Fourth grade students will learn about the early development of democratic institutions, including the ideas and events that led to the independence of the Thirteen Colonies, the American Revolution, and the formation of a national government under the Constitution. Students will continue their studies with the development and growth of the United States through Manifest Destiny and the division of our country. Finally, students will explore the causes and effects of the Civil War and Reconstruction. Students will utilize primary source documents, geographic tools, analysis, and critical thinking within this concentrated study of early U.S. history.