May 20, 2014
Dear AP World History Student and Parent,
This fall many exciting challenges and opportunities await you in AP World History.
In the summer you will complete an assignment that is designed to help motivate you
towards understanding the purpose and rigors of the course.
As the title indicates, this is a college-level course. Its format follows that of survey
classes in many colleges and universities. In addition, college credit may be obtained
if a student scores a 3, 4, or 5 on the AP examination in May. The course emphasizes
a critical approach to the study of history. Historiography, or the study of different
viewpoints of major historians, is studied in great depth. The use of critical thinking
skills combined with the application of comprehensive persuasive writing is an
integral part of this study of World History. AP World History brings with it a
significant amount of reading. With this in mind, please plan other academic
courses and activities accordingly.
Enclosed you will find instructions for the summer assignment. The due date for the
completed reading is the first day AP World History meets for the 2014-2015 school
year. Please remember as you consider class work load and extra curricular activities
for the approaching school year that this course is a college-level course, which means
that the amount of work assigned cannot be adjusted to accommodate social and sports
calendars. Every assignment or project assigned by the instructor is done with the
College Board AP Exam in mind.
If you have any questions about the assignment please arrange to see Ms Kittle at
school, if we are still in session, or through e-mail. In preparation for the college-level
manner in which AP World History operates, you, the student, need to contact the
instructor if you have any questions. You may complete the assignment early, and
doing so is strongly recommended.
Sincerely,
Tara Kittle
Upper School History
The First Academy
tarakittle@thefirstacademy.org
407-206-8742
AP World History Summer Assignment
2014-2015 School Year
Directions:
The reading assignment will be completed by the first day AP World History class is
in session for the 2014-2015 school year. Students should not receive any assistance
completing the AP assignments. The work is to be completed independent of any
outside help.
Assignment 1 is required.
Students will read Sugar Changed the World by Marc Aronson and Marina Budhos. A
1 page handwritten essay will be assigned on a topic from the reading to be written in
class during the first week of school.
*This assignment will count as a Term 1 Essay Grade.
Product details: Sugar Changed the World by Marc Aronson and Marina Budhos
ISBN: 978-0-618-57492-6 (hardcover)
It is also strongly recommended that AP World History students purchase the
Princeton Review Study Guide Cracking the AP World History Exam: Student
Study Guide (2014-15). This study guide offers helpful practice exam questions,
change-over-time essays, and Document Based Question essays.
Product details: Cracking the AP World History Exam: Student Study Guide (2014)
Princeton Review
ISBN: 978-0-307-94491-7
**The AP World History text book is an electronic version of the text, World
Civilizations: The Global Experience by Peter N. Stearns. Your student will purchase
this book from the school through the business office. If your student would like a
hardcover copy of the book it can be found online. Please be sure to order the AP
version of the text, not the college version. ISBN-13: 978-0131360204 (Combined
Volume)
Helpful Suggestions:
You may want to have a dictionary/dictionary app handy when reading the summer
assignment. These are college level materials we are investigating.
To best prepare for the 1 page essay to be written during the first week that AP World
History meets, it is highly recommended that you make notecards highlighting the key
points in each chapter of Sugar Changed the World.