Download AP World History - Hazlet Township Public Schools

AP World History
Summer Assignment 2015
Scholarly Reading and Summer Sessions
Welcome to Advanced Placement World History!
Raritan High School
Teacher: Dane Stephenson
Contact: [email protected]
About the APWH course:
AP World History develops an understanding of the evolution of global processes and contacts, including interactions
over time. This non- traditional approach looks at the common threads of humanity- trade, religion, politics, society,
and technology- and investigates how each have changed and continued over time. The course traces the human
experience from the emergence of Neolithic cultures to the 21st Century C.E., emphasizing the habits of mind, writing
skills, and content knowledge characteristic of a college- level world history course. Students will devote considerable
time to the critical evaluation of primary and secondary sources, writing, and participation in classroom discussions/
Socratic seminars.
The Summer Reading Book:
This year’s summer reading assignment is A History of the World in 6 Glasses by
Tom Standage. In this book, Standage tells a popular history of the world and some
of the most significant civilizations by following the development of 6 influential
beverages. The six beverages are beer, wine, spirits, coffee, tea and Coca Cola.
Each of these beverages has played a significant role in driving trade and
interaction between some of the most significant regions and empires in world
history. Our purpose in reading this book is to gain a sense of how civilizations and
cultures develop and how they are affected by various forces (political, economic,
religious, social, technological, etc.).
*DISCLAIMER: The use of this book as a summer reading assignment in NO way represents any endorsement by the
teachers or administration of the consumption or misuse of these beverages! The book is simply meant to provide an
interesting view of civilizations and trade from which we can initiate our year- long discussion of world history.
Your Assignment-(Test Grade):
For your assignment, you will need to read the ENTIRE book A History of the World Through Six Glasses. Don’t panic- it is
very readable, and hopefully you will find it quite interesting.  Please read and follow the instructions carefully as
there are two parts.
Cover Page
(5 Points)
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Include your name and a creative title (not the title of the book).
Have 1 picture for each of the drinks (6 pictures total). This should NOT be a simple picture of the drink or
someone drinking the beverage but rather a picture that represents a major idea of the author.
The Journals—8 Journal Entries (80 Points)
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You will write a 1-2 page journal entry for the “INTRODUCTION” AND for the “EPILOGUE.” You will also write a 2
page (MINIMUM) journal for EACH DRINK (each drink is covered in 2 chapters).
Each journal entry should address the questions provided AND include your own insights and reflections on the
author’s main points. (Questions are below)
Journal entries should be written in paragraph from and TYPED (double spaced, 1-in. margins, 12 pt. font).
Each journal entry should have the title of the chapter(s) on top and the question(s) that are specifically being
addressed.
If you quote anything directly, please cite the page number by using parenthetical citations or footnotes.
Analytical Process (15 Points)
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Choose two of the drinks to compare and contrast in the areas of currency, medicinal/nutritional values, and
revolutionary contributors. Create a Venn Diagram (template is attached) with a minimum of 10 detailed facts.
After reviewing the compare/contrast rubric during our first week of class you will write a comparison/contrast
paper which will be due Friday, September 11, 2015.
Grading and Submission: This assignment will be your first TEST grade. The project (excluding the compare/contrast
essay) is due on August 13, 2015 (Our last summer session). If you can’t make the summer session (which I don’t advise
you miss) you must email me the assignment no later than 11:59 PM on the 13th. Once again, the compare/contrast
essay is due Friday, September 11, 2015.
NOTE: This is an INDIVIDUAL assignment! Do not work with others and cite any additional resources you have used. As
a student of Raritan High School, you are expected not to cheat or to assist others in cheating. Cheating is taking credit
for work that one has not done, such as plagiarizing and copying someone’s homework or answers. Please feel free to
email me for clarification purposes.
Guided Reading Questions
A History of the World in Six Glasses
By Tom Standage
Consider these questions as you read through the book. You should address these topics/ideas in your journal entries …
Introduction—“Vital Fluids”
1. What is the author’s main thesis (argument) in setting up his book? Why/how are these fluids “vital”?
“Beer in Mesopotamia and Egypt” (Chapters 1 and 2):
1. How might beer have influenced the transition from hunting and gathering (Paleolithic) to agricultural- based
(Neolithic) societies?
2. What does the story of beer tell you about social and gender roles in ancient SW Asia and Egypt?
3. How important do you think beer was in the growth and diffusion of the earliest civilizations? Would the
earliest civilizations of SW Asia and Egypt have been as prosperous without the discovery of beer?
“Wine in Greece and Rome” (Chapters 3 and 4):
1. What does the story of wine tell you about social and gender roles in the Mediterranean world? How did this
change over time?
2. Explain how the symposia and wine- drinking related to the development (and self- image) of ancient Greece (as
compared to other parts of the world).
3. What effect does wine have on the development of Christianity and of Islam (separately)?
“Spirirts in the Colonial Period” (Chapter 5 and 6):
1. How did spirits advance/accelerate colonialism?
2. In the 18th century, how did spirits change the balance of power amongst the western European nations
(particularly Britain and France)?
3. How did spirits help in the building and shaping of early America (politically and economically)?
“Coffee in the Age of Reason” (Chapters 7 and 8):
1. Why did coffee become known to Europeans as the “antithesis of alcohol”? And how will this change the
intellectual development of Europe?
2. Was coffee the first true “global” beverage? Why or why not?
3. How (and why) did coffee play a pivotal role in the Enlightenment and French Revolution?
“Tea and the British Empire” (Chapters 9 and 10):
1. Why was tea important to China’s economy, and how did it affect China’s relationships with other countries?
2. Explain the relationship between tea and a.) the Industrial Revolution, and b.) the expansion of the British
Empire.
3. Compare and contrast how the British trade in tea affected America and India.
“Coca-Cola and the Rise of America” (Chapters 11 and 12):
1. How does the story of Coca-Cola relate to the rise of capitalism and entrepreneurship in the 19th century and
early 20th century? How does this story show a larger global economic shift?
2. How did Coca-Cola become the world’s most recognized product?
3. How does Coca-Cola affect people’s views of the United States? Is the spread of Coca-Cola an example of
“Americanization” around the world? Explain.
“Epilogue- “Back to the Source”
1. Do you agree or disagree with Standage’s argument in the epilogue? Will water be the most influential
beverage in shaping the global situation of the next 100+ years? Why or why not? What other drinks might
Standage have included in this book to be considered in the next generation of drinks?
Summer Sessions:
The summer sessions will run from August 10th to August 13th from 10AM-1PM. I STRONGLY suggest
you attempt to make it to class on these dates.
Textbook Readings:
Textbooks will be distributed on August 10th. Readings from it and other sources will
be assigned.
*READ THIS FIRST*
AP World History
2015-2016 Summer Assignment
Mr. Stephenson
[email protected]
Welcome, students, to the history of everything that ever was!
This will be, I sincerely hope, the most interesting history course you have ever taken. This is not a
course about memorizing tables of minutia – not that some dates and “hard” facts don’t have their place – but it
is a course (probably your first) in what is now called “Big History.” Big History is the study of history as
movements, themes, and trends. It attempts to look at global and regional systems and understand their
interplay, to determine why events in past have developed as they have, and what impact they have on us today.
Because of its very broad scope, Big History incorporates such diverse academic disciplines as History,
Biology, Physics, Anthropology, Archeology, Comparative Theology, Philosophy, Art History, Architecture,
Environmental Science and Geography, Economics, and – and – well – you get the idea. We have a lot on our
plates this year, but if you are the sort of person who likes understanding the “Why’s” behind the “What
Happened’s” you will enjoy this course. Along the way, we will get you ready to take the AP World History
Exam in May. This involves teaching you good historical analysis and detective skills, as well as helping you
improve your abilities to argue via the analytic essay form.
Our task is a daunting one: 200,000 years of history in slightly less than 8 months (once you eliminate
vacations, free days, and the like!) And, yes, this is a college-level course. So, you need to know, up front, that
you will have to do a lot of reading homework in this class, because we can’t possibly cover everything in the
limited class meetings we have together. To really be effective, this course requires about 30 minutes to an
hour of studying – mostly reading – each night during the school year. If you are unwilling or unable to find
the time and self-discipline to do this, you may want to rethink taking the class. Because of all the different
things this course integrates, I think it is the most interesting course I have ever taught, and I hope that you find
it just as fascinating. But, I would not be fair if I didn’t tell you that it was going to require work and time on
both our parts.
I’ve designed a summer assignment to introduce you to the course and the ideas of “Big History.” This
summer program work is REQUIRED if you intend to stay in WHAP. If any issues arise that prohibit you from
completing the assignment on time, please make an effort to contact me as soon as possible. I will be checking
my email daily to look for your responses!
AP World History (WHAP) Summer Assignments
1. Send me an email ([email protected]) acknowledging that you have read this assignment completely
and intend to complete it. While you are at it, tell me a little bit about yourself. Why are you taking this class?
What would you like to get out of it? What are your interests outside of school? Whenever you send me an
email, be sure to put WHAP in as the first part of the subject so that my spam filter doesn’t dump your email
directly to the waste bin!
**2. The World History Course Description from the College Board (who administers the whole AP Program)
is available online at:
http://apcentral.collegeboard.com/apc/public/repository/AP_WorldHistoryCED_Effective_Fall_2011.pdf (You
can download this or read it online, as you desire. But, you need to be able to do the following.) Read the
following sections, so you know what we are trying to do and how we will plan to do it:
a. The Four Historical Thinking Skills (page 7)
b. Course Themes (page 17)
c. Geographical Coverage (page 21)
d. Historical Periodization. (page 23)
Note that, given blank versions of the maps on page 22 of this Course Description, you should be able to fill in
the correct names on day one of class. Additionally, you should be able to state the Course Themes and Four
Historical Thinking Skills and explain them from memory on day one. Finally, you should be able on day one
of class, after a short class Q&A (Question and Answer) discussion, to explain what we mean by “Historical
Periodization” and explain why different historians use different period structures. **
3. Get yourself a copy of The History of the World in 6 Glasses by Tom Standage. You may buy it in
paperback, or electronically (from Amazon or one of the other eBook stores,) and use the Kindle Reader (or
some other eReader) to read it, either on a separate device or your tablet-if you can get the Kindle software to
load. Otherwise, you can just buy it new or used in paperback. Just be sure whatever you read it on will be
available to use in class at the beginning and throughout the year. Do be sure that your reader has some
method to allow you to mark up the text and make notes to yourself. “A History of the World in 6
Glasses tells the story of humanity from the Stone Age to the 21st century through the lens of beer, wine,
spirits, coffee, tea, and cola. Beer was first made in the Fertile Crescent and by 3000 B.C.E. was so important to
Mesopotamia and Egypt that it was used to pay wages. In ancient Greece wine became the main export of her
vast seaborne trade, helping spread Greek culture abroad. Spirits such as brandy and rum fueled the Age of
Exploration, fortifying seamen on long voyages and oiling the pernicious slave trade. Although coffee
originated in the Arab world, it stoked revolutionary thought in Europe during the Age of Reason, when
coffeehouses became centers of intellectual exchange. And hundreds of years after the Chinese began drinking
tea, it became especially popular in Britain, with far-reaching effects on British foreign policy. Finally, though
carbonated drinks were invented in 18th-century Europe they became a 20th-century phenomenon, and CocaCola in particular is the leading symbol of globalization.
For Tom Standage, each drink is a kind of technology, a catalyst for advancing culture by which he demonstrates the intricate
interplay of different civilizations. You may never look at your favorite drink the same way again.” (Amazon Description) You
are to complete the summer assignment on this book!
One final thought: You will find that much of the work in this course is purely intellectual, requiring you to
read and think about ideas or events, to develop your understanding. The fact that this “work” is not always
written is no excuse to short-cut or skip doing it – so (for your own success) GIVE IT THE ATTENTION IT
DESERVES 
Well… that’s about it! Have a great summer, full of relaxation and intellectual challenge. Get started on the
work. Email me if you have any questions!
Mr. Stephenson: [email protected]
Book Cover:
Book Details:
(from Amazon.com)
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Paperback: 311 pages
Publisher: Walker Publishing Company; trade
paper, later printing edition (May 16, 2006)
Language: English
ISBN-10: 0802715524
ISBN-13: 978-0802715524
Price : (as of 06/15/15) $12.95
(new, including shipping)
 The book will be
referenced in the class
throughout the school year.
*If for some reason you are having difficulty acquiring the text, please let me know via email
or stop by room F-26 at RHS (My room!).
Project Check Sheet – Did you:
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Obtain the book?
Read it?
Create your cover page?
Complete your journals?
Complete your Venn Diagram?
Type all responses in Times New Roman, font size 12, double-spaced?
Email/turn in your project to Mr. Stephenson by August 13, 2015?
Thesis Statement:
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Direct Comparison with Analysis:
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Direct Contrast with Analysis:
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