Welcome.

Mr. Cermeno
8th Grade
American History
 Our Mission

• Our mission is to appreciate the story of

early American History while we sharpen
reading, writing and critical thinking skills.
 What We Study

 We start with the

earliest humans to
migrate to the
Americas.

 We finish with the

Civil War.
 History as a Narrative
 We will learn about American History as a
narrative -- one big story.

 Rather than just memorizing names &

dates, we focus on more important
elements of the story (How? Why? What
were the causes and effects? How does it
effect us today?)
 An Active Class
• In addition to our textbook & workbook,
we use Internet, video, PowerPoint & much
more.

• We follow a reliable routine in each

chapter of our textbook.

• But, there are also “out-of-book

experiences” in every chapter.
Textbook & Workbook
 Our textbook is The
American Journey
(Glencoe, 2005).

 Homework will be
from the Study
Guide Workbook .

 StudentWorks CD
Online

 Study games,
Powerpoint
slideshows, video
clips, section
quizzes & more can
be found on our
class webpage.
 Current Events
 Current events will
be an important
part of our
learning, as we
connect past &
present.
 Class Materials
• Students bring the following materials to
class everyday:

• pen/pencil & paper

• planner

• Study Guide Workbook

 Grades
 20% Daily 50%
Activities 45%
40%
 30% Quizzes 35% Daily
30% Work
 50% Tests/Projects
25% Quizzes
20%
15% Tests &
10% Projects
 Quizzes & Tests 5%
count for a big part 0%
8th Grade
of the overall grade
– study!
 No Late Work 

• Late-work will not be accepted, except due

to absence.

• Use the “make-up work planner”, first.

Then, ask for help.
 Block Schedule
• 8th grade Social Studies & Science classes
are “blocked”.

• Students will have Social Studies &

Science every other day for two periods.

• The idea is to expose students to the

longer blocked classes they will
experience in high-school.
 More about the “Block”
Example:

 Monday – Science
 Tuesday – History
 Wednesday – Science
 Thursday – History
 Friday – both classes