This Lumen Learning Waymaker U.S. History course aims to help students use historical thinking skills to describe, compare, contextualize, and construct historical arguments about major events in American history from 1877 to the present day. The course covers the chronological history of the United States from Reconstruction through the beginning of the twenty-first century and introduces key forces and major developments that together form the U.S. experience, providing a balanced approach that considers the people, events, and ideas that have shaped the United States from both the top-down (politics, economics, diplomacy) and bottom-up (eyewitness accounts, lived experience), with particular attention paid to issues of race, class, and gender.

Primary course goals include the following:

• Describe key historical trends, events, and figures in modern American history
• Examine historical figures and events from multiple, diverse perspectives, recognizing how American history is influenced by race, ethnicity, gender, class, religion, etc.
• Think like a historian; make historical connections by studying historical narratives and arguments, analyzing documents, synthesizing information, evaluating cause and effect, and studying how things change over time.

This course will guide students through a wealth of primary sources, readings, and videos tied to clear learning objectives designed to improve their critical thinking skills. Sample discussions and assignments are included. Key topics include westward expansion, industrialization and urbanization, imperialism, progressivism, WWI, the Jazz Age, the Great Depression, WWII, the Cold War, political storms, civil rights movements, culture wars, and more.