AP US History Syllabus
(2014 – 2015)
Course Overview
The Salem Witchcraft Trials, the Declaration of Independence, the Trail of Tears, the Emancipation Proclamation, the
“golden spike” that completed America’s first transcontinental railroad, the Scopes Monkey trial, the dropping of the atomic bomb on Hiroshima, and, the September 11 th , 2001 terrorist attacks are just a few of the many critical events that constitute American History. History is, however, much more than simply the accumulation of critical events laid upon a time line or a series of facts to be memorized for an exam or the game show Jeopardy. Indeed, the thrill of studying history comes from understanding how various historical forces and historical actors intersect at particular moments in time to create historically significant events and/or to initiate new historical forces. To this end, students will be continuously asked to examine various historical events in the light of particular themes covered in this course. Such themes include: the evolution of political culture, political institutions, public policies, and political suffrage, land hunger, land policies, and westward expansion, the significance of regionalism (cultural, economic, and social aspects, in particular) and how said regionalism has impacted public policy debates as well as elections in the United States, the changing nature of immigration and increasing diversity of the American people in terms of ethnicity, race, and religious practices, types of economic systems and their accompanying labor systems, the role of the United States in the international arena, demographic patterns from colonial times to the present, the impact of Americans on the environment and the physical landscape of the country and the impact of the physical landscape on American settlement patterns and economic / cultural practices, cultural paradigms and practices, the role of religion as a cultural and political force (especially in the major political and social reform movements), the changing roles of women, treatment of ethnic / racial minorities, and American
Exceptionalism, Myth or Reality.
Historical events and historical themes do not, however, take place in a vacuum. Historical events occur within given historical eras/periods while historical themes traverse across many historical eras/periods. Consequently, one of the fundamental goals of this course is to explain to students the importance of historical era/periods in the study of history.
Students will learn how historians determine the time frame for a given era/period and why historians differ over the demarcation points for a given era/period. As history is the study of change over time. This course, AP U.S. History, examines the cultural, economic, and social aspects of American History as well as the political and diplomatic elements within given eras/periods with the goal of tracing the historical evolution of the United States.
Throughout the course, students will have ample opportunity to practice the craft of the historian over the course of the school year as they examine various forms of primary source material (charts, graphs, maps, letters, photographs, political cartoons, selected excepts from various types of publications, speeches, and tables displaying data to name but a handful of the types of primary source material that historians rely upon in practicing their craft) and learn how to critically analyze and summarize secondary source material (either in the form of an historiographical essay or a scholarly essay about a particular issue or theme).
“The Quest for Illumination”
Inspired by decades (yes, I am that old) of reading and reflection about the nature of a liberal arts education, this course embraces the inquiry-based model of learning. Oft-times, “education” is simply the teacher speaking from his or her bully pulpit in hopes that the words uttered will somehow flow into the “empty vessels” sitting before the teacher. In this typical model of passive learning, the student takes lecture notes, often erroneously, and does the assigned reading with the hope of gleaning the most important information and/or concepts. Indeed, in this model, the vast majority of students see a social science text [or, for that matter, lectures] as simply an accumulation of “key” facts or concepts that must be digested and then regurgitated come examination day. The resultant foul stench drives students away from the feast table that is knowledge. Students are rarely encouraged to genuinely look, smell, and taste what it is they are about to consume. Nor are students asked to imagine how different combinations of spices might alter the taste of the meal.

In stark contrast, the inquiry-based model calls upon the teacher to create an environment in which students come to the feast table of knowledge eager to sample the fare. In such a course, students are made aware that knowledge is more than the progressive absorption of more and more information. Students gradually come to the realization that knowledge occurs when one can synthesize information and/or concepts into comprehensible relationships.
Our inquiry-based classroom will utilize a Workshop Model where I serve as the Master Craftsman and you play the role of young apprentices to the craft. I will provide a systematic, structured environment in which your knowledge of American
History will grow as will your capacity to read critically and write well about various issues associated with the field.
Throughout this course, students will be continually asked to pose questions about the materials under review and to offer up tentative answers of their own-making – to practice the Art of Scholarship. To facilitate this process, students will be exposed to a number of academic articles that provide students with models of how to tackle and write about issues of historical importance. Also, students will be engaged in a number of activities in which they learn how to analyze various types of documents. By the end of our intellectual journey, students should be confident, independent thinkers who have added a spatial perspective to their intellectual quiver and who are willing to venture out on their own intellectually. Such a journey is not easy. However, the knowledge one gleans as a result of the experience will enable the student to illuminate the pathway of future intellectual endeavors.
Textbook
Eric Foner , Give Me Liberty!: An American History, Brief Edition (New York, W.W. Norton, 2014), 4 th edition.
In addition, students will read a number of selections from the following secondary texts:
Couvares, Saxton, Grob, & Billias (eds.), Interpretations of American History, volumes 1 and 2 (New York, The Free Press,
2000), 7 th edition.
Boyer, et al. The Enduring Vision (Kentucky, Centage Learning, 2003), 5 th Ed / AP Edition
Brinkley, Alan. Unfinished Nation (New York, McGraw-Hill, 1999), 3 rd edition
.
Additionally, students will use EBSCO to identify materials that might prove useful in crafting their research paper and/or their multi-media project. The username and password for EBSCO use will be distributed at the start of the school year and there will be an activity in the library using EBSCO so that students can be comfortable using that system. Students may also use electronic documents from internet sources that focus on history.
Foundational Work (22% - 440 points)
Discussion (8%) – 4 x 40 points
Discussion is a critical component of this course and will center on assigned readings (primary documents, scholarly articles, and textbook passages) and on peer review of reflection exercises and writing exercises associated with DBQs, précises, and argumentative papers. The format of discussions will vary depending on the items under review and the length of a particular class period. As a general rule, discussion will open in small group format (three or four students per group) and close in large group format (the entire class). The intent of the small group format is to expose students to a wide variety of viewpoints as they discuss the readings and/or critique student writing. The goal of the large group format is to sharpen each student’s critical thinking and oral argumentative skills as I pose queries regarding the topic at hand. I will be an equal opportunity inquisitor – meaning that I will solicit responses from a wide variety of students on any given day and that every student will be called upon at least once per week. A student will automatically receive 34 points (B) each unit provided he comes to class prepared, participates in small group, and demonstrates a basic grasp of the material when called upon. A student’s point count will go up if he demonstrates a thorough understanding of the material under review or down if he is not prepared to discuss the material under review.

Lecture Notebook (4%) – 2 x 40 points
Students are required to keep a lecture notebook. This notebook will be turned-in the day of each Unit Exam. A student will receive full credit if he demonstrates that he has been an active listener. The goal of the lecture notebook is to encourage students to develop strong note-taking skills and to provide them with a set of notes in order to aid in their preparation for the various exams given in this class as well as the AP exam.
Question / Answer Outline (10%) – 10 x 20 points
Students will generate a series of Question / Answer Outlines over the course of each semester. The goal of these outlines is to ensure that students read the textbook, Give Me Liberty!: An American History , closely and come to understand that
History textbooks consist of a set of problems, questions, and “tentative” answers. Moreover, students will come to appreciate that the problems, questions, and answers can change over time as new information becomes available or as interpretative paradigms change. The Question / Answer Outline will be collected the day of the corresponding Reading
Quiz.
Objective Exams & Quizzes (28% - 560 points)
Reading Quiz: Multiple / Choice element (8%) – 10 x 16 points
There will be five Reading Quizzes per seven –week block. The multiple/choice element will contain fifteen multiplechoice questions. Because it is a Reading Quiz, students may find themselves answering questions on material that will not be covered in lecture or may be covered in lecture at a later time. Students should prepare for the Reading Quiz by reading the text and generating their Question / Answer Outline for the assigned reading.
Unit Exam: Multiple-Choice element (10%) – 2 x 100 points
There will be two Unit Exams per semester. The Multiple-Choice element of the Unit Exam will consist of fifty AP-style multiple-choice questions and you will be given fifty minutes to complete the exam. The purpose of this exam is to measure your mastery of key concepts / facts and to develop critical reading skills as you grapple with each question and the possible answers. The score on this section of the exam will be twice your raw score plus ten points (the ten points reflect the curve I build into the score because of the difficulty of AP questions). If no one achieves an adjusted score of 100
(twice the raw score plus ten), a rare occurrence, I will re-curve the exam so that the top adjusted score equals 100.
Semester Exam: Multiple-Choice element (10%) – 1 x 200 points
The Semester Exam will include a Multiple-Choice element . The scoring process on this element will be determined once the AP US History teachers meet to decide on format of the Semester Exam. Mirroring the grading process of the Unit
Exam: Multiple-Choice element, the Semester Exam: Multiple-Choice element will be graded so that at least one student earns a score of 200. Note, this portion of the Semester Exam is a good predictor of your success on this part of the actual
AP exam.
On-Demand Writing Exams (22% - 440 points)
Document-Based Question Essay (4%) – 2 x 40 points
The DBQ requires students to craft an argumentative essay based on documentary evidence (charts, graphs, pictures, political cartoons, and a variety of written texts) and the question posed. The documents vary in length and students will be given 15 minutes to analyze the documents and 45 minutes to craft a well-written essay. In addition, students must address the contextual element(s) in which the documents were created and explain how the major issues of a given time period or theme apply to the posed question. The DBQs assigned will address a wide-range of historical issues.
Reading Quiz: Short Answer element (4%) – 10 x 8 points
As part of the Reading Quiz, students will be given ten minutes to craft a response to a traditional Historical Term prompt
(briefly identify/define the term and give its historical significance in light of larger historical forces/issues/trends) or one of the new-style AP US History Short Answer prompts.

Unit Essay Exam: Essay element (8%) – 4 x 40 points
Students will have thirty-five minutes to respond to a single question - there will be a minimum of two questions from which to select. The purpose of this exercise is to have students generate an argumentative essay in an on-demand, timed format. Students are expected to incorporate key concepts, historical terms, and/or facts in support of their thesis.
Semester Exam: Essay element (6%) – 1 x 120 points
Students will have 55 minutes to respond to two essay questions. Each response will be worth 80 points. The questions may be overarching in nature or address a major issue or theme from a given historical era. Questions that are overarching require students to touch upon a number of issues addressed over the course of the semester or a given historical era. Both types of essays require students to generate an argumentative essay not a descriptive essay.
Reflective Writing Exercises (28% - 560 points)
(Format for all Reflective Writing Exercises: Times New Roman, 11 font, 1 ½ line spacing, 1” margins, Justified)
Précis (4%) – 2 x 40 points
Students will write two précises each semester, each précis will be 400 – 500 words in length and address a specific scholarly article. A précis is a specialized summary that explicates the author’s thesis and the key lines of argument in support of that thesis. The purpose of this analytical assignment is to develop a student’s critical reading and writing skills.
Each précis will require students to read a scholarly article with a critical eye and to write a clear, coherent response that illustrates a student’s understanding of the assigned reading.
Origins Essay (8%) – 2 x 80 points
Students will write two short argumentative essays per semester, 800 – 1,000 words in length. Students will draw upon the two or three assigned scholarly articles (one of which was used for a précis writing assignment). The 1 st semester essay topics are The Origins of the American Revolution and The Origins of the Civil War. The 2 nd semester topics are The
Origins of American Imperialism and The Origins of the Cold War.
Research Paper / Digital Multi-Media Project (16%) – 2 x 160 points
The Research Paper requires students to draw upon a number of primary documents, a historiographical essay, and a minimum of two scholarly articles to produce a 2,000 - 2,500 word research paper on an assigned topic. The goals of the research paper are to teach students how to do historical research and how to integrate a diverse array of materials into a coherent, argumentative essay. Like the research paper, the Digital Multi-Media Project will require students, working in small groups, to integrate a number of primary and secondary sources into a coherent interpretation of America’s past but in a digital, multi-media format.
Extra Credit (40 points)
Students will have the opportunity to earn 40 points of extra-credit per semester, equivalent to 2% of the points available for the semester – 20 points per grading cycle. The extra-credit assignments will vary.
Quiz and Exam Make-Ups
The make-up day for all Reading Quizzes as well as the Essay element of the Unit Exam will be will be Wednesdays at lunch. The Unit Multiple-Choice or DBQs must be taken during 7 th period and/or after school.
Late Work Policy
Course work submitted within one week of the due date will be marked down 20%. Coursework submitted more than one week late will be marked down 50%. No late work will be accepted after a Unit Exam.
Grades
The grading policy for the Social Studies department is:
A 90.0 - 100.0% B 80.0 - 89.9% C 70.0 - 79.9% D 60.0 - 69.9% F below 60.0%

Dates
8/4 – 8/8
8/11 – 8/15
8/18 – 8/22
8/25 – 8/29
9/1 – 9/5
9/8 – 9/12
Monday
Labor Day
Précis #1 due
Tuesday
Origins Essay #1 due
2014 – 2015 Academic Calendar
(Due Dates / Exam Dates)
Wednesday
In-Service
Thursday
DBQ #1
Quiz #2
Quiz #3 9/15 – 9/19
9/22 – 9/26
9/29 – 10/3
10/6 – 10/10
Faculty Retreat
10/13 – 10/17 Grades Due
10/20 – 10/24 Research Paper #1 due
10/27 – 10/31
11/3 – 11/7
11/10 – 11/14
Précis #2 due
11/17 – 11/21 OE #2 due
Veterans Day
11/24 – 11/28 Thanksgiving V.
12/1 – 12/5 DMMP due
12/8 – 12/12
12/15 – 12/19
1/5 – 1/09 Grades Due
1/12 – 1/16
1/19 – 1/23
1/26 – 1/30
2/2 – 2/6
2/9 – 2/13
2/16 – 2/20
MLK, Jr. Day
Origins Essay #3 due
Presidents’ Day
Research Paper #2 due
Thanksgiving V.
SE – 4
Précis #3 due
2/23 – 2/27
3/2 – 3/6
3/9 – 3/13
3/16 – 3/20
Précis #4 due
Grades Due
Nat. Testing Day
Thanksgiving V.
SE – 1, 2
DBQ #3
Quiz #5
Unit Exam #1
Quiz #7
Quiz #8
Quiz #10
Thanksgiving
DBQ #2
SE – 3, 5
Unit Exam #4
Quiz #18
3/23 – 3/27
3/30 – 4/3
4/6 – 4/10
4/13 – 4/17
4/20 – 4/24
4/27 – 5/1
5/4 – 5/8
5/11 – 5/15
5/18 – 5/22
5/25 - 5/29
6/1 – 6/5
Origins Essay #4 due
Easter Vacation Easter Vacation
DBQ #4
Easter Vacation
Review – Sem Exam Review – Sem Exam Review – Sem Exam
SE – 4, 5
Holy Thursday
Easter Vacation
Friday
Quiz #1
Quiz #4
Quiz #6
Quiz #9
Thanksgiving V.
Unit Exam #2
SE – 6, 7
Quiz #11
Quiz #12
Quiz #13
Quiz #14
Quiz #15
Faculty Retreat
Quiz #16
Quiz #17
No School
Quiz #19
Quiz #20
Good Friday
Easter Vacation
Unit Exam #4
2 nd Semester Exam
Review – AP Exam
AP Chem/AP Env Sci
AP Psychology
AP Biology
AP Physics C
Review – AP Exam
AP Calculus AB/BC
AP US Govt
AP French
Review – AP Exam
AP English Literature
AP Physics 1
AP English Language
AP Statistics
AP CS/AP Spanish
AP Art History
AP Comp Govt
AP Macroeconomics
Review – AP Exam
AP German/ AP US H
AP Euro H/AP Art
AP Microeconomics
DMMP Presentations DMMP Presentations DMMP Presentations DMMP Presentations No School
Memorial Day
Grades Due
SE – 3 / DMMP SE – 6, 7 SE – 1, 2

Topics / Sources for Argumentative Papers
Qtr 1: Origins of the American Revolution
Primary Sources:
Selected documents from The Reasons for Declaring Independence in 1776
(Source: Enduring Vision - AP Edition – DBQ #2)
Selected documents from Impact of the French – Indian War on Britain’s Relationship with Its Colonies
(Source: College Board – 2004 AP US History Exam)
Secondary Sources:
The American Revolution: Social or Ideological? packet - packet includes an historiographical essay on the origins of the
American Revolution, an essay by Gary B. Nash, and an essay by T.H. Breen.
(Source: Interpretations of American History , v. 1 )
Qtr 2: Origins of the Civil War
Primary Sources:
Selected documents from The Crisis of the Union, 1850 – 1860
(Source: Enduring Vision - AP Edition – DBQ #7)
Selected documents from The 1850s: Prelude to Civil War
(Source: College Board – 1987 AP US History Exam)
Secondary Sources:
The Civil War: Repressible or Irrepressible? packet - packet includes an historiographical essay on the origins of the Civil
War, an essay by Allan Nevins essay, and an essay by William Freehling.
(Source: Interpretations of American History , v. 1 )
Qtr 3: Origins of the American Imperialism
Primary Sources:
Selected documents found at or linked to the Imperialism section of Fordham’s Modern History Sourcebook series
Selected documents from Expansionism, Old and New
(Source: College Board – 1994 AP US History Exam)
Secondary Sources:
American Imperialism: Economic Expansion or Ideological Crusade? packet - packet includes an historiographical essay on the origins of an American Imperialism, an essay by Walter LaFeber, and an essay by Gerald F.
Linderman.
(Source: Interpretations of American History , v. 2 )
Qtr 4: Origins of the Cold War
Primary Sources:
Selected documents found at or linked to the Cold War section of Fordham’s Modern History Sourcebook series
Selected documents from US-USSR Relations, 1941 – 1949 /
(Source: College Board – 2006B AP US History Exam)
Secondary Sources:
America and the Cold War: Containment or Hegemony? packet - packet includes an historiographical essay on the origins of the Cold War, an essay by John Lewis Gaddis, and an essay by H.W. Brands.
(Source: Interpretations of American History , v. 2 )

Supplemental Readings for Discussion
Historiography # : Why Do Historians So Often Disagree (Source: Brinkley, American History: A Survey)
Historiography #1: The American Population before Columbus (Source: Unfinished Nation – Debating the Past #1)
Historiography #2: The Origins of Slavery (Source: Unfinished Nation – Debating the Past #3)
Historiography #3: The American Revolution (Source: Unfinished Nation – Debating the Past #5)
Historiography # : The Background of the Constitution (Source: Brinkley, American History: A Survey)
Historiography #4: The “Age of Jackson” / Jacksonian Democracy (Source: Unfinished Nation – Debating the Past #7)
Historiography #5: The Character of Slavery (Source: Unfinished Nation – Debating the Past #8)
Historiography #6: The Causes of the Civil War (Source: Unfinished Nation – Debating the Past #9)
Historiography #7: Reconstruction (Source: Unfinished Nation – Debating the Past #10)
Historiography #8: The “Frontier” and the West (Source: Unfinished Nation – Debating the Past #11)
Historiography #9: Populism (Source: Unfinished Nation – Debating the Past #12)
Historiography #10: Progressive Reform / Progressivism (Source: Unfinished Nation – Debating the Past #13)
Historiography #11: Causes of the Great Depression (Source: Unfinished Nation – Debating the Past #14)
Historiography #12: The New Deal (Source: Unfinished Nation – Debating the Past #15)
Historiography # : The Question of Pearl Harbor
Historiography #13: The Decision to Drop the Atomic Bomb (Source: Unfinished Nation – Debating the Past #17)
Historiography #14: Origins of The Cold War (Source: Unfinished Nation – Debating the Past #18)
Historiography # : McCarthyism
Historiography #15: The Vietnam Commitment (Source: Unfinished Nation – Debating the Past #21)
Historiography #16: Watergate (Source: Unfinished Nation – Debating the Past #22)
*** Note: This readings are two pages in length and easily handled as part of discussion days
DBQs
Used to practice document analysis and for DBQ Exams – does not include the DBQ documents assigned for
Argumentative Papers (see previous page) – students will do at least one per unit, more if time permits
Unit 1
European Colonization of North America to 1660 (Source: Enduring Vision - AP Edition – DBQ #1)
English Colonies, North and South (Source: College Board – 1993 AP US History Exam)
Impact of Puritanism on the New England colonies from 1630 – 1660 - (Source: College Board – 2010 AP US History Exam)
Unit 2
The Emergence of the First Party System, 1789 – 1808 (Source: Enduring Vision - AP Edition – DBQ #3)
The 1780s?: A Critical Period (Source: College Board – 1985 AP US History Exam)
Interpretations of the Constitution in the Early Republic (Source: College Board – 1998 AP US History Exam)
Impact of the American Revolution on American Society, 1775 – 1800 (Source: College Board – 2005 AP US History Exam)
Unit 3
DBQ: Economic Change and Family Life, 1815 – 1860 (Source: Enduring Vision - AP Edition – DBQ #4)
Evolving Ideals of American Womanhood, 1770 – 1860 (Source: College Board – 2006 AP US History Exam)
Andrew Jackson & Indian Removal (Source: College Board – 2006 AP US History Exam)
Jacksonian Democracy (Source: College Board – 1990 AP US History Exam)
Reform Movements, 1825 – 1850 (Source: College Board – 1990 AP US History Exam)
Unit 4
The Crittenden Compromise (Source: College Board – 1974 AP US History Exam)
African-Americans Impact on the Civil War & Reconstruction (Source: College Board – 2009B AP US History Exam)
John Brown’s Raid
(Source: College Board – 1982 AP US History Exam)
Unit 5
Immigration and Assimilation in Urban America, 1870 – 1900 (Source: Enduring Vision - AP Edition – DBQ #9)
The Populists (Source: College Board – 1983 AP US History Exam)
Impact of Big Business on the economy and politics, 1865 – 1900 (Source: College Board – 2012 AP US History Exam)

Unit 6
National Progressivism, 1901 – 1917 (Source: Enduring Vision - AP Edition – DBQ #10)
Effectiveness of Progressive Era reformers at the national level (Source: College Board – 2003B AP US History Exam)
Booker T. Washington & W.E.B. DuBois (Source: College Board – 1989 AP US History Exam)
Government Responses to Immigration, 1880 – 1925 (Source: College Board – 2008B AP US History Exam)
Unit 7
The Changing Roles of Women, 1933 – 1945 (Source: Enduring Vision - AP Edition – DBQ #11)
FDR and the Great Depression (Source: College Board – 2003 AP US History Exam)
The Decision to Drop the Atomic Bomb (Source: College Board – 1988 AP US History Exam)
Hoover and Roosevelt: Liberal or Conservative? (Source: College Board – 1984 AP US History Exam)
Unit 8
Korea, Vietnam, and the Cold War, 1950 – 1975 (Source: Enduring Vision - AP Edition – DBQ #12)
African American Civil Rights Movement, 1960s (Source: College Board – 1988 AP US History Exam)
Nixon Administration’s Domestic and International Policies
(Source: College Board – 2011 AP US History Exam)
The Interstate Highway System, 1956 – 2000 (Source: Enduring Vision - AP Edition – DBQ #13)
Impact of the Vietnam War on the US, 1964 – 1975 (Source: College Board – 2008 AP US History Exam)