AP AMERICAN HISTORY SYLLABUS
CLASS INSTRUCTED BY MR. UNIEK
I.
SCHOOL PROFILE
Tinley Park High School is located in Tinley Park, IL. It is a public high school that serves 1200 students from
grades 9-12. My email is duniek@bhsd228.com.
II.
OVERVIEW OF ADVANCED PLACEMENT U. S. HISTORY
A. Program: Advanced Placement U.S. History is offered to high school juniors. The school
has opened enrollment in its honors classes, as well as to students that show aptitude in
history classes. The school recommends that students earn at least an A- B in an honors
course or an A-B in a regular social studies course when she or he elects the AP course.
B. AP Class Size: 25-30 students per class
C. Curricular Requirements
CR1a The course includes a college-level U.S. history textbook.
CR1b The course includes diverse primary sources consisting of written documents, maps, images, quantitative data
(charts, graphs, tables), and works of art.
CR1c The course includes secondary sources written by historians or scholars interpreting the past.
CR2 Each of the course historical periods receives explicit attention.
CR3 The course provides opportunities for students to apply detailed and specific knowledge (such as names,
chronology, facts, and events) to broader historical understandings.
CR4 The course provides students with opportunities for instruction in the learning objectives in each of the seven
themes throughout the course, as described in the AP U.S. History curriculum framework.
CR5 The course provides opportunities for students to develop coherent written arguments that have a thesis
supported by relevant historical evidence. — Historical argumentation
CR6 The course provides opportunities for students to identify and evaluate diverse historical interpretations. —
Interpretation
CR7 The course provides opportunities for students to analyze evidence about the past from diverse sources, such as
written documents, maps, images, quantitative data (charts, graphs, tables), and works of art. — Appropriate use of
historical evidence
CR8 The course provides opportunities for students to examine relationships between causes and consequences of
events or processes. — Historical causation
CR9 The course provides opportunities for students to identify and analyze patterns of continuity and change over
time and connect them to larger historical processes or themes. — Patterns of change and continuity over time
CR10 The course provides opportunities for students to investigate and construct different models of historical
periodization. — Periodization
CR11 The course provides opportunities for students to compare historical developments across or within societies
in various chronological and geographical contexts. — Comparison
CR12 The course provides opportunities for students to connect historical developments to specific circumstances of
time and place, and to broader regional, national, or global processes. —
Contextualization
CR13a The course provides opportunities for students to combine disparate, sometimes contradictory evidence from
primary sources and secondary works in order to create a persuasive understanding of the past.
CR13b The course provides opportunities for students to apply insights about the past to other historical contexts or
circumstances, including the present.
D. Course Description: AP US History covers the spectrum of American History from PreColumbian to the present day. Using chronological and thematic approaches to the historic
material, the class exposes students to extensive primary and secondary sources and the
interpretation of various historians. Class participation through chapter sheet reports, class
discussions and debates, homework and essay and multiple choice exams will help the
students prepare for the AP examination. 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 if
they do well on the AP Exam given in May. 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.
E. Key Themes: The course is structured both chronologically and thematically. The themes
include: Identity, Work, Exchange and Technology, Peopling, Politics and Power, America in
the World, Environment and Geography, and Ideas, Beliefs, and Culture. Students will see
elements of these themes in everything that we do for this class.
F. Skills Developed: In each unit, students will get practice developing the following
content-driven skills: Crafting Historical Arguments from Historical Evidence (including
Historical Argumentation and Appropriate Use of Relevant Historical Evidence),
chronological Reasoning (including Historical Causation, Patterns of Continuity and
Change over Time, and Periodization), Comparison and Contextualization, and Historical
Interpretation and Synthesis. In addition, class activities and assignments will address
the following academic skills: Reading for comprehension and recall, improving study
skills in preparation for assessments, improving formal writing skills (addressed below),
improving public speaking skills in class discussions and debates, and improving skills of map
reading and interpretation.
G. Writing Focus: Historical work at a collegiate level requires students to write proficiently.
For this reason, writing is emphasized in every unit of this course. Students receive
DBQs and FRQ essays, they are graded on the basis of the degree to which a significant number of
the documents have been used to support the thesis, and the amount and quality of outside
information included in the response
H. Grading:
1.
I.
Chapter assignment sheets or Reading Guides will be provided and due at the end of
every unit of study. These chapter sheets are to coincide with the daily readings.
2. Outside readings from other sources (primary and secondary), along with reading
questions will be due at the end of the unit of study.
3. Students will be responsible for keeping up with readings and be aware of, and ready
for, quizzes and tests.
4. Terms- Students will be given historic terms to define
5. Class will be a combination of lecture, coverage of discussion questions and answering
student questions. This will require student participation for discussion and debates.
6. All tests will mirror the AP Exam; there will be multiple choice exams, essay exams,
and DBQ exams. All essays will be graded on the AP point scale.
7. These exams will be given at the end of every unit of study.
8. CLASS PARTICIPATION will be held at the teachers discretion when configuring
quarter and semester grades.
Study Techniques:
1.
2.
3.
4.
The reading load is considerable; it is the responsibility of the student to keep up.
Time management is an essential skill for this class.
Students will get used to the workload, DO NOT GIVE UP.
Keep working to get better, if you need help come and see me.
J.
K.
L.
M.
N.
Grading: The grading scale is as follows:
1. A= 100%- 90%
2. B= 89%-80%
3. C= 79%-70%
4. D= 69%-60%
5. E= 59%-0%
6. This scale applies to tests, quizzes and assignments, on a 5.0 scale.
Attendance: Attendance in this class is essential. Much of the material for success is
provided through lecture/discussion. Missing class can create problems. If you are absent it
is YOUR responsibility to find out what you missed. Please in the two minutes before class
starts DO NOT ask me what we did yesterday. I cannot explain 55 minutes in a minute.
Advanced Placement Exam: The AP Exam is given in May. Registration for the exam takes
place in January- February. Although taking the exam is not required, it is highly
recommended and may earn you college credit. Buy the ticket take the ride.
Assignments
1. Chapter Sheets
2. Primary Source Sheets
3. Terms
4. Multiple Choice Exams
5. Document Based Question Essay Exams
6. Free Response Essay Exams
7. Mid-term and Final Exams
8. Constitution Test
9. Class participation and class debates with classmates
10. Map work and peer review
Course Texts:
1.
2.
Our Textbook: Norton, Mary Beth and Carol Sheriff. A People and a Nation, 9th
edition. CR1a- This course includes a college level US History textbook.
Supplemental Books: CR1c- The course includes secondary sources written by
historians and scholars interpreting the past.
a. The American Spirit: United States History as Seen by Contemporaries, Vol. 1
and 2, Thomas A. Bailey and David Kennedy, 6th edition, DC Heath and Co.
1987.
b. After the Fact- The Art of Historical Detection, James W. Davidson and Mark
H. Lytle, 3rd edition, McGraw Hill, 1992.
c. A People’s History of the United States, Howard Zinn, 2010 edition, Harper
Collins, 2010.
d. Portrait of American Vols. 1 and 2, Stephan Oates and Charles J. Errico,
Houghton Mifflin, 2010.
e. United States History, John Newman and John Schmalbach, Amsco, 2010.
f. Reading Like a Historian, Stanford Historical Education Group.
http://sheg.stanford.edu.
g. Throughout this class I will use a variety of information from different historians
from Taylor Branch on Civil Rights to Doris Goodwin on Lincoln. I also use
information from the letters from the Library of America series.
O. Summer Reading Seminar:
Held for one- two days over the summer, this seminar provides a forum for the students to
exchange their analysis of the issues of politics and power found in their summer reading. The
summer reading assignment includes doing a reading for information chapter sheet assignment.
This will help them learn to read as historians. Also, during this time we will work on and
review the skills needed to be successful in the class.
III.
COURSE OUTLINE
SEMESTER ONE
A. Unit 1: Pre-Columbian America and the Expansion of Colonial America- CR2 Each of
the course historical periods receives explicit attention. CR1b- The course includes diverse
primary sources consisting of written documents, maps, images and data.
1. Readings:
a.
b.
c.
d.
e.
2.
Themes
a.
b.
c.
3.
The emergence of American cultural traits and the factors that contributed to
them
Emerging regional patterns and how they evolved
ID, WXT, PEO, POL, WOR, ENV
Content
a.
b.
c.
d.
e.
4.
Norton, Chapters 1-4
Newman, Chapters 2-3
Bailey and Kennedy, Chapters 1-3
Zinn chapters 1-3
After the Fact- Salem Witch Trials
Motives and methods of colonization: Spain, France, and Great Britain
Push-pull factors bringing colonists to the New World
Comparison and contrast of Southern, Middle and New England political,
economic, social, and religious patterns
Cultural differences between Americans and Europeans
Early contacts among groups in North America, and North American
societies in the context of the Atlantic World; Spanish exploration and the
development of colonies in the Americas; the rise of the English as an imperial
power, including the conflict with the Spanish; initial English colonial
settlements, including successes and failures, and the unique attributes of each
of the colonies; the evolution of relations between the colonies and England,
including the debate over citizenship and representation; and the military
conflicts with the French, culminating in the French and Indian War.
Assignments-Assessment-Activities
a.
b.
Chapter worksheets due
Outside reading questions due- Salem Witch Trials from After the Fact. CR1bThe course includes diverse primary sources consisting of written documents,
maps, images and data.
c.
d.
e.
f.
g.
h.
i.
Multiple Choice Test- CR13a The course provides opportunities for students to
combine disparate, sometimes contradictory evidence from primary and
secondary works in order to create a persuasive understanding of the past.
Essay Test- CR5- The course provides opportunities for students to develop
coherent written assignments that have a thesis supported by relevant historical
evidence.
DBQ Test: Colonial Society- CR5- The course provides opportunities for
students to develop coherent written assignments that have a thesis supported by
relevant historical evidence.
Students will read and analyze an article from Jared Diamond on Civilizations
and some primary readings from natives. This will lead to a class discussion on
the concept of Old vs, New. CR7- The course provides opportunities for
students to analyze evidence about the past from diverse sources.
Students will complete a Columbian Exchange Chart and participate in a
discussion about the process. CR12- The course provides opportunities for
students to connect historical developments to specific circumstances of time
and place- Contextualization.
Class discussions on the rise of the English state, the Glorious revolution.
Debate on Separatists, Puritans, Quakers and the Crown. Document analysis
activities: the Mayflower Compact. Historical interpretations: Adam Smith and
the Market System. By drawing on selections from Zinn and the textbook,
students will write an essay that explores the evolution of identity based on race,
ethnicity, and nationality. CR-4
Students will write an essay in which they evaluate the impact of the Columbian
Exchange on Native Americans in North America during the 16th Century.
B. Unit 2: The Birth of a New Nation- CR2 Each of the course historical periods receives
explicit attention. CR1b- The course includes diverse primary sources consisting of written
documents, maps, images and data.
1. Readings
a. Norton, Chapters 4-6
b. Newman, Chapters 4-6
c. Bailey and Kennedy, Chapters 7-8
d. After the Fact- Declaration of Independence
2. Themes
a.
b.
3.
Colonists reevaluate their relationship with Great Britain and with each other
The American Revolution as conservative, economic, social or radical
movement
c. Birth of a Republic
d. ID, WXT, PEO, POL, WOR, CUL
Content
a.
Political and social causes of the French and Indian War; military
engagements and consequences of the French and Indian War; growing tensions
between the colonies and Parliament over taxation and representation;
diplomatic relations between the colonies, the British Parliament, and the French
strategies of both sides in the Revolutionary war, and the course of the battles;
origins and structure of the Articles of Confederation; political, social and
economic challenges of the Critical Period; circumstances surrounding the
Constitutional Convention and the structure of the Constitution; and argument
over ratification and the development of the Bill of Rights
b.
c.
d.
Mercantilism, costs and benefits for Britain and colonies
British policy changes, post 1763
Emerging colonial cooperation and decision for independence
e.
4.
Outcome of the war
Assignments and Assessments
a.
b.
c.
d.
e.
f.
g.
Chapter Sheets due
Outside reading questions due- After the Fact Declaration OF Independence.
CR1b- The course includes diverse primary sources consisting of written
documents, maps, images and data.
Multiple choice Test CR13a The course provides opportunities for students to
combine disparate, sometimes contradictory evidence from primary and
secondary works in order to create a persuasive understanding of the past.
Essay test- CR5- The course provides opportunities for students to develop
coherent written assignments that have a thesis supported by relevant historical
evidence.
DBQ Test: Impact of the French and Indian War- CR5- The course provides
opportunities for students to develop coherent written assignments that have a
thesis supported by relevant historical evidence.
Students will read and analyze a letter from George Washington to his brother at
the start of the French and Indian War. This will lead to a class discussion and
debate on the start of that war and the outcome. CR7- The course provides
opportunities for students to analyze evidence about the past from diverse
sources.
Students will read letters of protest from Samuel Adams and Patrick Henry.
Students will work with each other to see if there was a difference in protest
based on colonial geography. CR11 The course provides opportunities for
students to compare historical developments across or within societies in various
chronological and geographical contexts. — Comparison
h.
Class discussions on taxation without representation and colonial leadership. In
class debate between the Federalists and the Anti-Federalists. Document
analysis: excerpt from Common Sense. Historical interpretation lesson using
Zinn, Paul Johnson, Chernow and Robert Harvey. Comparing and contrasting
the interpretations of the American Revolution. CR-6
i.
Students will give a presentation explaining how the actions of specific colonial
leaders did or did not influence the outcome of the American Revolution. CR-3
C. Unit 3: The Early National Period (1789-1812)- CR2 Each of the course historical periods
receives explicit attention. CR1b- The course includes diverse primary sources consisting of
written documents, maps, images and data.
1.
2.
3.
Readings:
a. Norton, Chapters 7-8
b. Newman, Chapters 6-7
c. Bailey and Kennedy, Chapters 9-11
Themes
a. Impact of colonial experience on post-independence American government
b. Development of the United States Constitution and the Bill of Rights
c. The emergence of political parties and the dividing factors
d. The development of sectional specialization and interdependence
e. The conflict between national power and states’ rights
f. ID, WXT, PEO, POL, WOR, ENV
Content
a.
b.
c.
d.
e.
4.
Positives and negatives of the Articles of Confederation
Constitutional Convention
Hamilton vs. Jefferson
Presidencies of Washington and Adams
Birth of a new nation and struggle for identity; growing pains of the New
Republic; George Washington and the development of the role of the President;
the debate over the Bank of the United States, and the emergence of political
parties; foreign relations, including the Jay Treaty, the Pinckney Treaty, the
XYZ Affair, the conflict with the Barbary Pirates, and the growing tensions with
Europe during the Napoleonic Wars; Marbury v. Madison and the development
of the role of the Supreme Court; Jeffersonian Republicanism, including policies
regarding the Bank, Louisiana, Aaron Burr, and foreign relations; and elections
from 1789 to 1812.
Assignments-Assessments-Activities
a.
b.
Chapter Sheets due.
Multiple choice Test CR13a The course provides opportunities for students to
combine disparate, sometimes contradictory evidence from primary and
secondary works in order to create a persuasive understanding of the past.
c. Essay test- CR5- The course provides opportunities for students to develop
coherent written assignments that have a thesis supported by relevant historical
evidence.
d. DBQ Test: - CR5- The course provides opportunities for students to develop
coherent written assignments that have a thesis supported by relevant historical
evidence.
e. Students will read Washington’s Farewell Address and put it into past and
current political context. CR6 The course provides opportunities for students to
identify and evaluate diverse historical interpretations. —Interpretation
f. Class discussions on the Bank of the United States and the Louisiana Purchase
and how both reflected arguments for a strict or loose construction of the
Constitution. In class debate on the Alien and Sedition Acts. In class document
analysis: Marbury vs. Madison decision.
D. UNIT FOUR: From Jefferson-Jackson (1800-1848) CR2 each of the course historical
periods receives explicit attention. CR1b- The course includes diverse primary sources
consisting of written documents, maps, images and data.
1. Readings:
a.
b.
c.
d.
2.
Themes
a.
b.
c.
d.
3.
Norton, Chapters 9-12
Newman, Chapters 7-11
Bailey and Kennedy, Chapters 11-12
After the Fact- Jackson’s Frontier Thesis and Turner’s
The peaceful transfer of power from one party to another
Changes in party positions
National growth and the growth of nationalism
ID, WXT, POL, CUL, WOR
Content
a.
b.
c.
d.
Jefferson’s “Revolution of 1800”
Federalists vs. Democratic Republicans
Louisiana Purchase
War of 1812
e.
f.
g.
h.
i.
j.
k.
Era of Good Feelings
Rise of Nationalism
Diplomatic Achievements
Marshall Court
Monroe Doctrine
Elections of 1824 and 1828 and the founding of Jacksonian Democracy
Jackson’s Presidency




Spoils system
Nullification
Destruction of the Second Bank
Native American policies
l. Manifest Destiny
m. Immigration; social, political and economic developments; and reform
movements, 1820-1850
n. Growing pains of the New Republic; foreign relations between the United
States and France and Britain; causes and course of the War of 1812; political,
social, and economic aftermath of the War of 1812, including the death of the
Federalist Party, the emergence of the Second Bank of the United States, and the
conflict over internal improvements; the contested election of 1824 and the end
of the Era of Good Feeling; tariffs and the specter of nullification; major
decisions of the Marshall Court; the Monroe Doctrine and the growth of the
United States in regional politics; and the rise of immigration and nativism.
o.
4.
Circumstances surrounding the elections of 1824 and 1828; rise of the
Jacksonian Democratic party, including its beliefs, policies, and important
members; and the Four Main Crises of the Age of Jackson: the expanding view
of democracy (spoils system, rotation in office), the Native American question
(court cases and Indian removal), the nullification crisis, and economic issues of
the period (Second Bank of the United States and the Panic of 1837.)
Assignments-Assessments-Activities
a.
b.
c.
d.
e.
f.
g.
Chapter Sheets due
Outside reading questions due- Jackson’s Frontier- CR1b- The course includes
diverse primary sources consisting of written documents, maps, images and
data.
Multiple choice Test CR13a The course provides opportunities for students to
combine disparate, sometimes contradictory evidence from primary and
secondary works in order to create a persuasive understanding of the past.
Essay test- CR5- The course provides opportunities for students to develop
coherent written assignments that have a thesis supported by relevant historical
evidence.
DBQ Test- Jackson- CR5- The course provides opportunities for students to
develop coherent written assignments that have a thesis supported by relevant
historical evidence.
Students will analyze the goals and accomplishments of Frederick Douglass by
completing an Impact of the Individual Chart.
Students will be divided into groups to do presentations on Temperance,
Abolition, Women’s Suffrage, and Workers’ Rights. Each presentation will
include a poster created in the style of the era and an analysis of primary sources
related to the topic. Students will analyze graphs and maps pertaining to the
h.
i.
j.
k.
l.
growth of the Southern Cotton Industry. From here they will debate why
slavery was a necessary evil at the time. CR7 The course provides opportunities
for students to analyze evidence about the past from diverse sources, such as
written documents, maps, images, quantitative data (charts, graphs, tables), and
works of art. — Appropriate use of historical evidence
Class discussions on the two party system and the American System. Map skills
activity: battles of the War of 1812. Debate on the contested election of 1824.
Court case activity- students will research the landmark court cases and present
them to the class. CR-1b.
Simulation activity requiring students to research their positions on President
Jackson: great president or impeachable. Students will analyze Jackson
speeches as well as the Webster-Hayne Debate.
Class discussion on the Second Great Awakening and utopian societies. In class
document analysis activity: “Declaration of Sentiments” Seneca falls 1848.
Using the textbook and Zinn students will write a DBQ essay on the ways
reform movements reflected mainstream political and cultural values in the preCivil War era.
After reading the works of Hofstadter and Schlesinger Jr. students will write an
essay agreeing or disagreeing with their arguments by referencing one reform
movement from the antebellum era. CR-4 and CR-5
E. UNIT FIVE: Union In Peril (1850--1900) CR2 each of the course historical periods receives
explicit attention. CR1b- The course includes diverse primary sources consisting of written
documents, maps, images and data.
1. Readings:
a. Newman Chapters 13-16
b. Norton Chapters 13-17
c. Kennedy and Bailey Chapters 19-22
d. After the Fact- View from the Bottom rail
e. Assorted readings and speeches from Abraham Lincoln from the Library of
America
2. Themes
a. Sectionalism
b. Slavery and the causes of the Civil War
c. Secession and war
d. Reconstruction issues and plans
e. The fight for equality
f. The New South
g. Native American policies
h. WXT, POL, CUL, ID, PEO, WOR
3.
Content
a. Effects of the Mexican War in terms of land acquisition, slavery, economics,
and politics; The Four Horsemen of the American Apocalypse, including Uncle
Tom's Cabin, the Kansas-Nebraska Act, the Dred Scott Decision, and John
Brown's Raid; and the Secession Crisis.
b.
Outbreak of the military conflict between north and south, and the course
of the war; political, diplomatic, social and economic consequences of the war,
north and south; religion and the abolitionist cause; the Emancipation
Proclamation and its effects on the war effort and the slave population; and
generals and leadership during the crisis, north and south.
c.
Competing models for Reconstruction: Presidential, Congressional,
and White Southern; the assassination of President Lincoln and its implications
for Reconstruction and the policies of Andrew Johnson; military occupation of
the south, the emergence of black republican governments; impeachment of
Andrew Johnson; Radicalization of Reconstruction; 13th, 14th and 15th
Amendments, white resistance, the KKK and the spiral of violence; and
readmitting southern states, the Grant scandals, the restoration of conservative
white governments, and the gradual denial of black rights in the South.
d.
e.
Slavery as a social and economic system
Politics of slavery








f.
g.
h.
i.
j.
k.
l.
4.
Missouri Compromise
Abolitionists
Compromise of 1850
Kansas-Nebraska Act
Dred Scott
Lincoln-Douglass
John Brown
Elections of 1856 and 1860
Military strategies, strengths and weaknesses, events and outcomes
Social, economic and political impact of the war on the North and South
Presidential v. Congressional Reconstruction plans and outcomes
The New South
Compromise of 1877
Booker T. Washington v. W.E.B. DuBois, Ida B. Wells
Indian Wars and Dawes Act
Assignments-Assessments-Activities
a. Chapter Sheets due
b. Outside reading sheets due CR1b- The course includes diverse primary sources
consisting of written documents, maps, images and data.
c. Multiple Choice test CR13a The course provides opportunities for students to
combine disparate, sometimes contradictory evidence from primary and
secondary works in order to create a persuasive understanding of the past.
d. Essay test CR5- The course provides opportunities for students to develop
coherent written assignments that have a thesis supported by relevant historical
evidence.
e. DBQ test: Civil War and African-Americans CR5- The course provides
opportunities for students to develop coherent written assignments that have a
thesis supported by relevant historical evidence.
f. Students will analyze a map of the Election of 1860 and develop a thesis
statement summarizing the significance of the election results. CR7 The course
provides opportunities for students to analyze evidence about the past from
diverse sources, such as written documents, maps, images, quantitative data
(charts, graphs, tables), and works of art. — Appropriate use of historical
evidence
g. Students will analyze the presidency of Abraham Lincoln by completing a
President Profile Chart. The will use primary sources of Lincoln’s speeches to
do this. CR13b The course provides opportunities for students to apply insights
about the past to other historical contexts or circumstances, including the
present.
h.
F.
Class discussions on the effect of Uncle Tom’s Cabin and John Brown’s raid at
Harpers Ferry. Document analysis of the Dred Scott decision. Simulation of the
Lincoln-Douglas debates.
UNIT SIX- Industrialization and the Gilded Age (1880-1901) CR2 each of the course
historical periods receives explicit attention. CR1b- The course includes diverse primary
sources consisting of written documents, maps, images and data.
1. Readings:
a. Newman, Chapters 17-19
b. Norton, Chapters 18-20
c. Kennedy and Bailey vol. II, Chapters 23-25
d. Zinn, Chapters 10-11
e. After the Fact Mirror with a Memory
2. Themes
a. Political corruption during the Gilded Age
b. Role of government in economic growth and regulation
c. Old immigrants v. New immigrants
d. Social, economic, and political impact of industrialization
e. Importance of William Jennings Bryan
f. ID, WXT, PEO, POL, CUL, ENV,
3. Content
a. Gilded Age Politics: Corruption and Care- taker Presidents
b. Industrial growth
c. Government support and actions
d. Robber Barons
e. Rise of Labor
f. The new battle Labor v. Management
g. Industrialization, urbanization, and cultural transformations; domestic
and global challenges and the creation of mass culture; cultural effects of
deregulation, industrialization, and westward expansion; urbanization and the
competing ideals of city and rural life in America; immigration, minority rights,
and a rigid class system; corruption and machine politics in state and local
governments; the rise of agrarian discontent and the Populist response; and
competing arguments about the proper role of government in this era, leading to
an introduction of Progressive ideals.
h. Social and economic effects of post-bellum industrialization in the
North and the South; the expanding economic power of the United States in the
world economy; impact of an unregulated economy on the development of
heavy industry and the emergence of business tycoons; case studies on
Rockefeller, Carnegie, Morgan, and Vanderbilt; early attempts to rein in big
business by the government at the state and federal levels.
4.
Assignments-Assessments-Activities
a. Chapter Sheets due
b. Outside reading questions due CR1b- The course includes diverse primary
sources consisting of written documents, maps, images and data.
c. Multiple Choice test CR13a The course provides opportunities for students to
combine disparate, sometimes contradictory evidence from primary and
secondary works in order to create a persuasive understanding of the past.
d. Essay test CR5- The course provides opportunities for students to develop
coherent written assignments that have a thesis supported by relevant historical
evidence.
e.
DBQ: Industrialization CR5- The course provides opportunities for students to
develop coherent written assignments that have a thesis supported by relevant
historical evidence.
Students will compare and contrast the competing interests of labor and capital
by completing a Competing Interests Chart.
f.
g.
Students will evaluate the effectiveness of the Knights of Labor and the
Grange Movement in achieving their goals.
h. Students will read and analyze the Cross of Gold speech by William Jennings
Bryan. This will lead to discussion and debate.
i. Students will read and analyze Andrew Carnegie’s Gospel of Wealth leading to
discussion and debate.
j. Students will review the photos of Jacob Reiss as photo journalism or art? How
does this relate to poverty today? They will present their opinions to the class.
CR13b The course provides opportunities for students to apply insights about
the past to other
k. Historical contexts or circumstances, including the present.
G. UNIT SEVEN- The Progressives (1901-1920) CR2 each of the course historical periods
receives explicit attention. CR1b- The course includes diverse primary sources consisting of
written documents, maps, images and data.
1.
2.
3.
Readings:
a. Newman, Chapter 21
b. Norton, Chapter 21
c. After the Fact USDA Government Inspected
Themes
a. Role of government in the economy
b. Rise of the third party Populist Movement
c. Immigration and urbanization
d. Reformers
e. TR/Taft/Wilson: The Progressive Presidents
f. ID, WXT, POL, CUL
Content
a. Immigration and urbanization in the 19th Century
b. Social and cultural developments of the late 19th Century
c. Elections of 1896 and 1912
d. Middle-class reformers






e.
f.
4.
Muckrakers
Women’s issues and roles
Political corruption and reforms
Consumer and environmental protection
Business and labor issues
Wets vs. Drys
TR, Taft and Wilson administration and the Progressive Movement
Progressivism defined, goals of Progressivism, and types of Progressives;
muckrakers, social reform, and the use of the media to achieve social, economic,
and political goals; radical movements, the IWW and Socialist Party, the
changing role in government (including state and local); role of Presidents
Roosevelt, Taft, and Wilson in promoting Progressive agendas at the federal
level; and successes and failures of the Progressive Era.
Assignments-Assessments-Activities
a. Chapter Sheets due
b.
Outside reading questions due CR1b- The course includes diverse primary
sources consisting of written documents, maps, images and data.
c. Essay Test CR5- The course provides opportunities for students to develop
coherent written assignments that have a thesis supported by relevant historical
evidence.
d. DBQ Essay Test- TR- CR5- The course provides opportunities for students to
develop coherent written assignments that have a thesis supported by relevant
historical evidence.
e. Multiple Choice test13a The course provides opportunities for students to
combine disparate, sometimes contradictory evidence from primary and
secondary works in order to create a persuasive understanding of the past.
f. Students will read selected speeches by Theodore Roosevelt, they will have to
determine and debate what his lasting impact was as President. CR13b The
course provides opportunities for students to apply insights about the past to
other historical contexts or circumstances, including the present.
g. Class discussions on the role of muckrakers and on third party candidacies in the
Progressive Era. In class debate on the strengths and weaknesses of the
movement as a whole, failure or success? In class document analysis of The
Jungle and The History of the Standard Oil Company by Sinclair and Tarbell.
H. UNIT EIGHT- Imperialism –WW1 CR2 each of the course historical periods receives
explicit attention. CR1b- The course includes diverse primary sources consisting of written
documents, maps, images and data.
1. Readings:
a. Newman, Chapters 20 and 22
b. Norton, Chapters 22-23
c. Bailey and Kennedy vol. II, Chapters 27-28
2. Themes
a. The role of the US in world affairs, from isolation to power
b. US reasons for involvement in WW I and the aftermath
c. The President v. Congress, the fight for peace
d. ID, POL, WOR
3. Content
a. Reasons for interest in world affairs
b. Spanish-American War
c.
d.
e.
f.
Cuban situation and US reaction
Military preparedness and action
Treaty Provisions
Philippine Annexation
g.
h.
Open Door Policy
TR’s Big Stick Diplomacy



Taft’s Dollar Diplomacy
Wilson
i.
j.



k.
Roosevelt Corollary
Panama
Nobel Peace Prize
Mexico
Neutrality 1914-1917
World War I
The war at Home






Economic impact
Harassment of the German and Irish Americans
Women and minorities
Espionage and Sedition Acts
Business and Labor relations
Wartime propaganda
l. The Treaty of Versailles and the fight
m. Industrialization, urbanization, and cultural transformation; domestic
and global challenges and the creation of mass culture; early expansionism, from
Young America to the Chilean and Venezuelan conflicts; Mahan, Coaling
Stations, the building of the United States navy, and initial imperialistic efforts,
including Hawaii; American involvement and influence in the SpanishAmerican War, the Filipino Insurrection, and the Panamanian Crisis; Mexico,
American involvement, the Tampico Incident, and Pancho Villa; and nonintervention in European affairs at the outbreak of the first World War.
n. Domestic and global challenges and the creation of mass culture; initial
opposition to American involvement in the First World War; the Lusitania, the
Sussex Pledge, the Zimmerman Telegram, and unrestricted submarine warfare;
the course of the war, before and after American involvement; Civil Rights for
Americans during and after the war; the Treaty of Versailles and the Senate fight
over ratification and the League of Nations;
4.
I.
Assignments-Assessments-Activities
a. Chapter sheets due
b. Multiple Choice Test 13a The course provides opportunities for students to
combine disparate, sometimes contradictory evidence from primary and
secondary works in order to create a persuasive understanding of the past
c. Essay Test CR5- The course provides opportunities for students to develop
coherent written assignments that have a thesis supported by relevant historical
evidence.
d. DBQ: Treaty of Versailles CR5- The course provides opportunities for students
to develop coherent written assignments that have a thesis supported by relevant
historical evidence.
e. Students will read the Schenck case and discuss how their rights can be limited
in wartime.
Students will read the 14 Points and debate why the Treaty failed. CR12 The
course provides opportunities for students to connect historical developments to
specific circumstances of time and place, and to broader regional, national, or
global processes. — Contextualization
f. Students will engage in a class debate analyzing the extent to which the SpanishAmerican War was a turning point in the history of US foreign relations. CR10. Class discussions on the diplomacy surrounding status of the Canal zone,
the building of the Canal, and on the Philippine Insurrection. Simulation on the
Open Door Policy. Debate on the causes, effects and merits of imperialism.
Document analysis: The Roosevelt Crollary.
UNIT NINE- The Roaring Twenties-Crash-New Deal CR2 each of the course historical
periods receives explicit attention. CR1b- The course includes diverse primary sources
consisting of written documents, maps, images and data.
1. Readings:
a. Newman, Chapters 23-24
b. Norton, Chapters 25-26
2.
3.
c. Bailey and Kennedy Vol.II, Chapters 33-34
d. After the Fact Huey Generis
Themes
a. Post WW I compared to post-Civil War nativism, laissez-faire, laborgovernment, farmers, attitudes toward reform
b. US pursuit of “advantages without responsibilities”
c. Cultural conflicts: native v. foreign; rural v. urban
d. Revolution in manners and morals
e. Role of government in society and the economy
f. Political realignment
g. Human suffering and response to the Great Depression
h. ID, WXT, POL, CUL, ENV
Content
a. Post war recession and agricultural problems
b. Intolerance
c. KKK
d. Immigration restriction
e. Sacco and Vanzetti
f. Prohibition and Organized Crime
g. Jazz Age
h. Business growth
i. Harding, Coolidge, Hoover administrations
 Scandals
 Trickle-Down Economics
 “Business of America is Business”
 Boom and Bust in the Stock market
 Foreign Policy
j.
k.
l.
m.
n.
o.
p.
4.
Hoover v. FDR’s approaches to the Depression
New Deal Legislation Pro’s and Con’s
Supreme Court Plan
Dust Bowl Migration
Demagogues: Coughlin, Long, and Townsend
Impact of the Great Depression
What were the underlying causes of the Great Depression and the
initial attempts by the Hoover administration to mitigate its effects? To what
extent did the reforms of the New Deal truly transform the role of government,
and to what extent did they merely build upon an earlier foundation? What was
the evolution of the conflict between FDR and the Supreme Court from the
beginning of his first term to the beginning of the Second World War? What
were the major arguments made by New Deal critics? To what extent did
Americans accept and approve of the changes wrought by New Deal
policies and legislation? How did FDR reconcile his own beliefs about
intervention with the isolationist mood of the country at the time?
Assignments-Assessments-Activities
a. Chapter Sheets Due
b. Outside Readings Due- Huey Generis CR1b- The course includes diverse
primary sources consisting of written documents, maps, images and data
c. Multiple Choice Test 13a The course provides opportunities for students to
combine disparate, sometimes contradictory evidence from primary and
secondary works in order to create a persuasive understanding of the past
d.
Essay Test CR5- The course provides opportunities for students to develop
coherent written assignments that have a thesis supported by relevant historical
evidence.
DBQ Test- New Deal CR5- The course provides opportunities for students to
develop coherent written assignments that have a thesis supported by relevant
historical evidence.
Students, working in groups, will present the goals and accomplishments of
New Deal programs. Students will interview two adults about the role of Social
Security and FDIC then trace the history of these programs to the present and
comment on how those programs reflect the nature of the U.S. semi-welfare
state.
Students will debate how the New Deal changed the nation. Did it really get us
out of the Depression? CR13a The course provides opportunities for students to
combine disparate, sometimes contradictory evidence from primary sources and
secondary works in order to create a persuasive understanding of the past.
Class discussions on the origins of the Great Depression, on the Hundred days
and on the critics of the New Deal. Document analysis activity: Images of the
Great Depression and the New Deal. Songs of Woody Guthrie.
Using the SOAPSTone handout, students will analyze and contrats oral histories
from the Great Depression, such as Studs Terkel’s Hard Times and WPA
narratives. CR-7
e.
f.
g.
h.
J.
UNIT TEN WW2- Beginning of the Cold War (1932-1952) CR2 each of the course
historical periods receives explicit attention. CR1b- The course includes diverse primary
sources consisting of written documents, maps, images and data.
1. Readings:
a. Newman, Chapters 25-26
b. Norton, Chapters 27-28
c. Bailey and Kennedy, Chapters 36-37
d. After the Fact The Atomic Bomb
2. Themes
a. Comparison of Wilson and Roosevelt as neutrals, wartime leaders, Allied
partners and post war planners
b. US adopts new role as peacetime leader in post-war world
c. Home front conduct during WWI and WW II
d. ID, WXT, PEO, POL, WOR
3. Content
a. Neutrality and Lend Lease
b. Pearl Harbor
c. Military Strategy




d.
Home Front


e.
f.
g.
Germany First
Second Front Debate
Island Hopping
Atomic Bombs
Relocation of Japanese-Americans
Women and Minorities in the Workplace
Atlantic Charter
Wartime Conferences
Founding of the UN
h.
i.
j.
k.
l.
m.
4.
Berlin
Truman Doctrine
Marshall Plan
NATO
Korea
American isolationism in the 1930s, the Neutrality Acts, and the slow drift
toward intervention by 1941; Pearl Harbor, involvement in the War
mobilization, and its effects on American economy, society, and politics; civil
liberties during the war, especially the status of Japanese Americans; the course
of the war in the Pacific and in Europe, including the dropping of the atomic
bomb and the end of the war; and diplomacy during the war, from the Atlantic
Charter to the Potsdam Conference.
Assignments-Assessments-Activities
a. Chapter Sheets Due
b. Outside reading sheets Due CR1b- The course includes diverse primary sources
consisting of written documents, maps, images and data
c. Multiple Choice Test13a The course provides opportunities for students to
combine disparate, sometimes contradictory evidence from primary and
secondary works in order to create a persuasive understanding of the past
d. Essay Test CR5- The course provides opportunities for students to develop
coherent written assignments that have a thesis supported by relevant historical
evidence.
e. DBQ Test Cold War CR5- The course provides opportunities for students to
develop coherent written assignments that have a thesis supported by relevant
historical evidence.
f. Students will interpret the message of, and evaluate the effectiveness of duck
and cover drills
g. Students will read and analyze the works of George Kennen, they will work with
other to see if the US could have done foreign policy differently. CR6 The
course provides opportunities for students to identify and evaluate diverse
historical interpretations. —Interpretation
h. Students will watch Joe McCarthy and write a response for Edward R Murrow.
CR6 The course provides opportunities for students to identify and evaluate
diverse historical interpretations. —Interpretation
i. Class discussions on Pearl Harbor, the two fronts of the War and wartime
diplomacy. Debate on the decision to drop the atomic bombs. Document
analysis: FDR’s Four Freedoms speech. Map skill lesson: European and Pacific
Theaters of the War. Historical perspectives lesson: Japanese internment.
K. UNIT ELEVEN- The Change at Mid-Century CR2 each of the course historical periods
receives explicit attention. CR1b- The course includes diverse primary sources consisting of
written documents, maps, images and data.
1.
2.
3.
a.
Readings:
a. Newman, Chapters 27-28
b. Norton, Chapters 29-30
c. Bailey and Kennedy, Chapters 38-39
Themes:
a. Continued impact of the governments role in society
b. Struggle for civil liberties and Civil Rights
c. Checks and balances at work in American politics
d. ID, WXT, POL, CUL, ENV
Content
Truman





b.
Eisenhower





c.
d.
4.
Fair Deal
GI Bill
Taft-Hartley Act
22nd Amendment
1948 election
McCarthyism
Modern Republicanism
Highway Act
Brown v. Board of Ed.
Warren Court
JFK/LBJ
 Civil Rights Movement- Dr. King
 Bay of Pigs-Cuban Missile Crisis
 War on Poverty and the Great Society
 Vietnam
 Counterculture Movement
Trends in popular media and culture during the 1950s and 1960s; the Red
Scare and its impact on cultural conformity, and the backlash against that conformity
during the 1960s; the modern civil rights movement, including Brown v. Board, the
Montgomery Bus Boycott, Sit- Ins, the Civil Rights Act and Voting Rights Act, Dr.
Martin Luther King, Malcolm X, Huey Newton, the Black Panthers; civil rights
movements by other groups, including women, Native Americans, and gays; post-war
religious trends; youth and farm workers; and baby-boomers and the emergence of
anti-institutionalism.
Assignments-Assessments-Activities
a. Chapter Sheets due
b. Outside reading questions due CR1b- The course includes diverse primary
sources consisting of written documents, maps, images and data
c. Multiple Choice Test 13a The course provides opportunities for students to
combine disparate, sometimes contradictory evidence from primary and
secondary works in order to create a persuasive understanding of the past
d. Essay Test CR5- The course provides opportunities for students to develop
coherent written assignments that have a thesis supported by relevant historical
evidence.
e. DBQ Test- Malcolm X v. Martin CR5- The course provides opportunities for
students to develop coherent written assignments that have a thesis supported by
relevant historical evidence.
f. Students will write an essay comparing the Civil Rights movements of the
1950s and 60s with the Civil Rights movements of the Progressive Era, focusing
on the southern, northern, and western regions of the US- CR11 —The course
provides opportunities for students to compare historical developments across or
within societies in various chronological and geographical contexts.
g.
h.
i.
j.
k.
Class discussions on the war in Korea and the Cuban Missile Crisis. Students
will simulate the fear and suspicion during the Red Scare. In class document
analysis: Kennan’s “The Sources of Soviet Conduct.”
Students will work in small groups and compare the underlying causes of WWI,
WWII, and the Cold War and make an argument that US foreign policy did or
did not promote democratic values around the world. CR-4.
Student debate on the modern civil rights movement. In class document
analysis: “Letter from a Birmingham Jail.”
Students will write an essay comparing the women’s movement of the 1900’s
with the modern movement. Were they similar of different? CR-11
Students will compare Ida B. Wells’s information on lynching with the Death of
Emmitt Till and other cases in the 1950’s. Students will present on why there
were differences and similarities. CR-9.
L. UNIT TWELVE- Vietnam and After (1945-1974) CR2 each of the course historical
periods receives explicit attention. CR1b- The course includes diverse primary sources
consisting of written documents, maps, images and data.
1. Readings:
a. Newman, Chapters 29-30
b. Norton, Chapters 30, 33
c. Bailey and Kennedy, Chapters 40-41
d. Excerpts of the Ugly American and The Best and the Brightest
2. Themes
a. Cold War battles and races
b. Vietnam Syndrome in post war policy
c. Human rights v. self interest in policy formation
d. Interrelationship of foreign policy and economic stability
e. ID, PEO, POL, WOR, CUL
3. Content
a. Vietnam- French, Geneva and South Vietnam
b. Diem and the coup
c. Gulf of Tonkin- Americanization
d. Vietnamization
e. Fall of Saigon in 1975
f. Dien Bien Phu, Ho Chi Minh, the assassination of Diem, and the growth of
g. American involvement in French Indochina; the Gulf of Tonkin incident and the
expansion of American involvement in the war; the course of the war from 1964
to 1975, including bombing campaigns of the North, the Tet Offensive, the
incursion into Cambodia, the Paris Peace Accords, and the Fall of Saigon; and
American support for and opposition to the war in Vietnam, and its effects on
the political, economic, and social situation in the United States during this time
4. Assignments-Assessments-Activities
a. Chapter sheets due
b. Outside reading sheets due
c. Multiple choice test 13a The course provides opportunities for students to
combine disparate, sometimes contradictory evidence from primary and
secondary works in order to create a persuasive understanding of the past
d. Essay Test CR5- The course provides opportunities for students to develop
coherent written assignments that have a thesis supported by relevant historical
evidence.
e. DBQ test- Vietnam CR5- The course provides opportunities for students to
develop coherent written assignments that have a thesis supported by relevant
historical evidence.
f.
Students will read parts of the Ugly American and the Best and The Brightest to
see how the US got it wrong. They will debate what we should have done at the
time. CR-6
Students will write an essay comparing the New Deal with the Great Society.
Were they similar or different? Cr-11.
g.
M. UNIT THIRTEEN 1968-Present CR2 each of the course historical periods receives explicit
attention. CR1b- The course includes diverse primary sources consisting of written
documents, maps, images and data
1. Readings
a. Norton 31-31
b. Newman 29-30
2. Themes:
a. ID, WXT, PEO, POL, WOR, ENV, CUL
3.
Content
a. Nixon/Ford


b.
Nixon Doctrine
Triangular Diplomacy China-Russia-Vietnam
Carter




c.
Camp David
Iran
SALT II
Panama and Cuba
Reagan

d.




e.



Evil Empire
SDI
End of the Cold war
H.W. Bush and Clinton
Impeachment
Race tension
Prosperity
First Persian Gulf war
W.
Election of 2000
9-11
Afghanistan and Iraq

f.
Global terrorism
Increasing prosperity and global responsibilities after WWII; globalization
and redefining national identity; creation of the Environmental Protection
Agency; Watergate, the resignation of President Nixon, and the emerging
distrust of government; expanding role of the popular media; modern religion
and political activism; Reaganism: deregulation, increase in military spending,
and the Iran-contra scandal; liberalism on the wane: the Republican Revolution
of 1994, the Impeachment of President Clinton Rodney King and Anita Hill;
Welfare Reform Act of 1996; the election of 2000, terrorism and the wars in
Afghanistan and Iraq, and emerging questions about civil liberties and the role
of the federal government during a time of war; trends in immigration;
4.
IV.
Assignments-Assessments-Activities
a. Multiple Choice Test13a The course provides opportunities for students to
combine disparate, sometimes contradictory evidence from primary and
secondary works in order to create a persuasive understanding of the past
b. Essay Test CR5- The course provides opportunities for students to develop
coherent written assignments that have a thesis supported by relevant historical
evidence.
c. DBQ Test CR5- The course provides opportunities for students to develop
coherent written assignments that have a thesis supported by relevant historical
evidence.
d. This last set of exams will mirror the AP Exam as much as we can to help get
them ready for the test.
e. Students will write an essay comparing FDR and Ronald Reagan, were they
similar in their differences? CR-6
f. Students will write a six-eight page essay that examines the evolution of ideas
and policies related to the environment from 1900-1975. The essay must use at
least six secondary sources and make an argument about why the environment
became worthy of regulation by 1970. CR-4.
After the Exam
A. Constitution Test
B. American History 2008-Present
1.
Election of 2008 Rise of Barack Obama
2.
Crash of 2008
3. Death of Bin Laden
4. Partisanship
5. Health Care