AP United States History

Syllabus & Course Outline

   

Weddington High School

Mr. Bays

2020-2021

 

Welcome to AP United States History!

As its name suggests, this is a college level class focusing on the history of America from the pre-Columbian societies to present day. You will be reading at an accelerated pace and volume with daily writing. This class is designed to expose students to the rigors of a college History course, so you must be willing to devote significant time and attention to the prescribed coursework to be successful.

 

Objectively, this course will help students improve on the following skills:

• Time management, organization, and study skills
• Critical reading of primary and secondary sources
• Constructing and evaluating historical interpretations
• Essay writing and oral communication
• Cause and effect relationships
• Comparative analysis
• Inductive and deductive reasoning

 

 

 

Course Description: The AP U.S. History course is designed to provide students with the analytical skills and factual knowledge necessary to deal critically with the problems and materials in U.S. history. The program prepares students for intermediate and advanced college courses by making demands upon them equivalent to those made by full-year introductory college courses. Students should learn to assess historical materials—their relevance to a given interpretive problem, reliability, and importance—and to weigh the evidence and interpretations presented in historical scholarship.  An AP U.S. History course should thus develop the skills necessary to arrive at conclusions on the basis of an informed judgment and to present reasons and evidence clearly and persuasively in essay format.

 Here is a link to AP Central’s course description: https://apcentral.collegeboard.org/pdf/ap-us-history-course-and-exam-description.pdf?course=ap-united-states-history

 

Course Objectives: 

Students will be able to...

• Demonstrate a mastery of a broad body of historical knowledge
• Use historical evidence to defend and support basic arguments and positions
• Differentiate between various schools of historical thought and interpretation
• Interpret and draw conclusions from various pieces of historical data including original documents, political cartoons, graphs, etc.
• Demonstrate an effective use of analytical skills of evaluation, cause-and-effect relationships, and compare and contrast
• Work effectively in groups to produce products, make presentations, and solve problems
• Prepare for and receive a grade of 3 or higher on the AP U.S. History Exam.

 

Themes:

 The themes serve as the connective tissue of the course and enable students to create meaningful connections across units. They are often broader ideas that become threads that run throughout the course. Revisiting them and applying them in a variety of contexts helps students to develop deeper conceptual understanding. Below are the themes of the course and a brief description of each.

 

THEME 1: AMERICAN AND NATIONAL IDENTITY (NAT) This theme focuses on how and why definitions of American and national identity and values have developed among the diverse and changing population of North America as well as on related topics, such as citizenship, constitutionalism, foreign policy, assimilation, and American exceptionalism.

THEME 2: WORK, EXCHANGE, AND TECHNOLOGY (WXT) This theme focuses on the factors behind the development of systems of economic exchange, particularly the role of technology, economic markets, and government.

THEME 3: GEOGRAPHY AND THE ENVIRONMENT (GEO) This theme focuses on the role of geography and both the natural and human-made environments in the social and political developments in what would become the United States.

THEME 4: MIGRATION AND SETTLEMENT (MIG) This theme focuses on why and how the various people who moved to and within the United States both adapted to and transformed their new social and physical environments.

 THEME 5: POLITICS AND POWER (PCE) This theme focuses on how different social and political groups have influenced society and government in the United States as well as how political beliefs and institutions have changed over time.

THEME 6: AMERICA IN THE WORLD (WOR) This theme focuses on the interactions between nations that affected North American history in the colonial period and on the influence of the United States on world affairs.

 THEME 7: AMERICAN AND REGIONAL CULTURE (ARC) This theme focuses on the how and why national, regional, and group cultures developed and changed as well as how culture has shaped government policy and the economy.

THEME 8: SOCIAL STRUCTURES (SOC) This theme focuses on how and why systems of social organization develop and change as well as the impact that these systems have on the broader society

 

 

Materials for course:

Pencils

Pens (blue/black ink only)

2-inch 3 ring binder

Dividers (6 labeled as follows: warmups, reading quizzes, notes, primary/secondary readings, maps, and FRQ/DBQ essays)

Loose leaf paper (plenty of it!)

Post-it notes for documenting throughout your textbook

Large spiral notebook (designated solely for this class that can be turned in bi-weekly)

Highlighters for reading strategy exercises

Required Textbook:

Kennedy, David M., Lizabeth Cohen, and Thomas Bailey. The American Pageant. Thirteenth Edition. (Boston: Houghton Mifflin Company, 2006.)

Additional Readings:

Zinn, Howard. A People’s History of the United States (New York: Harper Perennial, 2005)

Schweikart, Larry. A Patriot’s History of the United States (New York: Sentinel, 2004)

Davidson, James W., and Mark M. Lytle. After the Fact: The Art of Historical Detection (New York: McGraw-Hill, 2004).

Madaras, Larry, and James M. SoRelle. Taking Sides: Clashing Views on Controversial Issues in American History, Volumes One and Two (Guilford, CT: Dushkin Publishing Group Inc., 2002).

 Longman, William. Voices of America Past and Present, Volume I &2. New York: Longman, 2005.

In addition to the reading required from your textbook, we will use a selection of primary and secondary sources, or excerpts from them.  This allows students to have contact with many voices and points of view from each era.

Absences:

We will follow the WHS and Union County policies in regards to absences.  In our classroom, you are responsible for the work you have missed due to an absence.  Plan to turn in all work that was due on the day missed at the time you return and prepare to ask the teacher for the work that was missed.  You will be given two days to turn in the work and make up any quizzes or test from the day(s) you were absent.  It is your responsibility to get your make up work to and from Mrs. Winchester.

 

 

Grading:

This course will be graded similarly to a college course.  You will be tested in the same format as the AP test you will take on May 6, 2021.  This will enhance your chance of doing well on that test and prepare you for the style of testing seen in a college course. You will also keep an outline notebook throughout the semester.  This will be done in the spiral notebook that needs to be able to stay in class when asked.  These notebooks will be graded on your ability to show me that you are exploring what you have read, not merely summarizing or providing a superficial or oversimplified analysis.

Grading:

Tests

Quizzes:

Participation/Classwork:

Homework:

Grades will consist of F.R.Q.'s and D.B.Q.'s, quizzes, tests, homework (reading assignments and outlines), and classwork (maps, seminars, etc.).

Grading Scale:

A 100-90

B 89-80

C 79-70

D 69-60

F Below 60

Please keep in mind that I do NOT curve grades on tests, quizzes, assignments, or exams.

Covid-19 Accommodations: TBA

Online Interaction:

Wikis, Blogs, forums and turnitin.com are all used in this course.  The benefit of using online resources will not only enhance the student’s understanding of this course, it will also prepare the student for the type of professor/student interaction found on most college campuses.

Discussion Questions:

Students will be given discussion questions for each unit that we study.  These questions are to be completed by the students prior to our class discussion for each topic.  Textbook and outside reading assignments will also be included to help students in answering these questions.

Maps:

The following links are just an example of the American History Maps that you must know for this AP U.S. History course.  We will do a map activity at least once a week in this course. Knowing the geography of this country, as it expands and changes, is essential to your understanding of the material.

http://www.lib.utexas.edu/maps/histus.html

http://www.learner.org/interactives/historymap/index.html

http://www.eduplace.com/ss/maps/historical.html

http://xroads.virginia.edu/~MAP/map_hp.html

 

Homework:

Homework will be assigned every night in AP U.S. History.  Assignments will always include reading and note-taking.  Additional assignments will include essay writing, research, and discussion questions.  Homework MUST be turned in on the assigned due date, at the beginning of the class period, in order to receive any credit.

Plagiarism:

I take plagiarism very seriously in my class.  Please refer to your Academic Honor Code for plagiarism policies.  Be reminded that whether you give your work to someone else to copy, or are copying from someone, both parties will be charged with plagiarism.  Penalties for plagiarism in this course strictly follow WHS policy.  Most written work will be done in class, but other assignments may be turned in on turnitin.com.  If you are not familiar with the site, please take time to look at it before turning in your first online assignment.

 

Quizzes:

Quizzes will be both announced and unannounced. Students must be prepared daily for a possible quiz on material covered in class as well as that assigned for homework the night before.  Some writing assignments also hold the value of quiz grades rather than homework grades.  Quizzes will count as approximately 30% of the semester grade.

Testing:

Students will take objective exams covering material from the textbook, supplemental readings, discussions, and lectures.  The design of each exam will be a multiple choice section and an essay section; this will either be a document based question (DBQ), free response question (FRQ), or both.  The tests actually count as two separate grades: one for the multiple choice test and one for the essay.  I try to have graded assignments back to you as soon as possible.

 Most objective tests consist of 80 multiple choice questions and a 35 minute essay question. The tests are timed to approximate the time allowed on the AP Exam.  Occasionally, due to time constraints, the F.R.Q. and D.B.Q. parts of a test are given on a different day than the multiple choice part.

The DBQ part of each test is composed of a 15 minute planning period and a 45 minute writing period. Students may not begin formally writing their responses during the planning period; they may only plan. This is the same timing they will experience during the AP Exam. I stop students after 15 minutes and tell them that the 45 minute period of writing has begun.  This is meant to help students recognize that the planning period is a good start, but that they probably need several more minutes to plan before beginning to write their responses.

 The AP United States History Exam is comprehensive, covering material from the entire semester. Students who are enrolled in the AP U.S. History course are expected to take the AP U.S. History Exam. Class time is allotted for review, and many students participate in informal study group review sessions and take a practice test, which is also scheduled outside of school hours.

The AP United States History Exam is Wednesday, May 6 at 8am.

 Tutoring:

Students are encouraged to attend tutoring as necessary to enable their maximum success in class.  I welcome the opportunity to help students on an individual basis.  The tutoring schedule will be posted in my classroom and on my Moodle site for your convenience.

 

 Extra Credit:

I rarely offer extra credit for any of my classes. However, AP United States History is an exceptionally challenging course and I reserve the right to assign students extra credit work in order to master the course material, not just to boost his or her grade.  No extra credit work will be given to any student who does not make every attempt to attend tutoring, or who has any missing or late assignments.

 The Key to Success:

The most important factor in this class is consistent effort and improvement.  Do not be discouraged if your grades seem low in the first grading period.  For many of you, this is your first AP course and some of you are taking several AP courses this semester.  The load can sometimes be heavy and even seem to be unbearable, but effective management of your time is the key.  What you learn in terms of writing, thinking and study skills will be well worth the effort.  (Not to mention the money you may save on college credits!)

 

COURSE OUTLINE:

This is a general outline and is subject to change depending on the school calendar and how quickly we move through various concepts and time frames. Readings listed indicate the main works for each term, but are not a complete list.

Unit 1: Colonial Growth

Read Chapters 1-5 (pages 2-105)

________________________________________________________________________________________

Unit 2: Fight for America

Read Chapters 6-8 (pages 106-163)

________________________________________________________________________________________

Unit 3: From Federalist Era to the Era of Good Feelings

Read Chapters 9-12 (pages 164-255)

________________________________________________________________________________________

Unit 4: Jacksonian Era

Read Chapters 13-16 (pages 256-370)

Historween Project: 10/31

________________________________________________________________________________________

Unit 5: Sectionalism and the Causes of the Civil War

Read Chapters 17-19 (pages 371-433)

________________________________________________________________________________________

Unit 6: Civil War and Reconstruction

Read Chapters 20-22 (pages 434-501)

 _______________________________________________________________________________________

Unit 7: Gilded Age and the West

Read Chapters 23-26 (pages 502-625)

 _______________________________________________________________________________________

Unit 8: Imperialism, Progressivism, and WWI

Read Chapters 27, 28, 29, 30 (pages 626-719)

 _______________________________________________________________________________________

Unit 9: Roaring 20s, the Great Depression, the New Deal

Read Chapters 31-33 (pages 720-799)

 

Unit 10: WWII and the Cold War

Read Chapters 34-36 (pages 800-881)

 

Unit 11: 1960s and Vietnam

Read Chapters 37-39 (pages 882-965)

 

Unit 12: 70s, 80s, 90s, and Today

Read Chapters 40-42 (pages 966-1034)

 

AP Exam: May 6, 2021 at 8am