Download World History H Summer Assignment 2016

World History Honors
Mr. Terry
2016-17 Summer Assignment
History, Perspective, and Human Societies
Hello and welcome to World History Honors! This social studies course is intended to be challenging, but
also rewarding for those who truly engage with the questions we will be grappling with both inside and
beyond the classroom. To start things off, we would like you to complete the following assignment this
summer, and be prepared to turn it in on the first day of school.
The assignment will be based around the viewing of two episodes of Guns, Germs, and Steel and ask you
to think about the importance of perspective. The videos are from a National Geographic presentation that
is based on the bestselling book by Jared Diamond.
Directions:
1. View Guns, Germs, and Steel Episode 1, titled “Out of Eden,” and respond to the video questions
on the attached worksheet. The video can be accessed on YouTube by typing in this address
(https://youtu.be/QwZ4s8Fsv94), or simply by searching for it by typing key words into the
YouTube search bar.
2. View Guns, Germs, and Steel Episode 2, titled “Conquest,” and respond to the video questions on
the attached worksheet. The video can be accessed on YouTube by typing in this address
(https://youtu.be/iR8OaVDB3_E), or simply by searching for it by typing key words into the
YouTube search bar.
3. Write a two-page reflection that addresses each of the following questions:
a. What is perspective?
b. What is Jared Diamond’s perspective about history? What is the big question he is
trying to answer and what is his argument? What evidence does he use to support this
argument?
c. Jared Diamond’s book focuses on human societies in various parts of the world (for
example, New Guinea, Europe, and South America). How can our understanding of
human societies in history help us understand the perspective of people living in
different places around the world today? How has history impacted the way that people
live?
d. Jared Diamond’s book focuses on the role that geography plays in what makes societies
powerful or wealthy. How has this changed your perspective on history and how human
societies develop or interact? Cite evidence from the video to support your answer.
The reflection should be typed, using formatting according to the Modern Language Association
(MLA). Grading on this assignment will not stress formatting. However, this is a skill that will be
required for writing in any history course at JTHS, so consider this a good opportunity to
practice! Tips on writing using MLA can be found here:
https://owl.english.purdue.edu/owl/resource/747/01/.
My contact information is listed below if you have any questions or concerns. You are expected to be on
your A-game for this course, and I am confident you can do so. Enjoy the summer and this assignment,
and I will be looking forward to seeing you in the fall!
Mr. Terry: [email protected]
World History Honors
Mr. Terry
World History Honors
Mr. Terry
Guns, Germs, and Steel: Episode 1 “Out of Eden”
Video Questions:
1. According to Jared Diamond, what are the three major elements that separate the world’s “haves”
from the “have nots”?
2. Jared Diamond refers to the people of New Guinea as “among the world’s most culturally diverse
and adaptable people in the world”, yet they have much less than modern Americans. Diamond
has developed a theory about what has caused these huge discrepancies among different
countries, and he says it boils down to geographic luck. Give several examples from the film to
support Diamond’s theory.
3. For thousands of years, people have been cultivating crops. Describe the process used to
domesticate crops and create plants that yielded bigger, tastier harvests.
4. According to Diamond, livestock also plays a significant role in a civilization’s ability to become
rich and powerful. How did the domestication of animals help people? Give several examples.
World History Honors
Mr. Terry
5. List the animals that can be domesticated and where they can be found.
6. Looking at the list of animals and locations from question 5, discuss how Diamond’s theory about
geographic luck applies here.
7. How did the movement of the early civilizations of the Fertile Crescent (Middle East) further
support Diamond’s idea that geography played a key role in the success of a civilization?
8. Do you agree with Jared Diamond when he says of a civilizations ability to gain power, wealth,
and strength, “...what’s far more important is the hand that people have been dealt, the raw
materials they’ve had at their disposal.” Why or why not?
World History Honors
Mr. Terry
Guns, Germs, and Steel: Episode 2 “Conquest”
Video Questions:
1. At the time that the Spanish conquistador’s invaded the Inca Empire, they were armed with state
of the art weaponry. Describe this weaponry.
2. What is Jared Diamond’s explanation for why the Spanish had advanced to steel swords while
Inca’s were still making tools and weapons from bronze?
3. How did the battle tactics used by the Spanish conquistadors help the small army defeat the Inca
army that outnumbered it by the thousands?
4. According to Jared Diamond, what made the Europeans “accidental conquerors”?