AP U.S. History
Course Syllabus
Mission High School
Mission, Texas
School location and environment: Mission High School is located in Mission, Texas,
and is one of two high schools with the Mission Consolidated Independent School
District. The population of the community is 43,000 and is located in deep, South Texas
in the delta along the Rio Grande River approximately seventy miles from the mouth of
the river and the Gulf of Mexico. It is approximately seven miles from the border with
México.
Grades: 9 – 12
Type: Public high school
Total Enrollment: 2,000 students
Socio Economic Stats: 100% MHS students participate in the Free Lunch Program.
Overview of AP U.S. History
AP U.S. History is offered to high school juniors. The school has open enrollment in its
U.S. History AP classes and encourages all qualified students to take AP U.S. History.
The school recommends that students be earning at least a B in Pre AP or an A in CP
social studies course when they elect the AP course.
AP Class Size: Approximately 30 students per class
Course Design: AP U.S. History is a challenging course that is meant to be the
equivalent of a freshman college course and can earn students college credit. It is a two
semester survey of American history from the age of exploration and discovery to the
present. Solid reading and writing skills, along with a willingness to devote considerable
time to homework and study are necessary to succeed. Emphasis is placed on critical and
evaluative thinking skills, essay writing, interpretation of original documents, and
historiography.
Topics and themes will include: Life and Thought in Colonial America, the
Revolutionary Period, Constitutional Development, Jeffersonian and Jacksonian
Democracy, Nineteenth Century Reform Movements (including abolition, temperance
and women’s suffrage), and Manifest Destiny. Other topics will include the Civil War
and Reconstruction, immigration, industrialism, Populism, Progressivism, World War I,
the Jazz Age, the Great Depression, the New Deal, World War II, the Cold War, the postCold War era, and the United States at the beginning of the twenty-first century.
In addition to the topics listed above, the course will emphasize a series of themes
throughout the year. These themes have been determined by the College Board as
essential to a comprehensive study of United States History. The themes will include
discussions of American diversity, the development of a unique American identity, the
evolution of American culture, demographic changes over the course of America’s
history, economic trends and transformations, and environmental issues. Development of
political institutions and the components of citizenship, social reform movements, the
role of religion in the making of the United States and its impact in a multicultural
society, the history of slavery and its legacies in this hemisphere, war and diplomacy, and
finally, the place of the United States in today’s world. The course will examine themes
which are interconnected and help shape the changes over time that are so important to
understanding United States history.
Note: Students will use a variety of critical thinking skills including: SOAPS, Dialectic Journals, and group
projects. These skills will help students understand the themes of U.S. History. Dialectical journals will be
assigned for most chapters and used as the basis for classroom discussion.
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 cartoons, graphs,
letters and other primary source documents.
Effectively use analytical skills of evaluation, cause and effect, compare and
contrast, inference and making generalizations
The students will effectively demonstrate an understanding of change over time
in historical context
Work effectively with others to produce products and solve problems
Effectively write a free style essay concerning the major eras
Effectively analyze data and primary sources in order to create a document based
essay (at least one per unit)
Prepare for and successfully pass the AP Exam
Course Text:
Kennedy, Cohen, and Bailey
Heffner, Richard D.
Outside References:
Thompson
Edelton, Bernard (edited by)
Sinclair, Upton
Steinbeck, John
Thoreau, Henry David
The American Pageant
A Documentary History of the United States
Dictionary of American History
(The dictionary will be available in the library and
the AVID Lab, you can probably order the book on
Alibris.com for a very reasonable price.)
Letters Home From Vietnam
The Jungle
Grapes of Wrath
Walden
Web Page:
My web page will be an interactive page and an invaluable tool for all of my AP students.
On the site you will find outlines, notes, study questions and I will even post the key to
the unit study questions the night before the actual unit test. For those students who do
not have internet access, you can access my webpage from the various labs around
campus and in particular the internet lab in the library, before school, during school and
after school. My webpage address is:
http://www.missioncisd.net/education/staff/staff.php?sectiondetailid=694
&sc_timestamp=1084979967
Or email me at jjguajar@mcisd.org and I will send you a link to my
website.
Organization:
The course will be broken into units by eras. Each unit will consist of three or four
chapters from the textbook. Unit assignment study questions will be provided at the
beginning of each unit. Daily reading assignments and discussion questions for outlining
will be assigned as the course progresses. Students are responsible for keeping up with
reading assignments and be aware of and ready for quizzes and tests. Class will be a
combination of lecture, group work, coverage of discussion questions, and answering
student questions. Periodically, student essays and presentations will be required. All
essays will be scored using the nine point AP Rubric. (I will post the rubric on my
website)
Grading: The same grading scale used for other classes will apply (A=90%-100%,
B=80% - 89%, C= 70%-79%, F=69 or lower.) This scale applies to tests, quizzes, essays,
assignments and binders. Also remember the additional benefit of a 5.0 grade.
After each unit students will be required to take an AP format multiple choice
examination, (all questions for this part of the test will be obtained from the study
questions assigned at the beginning of the unit) and an Essay Question. The multiple
choice test will be very rigorous, timed, and will be the second part of the unit test, with
the essay portion given first. Students will also be responsible for a DBQ per unit.
Students will have two to three of these tests every six weeks and these tests will
count for approximately 40% of six weeks grade.
Students will be required to keep a binder in my class. All study questions,
handouts, assignments and quizzes are to be kept in this binder. The binder will
be checked and will count as a unit test. All other assignments, either class work
or quizzes, will count for another 40% of their six weeks grade.
Finally, 20% of the students’ six weeks grade will be averaged in from their three
performance grades which will include getting to class on time, coming to my
class prepared, participating in class discussions, etc.
Study Techniques: The reading load is considerable. In order to cover the maximum
amount of material with the least amount of stress, sharing is definitely encouraged and
strongly recommended. In fact, I encourage several students to form study groups,
preferably with students from the different classes, in this way they can better prepare for
the class examinations, the essays and in particular the AP Examination. You are
responsible for understanding all of the material for testing. The amount of time required
for homework for this class will vary with your reading speed. Assignments may and will
vary in length. Watch our daily assignment section on the blackboard, or keep an eye on
my webpage to keep abreast of all current assignments, deadlines, and answer keys. Time
management is an essential skill for this class, and you must take the responsibility for
budgeting your time. As you become accustomed to the course format and texts, things
WILL fall into place and become easier. It is important to not become discouraged.
Key to Success: The most important grading factor in this class is consistent effort and
improvement. Do not be discouraged if your grades seem low in the first six weeks. If
you knew the material already, you wouldn’t need the course. Effort and writing,
thinking, and study skills will be worth the effort!
Attendance: Attendance in this class is essential. Much of the material for success is
provided through lecture/discussion. Missing a class will create problems. If a student is
absent, even if it is excused, a zero will be posted for that day’s assignment, and it will be
up to that student to come to me after class and make up that assignment for full credit.
Same policy applies to tests, and for the record, a completely different test will be given
to the student who is absent on test day.
AP Exam: The AP Exam is given in May. Registration for the exam takes place in
February. Taking the Exam is required to get full credit in this class. Remember, if you
pass the exam you may earn college credit and/or advanced placement.
Calendar/Timeline
American Pageant Chapter Breakdown
st
1 Six Weeks
Unit I
Colonial America (2 Weeks)
1.
New World Beginnings 33,000 B.C. – A.D. 1769
2.
The Planting of English America 1500 – 1733
3.
Settling the Northern Colonies 1619 – 1700
4.
American Life in the Seventeenth Century 1607 – 1692
Additional Assignments:
Chesapeake and New England DBQ (compare and contrast)
Morning tutorials for students needing help on DBQ organization
Unit Test/Freestyle Essay/DBQ
Unit II
Independence (2 Weeks)
5.
Colonial Society on the Eve of Revolution 1700 – 1775
6.
The Duel for North America 1608 – 1763
7.
The Road to Revolution 1763 – 1775
8.
America Secedes from the Empire 1775 – 1783
Additional Assignments:
Morning tutorials for students needing help on DBQ organization
Unit Tests/Freestyle Essay/DBQ (radicals and conservatives)
Unit III
Post – Independence and the Critical Period (2 Weeks)
9.
The Confederation and the Constitution 1776 – 1790
10.
Launching the New Ship of State 1789 – 1800
Additional Assignments:
Articles of Confederation vs. Constitution DBQ (compare and contrast)
Morning tutorials for students needing help on DBQ organization
Articles of Confederation vs. Constitution (DBQ)
Unit Test/Freestyle Essay (Rise of Political Parties)
2nd Six Weeks
Unit IV
Jefferson’s Administration / Growth of Nationalism (2 Weeks)
11.
The Triumphs and Travails of the Jeffersonian Republic 1800 – 1812
12.
The 2nd War for Independence and the Upsurge of Nationalism 1812 – 1824
Unit V
The Age of Jackson (2 Weeks)
13.
The Rise of a Mass Democracy 1824 – 1840
14.
Forging the National Economy 1790 – 1860
15.
The Ferment of Reform and Culture 1790 – 1860
16.
The South and the Slavery Controversy 1793 – 1860 (to be skipped and
taught with Unit VI)
17.
Manifest Destiny and Its Legacy 1841 – 1848
Unit VI
Slavery and Sectionalism (2 Weeks)
{Ch. 16 The South and the Slavery Controversy 1793 – 1860}
18.
Renewing the Sectional Struggle 1848 – 1854
19.
Drifting Toward Disunion 1854 – 1861
Additional Assignments:
Slavery in Virginia DBQ
Morning tutorials for students needing help on DBQ organization and free
style essay
Rise of Reform movements Power Point Presentations
Unit Test/Freestyle Essay/DBQ (Republican Motherhood)
3rd Six Weeks
Unit VII
Civil War and Reconstruction (3 Weeks)
20.
Girding for War: The North and the South 1861 – 1865
21.
The Furnace of Civil War 1861 – 1865
The Ordeal of Reconstruction 1865 – 1877
{Ch. 26 The Great West and the Agricultural Revolution}
Unit VIII
Rise of Business and Labor (2 Weeks)
23.
Political Paralysis in the Gilded Age 1868 – 1896
24.
Industry Comes of Age 1865 – 1896
25.
America Moves to the City 1865 – 1900 (to be skipped and taught with
Unit XI)
26.
The Great West and the Agricultural Revolution 1865 – 1896(to be skipped
and taught with unit VII)
27.
The Path of Empire 1890 – 1899 (to be skipped and taught with unit X)
28.
America on the World Stage 1899 – 1940 (to be skipped and taught with
Unit X)
Unit IX
Populists and Progressives (3 Weeks)
{Ch. 25 America Moves to the City 1865 – 1900}
29.
Progressivism and the Republican Roosevelt 1901 – 1912
30.
Wilsonian Progressivism at Home and Abroad 1912 – 1916
Additional Assignments:
Morning tutorials for students needing help on DBQ organization,
freestyle essay and history questions in general
Rise of Gilded Age (DBQ)
Unit Test/Freestyle Essay / Dred Scott
Compare and Contrast Compromises beginning with 3/5ths Compromise
up to Kansas Nebraska Act.
22.
4th Six Weeks (Begin Second Semester)
Unit X
Imperialism and World War I (3 Weeks)
{Ch. 27 The Path of Empire 1890 – 1899}
{Ch. 28 America on the World Stage 1899 – 1940}
31.
The War to End War 1917 – 1918
Unit XI
1920’s and 1930’s (3 Weeks)
32.
American Life in the Roaring Twenties 1919 – 1929
33.
The Politics of Boom and Bust 1920 – 1932
34.
The Great Depression and the New Deal 1933 – 1939
Unit XII
World War II and Origins of the Cold War (2 Weeks)
35.
Franklin D. Roosevelt and the Shadow of War 1933 – 1941
36.
America in World War II 1941 – 1945
37.
The Cold War Begins 1945 – 1952
Additional Assignments:
Morning tutorials for students needing help on DBQ organization, free
style essay and historiography in general
World War II Pacific theater vs. European theater
DBQ Salem Witch Trials (I realize this is out of context, but I want the
students to learn to write about any history regardless of what they are
currently studying.)
Unit Test/Freestyle Essay/DBQ
5th Six Weeks
Unit XIII
Post War Domestic Issues (2 Weeks)
Unit XIV
Foreign Policy from Eisenhower to Reagan (3 Weeks)
38.
The Eisenhower Era 1952 – 1960
39.
The Stormy Sixties 1960 – 1968
40.
The Stalemated Seventies 1968 – 1980
41.
The Resurgence of Conservatism 1980 – 2000
42.
The American People Face a New Century
Additional Assignments:
Morning tutorials for students needing help on DBQ organization, essay
writing and historiography in general.
Compare and contrast World War I, World War II, Korean War, Vietnam
Power Points on: Warren Report, Red Scare II, Marshall Plan, LBJ and
Vietnam, LBJ and Great Society, Reagan and rise of Conservatism.
Unit Test/Freestyle Essay
6th Six Weeks
Finish Unit XIV
Review Exam I
Review Exam II
AP Exam