Download Welcome to AP World History

Welcome to AP World History
Ms. Sheets
UHS 2014-2015
What is the AP
(Advanced Placement)?
•
The AP, or Advanced Placement,
indicates a college-level course. Through
college-level coursework and exams,
students can earn college credit by taking
the AP Exam.
•
The AP Exam is given at the end of the
year and depending on your grade and
the university you attend, your test score
can count for college credit.
Why take the AP?
• You can get a head-start on
college!
• If you pass the AP Exam, you
won’t have to take or pay (and
college is expensive) for the
courses you’ve taken.
• It looks great on college
applications.
• You will gain skills that will
help you be successful in
college.
• You are preparing for it all
year!
What should I expect this year in
AP World History?
• Expect to work hard.
• Expect to improve your writing skills and
sharpen your problem-solving techniques.
• Expect to engage in intense discussions and
learn to write clearly and persuasively.
• Expect to learn test-taking strategies that will
help you be successful on the AP Exam.
• Expect to learn… A LOT.
What does the AP Test look like?
• Three hours and five minutes
• 70 multiple choice questions
– Worth 50% of the AP Exam grade
– 55 minutes long
• 3 essay questions
– Worth 50% of the AP Exam grade
1. DBQ- Document Based Essay Question
– 50 minutes long
2. Continuity and Change Over Time Essay
– 40 minutes long
3. Comparative Essay
– 40 minutes long
• The AP World History Exam will take place on Thursday, May 14th
2015
Where can I find good resources to
prepare for this course?
• collegeboard.com website
– Find World History under Courses and Exams
– Here you can find outlines, sample questions,
past essay questions and scoring guidelines
• John Green’s Crash Course Youtube channel
• The website to our textbook
– http://wps.ablongman.com/long_stearns_wca
p_4/ (also on syllabus)
– Here you can find sample questions, glossaries,
flashcards, suggested readings.
What are good study guides I can find?
• Buy one as soon as possible!
• Cracking the AP World History
Exam by Princeton Review
• 5 Steps to a 5 AP World History
by Peggy Martin
• Kaplan AP World History by
Jen Laden and Patrick Whelan
Also…
• This course will be your primary resource to
passing the AP Exam. However, I cannot cover
it all, so you must read your book.
• There are many good resources outside of this
class. Many of them you can get for free by
simply going on the internet.
• You can also purchase many test guides at
Barnes and Noble or amazon.com.
What is AP World History?
1) Course was created in an effort to look at the world
as an interrelated system, rather than looking at how
Europe imposes itself upon the rest of the world (Eurocentric)
2) Follows current historical scholarship
3) Examines 5 different geographical regions, 6
different time periods, and 5 different themes (SPICE)
4) Focuses more on comparisons, connections, trends,
themes rather than details and rote memorization
1) Americas
Five Regions
2) Africa 3) Europe
4) Asia
Each region will be 20% of the course
5) Oceania
Time Periods
1) 8,000 BCE – 600 BCE
2) 600 BCE – 600 CE
Unit 1
3) 600 CE – 1450 CE
Unit 2
4) 1450 CE – 1750 CE
Unit 3
5) 1750 CE – 1900
Unit 4
6) 1900 - present
Unit 5
SPICE Themes
1) Social
Gender, family, race, ethnicity, classes
2) Political
Governance, empires, nations, revolts and revolutions
3) Interactions with the environment
Disease, migration, settlements, technology
4) Cultural
Religion, philosophies, science, arts, architecture
5) Economic
Agriculture, production, trade, commerce, labor,
industry
In conclusion…
• Please remember that you will be working
hard this year.
• You will need to devote a lot of your time
to studying outside of this class.
• The AP Exam is 287 days away! We have a
lot of work to do until then.
• Any questions?