American History
Embark on a trans-America romp through history with The Nomadic Professor.
An American Survey Course
4 x 16-week semesters | 2 credits in U.S. History | 0.5 credits in: American Literature, Historical Methods, College Writing, Rhetoric and Logic | Guided, structured, and self-paced
The American story, enlivened
Introducing the Nomadic Professor’s very first program, an innovative, four-course survey of American History right up through the 21st century. The series’ first course, To Begin the World Over Again, spans from the pre-Columbian era to the ratification of the Constitution. Part 2, The Noise of Democracy, begins as George Washington takes office and ends with Reconstruction. Part 3, Monsters to Destroy, takes the survey up to the attack on Pearl Harbor. Part 4, A Great Consolidation, brings the narrative through WWII, the Cold War and almost to the present day.
In total, this four-course series offers a stunning amount of material:
Narrative lessons — Forty units of 4-5 sessions each (also delivered in audio/podcast format and read by the Professor!)
On-location videos — Hundreds of mini-lectures shot all over the world by The Nomadic Professor; get a feel at the NP’s YouTube channel
Student scaffolding — Guided notes, rigorous self-assessments, and CLEP prep (among other goodies)
Document lessons — Students are taught research, writing, and critical thinking skills in parsing a range of primary and secondary sources
Dynamic content — Our courses aren’t static! We are constantly adding to them, improving them, supplementing them, and otherwise providing extra educational value.
Introducing the four-part series
What you’ll learn, course by course
To Begin the World Over Again
American History Part 1
Content: The Pre-Columbian Americas to the ratification of the Constitution
Skills: Thinking like a historian; reading historical documents; reading political cartoons; logic & rhetoric; generating research questions
Credits (combined with US2): 1 credit U.S. History; 0.5 credits Historical Methods; 0.5 credits Composition; prep for U.S. CLEP 1
THE NOISE OF DEMOCRACY
American History Part 2
Content: The ratification of the Constitution to the end of Reconstruction
Skills: Research, writing; primary & secondary sources; databases & search engines; citations, annotation; plagiarism; outlining & thesis construction; anticipating counterarguments; drafting & editing; introductions & conclusions; cohesion & clarity
Credits (combined with US1): 1 credit U.S. History; 0.5 credits Historical Methods; 0.5 credits Composition; prep for U.S. CLEP 1
MONSTERS TO DESTROY
American History Part 3
Content: The 1880s through the beginning of WWII
Skills: Reading fiction, drama, and poetry; using literature as historical evidence; taking notes without guidance; research & writing in new forms
Credits (combined with US4): 1 credit U.S. History; 0.5 credits Rhetoric and Logic; 0.5 credits American Literature; prep for U.S. CLEP 2
A GREAT CONSOLIDATION
American History Part 4
Content: WWII through the Cold War and the War on Terror
Skills: Taking notes without guidance; research & writing new kinds of historical papers; preparing for standardized tests; using Nomadic History Courses on your transcript
Credits (combined with US3): 1 credit U.S. History; 0.5 credits Rhetoric and Logic; 0.5 credits American Literature; prep for U.S. CLEP 2
Click here for a more in-depth synopsis of the courses’ coverage and credits.
Why choose The Nomadic Professor?
Authentic, Place-Based Learning
Virtually travel across America and the world through engaging, on-location videos.
Critical Thinking First
We don’t just teach facts—we teach students how to interpret evidence and form their own defensible conclusions.
Homeschool-Friendly Format
A complete survey course with printable guided notes, built-in assessments, and flexible pacing make it easy for parents to guide learning.
Honors & Credit-Eligible
Earn 2 credits in U.S. History plus 0.5 credits in American Literature, Historical Methods, College Writing, Rhetoric and Logic, and American Literature.
Accreditation Support
Use our handbook and your student’s portfolio of work to generate a transcript with real documentation and support behind it.
Flexible enrollment options
Choose the path that works best for your student:
Self-Paced and Self-Graded (Includes Gradebook)
Includes student and teacher/parent accounts, group options, workbooks, daily quizzes, teacher dashboards, teacher access to answer keys, rubrics, and our weighted gradebookPersonal Enrichment (No Gradebook)
Perfect for lifelong learners and American history enthusiasts with no need to submit work or earn a grade for coursework
Ready to begin?
Join us for a one-of-a-kind tour through American History with The Nomadic Professor! This is no ordinary history survey—it’s an immersive, multimedia journey that invites students to examine the past from diverse perspectives and to make historical judgements for themselves.
Questions? Contact us anytime at [email protected].
Frequently Asked Questions
Self-Graded
Teachers and parents overseeing one or more students can sign up for a Self-Graded account. By taking this route, you will benefit from a virtual classroom setup complete with a focused dashboard where you can monitor progress, manage grades and assignments, and adjust the number of available seats in your group.
Personal Enrichment
Students of all ages can sign up for a streamlined Personal Enrichment account. This is the best option if you’re taking the course out of personal interest rather than for school credit: you don’t plan on submitting assignments, tracking grades, or generating a transcript, you just want full access to excellent content from The Nomadic Professor. By the Personal Enrichment route, you’ll enjoy all of core course content without any extra scaffolding.
Click “View Pricing” above for more details on each of our pricing options.
What credits do your courses offer?
- US1-2
- 1 credit in U.S. History
- .5 credits in Historical Methods
- .5 credits in College Writing
- US 3-4
- 1 credit in U.S. History
- .5 credit in Rhetoric and Logic
- .5 credits in American Literature
Can my student earn high school credit?
Each Nomadic Course fulfills the hours and content requirements for the credits listed above. Students, instructors, supervisors, and/or parents should organize coursework into a portfolio that can be used to justify the credits and grades claimed on final high school transcripts. The Nomadic Professor does not provide the high school transcript, however each Nomadic Course comes with an Instructor’s Guide with further details about how to document hours and content for transcript credit.
What do your American History courses cover?
- US1
- Content: Pre-Columbian America to the ratification of the Constitution
- Skills: Thinking like a historian; reading historical documents; reading political cartoons; generating research questions
- US2
- Content: The ratification of the Constitution to the end of Reconstruction
- Skills: Research and writing; primary and secondary sources; researching in databases and search engines; citations and annotation; plagiarism; outlining and thesis construction; anticipating counterarguments; drafting and editing; introductions and conclusions; cohesion and clarity
- US3
- Content: The 1880s through the beginning of WWII
- Skills: Reading American literature; taking notes without guidance; logic and rhetoric; research and writing in new formats
- US4
- Content: WWII through the War on Terror
- Skills: Taking notes on a blank page; logic and rhetoric; research and writing in new formats; preparing for standardized tests; using Nomadic History Courses on your transcript
Is there an audiobook?
Yes. Every session is recorded as a downloadable audio file read by the Professor.
When should my student take these courses?
For high school students we recommend the following course of study. For middle school students, teachers and parents should make a judgment for their students after spending some time in the course previews and getting a feel for the reading level and student self-management requirements.
- 9th or 10th grade: US1 and US2
- 11th or 12th grade: US3 and US4
Who grades the student work?
There are consistent graded elements in each Nomadic Course. Daily quizzes are automatically graded and recorded in the student gradebook. Other graded assignments must be assessed by a qualified supervisor, parent, or instructor, who will manually enter scores into the gradebook.
To assist with grading student work, all graded assignments include (1) an answer key, and (2) an easy-to-use checklist rubric. In most cases student work can be graded in a few minutes a day, or in short sessions at the end of each week. The gradebook is pre-weighted, and will immediately reflect changes as new scores are entered.
In some cases students can be trained to assess their own work, perhaps overseen by a supervisor, but this should be decided case-by-case.
Further grading guidance is included within the course as part of the course Instructor’s Guide.
How much time will the courses take?
Sessions are designed to be completed in 30-90 minutes, depending on the reader and what parts of the course they utilize. Each course has approximately 50 sessions.
Courses are designed to be completed in 4-6 months, depending on how many days a week students will be in the class. Most students will be able to finish two courses in one school year (e.g., US1&US2, or US3&US4).
Further calendar and planning guidance is included within the course as part of the course Instructor’s Guide.
