in a variety of activities, such as debate, model creation, role play, simulations, and writing in varied genres.

Each quarter, students create several polished products in addition to class activities. These pieces, graded with rubrics, are the primary form of assessment in Social Studies. They often invite students to use creativity to express their knowledge, and could be posters, speeches, websites, articles, or other modalities depending on the topic. Students also do participate in more traditional forms of assessments, such as tests and quizzes. As they get older, students are given more opportunities to design their own projects.

During the 5th and 6th grades, students in Social Studies Project focus half the year on early American history, and the other half on world geography and culture. During the 7th and 8th grades, students delve into ancient world history, beginning in early Africa and following the spread of mankind through many great kingdoms.