AP U.S. History Syllabus
AP US history
Mr. Jones RM #305
Course Description & Purpose:
The course is designed to provide you with the analytic skills and factual knowledge necessary to deal critically with the problems and materials in U.S. history. The program prepares you for intermediate and advanced college courses by making demands equivalent to those made by full-year introductory college courses. You will 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. Therefore, the course also develops 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.
This course:
· Covers the 500-year scope of U.S. history—from North America’s pre-Columbian
beginnings to the present
· Integrates a number of important themes that recur throughout American history
· Includes analysis of primary-source documents
· Helps students develop analytic ways of thinking, such as recognizing cause and effect,
drawing inferences, dealing with conflicting viewpoints, and tracing the evolution of
themes throughout history
· Requires that students write often and insightfully
· Equips students to weigh different interpretations of history and introduces them to
historical criticism
· Integrates social, cultural, political, diplomatic, economic, and intellectual history into the
narrative of the American experience
· Requires students to form and express thoughtful opinions that they share with others
Themes in US History:
Culture: Diverse individual and collective expressions through literature, art, philosophy, music, theater, and film throughout U.S. history. Popular culture and the dimensions of cultural conflict within American society.
Demographic Changes: Changes in birth, marriage, and death rates; life expectancy and family patterns;
population size and density. The economic, social, and political effects of immigration, internal migration, and migration networks.
Economic Transformations: Changes in trade, commerce, and technology across time. The effects of capitalist development, labor and unions, and consumerism.
Environment: Ideas about the consumption and conservation of natural resources. The impact of
population growth, industrialization, pollution, and urban and suburban expansion.
Globalization: Engagement with the rest of the world from the fifteenth century to the present:
colonialism, mercantilism, global hegemony, development of markets, imperialism, and cultural exchange.
Politics and Citizenship: Colonial and revolutionary legacies, American political traditions, growth of democracy, and the development of the modern state. Defining citizenship; struggles for civil rights.
Reform: Diverse movements focusing on a broad range of issues, including anti-slavery, education, labor, temperance, women’s rights, civil rights, gay rights, war, public health, and government.
Religion: The variety of religious beliefs and practices in America from prehistory to the twenty-first
century; influence of religion on politics, economics, and society.
Slavery and Its Legacies in North America: Systems of slave labor and other forms of unfree labor (e.g., indentured servitude, contract labor) in American Indian societies, the Atlantic World, and the American South and West. The economics of slavery and its racial dimensions. Patterns of resistance and the long-term economic, political, and social effects of slavery.
War and Diplomacy: Armed conflict from the pre-colonial period to the twenty-first century; impact of war on American foreign policy and on politics, economy, and society.
Materials needed for class:
· One notebook and folder to keep up with notes, handouts, etc.
o A 3-ring binder would probably be best!
· Writing utensils
· Textbooks
o The American Pageant (By David M. Kennedy, Lizabeth Cohen, Thomas A. Bailey)
§ The cost of this textbook is $80. When assigned a textbook, the book is your responsibility for the duration of the school year. If it is lost, stolen, damaged, etc., you will be responsible for paying $80 to replace it. If payment is not received, you will be placed on the school’s debts list.
§ The textbook is also available on CD-ROM. You may also, if you choose, be assigned a CD for which you will also be responsible. If it is lost, stolen, damaged, etc., you will be responsible for paying $20 to replace it. If payment is not received, you will be placed on the school’s debts list.
Grade Determination
Grading Policy:
Grades will be based on points earned using the following grading scale.
Multiple choice Quizzes(25% of Grade) 25 points each
Document Based Questions/ Essays(15% of Grade) 25 points each
ID Assignments (10% of Grade) 20 points each
Unit Exams / Finals(50% of Grade) 80 Points
.
90 – 100 points = A
80 – 89 points = B
70 – 79 points = C
60 – 69 points = D
50 – 0 points = F
Classroom Rules:
1.) No food or drink in the classroom. (Water is the only exception)
2.) BE ON TIME, in your seat and ready to learn when the bell rings.
3.) Bring all your supplies with you to class every day. (No pencils/pens will be provided)
4.) Be respectful to your fellow students.
Classroom Procedures:
· Homework will be assigned. If you wish to turn in your homework early you may do so, otherwise all homework is due on the assigned date. Any late homework will only be accepted the following day and will be assigned reduced points for lateness.
· Quizzes and Tests can only be made up if you have an excused absence. You will have one week to make up all missed assignments. If you know you are not going to be present please let me know in advance. I reserve the right to give essay tests in place of missed exams
· We will often have classroom discussions. Whenever you have a question or would like to contribute to the discussions please raise your and wait to be called on.
· Your name must be in the upper right hand margin of all assignments. Nameless papers will become automatic zeros.
· Plagiarism will NOT be tolerated on any level. If you turn in work that is not your own please be prepared to accept a zero on that assignment.
· Cheating of any kind will not be tolerated and will result in a Zero for that assignment whether it will be quiz, test, or homework.
· Be in your seat when the bell rings. Those who are not in their seat when the bell rings will be counted as tardy.
· All students will have assigned seats. Do not move to a different seat without first asking permission. I will take roll according to the seating chart. If you are not in your correct seat you will be counted absent.
· Class is not dismissed when the bell rings, but when I dismiss class. Please be respectful! DO NOT gather your belongings in anticipation of the bell. Class will not be dismissed until all the desks are re-aligned and any trash is picked up. (If you bring it in, take it out)
· Students are expected to go the restroom prior to coming to class. Emergencies will be dealt with on a case-by-case basis. Each student will be allowed two (2) Hall passes for each quarter, use them wisely.
· You are not allowed to sleep during class. Laying your head down or having your eyes closed will be considered sleeping. Such behavior will result in disciplinary action.
· You may only leave class if an administrator, guidance counselor, or other staff member calls you. DO NOT ask to leave class to work on another class or activity. If you are given permission to leave make sure you have a hall pass.
· The classroom phone is not for student use.
· Teacher’s Desk: No student should be near or around the teacher’s desk or workstation.
My Website: From the homepage of WEHS (www.warrencountyschools.org then click on “Schools,” then Warren East High School), click on “Teacher Websites,” then my name. A lot of important info will be posted here throughout the year, so get accustomed to checking it.
What are you going to learn in this class?
Dates/Time Frame / Description / Reading/TextUnit 1
Aug. 11 – Aug. 30 / The age of discovery and the development of the American colonies
(early sixteenth century - 1700); the struggle between Britain and France over the New World (early 17th century - 1775); the American Revolution
(1775 – 1783) / Chapters 1(start w/ “Columbus and the early explorers”) - 8
Wednesday, August 31 / Unit 1 TEST
Unit 2
Sept. 1 – Sept. 20 / The Articles of Confederation and the framing of the U.S. Constitution
(1776 - 1790); Jeffersonians, Hamiltonians, and the Marshall Supreme Court
(1789 - 1812); The War of 1812 and the Era of Good Feelings
(1812 - 1824) / Chapters 9 – 12
Wednesday, September 21 / Unit 2 TEST
Unit 3
Sept. 22 - Oct. 20 / The development of national and sectional economies
(1790 - 1860); The age of reform: Jacksonian democracy
(post-War of 1812 - 1860); The Monroe Doctrine, territorial expansion, and Manifest Destiny
(1812 - 1860) / Chapter 13 – 15; 17
Domestic Manners of the Americans
Friday, October 21 / Unit 3 TEST
Unit 4
Oct. 24 - Nov. 21 / Slavery, sectionalism, and the road to war
(1793 - 1860); The American Civil War (1861 - 1865); Reconstruction
(1865 - 1877); Post-Civil War economic and social developments
(1870s - 1890s) / Chapters 16, 18 – 22
Uncle Tom’s Cabin
Tuesday, November 22 / Unit 4 TEST
Unit 5
Nov. 28 - Dec. 12 / Territorial expansion
(1865 - 1890s); Creating a global empire
(1890s - early 20th century) / Chapters 23 – 26
Tuesday, December 13 / Unit 5 TEST
Wednesday, December 14 / Midterm Review
Thursday, December 15 / MIDTERM
Friday, December 16 / MIDTERM
Unit 6
Jan. 3 - Jan. 17 / The progressives in power
(1900 - early 1920s); The road to World War I and U.S. involvement
(1914 - 1918) / Chapter 27-30
Wednesday, January 18 / TEST
Unit 7
Jan. 19 - Feb. 7 / Political conservatism ascendant, the first red scare, the Harlem renaissance, and other cultural developments during the roaring twenties
(1920s); The Great Depression and New Deal
(1920s - 1941) / Chapters 31 – 34
The Great Depression: A Diary
Wednesday, February 8 / Unit 7 TEST
Unit 8
Feb. 9 – March 8 / World War II and the end of U.S. neutrality
(1941 - 1945); The origins of the Cold War / Chapters 34 & 35
Friday, March 9 / Unit 8 TEST
Unit 9
March 12 - April 3 / The intensification of Cold War hostilities, the containment policy in Europe and Asia, and the second red scare and McCarthyism
(1940s - late 1950s); The Cold War becomes hotter
(early 1960s - 1975); The transformation of American culture, the Civil Rights movement / Chapters 36 & 37
Wednesday, April 4 / Unit 9 TEST
Unit 10
April 16 – May 1 / The Great Society and Vietnam
(1960 - 1980); The resurgence of conservatism, the end of the Cold War, and the challenges of the contemporary world
(1980 - 2010) / Chapters 38 – 39
Matterhorn
Wednesday, May 2 / Unit 10 TEST
May 3 - May 10 / REVIEW FOR AP TEST
Friday, May 11 / AP TEST!!!!
Wednesday, May 23 / FINAL
Thursday, May 24 / FINAL
**The assignments listed above are subject to change, and expect many others to be added over the course of the year!!
Mr. Jones’s Tips for Success in AP US History:
· READ!!!!! And, stay up-to-date on your reading.
· Master the material…do not let it master you.
· Manage time effectively.
· Do not get behind!
· Review notes and text periodically!
· Use the following website…
o http://www.collegeboard.com/student/testing/ap/sub_ushist.html
§ Further investigate any website that is produced by the College Board. There is lots of helpful information out there!!
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