United States Academic Decathlon® Curriculum
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The U.S. Academic Decathlon® is excited to announce that the overall curricular theme for 2026–2027 will be Journeys of Transformation: An Exploration of Travel and Transportation.
Following is some general information on the topics in each of the subject areas.
- Art: The art curriculum will explore themes of travel and transportation in art.
- Economics: The economics curriculum will cover fundamental economic concepts, microeconomics, and macroeconomics and will include a thematic section on the economics of transportation.
- LITERATURE: The literature curriculum will explore journeys, quests, and travel in literature and will include critical reading, one long work of literature, and selected shorter works. The long work of literature will be The Remains of the Day by Kazuo Ishiguro.
- Mathematics: The mathematics curriculum will cover general mathematics, geometry, and an introduction to differential calculus.*
- Music: The music curriculum will focus on travel and transportation in music.
- SCIENCE: The science topic will be an introduction to animal behavior and migration.
- sOCIAL Science: The social science topic will be an introduction to human geography and migration.**
The full subject area outlines will be posted on the U.S. Academic Decathlon website <www.usad.org> on May 1 and will be published in the U.S. Academic Decathlon Study Guide, which will be available on May 15.
* The 2026–27 mathematics curriculum and materials will be the same as were used for the 2023–24 U.S. Academic Decathlon.
**The portion of the social science curriculum that covers human migration will present an introduction to migration patterns and processes and will include historical case studies but does not discuss current issues and policies related to migration.
United States Academic Decathlon® Curricular Topics for 2026–2027!
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Science Full-Color Figures
Link: USAD Science Resource Guide 2026-27 Full-Color Figures Posted On:May 18, 2026Many of the Science Resource Guide figures are best viewed in full color. Students using the electronic version of the Science Resource Guide will have access to all full-color figures. Students using a black-and-white printed version of the Science Resource Guide can access figures that are best viewed in full color via the link provided above.
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Social Science Full-Color Figures
Link: USAD Social Science Resource Guide 2026-27 Full-Color Figures Posted On:May 18, 2026Many of the Social Science Resource Guide figures are best viewed in full color. Students using the electronic version of the Social Science Resource Guide will have access to all full-color figures. Students using a black-and-white printed version of the Social Science Resource Guide can access figures that are best viewed in full color via the link above.
Curriculum Updates
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Social Science Resource Guide
The Supreme Court of Tennessee upheld the Butler Act’s constitutionality in 1927, and the law remained on the books for another forty years.
The Social Science Resource Guide, page 274. The sentence should read: The Supreme Court of Tennessee upheld the Butler Act’s constitutionality in 1927, and the law remained on the books for another forty years.
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Pentathlon Essay Resource Guide
In the Pentathlon Essay Resource Guide, page 3. The essay time listed should be updated to read forty: In the essay part of the U.S. Academic Pentathlon competition, students have forty minutes to plan, organize, and write a final essay that answers a specific prompt… Students will be allowed a blank sheet of paper and a pen to jot down ideas, but only what is typed and submitted at the end of the forty minutes will be scored. If a competition coordinator chooses to have students use pen and paper to write their essays, students are still allotted forty minutes….
In the Pentathlon Essay Resource Guide, page 4. The essay time listed should be updated to read forty: The main difference between these two types of essays is that the expository essay “explains a topic,” while the argumentative essay aims to convince the reader to accept the argument being presented. At all levels of competition, students will be given at least three prompts and be required to choose ONE for their essay…
Pentathlon Curriculum Updates
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The following is some general information on the topics in each of the subject areas:
USAD Curriculum Advisory Group The Curriculum Advisory Group is a panel of educators who assist in the development of the USAD curriculum by suggesting and providing feedback on curriculum topics and themes and by reviewing the subject area outlines, selected works of literature, artworks, etc. The members of the panel have expertise in a variety of subject areas and are experienced educators. Members of USAD’s Curriculum Advisory Group work on a voluntary (i.e., unpaid) basis.
USAD Curriculum Developers USAD hires curriculum developers in each subject area to develop the subject area outlines, Resource Guides, and Notebook Dividers. USAD’s curriculum developers are instructors at the university level. All of USAD’s curriculum developers have advanced degrees in their subject area and have experience in curriculum development. All applicants must submit a resume and writing sample to be considered as a curriculum developer for USAD’s materials. Writers are selected taking into account their qualifications and experience, their writing ability, and their familiarity with the Academic Decathlon® program.
USAD Curriculum Reviewers USAD hires curriculum reviewers in each of the subject areas. All curriculum reviewers have expertise in the subject area for which they are contracted and generally are teachers at the university level. All USAD curriculum materials are reviewed by two curriculum reviewers. All curriculum reviewers have an advanced degree in their subject area. All applicants must submit a resume to be considered as a curriculum reviewer for USAD’s materials. Reviewers are selected taking into account their qualifications and experience and their familiarity with the Academic Decathlon® program. All USAD Student Exercise Books except for mathematics are developed by a leading publishing solutions company that specializes in K-12 educational content. The Mathematics Student Exercise Books are written by authors who are either mathematics teachers at the university level or are graduate students in mathematics.
Student Exercise Book Development All USAD Student Exercise Books except for mathematics are developed by a leading publishing solutions company that specializes in K-12 educational content. The Mathematics Student Exercise Books are written by authors who are either mathematics teachers at the university level or are graduate students in mathematics.
United States Academic Decathlon Curriculum Development
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