The Story of America Instructional Support: Through 1866

The Story of America: American History with Deep Focus on Historical Perspectives

Print ISBN: 9781638890874 | Grade: 6 to 12 | Reading Level: 3.0 to 4.5 | Lexile: HL380L to HL700L

The Story of America is a unique collection of history books designed for striving readers in middle school and high school. Nonfiction handbooks are accompanied by historical fiction books with their own nonfiction backstory sections. This collection was created with much thought and consideration for the diverse peoples, cultures, and groups that built our history. The intention of this library is to share some of the stories and voices of those who helped create our nation, from its early days to current times. Seeking to provide opportunities for students to read about and learn from diverse points of view, we have focused intently on exploring a variety of perspectives throughout history.

The Story of America library is organized into two time periods. This first box set covers the very early days in the land that would become the United States through the end of the Civil War, and the second box set spans Reconstruction through 2022. For each time period, there are six nonfiction handbooks. These highlight key events during a specific span of time while weaving in both well-known and historically underrepresented perspectives. Five historical fiction books accompany each nonfiction handbook. Each fiction book explores a moment in history from the point of view of someone who lived through it. Following the fictional account, a nonfiction section is provided to help readers understand

Comprehensive instructional support facilitates deeper-level thinking and introduces ways to collaborate, discuss, and stimulate conversation within the classroom. The included “Big Ideas to Ponder” is one example of extrapolating some of the important themes of specific times in history to stimulate discussion. Other lessons focus on engaging students to consider perspectives from the diverse peoples, cultures and groups of that period. 

NONFICTION HANDBOOK SECTIONS INCLUDE:

• Lesson plans, including whole class, small group, and partner activities 
• Graphic Organizers 
• Quizzes
• Information card activities 

FICTION HANDBOOK SECTIONS INCLUDE:

• Lesson plans, including perspective discussion and post-reading questions 

Key Words/ Themes: History, Social Studies, America, Perspectives, Diverse, Cultures, Early People, European Explorers, Colonies, Colonial Unrest, American Revolution, Birth of a Nation, National Expansion, Social Change, Conflicts, Civil War, Full Color, Set, Fiction, Nonfiction, Teen, Young Adult, Hi-Lo, Hi-Lo Books, Hi-Lo Solutions, High-Low Books, Hi-Low Books, ELL, EL, ESL, Struggling Learner, Struggling Reader, Special Education, SPED, Newcomers, Reading, Learning, Education, Educational, Educational Books