History Content Standards, Grades K-4: Topic Three, Standard 4

Topic Three: The History of the United States: Democratic Principles and Values and the People from Many Cultures Who Contributed to Its Cultural, Economic, and Political Heritage

STANDARD 4
How democratic values came to be, and how they have been exemplified by people, events, and symbols.

Standard 4A: Demonstrate understanding of how the United States government was formed and of the nation's basic democratic principles set forth in the Declaration of Independence and the Constitution.

Grade Level	Therefore the student is able to:
K-4	Explain that the U.S. government was formed by English colonists who fought for independence from England. [Explain causes and consequences]
3-4	Identify and explain the basic principles that Americans set forth in the documents that declared the nation's independence from England (the Declaration of Independence) and that created the new nation's government (U.S. Constitution). [Demonstrate and explain the influence of ideas]
K-4	Explain the importance of the basic principles of American democracy that unify us as a nation: our individual rights to life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness; responsibility for the common good; equality of opportunity and equal protection of the law; freedom of speech and religion; majority rule with protection for minority rights; and limitations on government, with power held by the people and delegated by them to their elected officials who are responsible to those who elected them to office. [Demonstrate and explain the influence of ideas]
K-4	Analyze how over the last 200 years individuals and groups in American society have struggled to achieve the liberties and equality promised in the principles of American democracy. [Analyze continuity and change ]

Standard 4B: Demonstrate understanding of ordinary people who have exemplified values and principles of American democracy.

Grade Level	Therefore the student is able to:
K-4	Identify ordinary people who have believed in the fundamental democratic values such as justice, truth, equality, the rights of the individual, and responsibility for the common good, and explain their significance. [Assess the importance of the individual in history]
K-4	Analyze in their historical context the accomplishments of ordinary people in the local community now and long ago who have done something beyond the ordinary that displays particular courage or a sense of responsibility in helping the common good. [Assess the importance of the individual in history]

Standard 4C: The student understands historic figures who have exemplified values and principles of American democracy.

Grade Level	Therefore the student is able to:
K-4	Identify historical figures who believed in the fundamental democratic values such as justice, truth, equality, the rights of the individual, and responsibility for the common good, and explain their significance in their historical context and today. [Assess the importance of the individual in history]
K-4	Describe how historical figures in the United States and other parts of the world have advanced the rights of individuals and promoted the common good, and identify character traits such as persistence, problem solving, moral responsibility, and respect for others that made them successful. [Assess the importance of the individual in history]
3-4	Compare historical biographies or fictionalized accounts of historical figures with primary documents in order to analyze inconsistencies and disagreements in these accounts, and assess their reliability. [Compare competing historical narratives]

Standard 4D: The student understands events that celebrate and exemplify fundamental values and principles of American democracy.

Grade Level	Therefore the student is able to:
K-4	Describe the history of holidays, such as the birthday of Martin Luther King Jr., Presidents' Day, Memorial Day, the Fourth of July, Labor Day, Veterans' Day and Thanksgiving, that celebrate the core democratic values and principles of this nation. [Demonstrate and explain the influence of ideas]
3-4	Describe the history of events, such as the signing of the Mayflower Compact and the Declaration of Independence, and the writing of the Constitution, the Bill of Rights, and the Emancipation Proclamation. [Demonstrate and explain the influence of ideas and beliefs]

Standard 4E: The student understands national symbols through which American values and principles are expressed.

Grade Level	Therefore the student is able to:
K-4	Describe the history of American symbols such as the eagle, the Liberty Bell, George Washington as the "father of our country," and the national flag. [Demonstrate and explain the influence of ideas]
K-4	Explain why important buildings, statues, and monuments are associated with state and national history, such as the White House, Lincoln Memorial, Statue of Liberty, Ellis Island, Angel Island, Mt. Rushmore, and veterans memorials. [Obtain historical data]
3-4	Analyze the Pledge of Allegiance and patriotic songs, poems, and sayings that were written long ago to demonstrate understanding of their significance. [Reconstruct the literal meaning of a historical passage]
3-4	Analyze songs, symbols, and slogans that demonstrate freedom of expression and the role of protest in a democracy. [Consider multiple perspectives]

>> Standards in History for Grades K-4: Topic Three, Standards 5 and 6

National Center for History in the Schools