Unit 1: ​The Gilded Age

Unit 1 Guide
​The Gilded Age Inquiry Activity
​The Gilded Age Map Challenge

​Critical Vocabulary: Forty-Niners, Transcontinental Railroad, Homestead Act, Exodusters, Battle of Little Bighorn, Dawes Act, Assimilation, Carlisle Indian Industrial School, Ghost Dance, Wounded Knee Massacre, Laissez Faire Economics, Vertical Integration, Horizontal Integration, Social Darwinism, A Gospel of Wealth, Labor Union, Strike, Lockout, Blacklist, Homestead Strike, Pullman Strike, Imperialism, Great White Fleet, Annexation of Hawaii, Cuban War of Independence, Reconcentration Policy, Yellow Journalism, De Lome Letter, U.S.S. Maine, Treaty of Paris of 1898, Anti-Imperialist League, Philippine-American War, Open Door Policy, Boxer Rebellion, Push Factors, Pull Factors, Ellis Island, Americanization Movement, Nativism, Chinese Exclusion Act, Angel Island, Urbanization, Tenements, Political Machine, Muckrakers

Lesson 1: The Great West


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We will describe the opportunities and conflicts that emerged as Americans moved west at the turn of the century.
  • This means we will explain why 1000s of settlers began to move west after the Civil War, and we will describe the challenges they faced as a result.
  • It also means that we will explain how western expansion impacted the lives of Native Americans living on the Great Plains.

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Lesson 2: The Growth of Industry


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We will describe the growth of industry in the United States, and I can assess its impact on American society.
  • This means we will explain laissez faire economics, and we will describe how it shaped business practices during the Gilded Age.
  • It also means we will describe working conditions during the Gilded Age, and we will analyze the degree to which the Labor Movement was able to improve upon them.

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Lesson 3: American Imperialism

We will explain the political, economic, & cultural factors that fueled the growth of American imperialism.
  • This means we will explain the reasons the U.S. sought to build an empire at the turn of the century.
  • It also means we will describe the reasons the U.S. went to war in 1898, and we will analyze whether or not that decision was justified.
Class Materials: 
  • American Imperialism Pear Deck​
  • When Is War Necessary? Inquiry Activity
  • The Spanish American War Document Activity
Additional Resources: ​

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Lesson 4: America Moves to the City


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We will discuss the ways in which the American population changed at the turn of the century, and I can analyze the issues that emerged as a result.
  • This means we will summarize the reasons people immigrated to the U.S. during the Gilded Age, and we will evaluate the domestic response to these groups.
  • It also means that we will describe the major issues that emerged as Americans moved into cities, and we will explain the role of muckrakers in exposing the problems of the era.
Class Materials: 
  • The Urbanization Game​
  • The Story of Us: Cities
  • Immigration Pear Deck
  • An American Tail Viewing Questions
  • America Moves to the City Project
  • America Moves to the City Writing Activity
Additional Resources:​

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