US HISTORY X SUMMER ASSIGNMENT 2016 - 2017
Dear Student of the Class of 2018:
Congratulations! You’ve made the excellent choice to take American History X your Junior year. In addition to helping you develop yourself into a first- rate historical writer and thinker, this course will challenge you to question your preconceived understandings of your country, push you to understand why certain people have power while others remain at a disadvantage, and provide the materials for you to chart the next course for the United States.
As you are already well aware, US History X involves a heavy amount of reading and writing – and preparation for the AP Exam in May 2017 begins in the Summer. The purpose of this assignment is to enable us to get started more quickly come August, and to assist you in understanding some of the earliest power dynamics present in our nation today.
Assignment 1 is created with the intention of exposing you to the story of the “other” when it comes to American History. One of the central themes and discoveries in our course is the following: the people who win history are often the ones who write it. Howard Zinn offers an important and very different perspective on colonization in the Western Hemisphere. Your first lesson in the conquests of white Europeans on this continent will include the stories of those who were the rulers of this land for centuries before Columbus.
Assignment 2 is created with the intention of making you instantly familiar with some of the geographical elements of the United States that we will reference on the first day of school. Having a deep understanding of the physical landscape of our country is essential in order to understand how and why we’ve gone from a small set of colonies along the East Coast to the opposite shining sea and beyond.
Both assignments are due on the first day of school and will incur a late penalty after 5pm that date.
Thank you for choosing to take on this challenge – I know you will be happy you did.
Enjoy the summer!
Assignment 1: A People’s History of the United States, 1492 – Present
The entirety of this book can be found on the web.
Read Chapter 1: Columbus, the Indians, and Human Progress and Answer the questions below in at least 3 complete sentences each. Your writing should be clear, concise, and to the point (historical / technical style).
1. According to Zinn, what is his main purpose for writing A People’s History?
2. How is Columbus portrayed in traditional history books? Why is this an issue that needs to be resolved, according to Zinn?
3. What major issue does Bartolome de las Casas bring up regarding Spanish expeditions in the Caribbean?
4. Based on your reading of the Spanish conquests and your background on English colonies in the New World (look this up if you need to), compare and contrast the treatment of natives, motives for colonization, and lifestyle.
5. What were the major causes of war between the Powhatans and the English settlers?
6. Powhatan’s statement, “Why will you take by force what you may have quietly by love?” illustrates a key difference in how Native Westerners and Europeans saw the ideas of ownership and war. Explain how this difference created lasting conflict.
7. Explain Governor John Winthrop (of the Massachusetts Bay Colony)’s legal and biblical justification for seizing Indian land.
8. According to Roger Williams (Rhode Island), how did the English usually justify their attacks on the Indians?
9. Evaluate this statement: “If there are sacrifices to be made for human progress, it is not essential to hold to the principle that those to be sacrificed must make the decision themselves?” (in this case, evaluate means to apply this statement to the relevant historical context and decide whether or not it is true).
10. How does Zinn attempt to prove that the Indians were not inferior? Provide two examples.
Not – optional challenge: Read about our seventh President Andrew Jackson and the tradition of Indian Removal. Write a paragraph drawing a conclusion about relations between whites and Indians over time. What does it mean to have “power” in this sense? With this paragraph, I’m looking to see how you organize your ideas and analyze historical evidence.
Assignment 2: Maps
Using the map provided, label and color them according to the following directions. These will serve as excellent resources for you over the course of the year. Use crayons or colored pencils to distinguish colored regions.
A. Label all 50 states. Print in black ink.
B. Mark, color, and label each of the Great Lakes by name.
C. Mark, color, and label each of the following important Rivers: Mississippi, Hudson, Ohio, Rio Grande, Columbia, Colorado, Missouri
D. Label the Atlantic Ocean, Mexico, Canada, the Pacific Ocean, and Gulf of Mexico
E. Draw in and label the Rocky Mountains and the Appalachian Mountains.
F. Shade the original 13 colonies in purple.
G. Shade the Louisiana Purchase in green.
H. Shade the Independent republic of Texas in yellow.
I. Shade the land acquired from the Mexican American War in orange.