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AP UNITED STATES HISTORY
SYLLABUS
This course is designed to provide a college-level experience and prepare students for
the AP Exam in the spring. Students are required to master a significant level of
information from classroom lecture, required readings and document assessment. The
course also required the composition of critical essays based on various topics and
documents. We will examine various aspects of American history including culture,
government, economy and diplomacy from the arrival of the earliest native peoples to the
21st Century.
In addition to the topics listed above, the course will emphasize a series of key themes
throughout the year. These themes have been determined by the College Board as
essential to a comprehensive study of United States history. The themes will include
discussions of American diversity, the westward movement of Americans, the evolution
of American culture, the change from agrarian to industrial society and its impacts on
American culture, economic trends and transformations, the study of immigration
patterns and nativism, the gradual appearance of environmental concern,
CR 5- The Course
the development of American political structures and the democratization
uses themes and/or
topics as broad
of America, social reform movements, the role of religion in the making of
parameters for
the United States and its impact in a multicultural society, the history of
structuring the
slavery and segregation, and finally, the diplomatic evolution of America
course
from isolationism to internationalism. [CR5] The course will trace these
themes throughout the year, emphasizing the ways in which they are interconnected and
examining the ways in which each helps to shape the changes over time that are so
important to understanding United States history.
TEXTBOOK and supplementary materials
Kennedy, David M., Lizabeth Cohen, and Thomas Bailey. The American
Pageant. 13th ed. Boston, Mass.: Houghton Mifflin Co., 2006.
Dollar, Charles M., and Reichard, Gary W. American Issues: A Documentary Reader.
New York: McGraw-Hill Co., 2002.
Sinclair, Upton. The Jungle. Bantam Publishers, New York. 1906.
Hymowitz, Carol and Michaele Weissman. A History of Women in
America. Bantam Publishers, New York. 1984 [CR6]
Kennan, George F. American Diplomacy. Expanded edition. 187p.
1957,1979, and 1984. Series Walgreen Foundation Lecutres.
CR6- The course
teaches students to
analyze evidence and
interpretations
presented in historical
scholarship.
GRADING PROCEDURES
Student grades will consist of one objective and one-essay tests per unit (each worth
100pts). Reading quizzes, assigned essays and outside assignments of varying point
values. Essay grades will be computed based on analysis of outside information and
critical documents using AP guidelines.
FIRST SEMESTER OUTLINE
WEEK ONE: UNIT ONE
1. Pre-Columbian era and early European settlement. The
establishment of Jamestown and Massachusetts. Pageant Read
Chapters 1 and 2.
2. Writing critical essays- structure and analysis practice (Essay 1Compare and contrast the political, economic and social structures
of the early Chesapeake and New England colonies.) [CR8]
WEEK TWO:
1. Colonial development: The British North American colonies had
experience and an expectation of self-government politically,
economically and socially. (Fundamental Orders of Connecticut,
New England Confederation, etc) [CR1] Pageant- Chapters 2 /3
2. Analyze critical historical documents/ DBQ structure and tips
3. Geography Quiz (13 Colonies)
4. Critical reading strategies- Main Idea Logs
WEEK THREE:
1. American society in the 1700’s: Great Awakening, salutary
neglect, immigration patterns and the French and Indian War. [CR2]
Pageant- Chapters 5 and 6.
2. UNIT ONE EVALUATION
CR 8- The Course
provides students with
frequent practice in
writing analytical and
interpretive essays such
as document based
questions and thematic
essays.
CR1- Evidence of
Curricular Requirement:
The course includes the
study of political
institutions in US
History.
CR2- The Course
includes the study of
social and cultural
developments in U.S.
history.
WEEK FOUR: UNIT TWO
1. End of salutary neglect and the growing desire for independence. Pageant- Chapter 7
2. Development of Critical thinking skills- Association Chains/ Generalizations
3. Critical reading-
Common Sense [CR7]
The Declaration of Independence
Excerpts from the Continental Association
WEEK FIVE
1. The American Revolution and the Articles of Confederation
Pageant- Chapter 8-9
CR7-Evidence of
Curricular Requirement:
the course includes
extensive instruction in
analysis and
interpretation of a wide
variety of primary
sources.
2. DBQ- 2004 Question (Effect of the French and Indian War) [CR8]
3. Geography Quiz- War for Indpendence
WEEK SIX
1. The Constitutional Debate and the early Republic. Republican Motherhood, slavery,
and political party development. Pageant- Chapter 10 [CR1]
2. Outside reading- Excerpts from the Federalist and Anti-Federalist.[CR7]
3. Amendment/Constitutional Quiz
4. UNIT TWO EVALUATIONS
WEEK SEVEN- UNIT THREE
1. Jeffersonian Democracy- Election of 1800, Territorial Expansion and Foreign Affairs.
Pageant- Chapter 11
2. Analyze Historical Documents- Embargo Act/Louisiana Purchase/ Marbury v. Madison
3. Geography Quiz- Territorial expansion/border settlements and new states
WEEK EIGHT
1. The War of 1812, the Era of Good Feelings and the American
System- Growing Nationalism and Sectionalism. [CR4] Pageant- Chapter
12-13.
2. Document Assessment- Judicial Cases pertaining to nationalism
[CR1]
3. UNIT THREE EXAMS
WEEK NINE-UNIT FOUR
1. Jacksonian Democracy- Nullification Crisis, the Bank War and Indian
affairs. Pageant Chapter 13
2. DBQ-2002 [CR8]
WEEK TEN
1. Second Party System and the National Economy- Van Buren, Panic
of 1837, Texas and the Election of 1840. Pageant- Chapter 14
2. Critical thinking skills- Association Chains
3. Geography- Indian Removal
4. Internet research- Immigration
WEEK ELEVEN
1. Reform Movements- Seneca Falls, Transcendentalism, Utopian
societies, Temperance, etc. [CR2] Pageant- Chapter 15
2. Document Assessment- Seneca Falls Declaration
3. Critical Writing Skills- Thesis development [CR8]
4. UNIT FOUR TESTS
CR4- The course
includes the study of
economic trends in U.S.
history.
CR1- Evidence of
Curricular Requirement:
The course includes the
study of political
institutions in US
History.
CR 8- The Course
provides students with
frequent practice in
writing analytical and
interpretive essays such
as document based
questions and thematic
essays.
CR2- The Course
includes the study of
social and cultural
developments in U.S.
history.
WEEK TWELVE- UNIT FIVE
1. Antebellum South, Manifest Destiny and the Slave Controversy- “King Cotton”, slave
culture, and abolition. Pageant- 16-17
2. Geography- Territorial Acquisitions
3. Document Analysis- Webster-Ashburton Treaty, Treaty of Guadalupe-Hidalgo, etc.
WEEK THIRTEEN
1. The Growing Sectional Divide- Compromise of 1850, Wilmot Proviso, anti-slavery
politics, secession. Pageant-18-19
2. DBQ- 2005 [CR8]
3. Document Analysis- Dred Scot v Sanford and Lincoln- Douglas Debate
WEEK FOURTEEN
1. The War for Union and Reconstruction- Economics, politics and cultures of the union
and Confederacy. Pageant- 20-22
2. Geography- Critical battles of the Civil War/ Military Reconstruction
3. UNIT 5 TESTS
WEEK FIFTEEN – UNIT SIX
1. Gilded Age Politics- political corruption, economics, cultural
struggles and the end of Reconstruction. Pageant -23
2. Political Cartoon Analysis- Thomas Nast and Harper’s Weekly
[CR7]
CR7-Evidence of
Curricular Requirement:
the course includes
extensive instruction in
analysis and
interpretation of a wide
variety of primary
sources.
WEEK SIXTEEN
1. The Westward Movement/Industrialization/ and Urbanization. Pageant 24-26
2. Document Analysis- Homestead Act, How the Other Half Lives, Atlanta
Exposition [CR7] “The Frontier Thesis” by Frederick Jackson Turner
3. 3. Computer Research-Immigration and nativism
4. Geography- Statehood
5. Project- Students will analyze excerpts from A Century of Dishonor and Bury My
Heart at Wounded Knee . They must examine the following [CR6]
MISTREATMENT OF NATIVES BY THE EUROPEAN
CR6- The course
EXPLORERS
teaches students to
analyze evidence and
CONFLICTS BETWEEN EARLY SETTLERS AND THE
interpretations
NATIVE TRIBES
presented in historical
GOVERNMENT POLICY TOWARD THE NATIVES
scholarship.
BETWEEN 1789 AND 1900
WEEK SEVENTEEN
1. UNIT 6 EXAMS and Semester Review
2. Critical Essay- reading and comparing
WEEK EIGHTEEN
1. SEMESTER EXAM WEEK
2. Review activities and exams
SECOND SEMESTER
CR6- The course
teaches students to
analyze evidence and
interpretations
presented in historical
scholarship.
Second Semester will utilize American Diplomacy during foreign policy discussions.
Students will analyze various foreign policy decisions based on the scholarship of
Kennan. [CR6]
WEEK ONE- All reading assignments completed by 1/10
1. Review of Semester One Material
2. ESSAY- Analysis Activity (APPARTS introduction) [CR8]
3. Chapters 16-17 (American Issues)
WEEK TWO (1/17)
1. Semester One Review/ Tests (1/11 and 1/12)
2. DBQ-2000 [CR8]
3. Chapter 18 (American Issues)
CR 8- The Course
provides students with
frequent practice in
writing analytical and
interpretive essays such
as document based
questions and thematic
essays.
WEEK THREE (1/24)-UNIT 1
CR3- The Course
1. American Imperialism- Hawaii. the Spanish American War and
includes the study of
the Roosevelt Corollary. [CR3] Pageant 27-28: Chapter 19
diplomacy in U.S.
history.
(American Issues)
2. Geography- World Imperialism
3. Essay Writing and Critical Analysis Skill- Roosevelt Corollary, Platt Amendment, etc.
[CR7]
WEEK FOUR (1/31)
1. The Progressive Movement- Roosevelt and Taft/ Muckraking
[CR2] Pageant 29: Chapter 20 (American Issues)
2. Document Analysis- “The Jungle”, Muller v Oregon
3. Geography- Women’s Suffrage
WEEK FIVE (2/7)
1. Wilson and World War One- Missionary Diplomacy [CR3],
Triple Wall of privilege. Pageant 30-31
2. DBQ- 1995 [CR8]
3. Film/Document Analysis- Sergeant York, Declaration of
Neutrality, Fourteen Points.
4. Geography-World War I
WEEK SIX (2/14)
1. World War I/Unit Exam (2/13 and 2/14)- Fourteen Points and
the League of Nations. The Great Migration and role of women.
Pageant 32-33.
2. Document Analysis- Schneck v United States, Espionage Act
3. Essay Writing
CR2- The Course
includes the study of
social and cultural
developments in U.S.
history.
CR3- The Course
includes the study of
diplomacy in U.S.
history.
CR 8- The Course
provides students with
frequent practice in
writing analytical and
interpretive essays such
as document based
questions and thematic
essays.
WEEK SEVEN (2/21)-UNIT 2
UNIT THEMES
CR7-Evidence of
 The Roaring Twenties: A challenge to Victorian values
Curricular Requirement:
 Economic and political factors leading to the Great
the course includes
extensive instruction in
Depression.
analysis and
 FDR, the New Deal and the changing role of government.
interpretation of a wide
variety of primary
 American diplomacy: continued isolation and disarmament.
sources.
 Total war brings economic boom and the emergence of
America as a superpower.
1. The Roaring 20’s- Political Corruption, immigration restriction, Red Scare and
Isolation. [CR2] Pageant 34: Chapter 21 (American Issues)
2. Analysis- Inherit the Wind, The Great Gatsby, Kellogg-Briand [CR7}
3. Internet Research- Second Gilded Age
WEEK EIGHT (2/28)
1. The Great Depression, the New Deal and the Looming
International Crisis. Pageant-34: Chapter 22 (American Issues)
2. Quiz- New Deal Agencies
3. Geography-Looming Crisis
4. Document- Keynesian Economics [CR4], The Grapes of Wrath
WEEK NINE (3/7)
1. World War Two- Effects on American society and manufacturing,
citizen soldiers, and unconditional surrender. Pageant 35-36:
Chapter 23-24 (American Issues)
2. Geography- World War II
3. DBQ- 2004 [CR8]
WEEK TEN (3/14)
1. Unit Test (3/5 and 3/6)/ Post War World/ American Society in the
50’s [CR2]- Cold War- containment, Berlin, Korea [CR4] and
McCarthyism. Pageant 37-38: Chapter 25-26 (AI)
2. Geography- Cold War
3. Essay Writing and Critical Analysis- NSC-68, The Crucible,
(Thesis writing), The Feminine Mystique
CR4- The course
includes the study of
economic trends in U.S.
history.
CR 8- The Course
provides students with
frequent practice in
writing analytical and
interpretive essays such
as document based
questions and thematic
essays.
CR2- The Course
includes the study of
social and cultural
developments in U.S.
history.
CR4- The course
includes the study of
economic trends in U.S.
history.
WEEK ELEVEN (3/28) UNIT 3
UNIT THEMES
 The Cold War: A struggle of economic, political and cultural ideology.
 Foreign Policy: Containment, Brinkmanship and undeclared war.
 Post-war America- demographic changes, the struggle for Civil Rights, and
McCarthyism.
 Modern America and the Age of Terrorism
CR1- Evidence of
Curricular Requirement:
1. America in the 1960’s- JFK, LBJ, Cuba, Vietnam, Civil Rights, the
The course includes the
Women’s Movement [CR2]and the Great Society.[CR1] Pageant 39:
study of political
institutions in US
Chapter 27 (AI)
History.
2. DBQ- 1992
3. Essays and Critical Analysis- TBA
WEEK TWELVE (4/4)
1. The 70’s and 80’s- Watergate, Vietnam, Economic Crisis , Détente [CR4], and
Reaganomics. Pageant- 40-41: Chapter 28 (AI)
2. Essay Writing- Analyze critical Essays [CR8]
3. Geography- Cold War and Camp David
WEEK THIRTEEN (4/11)
1. The 90’s- Persian Gulf War, Clinton Administration, Impeachment, and the age of
Terror. Unit Exams. (April 9-10) Pageant-41-42: Chapters 29-30 (AI)
2. DBQ- Cold War
3. Internet Research- “Contract With America”/ Immigration Issues
4. Geography- Terrorism
WEEK FOURTEEN
1. AP Exam Review- Presidential administrations- association chains
2. Practice Exam Multiple Choice
WEEK FIFTEEN
1. AP Exam Review- Essay/ DBQ [CR7] [CR8]
2. Association Chains/ Generalizations
WEEK SIXTEEN
1. AP EXAM WEEK
2. AP Review
WEEK SEVENTEEN
1. Research- Current Issues- Eminent Domain/ Stem Cell
Research/ TBD
2. Current Issues class debate
WEEK EIGHTEEN
1. Semester Exam Review/ Semester Exam
CR7-Evidence of
Curricular Requirement:
the course includes
extensive instruction in
analysis and
interpretation of a wide
variety of primary
sources.
CR 8- The Course
provides students with
frequent practice in
writing analytical and
interpretive essays such
as document based
questions and thematic
essays.