AP United States History
Course Description
This course in AP United States History is designed to provide students with the
analytical skills and factual knowledge necessary to deal critically with the problems and
materials of United States history. The purpose of this course is for students to learn U.S.
History from discovery to present, to develop higher order thinking, writing, and
participation skills. The topics that will be covered in this class include colonial
America, American Revolution, creating a nation, Jeffersonian democracy, age of
Jackson, economic and social matters of the nineteenth-century, manifest destiny, Civil
War and Reconstruction, the Gilded Age (industrialization & immigration), Populism,
Progressive era, imperialism, World War I, roaring twenties and Jazz Age, Great
Depression, New Deal, World War II, Cold War, Civil Rights Movement, post-Cold War
era, and Beginning of twenty-first century. The class is designed to provide a collegelevel experience and to help successfully prepare students for the Advanced Placement
(AP) Examination in May.
Course Objectives
Students will:
 master a broad body of historical knowledge
 demonstrate an understanding of historical chronology
 use historical data to support an argument or position
 interpret and apply data from original documents, including political cartoons,
graphs, letters, maps, etc.
 effectively use analytical skills of evaluation, compare and contrast, and cause
and effect
 work effectively with others to produce products and solve problems
 write effectively to show a clear understanding of material and assignments
Instructional Strategies
Some of the instructional strategies that will be used include lecture/note-taking,
cooperative group activities, individual/group discussions and presentations, audio-visual
materials, the reading of a wide variety of primary and secondary materials, research, and
student interactive activities.
Textbook
David M. Kennedy, Lizabeth Cohen, and Thomas A. Bailey. The American Pageant, 13th
ed.(Boston: Houghton Mifflin Company, 2006).
Supplemental Materials
Elliot J. Gorn, Randy Roberts, and Terry D. Bilhartz. Constructing the American Past: A
Source Book of a People’s History, 5th ed. Vol. I & II (New York: PearsonLongman, 2005).
David M. Kennedy and Thomas A. Bailey. The American Spirit, 11th ed. Vol. I & II
(Boston: Houghton Mifflin Company, 2006).
James L. Lorence, Editor. Enduring Voices (Document Sets), Vol. I & II (Boston:
Houghton Mifflin Company, 2000).
Stephen B. Oates and Charles J. Errico. Portrait of America, 9th ed. Vol. I & II (Boston:
Houghton Mifflin Company, 2007).
Primary Source Documents as selected by the instructor from the “100 Milestone
Documents” collection at the NARA website http://www.ourdocuments.gov/
AP Central website at the College Board http://apcentral.collegeboard.com/apc
American Memory – Library of Congress website
http://memory.loc.gov/ammem/index.html
History Matters website http://www.historymatters.gmu.edu/
Various test preparation books will be shared at the year-end for review and use
** As time permits we will reading the following novels or excerpts from the following
novels: The Grapes of Wrath by John Steinback, The Red Badge of Courage by Stephen
Crane, Looking Backward by Edward Bellamy, The Jungle by Upton Sinclair, The
Plunkitt of Tammany Hall by William L. Riordon, Only Yesterday by Fredrick Lewis
Allen, Hiroshima by John Hersey, and A People’s History of the United States by
Howard Zinn
Summer Assignment
The first unit of United States History AP covers the beginnings of American tradition.
This unit includes exploration, colonization, and up to 1760. In U.S. History AP you will
read “New World Beginnings,” “Planting of English America,” “Settling the Northern
Colonies,” and “American Life in the Seventeenth Century.”
Your textbook is The American Pageant.
A. Read Chapters 1 through 4 of the textbook (The American Pageant). As you read,
you may want to take notes of your own. Complete questions for each of the
assigned chapters. – Due the first day of class
B. Prepare an annotated (critical or explanatory notes or comments) timeline of this
unit as you read and complete the study guide for each chapter. (DO NOT USE
THE TIMELINE THAT IS GIVEN AT THE END OF EACH CHAPTER.)
Construct your own timeline according to your own study habits Be sure to
include dates, people, events, etc. Complete a minimum of 20 entries per chapter
that are due on the day of the Unit Test.
C. Be prepared for discussion and an exam over the assigned chapters the first week
of class. (Tentatively on August 13, 2010)
Methods of Evaluation
Chapter Quizzes, Unit Tests, Open Responses, Supplemental Readings and Related
Activities (Book Tests/Writings), Projects, Writing Activities / Papers (Essays and
FRQs), Document Based Question (DBQ) Writings, Portfolio Writing, Group Activities,
Daily Work, Homework, Class Participation, Current Events Articles
Test formats are objective (multiple choice), free-response questions (essay), and DBQ
Semester Exams
At the end of each semester, all students will take a semester final exam unless except
(according to school policy).
AP Grading Scale
To ensure that your grade is an accurate reflection of your ability, I will give a variety of
assignments. The student will be graded in the following areas accordingly:
Homework/Daily Work
Tests
Book Tests/ Quizzes
Writings
Individual/Group Projects
Participation
** This may be modified quarterly, but the students will be informed of these changes.
Participation is a subjective evaluation that is considered as an asset when the final grade
is calculated, particularly in borderline cases.
Class Grade Determined As Follows:
A
B
C
D
F
100 – 90
89 – 80
79 – 70
69 – 60
59 – 0
Class average will be calculated using total points. The number of points you earn for
each assignment will be added together, and then divided by the total number of points
you could have earned. This decimal number will then be multiplied by 100 to give your
average.
Class Requirements
1. Each student will participate in activities and complete research assignments
2. Notebook – Each student must maintain an AP United States binder. The binder
must be a large three-ring binder with a set of dividers. It must be organized in
the following fashion:
Section 1 – Vocabulary
Section 2 – Class notes and discussion questions, dated
Section 3 – Review Sheets
Section 4 – Worksheets and essays
Section 5 – Articles, primary source materials, maps, miscellaneous
Classroom Rules
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Be on time to class and in the room when the bell rings.
Do not talk while I am talking
Come to class prepared. (Textbook, Binder, Pen/Pencil, etc.)
Assignments are due on time.
Be considerate and respectful of others that are in the room.
No cell phones on or out during class.
UNIT 1: EXPLORATION AND COLONIAL AMERICA (SUMMER
ASSIGNMENT)
READINGS:
Text, The American Pageant, Chapters 1-4
The American Spirit, Chapter 1: A:1,2,4; B:1,2; C:1,2,3;D:1,2,4. Chapter 2: A:1,2;
B:1,2,3; C:1,2. Chapter 3: A:1,2,3; B:1,3; C:1,2; D:1,2; E:1,2. Chapter 4: A:1,3;
B:1,2,3; C:1,2; D:1,3
Handouts
THEMES:
1. American Identity
2. Environment
3. Politics and Citizenship
4. Slavery and its legacy in North America
5. War and Diplomacy
CONTENT:
Motives for early exploration: political, social and economic; Pre-Columbian societies;
Introduction of slavery; Consequences of Columbus’s discovery; The rise of
mercantilism; Expansion by England; Settling Jamestown, 1607; Native Americans and
English settlers; Growth of Virginia and Maryland; Settling the Carolinas and Georgia;
Puritan Faith; Pilgrims-Plymouth Colony, 1620; Massachusetts Bay Colony, 1630;
Rhode Island, Connecticut, and New Hampshire; Native Americans and Puritans;
Dominion of New England and the Confederation; New York, New Jersey, and
Delaware; Life and labor in the Chesapeake Region; Indentured servants and Bacon’s
Rebellion in Virginia, 1676; The spread of slavery; African American culture; Southern
society; Families in New England; Salem Witchcraft Trials; Daily life in the colonies
MAJOR ASSIGNMENTS AND ASSESSMENTS:
1. Prepare an annotated (critical or explanatory notes or comments) timeline of this
unit as you read and complete the study guide for each chapter. (DO NOT USE
THE TIMELINE THAT IS GIVEN AT THE END OF EACH CHAPTER.)
Construct your own timeline according to your own study habits Be sure to
include dates, people, events, etc. (Due on the day of the Unit Test)
2. Develop and complete a chart that compares and contrasts (A) Plantation
Colonies, (B) Middle Colonies, and (C) New England Colonies. Due the first day
of class
You should include in the chart the following information as a minimum:
a. the motivation for founding the colony
b. financing the colony
c. political organization of each colony
d. social organization of each colony
e. economic organization of each colony
f. degree of self-government in the colonies
g. labor (who works and does what)
h. education
i. opportunities for social and political mobility
j. extent of participation of colonists
** Also, define and include whether each colony was a “Royal Colony,” “Charter
Colony,” “Joint-Stock Colony,” or “Proprietary Colony.”
3. Unit Test (multiple choice and essay)
DBQ: NEW ENGLAND AND CHASAPEAKE REGIONS
 Day spent reviewing how to write a DBQ. For the first DBQ students start
analyzing the documents in class. DBQ due the second Friday of class.
UNIT 2: THE AMERICAN REVOLUTION
READINGS:
Text, The American Pageant, Chapters 5-8
The American Spirit, Chapter 5: A:1, 4; B:1, 2; C:2, 3; D:1, 2. Chapter 6: A:1, 2; B:1, 3;
C:1-4; D:1, 2. Chapter 7: A:1, 2; B:1-3; C:1, 4; D:1-3; E:1-3. Chapter 8: A:1-3; B:1, 2,
3; C:1; D:1-3; E:1-3.
Constructing the American Past, Chapter 5 Documents – “What Kind of Revolution?
Justifications for Rebellion”
Enduring Voices Documents, Chapter 5, Document Set 1-3 – “Crisis and Responses: The
Concept of Intercolonial Unity,” “The People’s Rebellion,” and “Women’s Patriotism”
Portrait of America, “When in the Course of Human Events …” – “John Adams and the
Coming of the Rebellion” and “Thomas Jefferson and the Meanings of Liberty”
Handouts
THEMES:
1. American Identity
2. Economic Transformations
3. Politics and Citizenship
4. War and Diplomacy
CONTENT:
Immigration and population growth; Colonial social structure; The Atlantic economy;
The role of religion; The Great Awakening of the 1730s; Education and culture; Politics
and the press; Colonial folkways; New France; Fur-traders and Indians; Anglo-French
rivalries; The first world wars; The Seven Year’s War; Pontiac’s uprising and the
Proclamation of 1763; Roots of revolution; The merits and menace of mercantilism; The
Stamp Act crisis, 1765; The Townshend Acts, 1767; The Boston Massacre; The Boston
Tea Party, 1773; The Intolerable Acts and the Continental Congress, 1774; Lexington,
Concord, and the gathering clouds of war; The Rebel Army; Early skirmishes; American
“republicanism”; The Declaration of Independence; Patriots vs. Loyalists; The American
Revolution fighting fronts; Yorktown; The Peace Treaty of Paris, 1776.
MAJOR ASSIGNMENTS AND ASSESSMENTS:
1. American Revolution Essay Exercise (Practice writing thesis and topic sentences)
2. “Great Revolutionary Debate over America” – whole class debate and reflection
3. Annotated Timeline – The Road to Revolution
4. British Policy Chart – Create a chart dealing with the various British policies
enacted following The Seven Year’s War (Proclamation of 1763 through the
Intolerable Acts)
5. “Who Fired the Shot?” – A class analysis and discussion of primary source
accounts of hostilities at Lexington and Concord
6. Unit Test – Multiple Choice Questions and Essay (“Analyze the extent to which
the American Revolution represented a radical alteration in American political
ideas and institutions. Confine your answer to the period 1775 to 1800.”)
UNIT 3: CREATING A NATION
READINGS:
Text, The American Pageant, Chapters 9 & 10
The American Spirit, Chapter 9: A:2, 3; B:1, 2, 3; C:1, 2, 4; D:1, 2, 3; E:1, 2. Chapter
10: A:1, 2, 3, 4; B:1, 2, 3; C:1, 2; D:1; E:1; F:1; G:1, 2, 3.
Constructing the American Past, Chapter 6 Documents – “Forming a More Perfect
Union: Friend, Foes, and the Disfranchised”
Enduring Voices Documents, Chapter 7, Document 1 – “Economic Conflict: Alexander
Hamilton’s Financial Program and Thomas Jefferson’s Opposition” Document 2 –
“Political Conflict: The Alien and Sedition Acts and Virginia and Kentucky Resolutions”
Portrait of America, Birth of a Republic – “Miracle at Philadelphia” and “The Greatness
of George Washington”
Handouts
THEMES:
1. American Identity
2. Economic Transformations
3. Politics and Citizenship
4. War and Diplomacy
CONTENT:
The Articles of Confederation; The Northwest Ordinance; Shay’s Rebellion; The
Constitutional Convention; Washington’s Administration (Domestic Affairs and Foreign
Affairs); the emergence of political parties; impact of the French Revolution; Jay’s
Treaty; Washington’s Farewell; The John Adams Administration; the Alien and Sedition
Acts; Federalists versus Republicans
MAJOR ASSIGNMENTS AND ASSESSMENTS:
1. Debate – “Were the Founding Fathers Democratic Reformers?”
2. Analyze the Constitution Preamble and the Bill of Rights
3. “Hamilton v. Jefferson” – Group Activity – analyzing their views of government
4. Free Response Question (FRQ) Practice - Choose one of the following questions
and answer in an essay format. (“Analyze the contributions of TWO of the
following in helping establish a stable government after the adoption of the
Constitution. John Adams, Thomas Jefferson, George Washington.” – 2002 FRQ
or “Evaluate the extent to which the Articles of Confederation were effective in
solving the problems that confronted the new nation.” – 2003 FRQ
5. Unit Exam – Multiple Choice and Essay (Released Items)
UNIT 4: JEFFERSONIAN DEMOCRACY/GROWTH OF
NATIONALISM
READINGS:
Text, The American Pageant, Chapters 11 & 12
The American Spirit, Chapter 11: A:1, 2, 3; B:1, 3; C:1, 2, 3, 5, 6; E:1, 2. Chapter 12:
A:1, 2, 3, 4; B:2, 3; C:1, 2, 3; D:1, 2, 3, 5.
Constructing the American Past, Chapter 7 Documents – “Shouting for Glory Camp
Meeting Christianity Described, Decried and Defended 1800”
Enduring Voices Documents, Chapter 8, Document 1 – “Aaron Burr’s Imperial Dream: A
Test for the Young Republic” Document 2 – “A Second War for Independence:
Understanding the Role of the West” Document 3 – “Virgin Land: The TransMississippi West Through the Eyes of Lewis and Clark”
Portrait of America, The Nation Takes Shape – “The Duel” and “The Great Chief
Justice”
Handouts
THEMES:
1. American Identity
2. Economic Transformations
3. Politics and Citizenship
4. War and Diplomacy
CONTENT:
The “Revolution of 1800”; The Jefferson presidency; John Marshall and the Supreme
Court; The Louisiana Purchase; the Burr Conspiracy; The Anglo-French War; The
Embargo, 1807-1809; Battle with the Shawnees; A Declaration of War; “Mr. Madison’s
War”; the Hartford Convention; new national identity; “The American System”; James
Monroe and the Era of Good Feelings; Westward expansion; The Missouri Compromise;
Oregon and Florida; and the Monroe Doctrine.
MAJOR ASSIGNMENTS AND ASSESSMENTS:
1. Annotated Timeline over the Unit
2. Create a Graphic Organizer Poster – The War of 1812
3. Compare/ Contrast Diagram – Madison’s Nationalism and the Era of Good
Feeling”
4. Map Exercise – The Louisiana Purchase
5. Unit Exam – Multiple Choice and Essay (Released Items)
UNIT 5: THE AGE OF JACKSON
READINGS:
Text, The American Pageant, Chapters 13 – 15
The American Spirit, Chapter 13: A: 2, 3; B:1, 2; C:1, 2; D:1, 2, 3, 4; E:1, 3; F:1; G:1, 2.
Chapter 14: A:1, 2; B:3, 4; C:1, 2, 4; D:1, 2, 3; E:1, 2. Chapter 15: A:1, 2; B: 1, 2, 3;
C:1, 2, 3, 4, 5;
Constructing the American Past, Chapter 8 Documents – “Living and Dying in Bondage:
The Slave Conspiracy of 1822”, Chapter 9 Documents – “Remembering the Alamo”,
Chapter 10 Documents – “Women in Antebellum America”
Enduring Voices Documents, Chapter 9, Document 2 – “End of the Trail: Andrew
Jackson and the Rationale for Indian Removal” Chapter 10, Document 1 – “The New
Politics of Popular Sovereignty: Andrew Jackson and the ‘Language of Democracy’”
Chapter 10, Document 3 – “The Search for Community: Social Experimentation in a
Reform Era”
Portrait of America, The Age of Jackson – “Andrew Jackson: Flamboyant Hero of the
Common Man” and “A Giant of Contradictions: The Irrepressible Sam Houston”
Handouts
THEMES:
1. American Diversity
2. Culture
3. Politics and Citizenship
4. Reform
5. Religion
CONTENT:
The “Corrupt Bargain” of 1824; President John Quincy Adams; The “Revolution of
1828”; the spoils system; the “Tariff of Abominations,” 1828; The South Carolina
nullification crisis; The Indian Removal Act; the bank war; Whig Party; Martin Van
Buren in the White House; Revolution in Texas; Mass democracy and the two-party
system; westward movement; European immigration; Nativism and assimilation; factory
system; The First Industrial Revolution; Transportation and Communication; The Second
Great Awakening; the temperance movement; education reform; women’s roles and
women’s rights; Utopian experiments; Science, art, and culture; literature.
MAJOR ASSIGNMENTS AND ASSESSMENTS
1. Classroom Debate – “Was Andrew Jackson’s Indian Removal Policy Motivated
by Humanitarian Impulses?”
2. Group Activity – Develop a Utopian Society (determine geographic location;
establish rules, principles, policies, and purpose for community; anticipate
problems within the community and with neighbors). The group will present their
Utopian Society to the class. Class will discuss positives and negatives.
3. Cause and Effect Chart – The Trail of Tears
4. Unit Exam – Multiple Choice and Essay (Released Items)
DBQ: Jackson DBQ – College Board 1990
UNIT SIX: SLAVERY AND SECONTIONALISM
READINGS:
Text, The American Pageant, Chapters 16 – 19
The American Spirit, Chapter 16: A:1, 2, 3, 4; B:1, 2, 3, 4; C:1, 2, 4; D:1, 2, 3. Chapter
17: A:1, 2, 3, 4; B:1, 2, 3; C:2; D: 1, 2, 3. Chapter 18: A:1, 2; B:1, 2, 3; C:1, 2, 3; D:1,
2, 4; E:1, 2, 6, 7. Chapter 19: A:2, 3; B:1, 2, 3; C:1, 2, 3; D:1, 2; E:1, 2, 3; F:1, 2.
Constructing the American Past, Chapter 11 Documents – “A House Divided: Free
Labor, Slave Labor”
Enduring Voices Documents, Chapter 12, Document Set 1 – “Life in Bondage: Voices
from Below” Document Set 2 – “The Economy of the Old South: King Cotton and the
Dissenters” Document Set 3 – “Free But Contained: The Free Black Population of the
Antebellum South” Chapter 14, Document Set 1 – “Prelude to War: The Destruction of
Sectional Comity” Document Set 2 – “Women and the Attack on Slavery: The ‘Little
Lady Who Began a Big War’” Document Set 3 – “Terrorism and Freedom: Abolition by
All Means Necessary”
Portrait of America, “To Make Them Stand in Fear”: The Slaveowning South – “Let My
People Go: Harriet Tubman and the Underground Railroad” The Death of Slavery –
“Lincoln’s Journey to Emancipation”
Handouts
THEMES:
1. American Identity
2. American Diversity
3. Culture
4. Demographic Changes
5. Globalization
6. Slavery and Its Legacies in North America
CONTENT:
The economy of the Cotton Kingdom; Southern social structure; the plantation system;
Life under Slavery; the abolitionist crusade; the white southern response; abolition and
the Northern conscience; literature on slavery; the Texas Revolution; The John Tyler
Administration; the Mexican War; Oregon Fever; James K. Polk, the “dark horse” of
1844; “Popular Sovereignty”; the Underground Railroad; The Compromise of 1850; the
Fugitive Slave Law; Franklin Pierce Administration; the Kansas-Nebraska Act; Uncle
Tom’s Cabin; James Buchanan’s Administration; Dred Scott v. Sanford; The Lecompton
Constitution; The Lincoln-Douglas Debates; John Brown’s Raid; the Election of 1860;
Secession
MAJOR ASSIGNMENTS AND ASSESSMENTS:
1. Debate – “Slavery: Positive Social Good?
2. Annotated Timeline
3. FRQ Essay – Choose one of the following “Analyze the ways in which
supporters of slavery in the nineteenth century used legal, religious, and
economic arguments to defend the institution of slavery” or “Assess the moral
arguments and political actions of those opposed to the spread of slavery in the
context of TWO of the following: Missouri Compromise, Kansas-Nebraska Act,
Compromise of 1850, Mexican War”
4. Unit Exam – Multiple Choice and Essay (Released Items)
UNIT SEVEN: CIVIL WAR AND RECONSTRUCTION
READINGS:
Text, The American Pageant, Chapters 19 – 22
The American Spirit, Chapter 20: A:2, 3; D:1, 2, 3; F:1, 2. Chapter 21: A:1, 2, 3, 4; B:1,
2; C:1- 5; E: 1-6; F:1, 2, 4. Chapter 22: A:1-5; B:1-5; C:1, 2; D:1, 2, 3; E:1-3; F:2, 3.
Constructing the American Past, Chapter 12 Documents – “A War Within a War: The
New York City Draft Riots” Chapter 13 Documents – “Reconstruction and the Rise of
the Ku Klux Klan”
Enduring Voices Documents, Chapter 15, Document Set 1 – “The Road to
Emancipation: Freedom as a War Aim” Document Set 2 – “The Impact of Total War:
War Powers Under the Constitution” Document Set 3 – “The Crucible of War: Life and
Death as a Personal Experience” Chapter 16, Document Set 1 – “Ensuring Suffrage:
Equal Rights for Whom”
Portrait of America, The Scourge of Civil War – “The Ravages of War” A Troubled
Peace – “Call Me Mister’: The Black Experience During Reconstruction” and “The
Checkered History of the Great Fourteenth Amendment”
Handouts
THEMES:
1. Demographic Changes
2. Politics and Citizenship
3. Slavery and Its Legacies in North America
4. War and Diplomacy
CONTENT:
Attack on Fort Sumter; crucial border states; the threat of European intervention; the
importance of diplomacy; Wartime advantages for the North and South; Lincoln and civil
liberties; Financing the Blue and the Gray; the economic impact of the war; Women and
the Civil War; The First Years of the War; The Emancipation Proclamation; Problems in
the North and the South; Politics in Wartime; Union Triumphs; Effects of the Civil War;
Reconstruction Plans (Lincoln, Johnson, and Congress); Assassination of Lincoln; Black
Codes; Johnson clashes with Congress; Military Reconstruction; the Impeachment of
Andrew Johnson; the legacy of Reconstruction; the End of Reconstruction; the Grant
Administration; The New South
MAJOR ASSIGNMENTS AND ASSESSMENTS:
1. Annotated Timeline
2. Civil War Era Journals – write as if you are living during this time period and be
sure to include what your daily life is like.
3. Group Activity – Create Reconstruction Policies
4. Unit Exam – Multiple Choice and Essay (Released Items)
DBQ: Washington and DuBois (1989 College Board)
UNIT EIGHT: THE GILDED AGE
READINGS:
Text, The American Pageant, Chapters 23 - 26
The American Spirit, Chapter 23: A:1-3; B:1, 2, 4, 5; C:1-3; D:1, 2; E: 1-4. Chapter 24:
A:1-3; B:1, 3; C:1, 2; D:1; E:1-6; F:1, 2. Chapter 25: A:2, 3, 4; B:1-5; C:1, 2; D:1, 2;
E:1-4. Chapter 26: A:1-7; B:1; C:1-5; D:3; E:1-3; F:1-5.
Constructing the American Past, Chapter 2 Documents – “The Great Strike of 1877”
Chapter 4 Documents – “New Americans: The Immigrants”
Enduring Voices Documents, Chapter 18 Document Set 2 – “The Worker Response to
Industrialism: Unionism and Labor Violence” Chapter 20 Document Set 3 – “Ethnicity
in the Graphic Arts: Middle-Class Notions of Immigrant Life”
Portrait of America, The New Industrial Order – “The Master of Steel: Andrew
Carnegie” Reform and Expansion – “The Lady Versus Goliath: Ida Tarbell Takes on
Standard Oil Co.”
Handouts
THEMES:
1. American Diversity
2. American Identity
3. Culture
4. Demographic Changes
5. Environment
6. Economic Transformations
7. Religion
CONTENT:
“Gilded Age” Defined; The Second Industrial Revolution; The “Robber Barons”;
Conservative Economic Theories; Impact of Industrialization; The Union Movement;
Strikes; Business tycoons: methods, accomplishments, and philosophies; The “New
Immigration”; Urbanization; Reform Movements; Westward Settlements – Miners,
Ranchers, and Farmers; The Removal of Native Americans; The Dawes Severalty Act;
The “Ghost Dance” Movement; The “Era of Good Stealing”; The “Forgotten Presidents”;
National Grange Movement and Farmers’ Alliances; Harrison and the Billion-Dollar
Congress; Cleveland Again; The Populists; the “New Woman”
Literary Landmarks; Art, Music, and Entertainment in Urban America
MAJOR ASSIGNMENTS AND ASSESSMENTS:
1. The Apprentice in the Gilded Age – Develop a proposal that causes “Donald
Trump” to want to select you as the industry to lead the nation into the 20th
Century.
2. Annotated Timeline
3. Gilded Age Reporter – Report on any event in the late 1800s, write an editorial,
draw a political cartoon, design an advertisement (group activity)
4. FRQ – Choose one. 1. “Americans should be characterized by the barbarity of
their souls … and this gives them considerable economic advantage over those
souls whose feelings tend to be humane.” Evaluate this generalization about the
character of late nineteenth century America with reference to TWO of the
following: Business leaders, Laborers, Native Americans. OR 2. Analyze the
impact of any TWO of the following on the American industrial worker between
1865 and 1900: government action, immigration, labor unions, or technological
changes.
5. Unit Exam – Multiple Choice and Essay (Released Items)
SEMESTER 1 EXAMS
SEMESTER 2
UNIT NINE: PROGRESSIVE PARTY
READINGS:
Text, The American Pageant, Chapters 27 - 29
The American Spirit, Chapter 27: A:1, 2; B:1, 2. Chapter 28: A:1, 2; B:1, 2; C:1, 3, 4, 5;
D:1, 5; E:1-3. Chapter 29: A:1, 2; B:1-3.
Enduring Voices Documents, Chapter 22 Document Set 1 – “Muckraking the Novel as a
Face for Social Change” Document Set 3 – “A Commitment to the Environment:
Conservation as a Political Issue”
Portrait of America, Currents of the Progressive Era – “Theodore Roosevelt, President”
Handouts
THEMES:
1. American Diversity
2. Globalization
3. Politics and Citizenship
4. Reform
CONTENT:
Muckrackers; The politics of Progressivism; Women battle for the Right to Vote and
Against the Saloon; Theodore Roosevelt; Labor and the Trusts; “Big Stick Diplomacy”;
Consumer protection; Conservation; “Square Deal” policy; Roosevelt’s Legacy; William
Howard Taft and “Dollar Diplomacy”; Election of 1912; New Freedom and New
Nationalism; Wilson and the Tariff; Progressive Government Reforms; Business and
Labor Issues;
MAJOR ASSIGNMENTS AND ASSESSMENTS:
1. History Alive – Progressive Press Conference
2. Annotated Timeline
3. Unit Exam – Multiple Choice and Essay (Released Items)
UNIT TEN: IMPERIALISM AND WORLD WAR I
READINGS:
Text, The American Pageant, Chapters 27, 29, & 30
The American Spirit, Chapter 27: C:1-4; D:1-3; E:1, 2; F:2, 3. Chapter 29: C:1, 2; D:13. Chapter 30: A:1, 2; B:1, 2; C:1, 2; D:1, 2; E:1-6.
Constructing the American Past, Chapter 5 Documents – “Building an Empire: America
and the Philippines” Chapter 7 Documents – “Selling the War: Recruitment Posters of
World War I”
Enduring Voices Documents, Chapter 33 Document Set 2 – “The Social Impact of Total
War: World War I as a Catalyst for Change”
Portrait of America, Reform and Expansion – “America’s First Southeast Asian War:
The Philippine Insurrection” The Struggle for Justice at Home and Abroad (1914-1920)
– “Suffragists’ Storm Over Washington”
Handouts
THEMES:
1. American Diversity
2. Globalization
3. Politics and Citizenship
4. Reform
5. War and Diplomacy
CONTENT:
Spanish American War; Treaty Provisions; Open Door Policy in China; Roosevelt’s “Big
Stick” Diplomacy; “Dollar Diplomacy”; Relations with Panama, Haiti, Mexico, and
Philippines; Neutrality; World War I (The Great War); World War I at home; Espionage
and Sedition Acts; Economic impact of World War I; Business and Labor in U.S. during
WWI; League of Nations; Treaty of Versailles
MAJOR ASSIGNMENTS AND ASSESSMENTS:
1. Draw Political Cartoons – Imperialism / World War I
2. Compare and Contrast the Espionage and Sedition Acts during WWI with the
Patriot Act of 2001
3. Annotated Timeline
4. Unit Exam – Multiple Choice and Essay (Released Items)
DBQ: Imperialism or Treaty of Versailles (Released Items)
UNIT ELEVEN: THE RECKLESS YEARS (1919-1932)
READINGS:
Text, The American Pageant, Chapters 31 and 32
The American Spirit, Chapter 31: A:1, 3, 6; B:1, 2; C:1-3; D:1-4. Chapter 32: A:1, 2;
B:1, 2; C:1-4; D:1, 2.
Enduring Voices Documents, Chapter 24 Document Set 1 – “The Business Values of the
1920s: Promise and Reality” Document Set 2 – “Sources of Social Conflict: Reactions to
Changing Moral Values”
Portrait of America, The Twenties – “Henry Ford: Symbol of an Age” and “Justice
Denied: The Trial of Sacco and Vanzetti”
Handouts
THEMES:
1. American Identity
2. Culture
3. Demographic Changes
4. Economic Transformations
5. Religion
CONTENT:
Post WWI – Economy; Nativism; Laissez-Faire; Culture Conflicts; Morality; Attitudes
toward Reform; The Red Scare; The Harding Administration; The Coolidge
Administration; Prosperity Decade; Prohibition; Women in the 1920s; Religion; The Lost
Generation; The Scopes Trial; The Harlem Renaissance; Social Culture; Radio and
Movies; Jazz Age; Disarmament and Isolationism; The Harding Scandals
MAJOR ASSIGNMENTS AND ASSESSMENTS:
1. Power Point Presentations over events in the 1920s
2. Annotated Timeline
3. Stock Market Simulation
4. Create a DBQ: choose an issue or development in the 1920s. Develop a question,
select and arrange documents relevant to answering the question.
5. Unit Exam – Multiple Choice and Essay (Released Items)
UNIT TWELVE: THE GREAT DEPRESSION AND NEW DEAL
READINGS:
Text, The American Pageant, Chapters 33
The American Spirit, Chapter 33: A:1-3; B:1, 3; C:1-4; E:1-3, 5; F:1, 4.
Enduring Voices Documents, Chapter 26 Document Set 1 – “Coping With Adversity: The
Great Depression as a Memory Trip” Document Set 2 – “Trouble on the Land: Images of
the Dispossessed” Document Set 3 – “Mass Culture and Social Crisis: Music, Film, and
Mood of Depression America”
Portrait of America, Long Dark Night of the Depression – “Government in Action: FDR
and the Early New Deal”
Handouts
THEMES:
1. Demographic Changes
2. Economic Transformations
3. Reform
CONTENT:
Roots of Great Depression; The Stock Market Crash; Hoover and the Great Depression;
Hard Times; “Good Neighbors” in Latin America; Franklin D. Roosevelt as president;
The Hundred Days Congress; Relief, Recovery, and Reform; The New Deal; The Second
New Deal; The Supreme Court fight; Critics of the New Deal
MAJOR ASSIGNMENTS AND ASSESSMENTS:
1. Depression Idol – Create song that deals with some aspect of the Great
Depression or New Deal
2. Annotated Timeline
3. Write a letter to the president about the depression in your area.
4. Unit Exam – Multiple Choice and Essay (Released Items)
DBQ: Culture Conflicts in the 1920s or Hoover and Roosevelt as conservatives or
liberals
UNIT THIRTEEN: WORLD WAR II
READINGS:
Text, The American Pageant, Chapters 34 and 35
The American Spirit, Chapter 34: A:1-5; B:1,2; C:1, 3; D:1, 3; E:1,4. Chapter 35: A:14; B:1, 2, 4; C:2; D:1-3.
Constructing the American Past, Chapter 10 Documents – “World War II and the ZootSuit Riots”
Enduring Voices Documents, Chapter 27 Document set 2 – “War and Society: Outsiders
on the Inside”
Portrait of America, A World at War (1937-1945) – “America and the Holocaust” The
Bomb – “The Biggest Decision: Why We Had to Drop the Atomic Bomb” and
“Hiroshima: The Victims”
Handouts
THEMES:
1. Globalization
2. War and Diplomacy
CONTENT:
American Isolationism; Outbreak of war; Pearl Harbor; Wartime Propaganda; Minorities
during WWII; War in Europe; War in the Pacific; Second Front Debate; Island Hopping;
D_Day; Germany Surrenders; Atomic Bomb; Home Front; Japanese Relocation; Women
and Minorities in the Workplace; Demographic impact; Atlantic Charter; Wartime
Conferences; UN; Truman as President
MAJOR ASSIGNMENTS AND ASSESSMENTS:
1. Annotated Timeline
2. D-Day simulation
3. World War II Era Journals
4. Design Propaganda Posters
5. Debate - “Decision to drop the atomic bombs – military necessity, nationalism or
Cold War diplomacy?”
6. Unit Exam – Multiple Choice and Essay (Released Items)
UNIT FOURTEEN: AMERICA AND THE POSTWAR WORLD,
1945-1960
READINGS:
Text, The American Pageant, Chapters 36 and 37
The American Spirit, Chapter 36: A:1-3; B:1, 2; C:1-4; D:1; E:2; F:1-4; G:1, 2. Chapter
37: A:2; B:1-3; C:1-3, 5, 6; D:1, 3, 4.
Constructing the American Past, Chapter 11 Documents – “The Cold War”
Enduring Voices Documents, Chapter 28 Document Set 2 – “The Great Fear Unleashed:
The Cold War Comes Home” Document Set 3 – “Korea: The Forgotten War”
Portrait of America, A New Birth of Freedom – “Trumpet of Conscience: Martin Luther
King Jr.”
Handouts
THEMES:
1. Globalization
2. War and Diplomacy
CONTENT:
Postwar prosperity; The Rise of the “Sunbelt”; Suburbs; Postwar Baby Boom; Origins of
the Cold War; World Bank; Containment Doctrine; The Truman Doctrine; the Marshall
Plan; NATO; Anti-Communism at Home; Korean War; Fair Deal; McCarthyism; Brown
v. Board of Education; Warren Court; Popular Culture in the 1950s; The Eisenhower
Presidency
MAJOR ASSIGNMENTS AND ASSESSMENTS:
1. Annotated Timeline
2. Develop a power point on Cold War issues.
3. FRQ – “The era of McCarthyism reflected the same postwar U.S. behavior as
after World War I.” Assess the validity of this statement, including causes and
effects of both postwar periods. OR To what extent did the decade of the 1950s
deserve its reputation as an age of political, social and cultural conformity?
4. Unit Exam – Multiple Choice and Essay (Released Items)
UNIT FIFTEEN: THE 1960s AND 1970s
READINGS:
Text, The American Pageant, Chapters 38 and 39
The American Spirit, Chapter 38: A:1, 3, 4; B:1, 2; C:1-6; D:1, 2, 3, 6, 7; E:2, 3. Chapter
39: A:1-3; B:1-4; C:1, 3, 4; D:1-3, 5; E:1, 2.
Constructing the American Past, Chapter 12 Documents – “The Civil Rights Movement:
Freedom Summer, 1964”
Enduring Voices Documents, Chapter 29 Document Set 1 – “Changing Times: The
Origins of the Modern Civil Rights Movement, 1954-1956” Chapter 30 Document Set 2
– “Black Nationalism and Black Power: When the Singing Stopped” Chapter 31
Document Set 1 – “Vietnam and the Young: ‘Wild in the Streets” Document Set 2 –
“Subversion of the Political Process: The Watergate Crisis and the Constitutional
System” Document Set 3 – “A Changed Army for a Changed War: A View of Vietnam
From the Participants” Chapter 32 Document Set 1 – “The Modern Women’s Movement:
The Equal Rights Amendment and Uncertain Equality”
Portrait of America, The Seventies – “I Have Never Been a Quitter’: A Portrait of
Richard Nixon” and “How the Seventies Changed America”
Handouts
THEMES:
1. American Diversity
2. American Identity
3. Culture
4. Environment
5. Economic Transformations
6. Globalization
7. Politics and Citizenship
8. Reform
9. War and Diplomacy
CONTENT:
The JFK Administration; the LBJ Administration; The Civil Rights Movement; The
Women’s Rights Movement; The Vietnam War; The Nixon Administration; The Ford
Administration; The Carter Administration; U-2 Incident; Peace Corps; Bay of Pigs and
Cuban Missile Crisis; Vietnamizaton; Nixon Doctrine; Watergate; Nixon’s Domestic
Program; Human Rights policies; Energy Crisis; Camp David Accords; SALT II;
Olympic Boycott; Iran Revolution and hostage crisis
MAJOR ASSIGNMENTS AND ASSESSMENTS:
1. Annotated Timeline
2. Unit Exam – Multiple Choice and Essay (Released Items)
UNIT SIXTEEN: THE REAGAN REVOLUTION AND POST-COLD
WAR ERA
READINGS:
Text, The American Pageant, Chapters 40 – 42
The American Spirit, Chapter 40: A:1, 2; B:1, 3, 4; C:1; D:1-3; E:1-3. Chapter 41: A:14; B:1-4; C:1, 2, 4; D:1, 2; E:1-6. Chapter 42: A:1, 2, 4; B:1-3, 5, 6; D:1-10.
Constructing the American Past, Chapter 15 Documents – “The Conservative Revoution”
Enduring Voices Documents, Chapter 32 Document Set 2 – “Confronting the Evil Empire
by Proxy: Central America as a Battleground” Document Set 3 – “Decision for War: An
End to the ‘Vietnam Syndrome” Chapter 33 Document Set 2 – “The ‘Revolution’ of
1994: Realignment or Readjustment”
Portrait of America, The End of the Cold War – “Reagan: His Place in History” From the
Technological Revolution to Modern Terrorism – “Bill Gates: Enigmatic Genius of
Microsoft” and “The Lessons of September 11”
Handouts
THEMES:
1. American Diversity
2. Culture
3. Environment
4. Economic Transformations
5. Globalization
6. Politics and Citizenship
7. Reform
8. War and Diplomacy
CONTENT:
The “New Right” and Reagan’s election; Reagan and the Soviets; thawing the Cold War;
the Iran-Contra Scandal; Reagan’s Economic Legacy; George Bush as President; end of
the Cold War; The Persian Gulf War; Bush’s Battles at Home; Election of Bill Clinton;
Republicans in Control of Congress (1994); Emergency of a “Postindustrial” Economy;
Feminist Revolution; Transformation of Family; Newest Immigrants; American Culture;
Global Warming
MAJOR ASSIGNMENTS AND ASSESSMENTS:
1. Annotated Timeline
2. Unit Exam – Multiple Choice and Essay (Released Items)
DBQ: Released College Board DBQ
UNIT SEVENTEEN: REVIEW FOR AP U.S. HISTORY EXAM
Students will take “mock” AP Exam during class. Each day the students will be given a
section of a released test and then given immediate feedback on how they did on the
practice test. Students will also be divided into groups of two with each group
responsible for a time period. The groups will develop a power point and handouts to
help students study for the AP exam.
SEMESTER 2 EXAM
AP EXAM IN MAY 2010!!