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US History 2008-2009 |
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Advanced
Placement US History
Syllabus
Schedule
CALENDAR
Terms
Chapter
Objectives
Sample
Test Questions
Classroom
Materials
Other
Assignments
Supplemental
Materials
AP
EXAM REVIEW MATERIALS
Grades
Links
SPECIAL ANNOUNCEMENTS
The Jungle Take Home Essay Exam - Due Tuesday 2/17/09. For directions and the questions, CLICK HERE.Powerpoints and notes are found under the Classroom Materials link. **World War I and Roaring 20s powerpoints are posted at the BMHS website!
FINAL EXAM STUDY GUIDE - Fall Semester 2008-09 - CLICK HERESpring Semester Project
Click here for the suggested research topics for the Photo Essay Project. Click here for the Photo Essay Project instructions.
AP US History TOP TEN STUDENTS - Spring Semester 2007-08:
1. Pierce Vollucci
2. Dan Vollmer
3. Francesca Paterno
4. Curtis Wagner
5. Matthew Raymundo
6. Vivian Okonta
7. Hillary Tighe
8. Camille Farfan
9. Nicole Toomey
10. Christopher Patao
AP US History TOP TEN STUDENTS - Fall Semester 2007-08:
1. Pierce Vollucci
2. Dan Vollmer
3. Curtis Wagner
4. Nicole Toomey
5. Francesca Paterno
6. Jonathan Fournier
7. Andrew Meyer
8. Christopher Patao
9. Vivian Okonta
10. Matthew Galang
Honorable Mention: Hillary Tighe, Laura Sanchez & Camille Farfan
AP US History TOP TEN STUDENTS - Spring Semester 2006-07:
1. Rouel Soberano
2. Samuel Moorhead
3. Adrian Esparaza
4. Steven Clark
5. Andrew Yee
6. TIE - Michael Peterson & Tyler-Rose Veguez
8. Jack Aguilar
9. Nicholas Acosta
10. Ellis Watamanuk
Honorable Mention: Senay HaweltiAP US History TOP TEN STUDENTS - Fall Semester 2006-07:
1. Samuel Moorhead
2. Rouel Soberano
3. Nicholas Acosta
4. Adrian Esparaza
5. Steven Clark
6. Senay Hawelti
7. Michael Peterson
8. Andrew Yee
9. Sarah Ballister
10. Lorenzo Pumilia
Honorable Mention: Jack Aguilar
Course Description
This is a year-long course open to grades 11-12 although it is generally taken during the Junior year. The course also has several prerequisites: a recommended minimum 3.5 GPA, excellent grades in Social Studies and English courses (A's in non-honors courses; B's or better in honors courses) and instructor approval.
The course focuses on United States history from European discovery through modern times. Special emphasis is placed on the underlying causes of events in American history and how those events shaped the country as we know it today. Class activities will center on note taking and discussion, research techniques, advanced writing skills, class presentations, frequent written/oral examinations, and written/oral presentations in class.
This class is designed for the honor student and all students are expected to take and pass the AP exam, administered in May, which allows students to earn college credit for taking this course. It is strongly recommended that students be concurrently enrolled in AP English Language and Composition or in Honors English. Please be aware that each AP Exam is expensive (about $80) so begin planning for expenses now. The best thing you can do is to study daily, review frequently (keep going over things covered early in the year throughout the entire course - don't forget it right after the tests), and keep up with all of the assignments.
Summer Instructions
Dear AP United States History student,
Congratulations on what I hope has been a very successful year for you. Now it's time to get really serious - start thinking about college, and start the last half of high school. As you probably know, this class is going to be a lot of work, but if you do it right, you will have fun too. You need to get started this summer to be prepared when school starts so there are a few assignments that you must complete before the first day of school. The reading is fairly straightforward and shouldn't take a tremendous amount of time. It consists of two novels dealing with drastically different topics in American history, an overview of American history in a question and answer format, and your textbook. All of the course materials are available at the school bookstore.
Your summer assignment is as follows:
1. Read Rise to Rebellion by Jeff Shaara. This is a fictional novel about the coming of the American Revolution and it is told from the perspectives of several key individuals of the time, including Benjamin Franklin, George Washington, John and Abigail Adams, and General Thomas Gage. Due with Unit 2.
2. Read Uncle Tom's Cabin by Harriet Beecher Stowe. It is one of the most politically influential books in our history. Many believe that it helped to start the Civil War. It centers around the issue of slavery in the South in the time period before the war. When you read it you will see why it moved so many people in the North to such violent action. This should be read by Unit 5.
3. Skim through Don't Know Much About History by Kenneth Davis. It is an overview of History that we will use all year. You will have a good preview of the class when you are done and it will make next year a lot easier to understand. This is not a novel but will be used as a reference book throughout the year and will give you a quick answer to a lot of questions.
4. Read Chapters 1 through 5 of your textbook, American Pageant, 12th edition. Because the AP Exam occurs in EARLY MAY, we are often pressed for time. These early chapters will be reviewed in class but we will move through them very quickly, therefore, you must have already read them in order to keep up with the rest of the class. There will be a reading exam on these chapters when school begins (scheduled for Friday, August 31st).
5. Answer the Chapter Objective Questions for Chapters 1-5 (attached).
I want you to know that I do NOT give easy tests and quizzes. You start off the school year taking AP level tests so please do not be discouraged if your initial exam scores are significantly lower than you may be used to receiving. You should be more concerned with progress over time than individual exam scores. The points in the class are constructed so that about 70% of the points available are from things other than tests and exams (including your final).
I'd also like to give you a brief description of the AP Exam that you will take in the spring. There is a multiple choice and an essay section. Each section is worth 50% of the exam. For the essay section, you are required to write three essays, one of which is mandatory. This mandatory essay question has documents that are to be used to support your writing and is generally referred to as the "document based question" or the DBQ. The exam itself is difficult because you can earn college credit for taking this course while you are in high school. It is very possible for everyone to pass the AP exam in the spring and equally possible for everyone to earn a 5 (the highest score possible) but it will require a tremendous amount of effort that must begin now. Please take it seriously and understand that the harder you work this summer the easier it will be in the fall.
Chapter Objectives
The chapter reading objectives are collected on the day of each unit quiz (approximately every 1-2 weeks) and are graded. The purpose of answering these questions is to make sure that you are understanding the important information in each chapter as you read. The answers to the questions may require information from just part of the chapter, or from the entire chapter so it is to your advantage to read the entire chapter first and then write out the answers to the chapter objectives. These are not complete essay questions but I do expect answers to be written in paragraph form. This assignment must always be completed individually and in your own words. Your first set of questions is attached.
Chapter Terms
Each unit will also have a set of terms that are handed out as a review guide. These terms are the people, places, events and concepts that are central to the study of United States History. The AP Exam stresses critical thinking, which is more than just remembering facts and dates. It is knowing the "how" and the "why" of a particular event. However, knowing facts and dates is essential to being able to explain why certain events happened and the long lasting implications of those events. Previous classes were required to type up definitions for each of the terms but that is no longer a course requirement. However, you are still responsible for KNOWING all of the terms and may have quizzes on them at any time. This list will be given the first week of school in the fall.
A Special Note on TIME MANAGEMENT
College professors frequently assign all the work for a course on the first day of class and it is up to the students to complete the work and turn it in without reminders. Since you can earn college credit in this class and it is an "Advanced" level course, a similar procedure is used. You are given assignments to cover approximately one week and it is up to you to complete them and turn them in on the due date. Time management is very important to this class, as it is NOT POSSIBLE to review all of the terms, complete the readings, the chapter objectives, and study for a test in one evening. Work on your assignments a little each day to keep the workload manageable. I cannot stress this nearly enough - do not fall behind in the work - time management, time management, TIME MANAGEMENT! :
I am really excited to be teaching all of you and our class should be a blast! I hope you have a great summer. Good luck on your final exams.
Mrs. DeLay
Important Dates:
