This text is designed for a one-year United States history course for adults studying on the high school level and for regular day high school students. Essential U S History focuses on the history of the United States (including the land and its people before it became the United States).Its coverage begins with a study of major groups of Native-American culture and comes up to the mid-term elections of 2006. Following the curricula of many states, this fully illustrated book is organized chronologically but with separate regional emphasis within each time period. The text prepares students taking a high school United States history course by giving them high-interest but comprehensive coverage of key events and themes in American history. The book's sophisticated presentation works especially well with adult education students. However, it has been written and designed to facilitate instruction in any U S history classroom.