AP AMERICAN HISTORY
Teachers: Mr. Kowalczyk
Mr. Rood
I. COURSE DESCRIPTION:
AP United States History is a college level course. Course will survey American History
from the Colonial Period to the present. Students are expected to participate on a high
academic level, interpret and analyze both primary and secondary sources, make historical
interpretation and be able to use historical facts to defend their views, and present their opinions
in a clear, concise and orderly fashion in both an oral and written manner. All students must
take the AP Exam in May.
II: ATTENDANCE:
Classroom attendance is mandatory. AP U.S. History is a highly demanding course and
missed class time will be difficult to make up. If you fall behind, it will be difficult to catch up.
Any missed work, assignments, quizzes, or tests must be made up as soon as possible. I suggest
you exchange telephone numbers with a classmate, so you can find out what you missed in case
of absence. Please, inform me of any field trips or extended absences prior to leaving.
III: WEEKLY ASSIGNMENT:
Students will be assigned one textbook chapter to read a week. Students will be given a
weekly reading quiz on Mondays, testing the previous weeks reading assignment. In the past,
students have achieved the best result by outlining the chapters. I strongly suggest you outline
each chapter or develop some other method of keeping notes as your read, because these notes
will form the basis for your studying for unit exams and the AP Exam. I also recommend you do
not wait to last minute to complete your weekly assignment. Your first assignment will be to
read Chapter 2 and Chapter 4 (pp. 66-72).
IV: DAILY ASSIGNMENTS:
In addition to the weekly reading assignments, students will be assigned daily
assignments which will supplement the weekly readings. Guided discussion questions will be
assigned each night and will be used for daily classroom discussions. These questions will be
distributed on Mondays and will form the basis for the week’s discussions. Since these
discussions will form the foundation of the course, it is essential that you are prepared for each
day’s class. If I feel students in general are unprepared for class, I will collect each day’s
questions and grade as a quiz.
V. FREE RESPONSE ESSAYS/ DBQ ESSAYS/MULTIPLE CHOICE TEST:
Students will complete a minimum of 2 free response essay questions and 2 DBQ
questions per quarter. These questions will be assigned and completed in class. You will also
have at least 2 multiple choice tests per quarter. All essays and Multiple Choice tests will mirror
the AP exam.
VI: PROJECTS/ INDEPENDENT STUDY ASSIGNMENTS:
Students will be assigned at least one project per marking period. These projects will
require research to be conducted during class time and on your own. The final paper for each
project should meet the high level of scholarship expected of an AP student. Students will be
expected to use appropriate resources. The use of encyclopedias is UNACCEPTABLE.
VI: GRADING/ EVALUATION:
Each test, quiz, essay question and project will be given an assigned point value. (e.g.
test = 100 pts., quiz = 30 pts.) Students will also be assigned a class participation grade worth
100 pts. Student grades will be determined by totaling the points earned and dividing by the
total possible points.
TEXTBOOKS/SUPPLEMENTARY READER/REVIEW BOOK
Textbook: David M. Kennedy, Thomas Bailey, et al. The American
Pageant
Supplementary Reader: Stephen B. Oates, et al, Portrait of America,
Vol. I and II
Review Book: John J. Newman, et al, United States History, Amsco
Publications
COURSE OUTLINE/ READINGS
UNIT I: Colonial America (1600 - 1764) (3 weeks)
A. Discovery, Exploration, and Settlement of North America
Readings: Bailey, Chap. 2
Oates, Vol. I, p.18 – Page Smith, “From the Beginnings”
Suggested Primary Source Documents:
 Ship lists of Emigrants Bound for Virginia and Massachusetts Bay
 Excerpts from writings of John Smith and John Winthrop
B. Differing Colonial Societies – Virginia v. Massachusetts Bay
Readings: Bailey, Chap. 2 and 3
Suggested Primary Source Documents:
 Excerpts from Virginia & Maryland Slave Codes (1660-1705)
 Excerpts from Pynchon Court Record (1675 – 1701)
 Map of Accusers, Defenders, and Accused Witches in Salem, 1692
 Graph of Average Size of landholdings in Salem Village,1640 – 1700
Assessment: 1993 DBQ – Chespeake, Va. V. Massachusetts Bay
C. American Society on the Eve of Revolution (1700 – 1763)
Readings: Bailey, Chap. 5
Suggested Primary Source Documents:
 Excerpt of Benjamin Franklin’s account of the Great Awakening
 Record of the Court Proceedings in the Case of John Peter Zenger
Unit Assessment: Multiple Choice Test
UNIT II: Revolution and Independence (1763 - 1800)(4 weeks)
A. Prelude to Revolution (1763 – 1775)
Readings: Bailey, Chap. 6 and 7
Oates, Vol. I, p.89 – Alexander Winston, “Sam Adams,
Firebrand of the American Revolution”
Suggested Primary Source Documents:
 Excerpt from Navigation Act of 1660
 Excerpt from Stamp Act Congress 1766


Paul Revere’s engraving of the Boston Massacre
Accounts of both the British and American colonists of the events at Lexington
and Concord
Excepts from Speeches at the First Continental Congress

B. The American Revolution (1775 - 1781)
Readings: Bailey, Chap. 8
Oates, Vol. I, p.101 – Douglas Wilson, “Thomas
Jefferson and the Meaning of Liberty”
Suggested Primary Source Documents:
 Maps of Important Revolutionary War Battles
 Excerpts from Common Sense, the Olive Branch Petition, and the
Declaration of Independence
 Firsthand accounts of colonial soldiers
C. Experiments in Government (1781 -1789)
Readings: Chap. 9
Suggested Primary Source Documents:
 Excerpts from Articles of Confederation
 Economic Statistics 1781-1787
 Eyewitness accounts of Shays’ Rebellion
 Excerpts from J.C. Hamilton’s The Works of Alexander Hamilton
 Excepts from The Federalist papers and Anti-Federalist Papers
Assessment: 2003 Free Response Essay #2 – Articles of
Confederation
D. Federalist Beginning (1789 - 1800)
Readings: Bailey, Chap. 10
Oates, Vol. I, p.132 – Gordon Wood, The Greatness of
George Washington
Suggested Primary Source Documents:
 Washington’s Inaugural Address
 Proclamation of Neutrality, 1793
 Washington’s Farewell Address
 Alien and Sedition Acts
 Kentucky and Virginia Resolutions
 Electoral Maps of Elections of 1796 and 1800
Assessment: Free Response Essay – Politics of the 1790s
* Unit Assessment: Multiple Choice Test
UNIT III: Building a Nation (1800 - 1850) (3 weeks)
A Republican Era/ Era of Good Feeling (1801 - 1824)
Readings: Bailey, Chap. 11 and 12
Oates, Vol. I,p.204 - Brian McGinty, “The Great Chief
Justice”
Suggested Primary Source Documents:
 Jefferson’s First Inaugural Address, 1801
 Excerpts from Journals of Lewis and Clark
 Embargo Act of 1807
 “Ograbme” Political cartoon
 Map of Distribution of Votes in House of Representatives for the War of 1812
 Report and Resolution from Hartford Convention,1814
 Electoral Maps of Election of 1824
 Debates on Missouri Compromise
 Painting of Erie Canal
Assessment: 1998 DBQ – Republicans/Federalist 1800 – 1816
B. The Age of Andrew Jackson
Readings: Bailey, Chap. 13 and 14
Oates, Vol. I, p.244 – John Marszalek, “Andrew
Jackson, Flamboyant Hero of the Common Man”
Suggested Primary Source Documents:
 Electoral Map Election of 1828
 Jackson’s First Inaugural Address
 Jackson’s Bank Veto message
 Excerpts from de Tocqueville’s Democracy in America
 The South Carolina Exposition on the Tariff
 Excerpts from Webster-Hayne Debates
 Indian Removal Act, 1830
 Decisions of the Supreme Court in the Cherokee Indian Cases
 The act censuring of Andrew Jackson
Assessment: 1999 Free Response Essay #2 – Rise of 2nd Party
System
C. Reforming American Society
Readings : Bailey, Chap. 15 and 16
Oates, Vol. I,p.324 – John Blassingame, Life in a
Totalitarian System
Suggested Primary Source Documents:
 William Lloyd Garrison’s The Liberator
 Excerpts from Autobiography of Frederick Douglas
 Artist renderings of conditions of mentally ill – Tranquilizing Chair
 Statistics related to alcohol consumption in the United States
 Excerpts from various transcendentalist authors
Assessment: Reformers Trade Show Project
2002 DBQ – Reform Movements
Unit Assessment: Multiple Choice Test
UNIT IV: SECTIONALISM AND CONFLICT - 1848 - 1876(4 weeks)
A. Territorial Expansion (1800-1850)
Readings : Bailey, Chap. 17
Suggested Primary Source Documents:
 John O’Sullivan’s “Manifest Destiny”
 Eyewitness Accounts of the Oregon Trail
 Platform of Democratic Party, 1844
 Declaration of war on Mexico
 Treaty of Guadelupe Hidalgo,1848
 Map of U.S. Territorial Expansion, 1800 - 1850
B. The Sectional Crisis (1820-1854)
Readings: Bailey, Chap. 18
Suggested Primary Source Documents:
 Wilmot Proviso, 1848






Excerpts from Congressional debates over Wilmot Proviso
Maps of Missouri Compromise, 1820 and Compromise of 1840
Fugitive Slave Act, 1850
Massachusetts poster warning African-Americans about Fugitive Slave Act
Excerpts from Uncle Tom’s Cabin
Graphs showing the relationship between cotton production and the growth
of slavery
Assessment: 1997 Free Response Essay #3 – Territorial
Expansion and National Unity
C. Drifting Towards Disunion (1854-1861)
Readings: Bailey, Chap. 19
Oates, Vol. I, p.350 – Ken Chowder, “The Father of
American Terrorism”
Suggested Primary Source Documents:
 Kansas-Nebraska Act, 1954
 Lincoln’s House Divided Speech, 1858
 Dred Scott v. Sanford, 1857
 Excerpts from Lincoln-Douglas Debates, 1858
 Map of Kansas-Nebraska Act
 Cartoon “Pushing Slavery Down the Throats of Kansas”
 Illustration of the Caning of Senator Sumner
 Electoral Maps – Elections 1856, 1860
 South Carolina’s Ordinance of Secession, 1860
Assessment: 1987 DBQ – The 1850s:Prelude to Civil War
D. Civil War (1861 - 1865)
Readings: Bailey, Chap. 20 and 21
Oates, Vol. I, p.363 – Stephen Oates, “Lincoln’s
Journey Toward Emancipation”
Suggested Primary Source Documents:
 Lincoln’s Speeches – i.e. Gettysburg Address
 Emancipation Proclamation, 1863
 Poems and Songs from Civil War
 Eyewitness accounts of ordinary soldiers – i.e. Sam Watkins
 Illustrations of NY draft Riots
 Statistics comparing population and industrial production of North and South
E. Reconstruction (1861 -1877)
Readings: Bailey, Chap. 22
Oates, Vol. II, p. 19 – Eric Foner, “The Checkered
History of the Great 14th Amendment”
Suggested Primary Source Documents:
 Lincon’s Proclamation of Amnesty and Reconstruction
 Wade-Davis Bill, 1864
 Tenure of Office Act, 1868
 Chart comparing vetoes of President Johnson with other Presidents
 Transcript of Impeachment trial of Andrew Johnson
 Electoral map of 1876
 Eyewitness accounts of Reconstruction from a variety of persectives
Assessment: 1996 DBQ – Civil War and Reconstruction
Unit Assessment: Multiple Choice Test
UNIT V: THE INDUSTRIAL REVOLUTION IN AMERICA
(3 weeks)
A. The Rise of Industry and Labor
Readings: Bailey, Chap. 24
Oates, Vol. II, p.56 – Robert Heilbroner, “The Master
of Steel: Andrew Carnegie”
Suggested Primary Source Documents:
 Excerpts from Mark Twain’s The Gilded Age
 Carnegie’s Gospel of Wealth
 Various political cartoons depicting the rise of Trusts
 Eyewitness accounts of Homestead Strike, Haymarket riot
 Statistics showing the growth of American Industry
 Samples of the Sears catalog
 Constitutions of the AF of L, the Knights of Labor, and IWW
B. Urbanization & the Immigrant Experience
Readings: Bailey, Chap. 25
Suggested Primary Source Documents:
 Eyewitness Accounts of Urban life
 Photographs by Jacob Riis
 Cartoons by Thomas Nast – i.e Boss Tweed
 Poem “Chicago” by Carl Sandburg
Assessment: 1998 Free Response Essay #3 – Changing
Conditions of the American Worker
C. The Closing of the Frontier
Readings: Bailey, Chap. 26 (pp. 590-608)
Suggested Primary Source Documents:
 Excerpts from Frederick Jackson Turner
 Excepts from A Century of Dishonor by Helen Hunt Jackson
 Paintings by Frederick Remington
 Sample of dime novel – i.e. Ned Buntline
 Accounts of Battle of Wounded Knee
 Chief Joseph’s “I will fight no more” speech
 Dawes Act, 1887
Unit Assessment: Multiple Choice Test
UNIT VI : REACTION TO THE INDUSTRIAL WORLD (1875 - 1920)
weeks)
A. Politics and Reform (1875 - 1900)
Readings: Bailey, Chap. 23
Suggested Primary Source Documents:
 Writings by Tammany Hall’s George Washington Plunkett
 Pendleton Civil Service Act, 1883
 Illustration of the Assassination of James Garfield
 Interstate Commerce Act, 1887
 Sherman Anti-Trust Act, 1890
 Decision in U.S. v. E.C. Knight, 1895
4
B. Rise of Populism (1880 - 1900)
Readings: Bailey, Chap. 26 (pp. 608-621)
Suggested Primary Source Documents:
 William Jennings Bryan’s Cross of Gold Speech, 1896
 Platform of the Populist Party
 Various cartoons dealing with Populism
 Economic Statistics on Prices for Farm goods
C. Progressivism (1900 - 1920)
Readings: Bailey, Chap. 29 and 30
Oates, Vol. II, p. 90 - Paula Treckel, “The Lady Versus
Goliath: Ida Tarbell v. Standard Oil”
Suggested Primary Source Documents:
 Photographs of Jacob Riis
 Theodore Roosevelts’ “The Man with the Muckrake” speech
 Excerpts from The Jungle by Upton Sinclair
 Supreme Cases – Northern Securities, 1902, Lochner v. NY, 1905 and Muller

v. Oregon, 1908
Platform of Progressive Party, 1912
Assessment: 1987 Free Response Essay # 5 – Progressivism
D. Imperialism and World War (1865 - 1920)
Readings: Bailey, Chap. 27, 28, and 31
Oates, Vol. II, p.156 – Paul Fassell, “Hell Cannot Be So
Terrible: Trench Warfare on the Western Front”
Suggested Primary Source Documents:
 Documents by Alfred Thayer Mahan, Josiah Strong
 Platform of Anti-Imperialist League
 Samples of Yellow Journalism from William Randolph Hearst and Joseph







Pultzer
The Open Door Note
The Roosevelt Corollary, 1905
U.S. Proclamation of Neutrality, 1914
German advertisement warning of unrestricted submarine warfare
WW I posters
Wilson’s 14 Points
Treaty of Versailles
Assessment: 1994 DBQ – Expansionism, Old and New
Unit Assessment: Multiple Choice Test
UNIT VII: PROSPERITY, DEPRESSION, AND WAR (1919 - 1945)
(4 weeks)
A. The Roaring Twenties (1919 - 1929)
Readings: Bailey, Chap. 32
Oates, Vol. II, p.175 – Sara Evans, “Flappers,
Freudians, and All That Jazz”
Suggested Primary Source Documents:
 Economic Statistics from the 1920s
 Poems by Langston Hughes
 Variety of music from the 20s – Bessie Smith, Louis Armstrong, Al Jolson
 Clips of Silent Movies – Rudolph Valentino, Charlie Chaplin, Clara Bow
 Photographs depicting Flappers
 Graph of the rise and fall of the stock market
 Address by Herbert Hoover declaring victory over poverty
 Eyewitness accounts of Scopes Trial
Assessment: 1999 Free Response Essay #4 – Roaring Twenties
Project: Create a Learning Station for 1920s
Cultural Changes
B. The Causes and Effects of the Great Depression (1919 –
1932)
Readings: Bailey, Chap. 33
Suggested Primary Source Documents:
 Economic statistics of the Depression
 Hoover’s address stating his opposition to relief
 Hawley-Smoot Tariff
 Pictures of the Dust Bowl
 Eyewitness Accounts of the Bonus Army
 Music – “Brother Can You Spare a Dime”
 Letters and Diary entries from average Americans concern the Depression
C. FDR and the New Deal (1933 - 1940)
Readings: Bailey, Chap. 34
Oates, Vol. II, p. 208 – David Kennedy, “Strike! Labor’s
Historic Drive to Unionize”
Suggested Primary Source Documents:
 Excerpts from FDR’s 1st Inaugural address and fireside chats
 Economic statistics from the 1930s
 Speeches/Excerpts from Huey Long and Father Coughlin
 Supreme Court Cases – Schecther Poultry v. U.S., 1935 and U.S. v Butler,


1936
Political Cartoons dealing with FDR’s Court Packing Scheme
Music – “Happy Days are Here Again”
Assessment: 2003 DBQ – New Deal
D. U.S. Foreign Policy (1919 - 1941)
Readings: Bailey, Chap. 35
Suggested Primary Source Documents:
 Accounts of Senate Rejection of League of Nations
 Kellogg-Briand pact, 1928
 Stimson Doctrine, 1931
 Report of Nye Committee, 1935
 FDR’s Quarantine Speech, 1937
 Platform of America First Committee
E. World War II (1941- 1945)
Readings: Bailey, Chap. 36
Oates, Vol. II, p. 255 – William vander Heuvel,
“America and the Holocaust”
Suggested Primary Source Documents:
 “Hollywood Goes to War” Cartoons from WW II
 FDR’s Speech requesting a declaration of war, Dec. 8,1941
 WW II posters
 Accounts from average soldiers of WW II battles
 Eyewitness Accounts of the A-Bomb on Hiroshima
Unit Assessment: Multiple Choice Test
UNIT EIGHT: AMERICA DURING THE COLD WAR ( 1945 - 1990)
(4 weeks)
A. Origins of the Cold War (1945 - 1960)
Readings: Bailey, Chap. 37 and 38
Suggested Primary Source Documents:
 NSC 68
 Truman Doctrine
 Churchill’s Iron Curtain Speech
 Statistics of U.S. Military Spending 1945 – 1960
 Excerpts from Army/McCarthy Hearings
 Soldiers’ Accounts of Korean War
B. American Society during the Cold War (1945 - 1960)
Readings: Bailey, Chap. 37 and 38
Suggested Primary Source Documents:
 Economic Statistics 1945 – 1960
 Positive and Negative Accounts of the Rise of Suburbia
 Newspaper Article of Jackie Robinson integrating baseball
 Supreme Court Decision in Brown v. Board of Ed
 Martin Luther King, Jr.’s Letter from a Birmingham Jail
 Electoral Map-Election of 1960
 Excerpts from Jack Kerouac’s On the Road
Assessment: 2001 DBQ – Eisenhower and the Cold War
Free Response Essay # 5 – 1920s v. 1950s
C. Era of Conflict and Change (1960 - 1972)
Readings: Bailey, Chap. 39 and 40 (pp.946-960)
Oates, Vol. II, p. 350 – Larry L. King, “Trapped:
Lyndon B. Johnson and the Nightmare of Vietnam”
Suggested Primary Source Documents:
 Kennedy’s Inaugural Address
 Gulf of Tonkin Resolution
 Anti-War Protest Songs
 Civil Rights Act of 1964
 Eyewitness Accounts of Kent State
 Electoral Map – Election of 1968
 Television Commercials for elections of 1964 and 1968
Assessment: 2000 Free Response Essay #5 – 1960s Cultural
Changes
1995 DBQ – Civil rights Movement
D. The Age of Cynicism (1972 - present)
Readings: Bailey, Chap. 40 (pp.960-975) and 41
Oates, Vol. II, p. 406 – Peter Schweizer, “The Man
Who Broke the Evil Empire”
Suggested Primary Source Documents:
 Excerpts from Congressional Watergate Hearings
 News reports of Watergate Break-in
 Nixon’s Resignation Speech
 War Powers Act, 1973
 TV Commercials of Presidential Elections 1972 – 2000
 Economic Statistics 1970 -2000
Unit Assessment: Multiple Choice Test
* All Unit Assessment tests are made up of multiple choice questions from
the 1984,1988, 1996, and 2001 released AP Exams
** The suggested documents listed are only a small number of primary source documents used
throughout the curriculum.
AP TEST PREPARATION (1 week)
At the end of unit eight, the class will begin preparing for the AP exam. Practice DBQs and free
response essays will be included along with general review class on important terms and
concepts. Review classes will be held before and after school and possible on weekends.
Review sessions will begin on or about April 1st.
POST-AP TEST: (4 Weeks)
Unit: American Government
Assessment: Term Paper on any topic in American History
Supreme Court Simulation