AP US History….Historical American Theme (HAT) ASSIGNMENT
In this packet you will find MANY events of US History divided by decade. These are major events that impacted the US politically, socially, economically, and
internationally. Your long term assignment is to complete Historical American Theme (HAT) charts for the events of each decade per unit of study. The purpose
is to aid you in your reading of the text, to provide another means of study for unit tests, to assist you in categorizing concepts for your historical writing, and to
provide review for the AP US History Exam in May.
HERE IS WHAT YOU NEED TO DO:
1. Make copies, as needed, of the attached HAT chart… you MUST use these charts for each assignment.
2. On the attached sheets you will find the decades that we will cover throughout the year.
3. You will notice that the topics are listed in CATEGORIES.
4. For EACH CATEGORY, you will place the specific events in chronological order. It is ESSENTIAL that events within the
same year be placed in chronological order as well (cause-effect). List them on the chart with their category NUMBER.
5. Determine the recurring theme(s) for all of the topics WITHIN a category and place on the chart. Use the attached
sheet that explains each theme’s characteristics.
6. NOW for the IMPORTANT PART:
a. You must determine some sort of relationship between all of the topics within the category.
b. The relationship might be cause/effect, or relation to one event (a major war, movement, election, scandal,
etc…), or a common strong theme (all pieces of Civil Rights legislation, etc…).
c. In the last column as you describe each event, you MUST also explain the RELATIONSHIP BETWEEN THE
TOPICS. For instance, you might describe how one event leads to another, how each relates to a common
event, or how each relates to a specific theme. You CANNOT simply describe each event!!!
d. You will notice that some of the decades contain an OTHER category. You do not need to do the above with
that group….they are simply topics that are unrelated that you need to know. Simply make sure that you
know the details of those concepts. In other words, there IS NO WRITTEN PART FOR “OTHER” categories.
e. IMPORTANT…. You cannot accomplish this if you don’t know about the events. So begin by familiarizing
yourself with each topic from your notes and your textbook.
f. You will also have reading quizzes per chapter dealing with these theme events. HINT: If you do them at the
BEGINNING of each unit, they will prove very beneficial on those quizzes!!
g. As always, this needs to be done in blue or black ink and will be due on the day of the multiple choice test per
unit.
Themes in AP U.S. History
1.
AMERICAN DIVERSITY – diversity of the American people and the relationships among different groups… roles of race, class,
ethnicity, and gender in US History
2. AMERICAN IDENTITY – views of American national character and ideas about American exceptionalism. Recognizing differences in
context of what it means to be American.
3. CULTURE – diverse individual and collective expressions through literature, art, philosophy, music, theatre, film throughout US History
including cultural conflict within society.
4. DEMOGRAPHIC CHANGES – Changes in birth, marriage, and death rates, population size and density. Effects of immigration, internal
migration, migration networks on society.
5. ECONOMIC TRANSFORMATIONS – Changes in trade, commerce, and technology across time. Effects of capitalist development, labor
and unions, and consumerism on society.
6. ENVIRONMENT – Consumption and conservation of natural resources, impact of population growth, industrialization, pollution, urban
and suburban expansion.
7. GLOBALIZATION – Engagement with the rest of the world from the 15th century to the present: colonization, mercantilism, global
hegemony, market development, imperialism, cultural change.
8. POLITICS AND CITIZENSHIP – Colonial and revolutionary legacies, American political traditions, growth of democracy, development
of the government. Defining citizenship .
9. REFORM – Diverse movements focusing on broad range of issues (anti-slavery, education, labor, temperance, women’s rights, civil
rights, gay rights, wars, public health, and government). When using this category, make sure to IDENTIFY the specific type of reform on
your charts (Example: Reform in Education)
10. RELIGION – The variety of religious beliefs and practices in America from prehistory to 21 st century, influences of religion on politics,
economics, and society.
11. SLAVERY AND ITS LEGACIES IN NORTH AMERICA – Systems of slave labor and other forms of un-free labor (indentured servitude,
contract labor, etc…) in North American societies, the Atlantic World, and the American South and West. Includes patterns of resistance
and long term effects of slavery.
12. WAR AND DIPLOMACY – Armed conflict from pre-colonial period to the 21st Century and the impact of war on American foreign
policy and on politics, economy, and society.
FIRST SEMESTER:
Unit One: 1600s through 1690s, 1700s through 1750s
Unit Two: 1760s, 1770s, 1780s
Unit Three: 1790s, 1800s, 1810s
Unit Four: 1820s and 1830s
Unit Five: 1840s and 1850s
Unit Six: 1860s and 1870s
Unit Seven: 1880s
SECOND SEMESTER:
Unit One: 1890s, 1900s, 1910s
Unit Two: 1920s
Unit Three: 1930s and 1940s
Unit Four: 1950s
Unit Five: 1960s and 1970s
Unit Six: 1980s and 1990s
APUSH-HAT CARDS ASSIGNMENT… Decade(s)____________ Name:______________________________________________
Category and Topic: Recurring Theme(s): DESCRIPTION of RELATIONSHIP (Cause/Effect, Thematic Relation, Relation to
overall event, etc…)