AP Human Geography Summer Reading Assignment
Mrs. Shawn Darling
I would first of all like to say welcome to all of you who are taking AP Human Geography next year. This class will
without a doubt alter your perspective on the world, its people, and the way it functions. We are convinced that this
class will change your life and the way you see it! The purpose of the summer assignment is not to give you an
exhaustive amount of reading to do before you come in the door in August. The purpose is to get you thinking like
geographers by getting you to consider various themes that are important to the discipline while reading your assigned
text that is citied below:
1. Purchase and Read: They Poured Fire on Us from the Sky (2006), Benson Deng
--You will need to actively read this book. You can, for example, underline or highlight key events, create a
character list or timeline, take notes, etc.
--Specifically you will want to focus on the following issues and themes:
--migration and the idea of being a refugee
--ethnic conflict
--religious conflict
--language difference within Sudan
--the borders of African states and they problems they have caused
--You will be evaluated through a roundtable discussion at the beginning of the semester in August, so you want
to be prepared for that.
--Check back at the end of June/beginning of July for specific discussion questions to consider connected to this
text.
2. Purchase before school begins (but do not need to read, yet): Harm de Blij’s Why Geography Matters… More Than
Ever (2012) by the end of August. Be careful please, as there are two versions of this text. You need to by the 2nd
version (hence, the “more than ever” aspect of the title.) Here is an image of the cover of the text
:
3. Begin working on your map skills: In addition to the text, we would like you to begin thinking spatially by getting to
know the basics of the world political map by learning the following:
--Know the names (including correct spelling) and locations on the map of all sovereign states (aka official
countries) in the world [you will be assessed on this through map quizzes during the semester, so it would be a
great idea to practice by finding blank maps online and filling them out]. Seriously! Not kidding! You will need
to be prepared to take any quiz on any part of the world when you enter class in August. List of countries you
need to know is on the next page.
--Know the names and locations of all world regions that are seen on the next page.
AP Human Geography: World Regions—A Big Picture View
AP Human Geography: World Regions—A Closer Look
USA
Eastern and Southern Africa
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Know all of the
states
Canada
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Know all of the
provinces
East Asia, Southeast Asia,
and Oceania
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Australia
Brunei
Cambodia
China
East Timor
Fiji
Indonesia
Japan
Laos
Malaysia
Mongolia
Myanmar
New Caledonia
New Zealand
North Korea
Papua New Guinea
Philippines
Singapore
Solomon Islands
South Korea
Taiwan
Thailand
Vanuatu
Vietnam
South and Central Asia
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Afghanistan
Armenia
Azerbaijan
Bhutan
Georgia
India
Kazakhstan
Kyrgyzstan
Nepal
Pakistan
Sri Lanka
Tajikistan
Turkmenistan
Uzbekistan
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Botswana
Burundi
Comoros
Djibouti
Eritrea
Ethiopia
Kenya
Lesotho
Madagascar
Malawi
Mauritius
Mozambique
Namibia
Rwanda
Somalia
South Africa
South Sudan
Swaziland
Tanzania
Uganda
Zambia
Zimbabwe
West and Central Africa
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Angola
Benin
Burkina Faso
Cameroon
Central African
Republic
Chad
Democratic
Republic of Congo
Equatorial Guinea
Gabon
Gambia
Ghana
Guinea
Guinea-Bissau
Ivory Cost
Liberia
Mali
Mauritania
Niger
Nigeria
Republic of the
Congo
Senegal
Sierra Leone
Togo
North Africa and Southwest
Asia (Middle East)
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Algeria
Bahrain
Egypt
Iran
Iraq
Israel
Jordan
Kuwait
Lebanon
Libya
Morocco
Oman
Qatar
Saudi Arabia
Sudan (diff.
country than South
Sudan- many maps
don’t reflect this
change yet)
Syria
Tunisia
Turkey
United Arab
Emirates
Western Sahara
Yemen
Know both the
West Bank and the
Gaza Strip
Eastern Europe
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Albania
Belarus
Bosnia &
Herzegovina
Bulgaria
Croatia
Czech Republic
Estonia
Hungary
Kosovo
Latvia
Lithuania
Macedonia
Moldova
Montenegro
Poland
Romania
Russia
Serbia
Slovakia
Slovenia
Ukraine
Western Europe
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Andorra
Austria
Belgium
Denmark
Finland
France
Germany
Greece
Iceland
Italy
Luxembourg
The Netherlands
Norway
Portugal
Sweden
Switzerland
United Kingdom
South America
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Argentina
Bolivia
Brazil
Chile
Colombia
Ecuador
French Guiana
Guyana
Paraguay
Peru
Suriname
Uruguay
Venezuela
North and Central America
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Bahamas
Belize
Canada
Costa Rica
Cuba
Dominican
Republic
El Salvador
Guatemala
Haiti
Honduras
Jamaica
Mexico
Nicaragua
Panama
Puerto Rico
United States