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Skills available for Maryland high school social studies standards

Standards are in black and IXL social studies skills are in dark green. Hold your mouse over the name of a skill to view a sample question. Click on the name of a skill to practice that skill.

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1 Structure and Origins of Government

2 The Legislative Branch

3 The Executive Branch

4 The Judicial Branch

  • 4.1 Structure and Powers of the Judiciary

  • 4.2 Landmark Decisions and Historical Impact of the Court on American Government

  • 4.3 Criminal and Civil Law

    • 4.3.1 The student will analyze elements, proceedings, and decisions related to criminal and civil law by:

      • 4.3.1.a Describing the role of the courts in settling disputes between individuals.

      • 4.3.1.b Analyzing the effectiveness of out-of-court settlements, arbitration, and mediation as alternatives to litigation.

      • 4.3.1.c Identifying the elements of civil law including: plaintiff, defendant, contract, breach of contract, torts, damages, preponderance of evidence, and petit jury.

      • 4.3.1.d Identifying the elements of criminal law including: defendant, prosecutor, reasonable doubt, felony, misdemeanor, grand jury, indictment, probable cause, presumption of innocence, plea bargaining, writ of habeas corpus, and subpoena.

      • 4.3.1.e Comparing the proceedings of civil and criminal cases including: grand jury, petit jury, indictment, standards of proof (beyond a reasonable doubt and preponderance of the evidence), plea bargaining, probable cause, writ of habeas corpus, and subpoena.

5 Economic Policy

  • 5.1 Economic Systems

  • 5.2 Economic Goals and Indicators

    • 5.2.1 The student will analyze the principles of economic costs and benefits and opportunity cost to evaluate the effectiveness of government policy in achieving socio-economic goals by:

      • 5.2.1.a Explaining how the Consumer Price Index (CPI), the unemployment rate, and the Gross Domestic Product (GDP) measure economic performance.

      • 5.2.1.b Explaining how the business cycle reflects economic instability, including periods of inflation and recession.

      • 5.2.1.c Explaining how governments prioritize the competing socio-economic goals of freedom, growth, stability, equity, national defense, environmental protection, and educational quality in response to changing economic, social, and political conditions.

      • 5.2.1.d Evaluating how the principles of economic costs, benefits, and opportunity cost affect public policy issues, such as environmental and healthcare concerns, defense and education policy.

  • 5.3 Fiscal Policy

    • 5.3.1 The student will evaluate the effectiveness of current monetary and fiscal policy on promoting full employment, price stability, and economic performance by:

      • 5.3.1.a Describing the role of the state and federal legislative branches in developing fiscal policy.

      • 5.3.1.b Analyzing the role of the executive in the budgetary process on the national, state and local level.

      • 5.3.1.c Describing how the legislative branch influences economic performance by using the tools of fiscal policy including increasing and decreasing taxes and tariffs and/or spending.

      • 5.3.1.d Evaluating the effectiveness of fiscal policy in achieving economic growth, full employment, and price stability.

  • 5.4 Monetary Policy

    • 5.4.1 The student will evaluate the effectiveness of current monetary and fiscal policy on promoting full employment, price stability, and economic performance by:

      • 5.4.1.a Describing how the Federal Reserve System uses the three tools of monetary policy, including open market operations, changes in the discount rate, and changes in the reserve requirements to influence the economy.

      • 5.4.1.b Evaluating the effectiveness of monetary policy in achieving economic growth, full employment, and price stability.

6 Domestic Policy

  • 6.1 Citizens and Public Policy

    • 6.1.1 The student will explain roles and analyze strategies individuals or groups may use to initiate change in governmental policy and institutions by:

      • 6.1.1.a Analyzing how candidates, campaigns, political parties, the media lobbyists and financial contributions and citizens, influence the political process, policy, and public opinion.

      • 6.1.1.b Evaluating the tools that individuals or groups may use to influence laws, government policies, and elections including referendum, acts of civil disobedience, voting, boycotts, financial contributions, digital communication, and voting drives.

      • 6.1.1.c Identifying the voting patterns of various demographic groups and their impact on governmental policy.

  • 6.2 Regional Domestic Policy

    • 6.2.1 The student will analyze the roles and relationships of regions on the formation and implementation of government policy by:

      • 6.2.1.a Explaining how geographic characteristics and shared interests stimulate regional cooperation between governments and influence foreign policy and effect political decision-making.

      • 6.2.1.b Analyzing the importance of regional characteristics and interests including economic development, natural resources, climate and environmental issues, and population shifts in formulating local, state, and national government policy.

      • 6.2.1.c Analyzing patterns, trends, and projections of population and how these may affect environmental policy, education spending, health care, and social security.

  • 6.3 Public Policy

7 Foreign Policy

  • 7.1 Foreign Policy Goals and Tools

  • 7.2 The United States Role in the International Community

    • 7.2.1 The student will evaluate the effectiveness of international alliances and organizations from the perspective of the United States by:

      • 7.2.1.a Explaining the military and security functions of the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO) and the United Nations (UN).

      • 7.2.1.b Explaining the humanitarian role of the Red Cross/Red Crescent and the United Nations.

      • 7.2.1.c Explaining the economic function the United Nations (UN) and the World Trade Organization (WTO).

      • 7.2.1.d Analyze how the United States involvement in international organizations advances or hinders the achievement of foreign policy goals.