Civics in Practice: Principles of Government and Economics

U.S. Government and Economics Curriculum Grades 6–12

Why?
Features
Resources
HMH Professional Services
  • Why?

    Relevant Content and Active Learning Bring Social Studies to Life

    Civics in Practice ensures content mastery by involving students in their learning. The program encourages students to participate while learning their civil liberties and the responsibilities and duties of a citizen, and helps them make sound economic choices.

    Support Common Core with Rigor, Skills, and Document-based Instruction

    With today’s emphasis on Common Core State Standards, it is more important than ever to have a social studies program that meets the rigor these standards demand. Civics in Practice exposes students to a wealth of primary sources and develops critical skills while analyzing a variety of perspectives and investigating key topics.

    Experience Social Studies with 21st-century Tools

    The digital generation of students today is like none before, so another way we help them experience success is to provide the capability to access their Civics in Practice book not only on a computer, but on a variety of mobile devices.

    Engage Students with Accessible Social Studies Content

    From reading support to differentiated instruction, Civics in Practice is filled with a variety of student-friendly features designed to enhance the learning experience. With this support, every student can understand how and why responsible civic participation is important in our country.

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    • Common Core

      With today’s emphasis on Common Core State Standards, it is more important than ever to have a social studies program that meets the rigor these standards demand. Civics in Practice exposes students to the skills and understandings necessary for college and career readiness and helps them become literate, in all its forms, in the 21st century.

      The Grades 6–12 strand in Social Sciences promotes an interdisciplinary approach to literacy by:

      • Including primary source analysis and Common Core informational text reading
      • Incorporating literature and historical fiction selections
      • Utilizing higher-order thinking skills of text evidence, determining point-of-view, distinguishing fact from opinion, and more

      College and Career Readiness Anchor Standards

      Reading in History/Social Sciences

      Key Ideas and Details

      Using key skills like analyzing, evaluating, determining main idea from supporting detail, and drawing conclusions, students will actively look for text evidence in support of learning objectives. Complete skill lessons teach these explicitly, and ample assessment opportunities allow for demonstration of knowledge.

      Craft and Structure

      Civics in Practice teaches students how to read social studies-based informational text with particular guidance and practice on understanding historical readings, developing historical perspective, and formulating historical questions. This focus allows students to understand and compare points-of-view, determine bias, and recognize propaganda as they interpret a variety of primary sources.

      Integration of Knowledge and Ideas

      Civics in Practice offers students continuous opportunities to access a variety of sources—print, audio, visual, interactive media, and video—and in turn to analyze and assess them in 21st-century applications. Students can demonstrate their understanding through projects, proposals, presentations, and more.

      Range of Reading and Level of Text Complexity

      Civics in Practice offers students a wealth of text genres in the Student Editions, related support material both in print and online, and related small volumes focusing on primary source collections, historical readings, literary collections, and historical literature.

      Writing in History/Social Sciences

      Text Types and Purposes

      Civics in Practice is committed to the student writing process with skills and lessons to support them every step of the way with ample and varied writing can be found in formative assessment, informal assessment, formal assessment, and portfolio opportunities.

      Production and Distribution of Writing

      Whether in print or online, Civics in Practice offers a variety of writing opportunities and platforms for students to research and publish their writing.

      Research to Build and Present Knowledge

      Civics in Practice teaches students how to analyze bias, determine point-of-view, and recognize propaganda, along with interpret print, visual, and Internet source material. The depth and variety of skills culminates in students critically reading and responding to text and supporting their written argument with critical analysis and text evidence.

      Range of Writing

      Civics in Practice offers a variety of writing projects—both short term and long term—to support the different needs of today’s classrooms and schedules. Students demonstrate their knowledge for a range of tasks, purposes, and audiences.

    • Scope and Sequence

      Preview the skills taught throughout each unit and chapter.

      Grades K–12 (7.9MB)

      Grades 6–12 (5.8MB)

    • Research: Evidence & Efficacy

      Holt McDougal Civics in Practice Impact Study (2014)

      This report details middle school students' growth in social science knowledge and skills when using the Holt McDougal Civics in Practice program.

      View All Studies

    • Meet the Author

      Meet the author that has made Civics in Practice one of the best-selling programs on the market.

      Gregory Massing - Program Author

      Gregory Massing is a graduate of the Virginia School of Law. He was law review editor and in the top one percent of his graduating class and has the unique combination of experience for this particular course—legal and constitutional scholarship with real-life applications. His undergraduate degree in economics from the University of California, Berkeley, allows him to write about economics concepts and applications for the mainstream classroom. Massing served for more than a decade as a prosecutor in Massachusetts, as both an assistant attorney general and an assistant district attorney. Today he serves as general counsel for the Executive Office of Public Safety and Security, the Massachusetts cabinet department charged with oversight of matters involving law enforcement, criminal justice, and public safety. He also teaches a course in constitutional criminal procedure as an adjunct professor at Boston College Law School.

  • Features

    Meeting the needs of all learners is no easy task. This is why Houghton Mifflin Harcourt created Civics in Practice. Designed to engage students with the narrative while integrating rich multimedia assets, the program brings content to life for students and enriches their understanding.

    Teacher and student resources are available in print, online, and via mobile, providing the kind of anytime, anywhere access to resources that today’s learning environment demands. With leading-edge digital tools, Civics in Practice helps students connect to the content like never before.

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    • Partnerships

      Powerful partnerships with the Center for Civic Education and American Bar Association provide valuable content in the Student Edition, ancillary resources, research resources, and online materials to extend and enrich the student’s experience with the content.

      Center for Civic Education

      The Center for Civic Education (CCE) is an independent nonprofit, nonpartisan organization dedicated to promoting an enlightened and responsible citizenry committed to democratic principles and actively engaged in the practice of democracy in the United States and other countries.

      The Civics in Practice Student Edition includes features derived from lessons in the Center's curriculum, We the People: The Citizen and the Constitution.

      • We the People: The Citizen and the Constitution features, including interactive strategies and a simulated Congressional hearing
      • What Do You Think features
      • Connecting to the Constitution activities

      In addition, the CCE developed the Foundations of Democracy Activities ancillary. This piece is organized around the concepts of authority, privacy, responsibility, and justice to promote critical thinking and foster participation skills.

      The American Bar Association

      The American Bar Association Division for Public Education’s programs, publications, and resources are designed to educate and inform youth and adults about law and the justice system so that they are better equipped to meet the challenge of productive engagement in our democracy.

      The ABA Division for Public Education developed and provided the content for the Landmark Supreme Court Cases in the Civics in Practice Student Edition and the Supreme Court Case Studies ancillary resource.

      In addition to the content in print, the ABA Division for Public Education website, www.abanet.org/publiced, features research resources, downloadable newsletters, and scripts for mock trials.

      The World Almanac and Book of Facts has been delivering information about the world since the presidency of Andrew Johnson. First published in 1868, it is America’s all-time best-selling reference book, with more than 80 million copies sold.

      In the reference section of Civics in Practice, students and teachers find colorful explorations of key issues in American government and civics:

      • The United States: Facts and Figures
      • The U.S. Constitution
      • The Executive Branch
      • The Legislative Branch
      • The Judicial Branch
      • How a Bill Becomes a Law
      • Presidents of the United States
      • Facts about the States

      American Bar Association® is a registered trademark of American Bar Association.

    • Reading Support and Accessibility

      In Civics in Practice: Principles of Government and Economics, reading support works seamlessly with the content, preparing students to learn with focused success.

      Reading Skills

      Reading Skills lessons provide basic reading-skill lessons that help students learn and practice strategies related to the objectives of each chapter.

      Before You Read

      Before You Read beginning each section provides students with the Main Idea, Reading Focus Questions, Key Terms and People, and Taking Notes features.

      Civics in Practice

      Civics in Practice, at the beginning of each section, provides relevance to the content being studied.

      Reading Checks

      Reading Checks enable students to monitor their comprehension.

      Section Assessments

      Section Assessments provide scaffolded questions based on Bloom’s taxonomy.

      Quick Facts

      Quick Facts charts, Interactive features and dramatic visuals convey content concisely and bring concepts to life.

      Reading Social Studies

      Reading Social Studies by Kylene Beers helps students in every social studies course develop content-area reading skills. It includes reading-skill practice, think-aloud strategies, graphic organizers, and practice skill lessons for world history, geography, U.S. history, and civics.

      Guided Reading Strategies

      Guided Reading Strategies help students review main ideas as they read.

    • Comprehensive Skill Development

      Civics in Practice develops students’ comprehension skills, critical-thinking skills, and analysis skills throughout the text.

      Civics Skills

      Civics Skills encourage students to learn, practice, and apply the skills students need to analyze civics and economics.

      Historic Documents, Political Cartoons, and Primary Sources

      Historic Documents, Political Cartoons, and Primary Sources features present a variety of sources from different perspectives.

      Focus On

      Focus On biographies focus on historically significant people related to the content.

      Media Investigations and Linking to Today

      Media Investigations and Linking to Today features connect the events of the past with their relevance and impact in today’s world.

      Econ 101 and Math 101

      Econ 101 and Math 101 features foster analysis skills.

      American Civil Liberties and American Religious Liberty

      American Civil Liberties and American Religious Liberty features teach civic values and explain constitutional rights and their importance in society.

      Supreme Court Decisions

      Supreme Court Decisions present the background of the case, explain the impact of the decision on today, and foster students’ critical thinking skills.

      Students Take Action and Law 101

      Students Take Action and Law 101, developed in conjunction with the Center for Civic Education, promote critical-thinking, civic participation, and service learning.

      Personal Finance Handbook

      Personal Finance Handbook encourages students to learn the basics about earning, saving, and investing their money, and discover how to make the best choices for managing their finances.

      Community Service and Participation Handbook

      Community Service and Participation Handbook promotes active learning in students.

      From the Source

      From the Source: Readings in Economics and Government offers a collection of documents that promote critical thinking.

      Law 101

      Law 101 with Answer Key focuses on legal issues that affect everyday life.

      Mathematics for Economics Workbook

      Mathematics for Economics Workbook applies math concepts to civics and economics.

      Media Investigations

      Media Investigations hone critical-thinking skills and teach students to make informed choices.

      Political Cartoon Activities

      Political Cartoons Activities, Teaching Suggestions, and Answer Key enrich and broaden instruction. The Teacher’s Guide and Answer Key provide background information on each political cartoon to enable you to place the cartoon in context for students. Each political cartoon activity includes instructional captions that guide students in interpreting symbolism, caricature, satire, and bias.

      Simulations and Case Studies

      Simulations and Case Studies with Block Scheduling Options contains readings or case studies that allow students to explore topics from the program in greater depth.

      Students Take Action

      Students Take Action with Answer Key promotes service learning and civic duty.

      The Democracy and Civic Education Resources

      The Democracy and Civic Education Resources package includes Civic Participation Activities Guide, Constitution Study Guide, and United States Supreme Court Case Studies. Co-developed with the American Bar Association, the workbooks contain information on the history and development of the Constitution, its applications in today’s world, and analyses of important U.S. Supreme Court cases.

      Primary Source Activity Kit

      The Primary Source Activity Kit is a compilation of primary and secondary sources designed to provide students with opportunities to examine historical, geographical, and government records; to analyze a variety of points of view; and to use critical-thinking strategies to interpret historical documents.

      This engaging activity kit includes:

      • Laminated placards featuring the documents and accompanying activities
      • Primary and secondary source documents that cover United States history, world history, geography, and civics and government
      • Teacher’s Guide with lesson plans and answer keys

      Thinking About Content Reading

      Thinking About Content Reading helps students develop content-area reading skills in every social studies course using the think-aloud strategy and graphic organizers.

      Interactive Skills Tutor

      Interactive Skills Tutor CD-ROM guides students as they learn social studies skills presented in the program. Each skill is introduced, practiced through interactive student activities, and then assessed for student mastery.

    • Differentiated Instruction

      Civics in Practice: Principles of Government and Economics provides a variety of teaching strategies and activities designed to reach all learners. The Teacher’s Edition and ancillary materials fully support differentiated instruction.

      Chapter Planning Guide

      The Differentiated Instruction section of the Chapter Planning Guide targets program resources to address the needs of struggling or reluctant readers, English language learners, special education students, and advanced/GATE students.

      Teacher’s Edition

      The Teacher’s Edition provides point-of-use Differentiating Instruction activities for English language learners, special education students, learners having difficulty with the content, and advanced learners.

      All activities in the Teacher’s Edition wrap are labeled Below-, At-, or Above-level as well as Standard English Mastery where appropriate. Activities are also labeled with appropriate learning styles.

      The Teacher’s Edition includes Teach the Main Idea, an instructional plan in the wrap that serves as a Minimum Course of Study when teachers are pressed for time.

      Challenge and Enrichment Activities for Differentiated Instruction

      Challenge and Enrichment Activities for Differentiated Instruction provide differentiated lessons and assessment for these special populations.

      Differentiated Instruction: Teaching ESOL Students

      Differentiated Instruction: Teaching ESOL Students contains strategies for improving the comprehension and understanding of students with limited English proficiency.

      Main Idea Activities for Differentiated Instruction

      Main Idea Activities for Differentiated Instruction with Answer Key provides differentiated lessons and assessment for these special populations.

      Differentiated Instruction Modified Worksheets and Tests CD-ROM

      Differentiated Instruction Modified Worksheets and Tests CD-ROM provides modified Vocabulary Builder Activities, Section Quizzes, Chapter Review Activities, Chapter Tests, and Vocabulary Flash Cards. The worksheets are editable and printable.

      English Language Learner Strategies and Activities

      English Language Learner Strategies and Activities by Julie Chan provides support for social studies teachers who have English language learners in their classrooms. The activities and strategies have been designed to be used with English language learners at the beginning, intermediate, and advanced proficiency levels. It includes Skill Building Activities, Social Studies Theme Activities, and Graphic Organizers.

      Differentiated Instruction Teacher Management System

      Differentiated Instruction Teacher Management System provides a wide variety of resources and instructional strategies to meet the needs of all learners. The package includes Benchmarking Guides, Section Lesson Plans, Lesson Plans for Differentiated Instruction, Interactive Reader and Study Guide Teacher’s Guide, and Answer Key.

      Differentiated Instruction Modified Worksheets and Tests CD-ROM

      Differentiated Instruction Modified Worksheets and Tests CD-ROM provides modified Vocabulary Builder Activities, Section Quizzes, Chapter Review Activities, Chapter Tests, and Vocabulary Flash Cards. The worksheets are editable and printable

    • Interactive Online Editions

      When is a book not a book? When it’s an Online Edition! Our online programs contain the same Student Edition that you find in print, but with a host of additional resources and features.

      Book Pages

      Book Pages take you to your Interactive Online Edition.

      eActivities

      eActivites organize all of the online-only features of the book, such as chapter activities, interactive features, videos, eResources, and quizzes and assessments.

      Audio

      Audio shows the downloadable MP3s of section audio and chapter summaries in Spanish.

      References

      References list all additional material from the front and back of the textbook, including English and Spanish Glossary, Supreme Court Decisions, Atlas, and Historic Documents.

      Student Resources

      Student Resources contain media and instructional resources for students to use in conjunction with the book.

      Teacher Resources

      Teacher Resources provide resources exclusively for teacher use, including answer keys, reading support, enrichment activities and assessment options.

      Current Events Website

      hmcurrentevents.com enriches your classroom with subject-specific information from world history, world geography, American history, economics, psychology, sociology, civics, government, and African American history. It also spotlights today’s headlines with blogs, quizzes, activities, and web links.

      For a free 120-day preview of the Student and Teacher Online Editions, please contact your Account Executive.

    • Available Digital Formats
      eTextbooks

      HMH eTextbooks

      eTextbooks include all of the content from the print textbook and are available across all grade levels and discipline areas. Suitable for most tablets, eTextbooks are portable and easily accessed, with some interactivity depending on the device.

  • Resources

    Explore Houghton Mifflin Harcourt’s social studies resources that further develop students’ comprehension skills.

    Current Events Website

    hmcurrentevents.com enriches your classroom with subject-specific information from world history, world geography, American history, economics, psychology, sociology, civics, government, and African American history. It also spotlights today’s headlines with blogs, quizzes, activities, and web links.

  • HMH Professional Services

    Our Mission Is to Advance Yours

    HMH Professional Services forges student-centered partnerships with schools and districts in the belief that all learners deserve a quality education and the opportunity for lifelong success.

    HMH Professional Services includes teachers, leaders, and technologists. Our Professional Learning Consultants become part of your team, working right beside you to build and implement professional learning plans that respect the unique needs and culture of your school or district community. Through program, practice, and technical services, we work collaboratively to unlock the full potential of every student, teacher, and leader.

    Visit us at hmhco.com/professionalservices to learn more.


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