August 2013 AP US History Assignment: Experiential Learning Project APUSH
Congratulations on completing the July Advanced Placement in United States History
(APUSH) assignment! You have one more assignment to complete this summer. Please
remember that Ms. Brown and Mr. Hackett expect that both the July and August
assignments be completed before the first day of school.
Directions:
An important part of our study of history is learning how to actively “do” history—how
to engage with our surroundings; how to ask interesting historical questions; how to
research answers; and how to interpret what we find in a way that helps us make sense of
our world. To this end, your August assignment encourages you to get out and explore
local history in your own neighborhoods, or the communities that you might be visiting
this summer.
Part 1. Identify and visit one interesting historical site.
You should choose a historical site or landmark that genuinely fascinates you. Boston is
rich in history, and there are many fantastic options to consider:













Walk the Freedom Trail*
Visit the African American meeting house
Visit the State House*
Visit the JFK library*
Visit the U.S.S. Constitution
Visit the Tea Party Museum
Visit Quincy Market & Faneuil Hall*
Visit the Harbor Islands
Visit the “Art of the Americas” wing of the MFA
Visit the Isabella Stewart Gardener Museum
Visit Castle Island*
Visit the Lexington Green*
Fenway Park
Important: You should not feel compelled to spend money on admission to an expensive
attraction! The sites on this list that are starred (*) are free to the public. Make sure to call
ahead to determine availability and price before you set out to research.
While these are excellent options you should not feel limited to exploring only popular
historical sites and landmarks. One of the thrills of being an amateur historian is to
uncover lesser-known histories. For example, you could:


Find a gravestone, statue, or historical marker in your neighborhood that you walk
by every day but think very little about
Interview the person on your street or in your community who has been there the
longest to determine what life was like when they arrived and how life has
changed



Research the name of your street or neighborhood to see how life has changed
over the last half-century
Conduct research into a school that you or a sibling attends, like Boston Latin
Academy
Interview a family member to determine why they chose to move to Boston, what
they were expecting about the city and how the reality matches up with their
expectations
You are absolutely not limited to these suggestions and are encouraged to come up with
your own idea! For those traveling this summer, feel free to tap into the history of places
that you visit. For those staying local, feel free to think creatively outside of this list.
Part II: Visit the site and ask fascinating historical questions
Visit the site that you located in Part I. When you are there, explore the site in its entirety
and take the time to let the experience sink in.
After your initial exploration, determine a focus for your project. You can choose to look
at the site in its entirety to gain a broad picture or focus on a specific aspect of the site to
dig in with detail. Whatever your strategy (broad or narrow) you should determine what it
is about the site that you are most interested in. What shakes, nags, troubles, inspires or
otherwise grabs you? Why?
Next, brainstorm 15 genuine questions that you have about the site. Don’t make up
questions with the intention that they can be easily answered; come up with challenging
questions that help you relate to and understand the site. Questions should lead you
toward a deeper and more fulfilling understanding of what you are experiencing.
Important: You will use the research that you gather in Part III to answer these 15
questions. You are expected to submit the answers to these 15 questions as a key
component of your project in September.
Part III: Locate resources and research answers
Before you leave the site, look for resources that might help you answer the 15 questions
that you developed in Part II. These resources might be obvious: Perhaps the site contains
books, guides, park rangers or other experts that can point you in the right direction. It is
also likely that the resources and answers are not obvious. If this is the case, take down as
much information as possible about the site that will help you locate and access resources
later on.
If your chosen site is more difficult to research, visit local historical societies or public
libraries in your area. Historians and librarians will help to point you in the right
direction.
In total, you should aim to find between three and five key resources that will help you
answer your 15 questions.
August 2013 AP US History Assignment: Experiential Learning Project APUSH
With your research gathered, do your best to answer the 15 questions that you developed
in Part II. Be diligent in your research; if you cannot find an answer to one of your
questions using the research that you have then pursue other avenues and attempt to track
answers down. You will submit the answers to your questions as a key component of
your project in September.
A note about the Internet: Feel free to look online as a source of information! However,
you should not limit your research to the Internet and should be skeptical of the
information you find posted on blogs and websites. Remember that this project is
intended to get you OUT of the house rather than in front of the screen.
Part IV: Interpret your findings
After locating a range of helpful resources (3-5) and answering your 15 research
questions, you should use your findings to answer an additional set of reflective
questions. This set of questions is meant to help you reflect upon your research process:





What is your site? Why did you choose it?
More than anything else, what did you want to discover about your site, and why?
How did you go about finding the answers to your questions? What resources did
you locate? What were the strengths and limitations of these resources (in other
words, what could and couldn’t you learn from them?)
What did you learn? What questions were answered or unanswered? Based on
your findings, what new questions do you have?
How did this experience influence the way that you think about history?
Important: Make sure to write or type the answers to these reflective questions and
submit them as a key component of your project in September. In addition, you will
figure out a more useful and creative way of incorporating your answers to these
questions in Part V.
Part V: Document and share your research
To demonstrate your learning you will present your research and findings to the class in
September. You must develop a product that captures the sense of discovery you felt
during this project. The form that your project takes is up to you! You could choose to:








Write a textbook section
Create a short film
Create an art piece with an artist’s statement
Create a photo essay
Create a song or audio file
Create an annotated map with directions and information about your site
Write a letter to a city council member advocating that your findings are evidence
that the site should be recognized with a historical marker
Create a time capsule for future historians that captures how people in today’s
Boston interact with your site
Again, the form that your product takes is be up to you. Don’t feel limited to this list!
You should be creative in your decision but should also create a product that is useful and
meaningful to you.
Important:
This project is assigned in full knowledge that students and their families are enjoying a
very well deserved summer vacation. We know how hard students work during the
school year and chose an assignment that would be accessible to everyone as well as a
manageable and exciting extension of our learning. To ensure that the assignment is both
meaningful and accessible we are asking students to spend at least eight hours but no
more than twelve on the work. Please budget your time accordingly.
Finally, while we are excited about using this opportunity to explore the history that
surrounds us we want to stress safety and caution students to be responsible in their
research. Students should discuss their projects with parents and guardians before
beginning their research and should only pursue projects that are deemed safe and
responsible.
Working with partners:
We anticipate that students might want to work in pairs or small groups to complete this
work. We see value in traveling and exploring sites together and will allow pairs and
groups of three to focus on the same site. However, we are strict in our expectation that
this is an individual and personal project. You may travel and explore sites together but
must choose individual aspects of the site to focus on; must gather and interpret your own
research; and must create your own, original project. There are no exceptions.
Grading:
In terms of grading, we are well aware that this is an independent assignment. That
means that we are not available to guide you in the process. It is our expectation that you
deliver a high quality product, but we expect that students’ products may look very
different from one another. You may encounter moments in which you are not sure how
to proceed or find that your choice of site does not fit perfectly with the assignment; we
expect you to use problem-solving skills and move forward nonetheless. We will keep in
mind, when we grade, that you conducted this historical investigation outside of the
classroom setting. To assess whether your product is in line with expectations, ask
yourself, “Is this the work Advanced Placement student?”
Thank you and have fun! We look forward to using this work as a way of getting to know
you in September.
Sincerely,
Ms. Brown (brown@latinacademy.org)
August 2013 AP US History Assignment: Experiential Learning Project APUSH
Mr. Hackett (hackett@latinacademy.org)