We will be looking at the human past as a single story through a unified chronology, learning about all major peoples, regions and time periods while connecting specific topics to larger historical patterns & answering some of the larger historical questions – all hopefully developing a deeper understanding of the historical meaning & relevance of our past to our lives today.

Over the course of two terms (both Spring & Fall with a total of 32 weeks of classes), we will cover 9 BIG ERAS of world history between 13 billion years ago through the present, using the following THREE ESSENTIAL QUESTIONS as overarching thematic guides for organizing classroom activities and discussions about each era:

– Humans and the Environment: How has the changing relationship between human beings and the physical and natural environment affected human life from early times to the present? Human beings are inhabitants of the biosphere and their history is inseparable from it. This is as true today as it was 200,000 years ago.

– Humans and Other Humans: Why have relations among humans become so complex since early times? We live in a world of intense, complicated, and diverse relationships among billions of people. Throughout most of its history our species has lived in small, scattered communities of foragers and hunters. Questions about the ways in which humans have multiplied on the earth and come to relate to one another in such a variety of ways are fundamental to historical investigation.

– Humans and Ideas: How have human views of the world, nature, and the cosmos changed? History is not only the study of “what happened” but also about the ways in which humans have thought about, questioned, interpreted, and represented (in words, pictures, movies, and so on) what their senses tell them about the world and the universe. Ideas influence historical developments and, conversely, events shape ideas as humans strive to make sense of change.

We also be looking at SEVEN KEY THEMES that concern broad aspects of change that have been enduringly important in the human experience:

1: Patterns of Population
2: Economic Networks and Exchange
3: Uses and Abuses of Power
4: Haves and Have-Nots
5: Expressing Identity
6: Science, Technology, and the Environment
7: Spiritual Life and Moral Codes

The interests of each student will inform the specific emphases we will cover. We will be using multi-media instructional tools & both individual & group project-based activities to supplement traditional lectures, reading & writing assignments.

Ages: 14+yo.

Teacher: Jessica Byers

Cost: See pricing chart

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