AP U.S. History Syllabus and Course Description
(CEEB 222135)
Course Description
AP U.S. History will begin its study in the European exploration and colonization period and continue through
the challenges and promises of a Post 9/11 nation. The course will emphasize a critical thinking approach to
the study of U.S. History. What this means is that instead of simply reviewing the major historical
developments during our class period, we will focus class discussions on a problematic approach. Each class
will be a discussion of an issue related to the time frame being discussed. Not only will we explore various
historical problems, we will explore the thought process that students go through in their attempt to solve
these problems. In this way, we hope to improve the critical thinking ability of students.
A major goal of this course is to prepare students for the AP U.S. History Examination. This goal will be
accomplished by exposing students to the writing, testing and analytical requirements of the AP program
as the course proceeds. All unit tests/ quizzes in this course will be made up, in part, of sections from old
AP exams and specialized projects designed to help students prepare for the AP exam will be assigned
throughout the semester. All unit exams contain open response questions requiring students to develop
an historical thesis. Students will be encouraged to purchase an AP review book at their own expense.
Central Objectives
Upon completion of this course, the student will demonstrate the following:
A. An understanding of the political, economic and social trends of the historical period covered,
and their interrelationships over time. [cr1,2,5]
B. An understanding of the terminology used in the study of U.S. History.
C. An understanding of the connections between American literature, art and music through
readings, illustrations and recordings.[cr 2]
D. An understanding of major themes in the history of America, such as industrialization,
progressivism, capitalism, militarism, and internationalism.[cr 1,2,3,4]
E. Be able to recognize the relationship and points of comparison between historical and current
events as well as the changes in historical interpretation over time. [cr 5,6]
F. An improvement in historical argument writing skills within the curriculum, through the
completion of FRQs, DBQs, debates, simulations and classroom and on-line discussion.[cr
7,8]
G. Accountability of text readings, primary source documents, writing assignments and oral
participation assignments. [cr7]
H. Note taking skills by keeping a neat, organized notebook.
I. The ability to understand their rights and responsibilities as citizens.
J. A development in their critical thinking skills and the application of those skills to the study of
U.S. History.
General Themes
The AP course will examine aspects of U.S. History using PRIMES, analysis using political, religious,
intellectual, militaristic, economic and social lenses. In addition, the course has been designed to
correspond to the fullest extent possible with the students’ honors English curriculum to examine works of
American literature in conjunction with their historically relevant time periods. The following thematic
guiding questions will be used and revisited when appropriate throughout the course via class discussion,
essays, and interdisciplinary projects.
“We the people....” What does it mean to be an American and how has this been altered over
time? Who‟s in? Who‟s out? Who‟s idealized? Who‟s marginalized?
“Life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness” What does it mean to pursue and live the
American Dream? How has the dream been cast and recast over time?
“We shall be as a city upon a hill” What has been America‟s role on the world stage? How
has its significance been magnified over the course of the nation‟s history?
“Ask not what your country can do for you, ask what you can do for your country.” What
are our rights and responsibilities as American citizens vis-à-vis our government and each other?
How has the nature of these relationships changed? [cr 5]
Major Activities
A.
B.
C.
D.
E.
F.
G.
H.
Daily class discussion
Critical thinking/analysis activities
Interdisciplinary activities incorporating music, art and literature [cr2]
Interpreting primary and secondary source material [cr6,7]
Expository and persuasive written composition using FRQs and DBQs. [cr 8]
Historical simulation, debate and role playing
Computer assisted research
Cooperatively grouped projects
General Expectations
A.
Text/Ancillary Readings
Students will come to class prepared to discuss reading and homework assignments.
They must have studied the material and be able to contribute to class discussion using
relevant vocabulary and knowledge of people, places, events and themes. The
information in the text will be used as the background information for more elaborate
class discussions and activities.
B.
Class
In addition to the general expectations outlined in the student handbook, students will be
expected to:
1. arrive to class with all necessary materials including text, handouts, homework
assignments, pen and pencil;
2. maintain a loose-leaf notebook containing essential information from class discussion
and activities;
3. maintain a spiral notebook of notes taken during lectures and class activities;
4. promote a collegiate, respectful atmosphere conducive to learning;
5. become involved and take part in discussions and activities;
6. complete all work by the due date (Late assignments will be penalized unless
permission has been granted by the teacher);
7. keep electronic and hard copies of all work.
C.
Makeup Policy
Students are expected to complete homework, tests and quizzes by the assigned due
date. If a student is legitimately absent on those days, he/she is expected to complete
the work within the following time frame:
One day absence-work to be completed within two days of a student’s return to
school
Two or more days absence-work to be completed within seven calendar days of
a student’s return to school.
If there are extenuating circumstances, it is the student’s responsibility to discuss them
with the teacher on the day the student returns to school. The teacher will determine if it
is appropriate to make alternative arrangements.
Evaluation
Students should maintain a folder of all evaluated work. Weights for assignments are as follows:
A.
B.
C.
D.
E.
F.
Examinations
Quizzes
Group Activities
FRQs and DBQs
Major Projects
Class Participation/Public Speaking
100 points
10-50 points
10-100 points
20-100 points
100-200 points
10-50 points
Texts
Bailey, T., Kennedy,D. and Cohen, L. The American Pageant. Houghton Mifflin, 1998.
Bailey, T. and Kennedy, D (Eds.) . The American Spirit, Vols. 1-2, Houghton Mifflin, 1998
Various other articles and handouts to be used as referenced in the scope and sequence.
Scope and Sequence
UNIT 1: PRECOLUMBIAN AMERICA
Key Objectives: [cr 1,2]
Precolumbian Empires of the Americas Inca, Aztec, Maya
North American Nations
Precolumbian Political Sytems (Case Studies: Iroquois and Pueblo)
Required Reading (Textbook, Other Sources, Documents): [cr1,6]
Bailey Chp. 1
Sahir, D. “Native American Governments in Today’s Curriculum, Social Education, 1997.
Major Activities and Assessments: [cr 1,2]
Anasazi Powerpoint Presentation
Unit Quiz
UNIT 2: EUROPEAN COLONIZATION AND EXPLORATION
Key Objectives: [cr 1,2,3,4,5]
Muslim Origins of the European Renaissance
Economic, Social, Political Reasons for European Exploration
Spanish and Portuguese Effect on Western Hemisphere
Spanish and Portuguese Settlements
Columbian Exchange
Encomiendas and other Economic Systems
Required Reading (Textbook, Other Sources, Documents): [cr 2,3,4,5,6,7]
Bailey, Chp.1
Gines, J. “The Second Democrates” (excerpt)
Las Casas, B. “Thirty Very Judicial Propositions” (excerpt)
Loewen, J. “The True Importance of Christopher Columbus.” Lies My Teacher Told Me.
Major Activities and Assessments: [cr 1,2,3,4,5,8]
th
FRQ: “By the dawn of the 17 century, there came together in Europe both the motivation and
means to explore and colonize territory across the seas.” Assess the validity of this statement
vis-à-vis politics, trade and technology.
UNIT 3: THE EXPANSION OF BRITISH POWER
Key Objectives: [cr 1,2,4,5]
English Colonization: Jamestown, Chesapeake, Plymouth, New England
Economic, Social, Political Reasons for Colonization
The Terrible Transformation from Indentured Servitude to Caste Slavery in the Colonial
Chesapeake
Religious Diversity and Tolerance: The Role of Religion in Colonial Settlement
Calvinism
Required Reading (Textbook, Other Sources, Documents) [cr 1,2,3,4,7]
Bailey Chp. 2-3
Hulton, P. American 1585: The Complete Drawings of John White
Smith, J. Starving Time
Maryland Act of Toleration
Winthrop, J. Modell of Christian Charitie
Mayflower Compact
Fundamental Orders of Connecticut
Rowlandson, M. Account of Indian captivity
Major Activities and Assessments [cr 1,4,5]
Exploration Policy Group Chart (including Goals, Location, Contact with American Indians,
Economic Incentives, Results)
Fishbowl Debate: Separation of Church and State: A Good or Bad Idea in Colonial New
England?
Unit Exam Chp. 1-3
UNIT 4: COLONIAL SOCIETY, COLONIAL LIFE
Key Objectives: [cr 1,2,4,5]
The Terrible Transformation from Indentured Servitude to Caste Slavery in the Colonial
Chesapeake
Middle Passage
Population and Demographics of the 13 English Colonies
Settlement Patterns and their Effects on Ways of Living: Chesapeake vs. New England
Colonial Great Migration
Changes in Religion in Daily Life: Half-Way Covenant, Enlightenment, Great Awakening
Emerging Social Institutions and Class Structures (Family, Religion, Education, Politics,
Economics)
Required Reading (Textbook, Other Sources, Documents): [cr 1,2,4,5,6,7]
Bailey Chp. 4-5
Loewen, J. “The Truth About the First Thanksgiving.” Lies My Teacher Told Me.
McCarthy, M. “Pride and Protest: Past and Present Come Together in Plymouth.” Brockton
Enterprise.
McCarthy, M. “American Indian Group Piles Dirt onto Monument.” Brockton Enterprise.
“Terrible Transformation.” Africans in America (Part I PBS Documentary)
Bacon’s Rebellion Documents: Royal Commission Report on Rebellion; Berkeley Upholds the
Law; Fontaine Defends Slavery
Equiano, O. I Saw a Slave Ship.
Mather, C. Diary of Cotton Mather (on Education of His Children)
Danckaerts, J. Journal of Jasper Danckaerts, (on Harvard College)
Heyrman. Half Way Covenant.
Crevecoeur, M. Letters from an American Farmer (on Being an American)
Franklin, B. Autobiography of Benjamin Franklin (on George Whitefield)
Edwards, J. Sinner in the Hands of an Angry God.
Major Activities and Assessments: [cr 1,2,3,4,5,6,7,8]
Graphic Organizer Comparing New England and the Chesapeake on the following factors:
Geography, Climate, Mortality, Gender Ratios, Family Relations, Cultural Diversity, Economy,
Settlement Pattern
Debate: Reinterpreting History: Were the Wampanoag’s Justified in Burying Plymouth Rock
during the Pilgrims’ Progress Parade in the late 1990s?
DBQ: “Democracy in Wethersfield” Was American society, as evidenced by Wethersfield,
Connecticut, becoming more “democratic” in the period from the 1750s to the 1780s? Discuss
with reference to property distribution, social structure, politics and religion. 1976 DBQ, Doing the
DBQ.
FRQ: “We think about [racial caste] slavery as this complete package that just came to evil
landowners. It didn‟t happen that way. It happened one law at a time, one person at a time.” –
Francis Lattimer, Historian. Assess the validity of this statement in light of our study of the
colonial Chesapeake and our viewing of the Terrible Transformation documentary.
Guest Speaker: Salem Witchcraft Hysteria. Mr. Donald Doliber
Unit Exam Chp. 4-5
UNIT 5: THE REVOLUTIONARY WAR
Key Objectives: [cr 3,4,5,6]
Mercantilism, Salutary Neglect and the Road to Imperial Conflict
French Colonization and Clashes with the English
French and Indian War
British Policies and Colonial Reaction
Progress of the Revolutionary War
Courting “Undecideds” Triangularity of the War (Dr. Christine Daniels, Michigan State University,
Department of History)
The African American Dilemma of the Revolutionary War (Dr. Christine Daniels, Michigan State
University, Department of History)
Required Reading (Textbook, Other Sources, Documents): [cr1,3,5,7]
Bailey Chp. 6-8
Revolutionary War Document Packet (includes: Franklin’s Join or Die (cartoon) from FrenchIndian War, Resolutions of the Stamp Act Congress, Parkman, F. Analyzes the Conflict,
Burnaby, A. Scoffs at Colonial Unity, Henry, P. Give Me Liberty or Give Me Death, Paine,T.
Common Sense, Lee‟s Resolution, Declaration of Independence, Washington, G. Rules of
Civility and Decent Behavior in Company and Conversation. (schoolbook) Paine,T. The Crisis,
Magna Britania: Her Colonies Reduced (cartoon), Its Companion 1768 (cartoon), Tucker, Advises
a Divorce, Smith, A. Criticizes Empire, Johnson, S. Urges the Iron Fist, Leonard, D. Deplores
Rebellion, Inglis, C. The True Interest of America.
Revolutionary War Paper Currency (facsimile)
General Washington in Massachusetts, Revolutionary War Document Sets (Massachusetts State
Archives)
The Revolutionary War (History Channel Documentary)
Major Activities and Assessments: [cr 2,3,4,5,7,8]
DBQ: To what extent had the colonists developed a sense of their identity and unity as Americans
by the eve of the Revolution? (1999 DBQ)
FRQ: “This history of the present King of Great Britain is a history of repeated injuries and
usurpation, all having, in direct object, the establishment of an absolute tyranny over these
states.” Evaluation this accusation made against George III in the Declaration of Independence.
(1988 FRQ)
FRQ: Assess the economic, social and political reasons why the British move the war southward
and seaward following Saratoga.
Debate: Whigs and Tories at the Local Tavern
Project: War of Independence Colonial Scrapbook and Breakfast
Unit Exam Chp. 6-8
UNIT 6: AMERICAN GOVERNMENT: THE ARTICLES OF CONFEDERATION AND THE
CONSTITUTION
Key Objectives: [cr 1]
The Articles of Confederation
Land Issues and other Problems of Confederation
State Constitutions and their role in drafting a federal Constitution
Philosophical Underpinnings of the Constitution (Locke, Montesquieu, Rousseau)
Constitutional Convention
Federalists, Anti Federalists and the Ratification Debate
Required Reading (Textbook, Other Sources, Documents): [cr 1,6,7]
Bailey, Chp. 9
Gray, D. Explains the Shaysites‟ Grievances
Washington, G. Expresses Alarm
Jefferson, T. Tree of Liberty Letter
Federalist No. 10
Federalist No. 55
“Debates in the Federal Convention of 1787”,The Avalon Project Yale Law School.
Zinn, “A Kind of Revolution,” A People‟s History of the United States.
Major Activities and Assessments: [cr 1]
Simulation Constitutional Convention
Fishbowl Debate: Is the Electoral College Antiquated?
Socratic Seminar: The Constitution: A Liberal or Conservative Document?
Unit Quiz Chp. 9 and Constitutional Law
UNIT 7: THE EARLY REPUBLIC
Key Objectives: [cr 1, 2, 3, 4]
Washington’s Precedents
The Hamiltonian Stamp on the Treasury and the Economy
Foreign Policy and the New Republic
Formation and Challenges of Political Parties (Hamiltonians vs. Jeffersonians)
Jeffersonian Democracy
Economic and Territorial Growth
War of 1812 and its impact
The So Called Era of Good Feelings
The Marshall Court and the Early Influence of the Supreme Court
Required Reading (Textbook, Other Sources, Documents): [1,2,3,4,7]
Bailey Chp. 10-12
Washington, G. Farewell Address.
American Spirit Readings comparing and contrasting Federalists and Democratic-Republicans
Star Spangled Banner Document Packet (includes: Pickersgill Purdy, C. Letter to Georgiana
Armistead Appleton, 1876, Receipts from Mr. James Calhoun Junior Deputy Commissary to Mary
Pickersgill for completion of the flag, Alien and Sedition Acts, Key, F.S. Star Spangled Banner
Monroe Doctrine
Major Activities and Assessments: [cr1,2,5,6,8]
Socratic Seminar: Historian Henry Adams described the American years from 1788-1815 as the
“halfway house between the European past and the American future.”
Powerpoint Presentation: American Nationalism in the Wake of the War of 1812
Unit Exam Chp. 10-12
UNIT 8: THE AGE OF JACKSON, JACKSONIAN DEMOCRACY
Key Objectives: [cr1,2,4,5]
Growing Democracy in the era of the “Common Man”
Second Party System
Economic Tensions: Tariffs, Banks, Western Land
States Rights vs. Federal Power*: Tariffs and Nullification
Treatment of Native Americans: Who is an American?
Political Life After Jackson
Truth in Advertising? The Advent of the Political Campaign
Required Reading (Textbook, Other Sources, Documents):[cr 1,2,3,4,7]
Bailey, Chp. 13-14
Jackson, A. First Inaugural Address.
Story, J. Charles River Bridge vs. Warren Bridge
Taney, R. Charles River Bridge vs. Warren Bridge
Jackson, A. Veto of Maysville Road
Clay, H. Protest of the Veto Message
Webster-Hayne Debate (exerpts)
King Andrew I (cartoon)
Major Activities and Assessments: [cr 1,2,6,7,8]
Guest Speaker Mr. Donald Doliber, Political Campaigns and Campaign Buttons
Socratic Seminar: Should Andrew Jackson have been impeached?
DBQ: Jacksonian Democrats viewed themselves as the guardians of the U.S. Constitution,
political democracy , individual liberty and equality of economic opportunity. In light of the
following documents and your knowledge of the 1820s‟s and 1830‟s, to what extent do you agree
with the Jacksonians‟ view of themselves?(1990 DBQ, Doing the DBQ)
FRQ: The Jacksonian period (1824-48) has been celebrated as the era of the “common man.” To
what extend did the period live up to its characterization? Consider TWO of the following in your
response: Economic development, politics, reform moments. (2000 FRQ)
UNIT 9: GROWING PROSPERITY IN ANTEBELLUM AMERICA
Key Objectives: [cr,2,4,5]
Economic Growth of the Trans-Mississippi West
Irish, German Immigration and Nativist Sentiment
Invention, Mechanization and Industrialization
Growth of Infrastructure and the National Economy
Industrial Revolution and Gender Roles (Single Lowell Mill Girls and Married Women’s Cult of
Domesticity)
Required Reading (Textbook, Other Sources, Documents):
Bailey, Chp. 15
Major Activities and Assessments:
Unit Quiz Chp. 15
UNIT 10: RELIGION AND SOCIAL REFORM IN ANTEBELLUM AMERICA
Key Objectives: [cr 2]
Second Great Awakening
Religious Denominations
Age of Reform (Education, Women’s Suffrage, Temperance, Prisons, Mental Illness, Abolition)
Transcendentalism, Utopian Communities
Emerging American Artistic Visions and Literary Voices
Required Reading (Textbook, Other Sources, Documents): [cr 1,2]
Bailey, Chp. 15-16
Come Home Father
Declaration of Sentiments
Documents on Women’s Suffrage from American Spirit (Including: Stone, L., Brownson, O.,
Beeher, C. and Stowe, H.,
Thoreau, H. On the Duty of Civil Disobedience (Interdisciplinary in conjunction with Junior English
curriculum)
Major Activities and Assessments: [1,2,3,4]
Project: Economics and Social Reform Antebellum Awards (Based upon award “categories”
students nominate an award winner research his/her background and deliver a formal two minute
speech either in character or promoting the individual’s credentials as deserving of the
Antebellum Award. Award Categories include Arts and Literature, Invention and Industry,
Abolition, Education and Social Reform, and Military and Politics.)
Field Trip: Either Walden Pond or Home of John Greenleaf Whittier
Powerpoint Presentation: Hudson River School American Landscapes
Unit Quizzes: Student created quizzes based on group categories for project.
UNIT 11: SECTIONALISM AND THE GROWING NATIONAL CRISIS
Key Objectives: [cr 1,2,4,6]
Differing Economic Systems: Lords of the Lash vs. Lords of the Loom
Caste Slavery and Abolition
Transmutation of Slave Labor in the Chesapeake
Role of Women in the Abolition Movement
Beyond Victimization: African American Empowerment in the Slavery Narrative
Manifest Destiny
Territorial Expansion, the Mexican War within a Sectional Context
Compromises and Popular Sovereignty
The 1850’s: “The Decade Democracy Ceases to Function” (Phrase coined by Dr. James Horton,
George Washington University Historian)
Demise of the Whigs, Formation of the Republican Party and the Election of 1860
Required Reading (Textbook, Other Sources, Documents): [cr 2,4,6,7]
Bailey, Chp. 17-20
“Judgment Day” Africans in America Part IV (PBS documentary)
Kenny, M. “Another Freedom Trail: Henry Meyer Traces Boston’s Rich Abolitionist History”,
Boston Globe
Walker, D. Appeal to the Colored Citizens of the World But in Particular, and Very Expressly to
Those of the United States of America.
Turner, N. The Confessions of Nat Turner
Douglass, F. Narrative of the Life of Frederick Douglass, an American Slave Written by Himself.
Douglass, F. What is Your Fourth of July to Me?
Document Packet: Examining Slavery Through Sale and Runaway Advertisements in Antebellum
Baltimore Newspapers
Northrup, S. Twelve Years a Slave. (excerpts)
Purvis, R. “A Refusal to Pay Taxes.” The Liberator
Stowe, H.B. Uncle Tom‟s Cabin. (excerpts)
Nash, G. Red, White and Black (excerpts)
Horton, J. and Horton, L. Hard Road to Freedom: The Story of African America. (excerpts)
Wilmot Proviso
Lincoln‟s Spot Resolution
Lincoln‟s First Inaugural Address
Major Activities and Assessments:[cr 2,5,6,7]
Debate: The Mexican War: Was it in Our National Interest?
Socratic Seminar: “The confluence of the history of slavery and the politics of race reveals that
slavery has become a language, a way to take about race, in a society in which blacks and whites
hardly talk to each other at all.” -Ira Berlin, July 13, 2001 “Overcome by Slavery.” New York
Times.
Antebellum Journalism Assignment: Freedom‟s Journal, The Liberator or The North Star
Document Activity: Examining Slavery Through Sale and Runaway Advertisements in Antebellum
Baltimore Newspapers
Socratic Seminar: Beyond Victimization: African American Empowerment in the Slavery Narrative
Trial: The Trial of John Brown (Interact Publications)
Unit Exam Chp. 17-20
UNIT 12: THE CIVIL WAR
Key Objectives: [cr 1,2,3,4]
Secession
Military Strategies and Southern/Northern Strengths and Weaknesses
Domestic Discontent with the War
Raising and Funding Armies North and South
Emancipation Proclamation as a moral, morale, military, diplomatic and political document
International Politics and Diplomacy with Great Britain
Using PRIMES to address short and long term effects of the war (Politics, Religion, Intellectual
life, Military, Economic,Social)
Required Reading (Textbook, Other Sources, Documents): [cr 1,2,6,7]
Bailey, Chp. 21-22
Anonymous Letter from Lowell Father to Gov. Andrew (MA) concerning first Union deaths of the
Civil War
Lincoln‟s Telegram to Gov. Andrew Call for Troops
Lee, R. Lee‟s Resignation from the U.S. Army
Herbert, G. Letter Home from Frontlines.
Confederate and Union Paper Currency
Howe, J.W. Battle Hymn of the Republic appearing in Atlantic Monthly
Poem: Uncle Sam‟s Farm Not to be Divided
Broadside Butler‟s Grand Division.
Vallandigham, C. Speeches, Arguments, Addresses, and Letters.
Lincoln, A. Gettysburg Address
Lincoln. A. Emancipation Proclamation
Lincoln, A. Second Inaugural Address
Letter to Gov. Andrew Business Offer to Outfit Black Troops
Greely, H. Prayer of Twenty Millions
Lincoln, A. Response to Greeley
Prentice, G. Louisville Journal Editorial
Burns, K. The Civil War (documentary excerpts)
Brady, M. Civil War Photographs
Civil War Music http://homepages.dsu.edu/jankej/civilwar/music.htm
Rael, P. Context Essay: Who Freed the Slaves: Emancipation from the Bottom Up; Emancipation
from the Top Down.
Major Activities and Assessments: [cr 1,2,4,5,7,8]
Contrasting Images: Revere‟s Boston Massacre with Pratt St. The Lexington of 1861.
Document Activity: The Role of the Individual in Effecting Change (Center for Learning Activity)
FRQ/Socratic Seminar: Who Freed the Slaves? (Using PRIMES)
Civil War Roundtables: Based on assigned document readings students tackle multiple
questions on the war in a Meet the Press style format. (Sample topics include: Did Lincoln
become a dictator? Did he violate the Constitution? Who were the loudest anti-war factions?
How was the war transformative of Southern, Northern and Western life? How did the war aims
change as a result of battlefield results and DC politics?
Document Activity: Recruiting Black Regiments: Would You Enlist?
Case Study Lincoln: Using extensive quotations collected...Who Was Lincoln?
Project: PRIMES Cube of Knowledge on the Civil War
UNIT 13: RECONSTRUCTION
Key Objectives: [cr 1,2,4,6]
Presidential Reconstruction, Radical Reconstruction and the Role of the Federal Government in
Scripting Social Policy
Political and Social Life in the South
Economic Factors Impinging on Reconstruction Funding
A Wider View of Reconstruction: Historiography of Dr.Heather Cox Richardson, Harvard
University
The Compromise of 1877 and the End of Reconstruction
The Redeemer “Solid” South: Sharecropping, the KKK, Jim Crow
Required Reading (Textbook, Other Sources, Documents): [cr 2,6,7]
Bailey, Chp. 23
Black Codes of Mississippi and Alabama (excerpts)
Jordan Anderson Letter to former owner Col. P.H. Anderson
Nast, T. This is a White Man‟s Government (political cartoon, Harper‟s Weekly)
Document Packet from Dr. Richardson’s Workshop: Race, Riots and Rodeos: A New
Interpretation of Reconstruction, Harvard University. (includes: Sumner, W.G. What Social
Classes Owe Each Other; Lincoln,A. Address before the Wisconsin State Agricultural Society;
th
Alger, H. Ragged Dick (excerpts); Here‟s a Health to the Hard Working Man (songsheet); 13 th
15 Amendments; Preamble to the Constitution of the Knights of Labor; Populist Party Platform,
Love, N. Autobiography of Nat Love (excerpts)
Johnson, A. Third Annual Message to Congress.
Major Activities and Assessments: [cr 2,4,5,6,7,8]
Debate: Was Reconstruction a Success or Failure?
Document Based Socratic Seminar: (Docs from Dr. Richardson’s Workshop: Race, Riots and
Rodeos: A New Interpretation of Reconstruction, Harvard University.) What does it mean to be
an American? What does it mean to seek the American Dream? How does America and the
government determine an economic course around the middle class, individualism, meritocracy
and notions of upward mobility?
DBQ: In what ways and to what extent did constitutional and social developments between 1860
and 177 amount to a revolution? (1996 DBQ)
Unit 12 and 13 Exam, Chp. 20-23
UNIT 14: HOW THE WEST WAS WON? LOST?
Key Objectives: [cr 1,2,4,]
Economic Expansion from East to West: Farming, Mining, Ranching
Adopting Corporate Methods to Farming, Mining, Ranching
Wars and Federal Government “Treaties” with American Indian Nations
Government Subsidization of Economic Enterprises
Plight of the Farmer
Economic Incentives to Political Activism: Gold Standard vs. Silver Standard
Omaha Platform, Populist Ideas Ahead of Their Time? Significance of the Election of 1896
Required Reading (Textbook, Other Sources, Documents): [cr 1,2,4,7]
Bailey, Chp. 27
Lease, M. Raises Hell
Document Set: Daniel Freeman Homesteader
Barbed Wire, US Patent No. 157,124
Aimslie, G. Letter to Hayden,F. regarding “assimilation” of Nez Perce
Document Packet: “Sitting Bull and the “Pacification “ of the Western Indian Tribes” (Critical
Thinking Using Primary Sources in U.S. History)
To the West and Parody on To the West (poems)
Bryan, W.J. Cross of Gold Speech
Major Activities and Assessments: [cr 2,4,6,7]
Document Activity: “Teaching with Documents: The Homestead Act of 1862.” Social Education
Discussion: Wizard of Oz an Allegory for Populism?
Unit Quiz Chp. 27.
UNIT 15: EMERGENCE OF A MODERN URBAN CORPORATE AMERICA
Key Objectives: [cr 2,4,5]
Politics of the Gilded Age
Graft, Corruption and Urban Political Machines
Steel, Oil and Rail: Driving Forces of Corporations and Trusts
Philosophies of the New Corporate Order
Strikes, Unions and Labor Unrest in the Days of Laissez Faire Economic Principles
Mechanization and its Impact on the Factory and the Laborer
Urbanization: Risks and Benefits of the City Life
Immigration: Second Wave of Immigration, Nativism, Limitations and Exclusion
Literature, Sports and the Growth of Popular Culture
Required Reading (Textbook, Other Sources, Documents): [cr 2,4,7]
Bailey, Chp. 24-26
Rockefeller, J. “Testimony Before the U.S. Industrial Commission.” Sources of the American
Republic.
Taylor, J. Millworker (songsheet)
Preamble to the Constitution of the Knights of Labor
Images of Labor Unions
Thomson, P. Ode to the Odious: A Poet Ridicules Laisez-Faire
Political Cartoonists Caricaturize Big Business
Document Packet: Robber Barons or Captains of Industry available on line at
http://historymatters.gmu.edu/d/46.html
Riis, J. How the Other Half Lives. (excerpt)
Jackdaws Document Set: Immigration
Journey to America (documentary)
Lazarus, E. The New Colossus.
Major Activities and Assessments: [cr 2,4,7,8]
Document Based Fishbowl Debate: Robber Barons or Captains of Industry?
The “Who Owns What?” Game: Corporations and Trusts Now and Then
FRQ: Validate this statement: “Cities represented „humanity compressed‟ the best and worst
combined in a strangely composite community.”
th
FRQ (Choice #2): What role did the U.S. government play in late 19 century owner-labor
employment disputes?
Steel Empire Game: 1866-1910, H.M.S. Historical Games
Powerpoint Presentation: Nativism and Chinese Exclusion
Virtual Tour: Lower East Side Tenement Museum at http://www.tenement.org
Optional Field Trip: Weekend Trip to New York City
Unit 14-15 Exam, Chp. 24-27.
UNIT 16: AMERICAN IMPERIALISM?
Key Objectives: [cr 2,3,4]
Global Economic, Social and Political Motivations for Imperialism
Spanish-American War: America’s War for Empire
U.S. Foreign Policy under McKinley, TR, Taft and Wilson (Philippines, China, Japan Caribbean,
Panama)
Filipino Insurgency: Lessons for the Future?
Required Reading (Textbook, Other Sources, Documents): [cr 2,3,4]
Bailey, Chp. 29-30
Spanish-American War: Crucible for Empire (PBS documentary excerpts)
A Man, A Plan, A Canal: Panama (PBS documentary w/ David McCullough)
Major Activities and Assessments: [cr 2,3,4]
Simulation: Senate Debate over Annexation of the Philippines
Socratic Seminar: Filipino Insurgency: Lessons for the Future?
Powerpoint Presenation: TR‟s Big Stick Diplomacy in Cartoons
National History Day Project
Unit Quiz Chp. 29-30.
UNIT 17: PROGRESSIVE MOVEMENT
Key Objectives: [cr 1,2,4]
Problems and Issues Facing Municipal, State and Federal Governments
Muckraking and the Exposure of Social Ills
TRs Square Deal, TR-Taft Feud, The Election of 1912
Wilson’s New Freedom
Banking and Financial Overhauls
Women’s Suffrage and African American Equality
Required Reading (Textbook, Other Sources, Documents): [cr 1,2,4,7]
Bailey, Chp. 31-32
Sinclair, U. The Jungle (excerpts)
Schlosser, E. Fast Food Nation. (excerpts of contemporary muckraking?)
Tarbell, I. Standard Oil Expose (excerpts)
Burns, K. “Triangle Shirtwaist Fire Episode.” New York. (documentary)
TR Political Cartoons
Reardon, C. “American Gothic: A Disturbing Side of the Progressive Era.” Teaching Tolerance
Brant‟s Soothing Balm and Dr. Town‟s Epilepsy Treatment: An investigation of the Pure Food and
Drug Act. National Archives Document Set
Optional Movie Night: Iron Jawed Angels (HBO)
Major Activities and Assessments: [cr 1,2,4,7,8]
Socratic Seminar: Conspicuous Consumption: Is it an Issue for Us?
Powerpoint Presentation: TR the Trustbuster and TR-Taft Feud (political cartoons)
DBQ: As the progressive movement evolved, it essentially was its own worst enemy. It was not a
united front; rather, it was a fragmented set of separate social issues and ultimately, separate
political parties. Assess the validity of this statement.
OR FRQ: One of the unique features of the progressive movement is that both Republicans and
Democrats lay claim to the title of being Progressives. Was the Progressive movement the victory
for liberalism or the triumph of conservativism?
UNIT 18: THE GREAT WAR?
Key Objectives: [cr 1,2,3]
Reasons for U.S. Entry into the Great War
American War Mobilization
The Failed Treaty of Versailles, Partisan Politics and Seeds of Future Conflict
Post War Challenges and the Red Scare
Required Reading (Textbook, Other Sources, Documents):[cr 1,2,3,7]
Bailey, Chp. 33
Zimmerman Telegram
Major Activities and Assessments: [cr 1,3,5]
Powerpoint Presenation George Creel and WWI Propaganda Posters
Senate Debate: Ratification Debate over the Treaty of Versailles
Nicenet Online Discussion Forum: A delicate balance must be reached between individual
liberties and national security in times of war. The Espionage and Sedition Acts were necessary
and proper measures at this time of national emergency. Assess the validity of this statement.
Unit 16-18 Exam, Chp. 29-33
UNIT 19: THE ROARING 20S
Key Objectives: [cr 1,2,4,5]
The Business of America is Business
Politics of the Roaring 20s
Changes in the Social Landscape: Tradition vs. Modernity
Creation of a Mass Consumer Culture
Through the Nadir to the Harlem Renaissance
Required Reading (Textbook, Other Sources, Documents): [cr 1,2,4,5,6,7]
Bailey, Chp. 34-35
20s Advertisements
Locke, Alain. The New Negro (excerpts)
Harlem Renaissance Poetry Packet (authors include Dunbar, Johnson, Hughes, Cullen and
McKay)
Hayden, R. Building Community: From the Nadir to the Great Migration. (Historiographical Essay)
Lawrence, J. The Migration Series
Faulkner, A. “Does Jazz Put the Sin in Syncopation.” Ladies Home Journal.
Roaring 20s Images
Major Activities and Assessments: [cr 2,4,7,8]
Powerpoint Presentation: 20’s Advertisements and Consumer Culture
Powerpoint Presentaiton: Jacob Lawrence Paintings
DBQ: Roaring 20s How did arts, literature and education reflect an America divided along the
lines of traditional, rural, small-town America and progressive, chic, avante garde urban America?
League of Women Voters Essay Contest
Optional Activity: Gatsby House Party (Interdisciplinary activity in conjunction with Juniors
reading The Great Gatsby.)
Optional Activity: Jazz Concert
Unit Quiz, Chp. 34-35
UNIT 20: FROM BOOM TO BUST: THE GREAT DEPRESSION AND NEW DEAL
Key Objectives: [cr 2,4]
Economic Indicators Leading to the Crash and Great Depression
Hoover’s Response in Reaction to Economic Market Principles (Mellon)
FDR’s New Deal and the Change in the Relationship Between the Federal Government and the
Individual Citizen
New Deal Programs and Their Impact on Individual Lives
The Dust Bowl and Domestic Migration Patterns
Keynesian Economics
FDR’s Critics from the Left and Right
Success and Enduring Legacy of the New Deal and “Entitlements”
Required Reading (Textbook, Other Sources, Documents): [cr 1,2,4,6,7]
Bailey, Chp. 35-36
Depression and New Deal Document Packet (includes: Electoral Maps 1928, 1932, Political
Cartoons, Graphs of Economic Statistics, Jackdaw Documents from “Depression” and “New
Deal” Document Sets, Auction Sale broadside, GOP Campaign Flyer, Veterans‟ March on
Washington broadside, NRA: We Do Our Part broadside, FDR‟s First Inaugural, FDR Fireside
Chat, Harry Hopkins‟ Diary Entry, U.A.W. Leaflet, Press Release on Social Security, TVA Map)
Smith, P. Redeeming the Time. A People‟s History of the 1920‟s and the New Deal.
Major Activities and Assessments: [cr 2,4,6,7,8]
Simulation: Stock Market Game
Powerpoint Presentation: Depression Era Photojournalism
DBQ: Analyze the ways in which the Great Depression and New Deal fundamentally altered the
American social fabric in the 1930s.
Socratic Seminar: Was the New Deal Good or Bad for America? Historian A, B, and C.
Evaluating Viewpoints: Critical Thinking in United States History.
Nicenet Online Discussion Forum: The Legacy of Social Security Today: Should it be saved?
Unit Exam Chp. 35-36
UNIT 21: WORLD WAR II
Key Objectives: [cr 2,3,4]
American Isolationism and Appeasement vs. Militarism of Germany, Italy and Japan
Preparedness and U.S. Foreign Diplomacy Prior to Pearl Harbor
American Military Mobilization and Battlefront Strategy
American Homefront in World War II
Social and Cultural Perspectives (Women, Native Americans, African Americans, Japanese
Americans, Mexican Americans)
National Security and Civil Liberties During Wartime
War Related Diplomatic Conferences (Atlantic Charter, Teheran,Yalta, Pottsdam)
Hiroshima, Nagasaki and the Politics of a Nuclear Age
Required Reading (Textbook, Other Sources, Documents): [cr 2,3,4,7]
Bailey, Chp. 37-38
FDR’s “Quarantine” Speech, Four Freedoms Speech and Lend-Lease Firehose Speech
Rockwell, N. Four Freedoms (art)
Kimmel. H. Kimmel Defends Himself.
WWII Propaganda Posters and Photos
WWII Document Packet (Including: Letter from Albert Einstein to President Roosevelt, “After Mein
Kampf?” Movie Poster and “Wanted” Poster of Hitler, Confidential Memo to the Commander in
Chief of the Pacific Fleet, FDR‟s Proposed War Message to Congress Draft No. 1, A Busy
Aviator‟s Correspondence Card, Support for Dorie Miller Coupon Addressed to FDR, War
Department Officer Identification Card, Postcard Imperial Japanese Army Addressed to Mrs. Lulu
Dunlap, Sinking of the USS Yorktown, V Mail from Calvin Ross Berry to his 13 year old son,
Wilbur, Safe Conduct Pass, Instructions to All Persons of Japanese Ancestry, V-Home, War
Ration Book No. 3, “Spotter Model” plan for the Mitsubishi T.00 Zero Fighter, Eisenhower‟s D-Day
“Press Release” [He Fortunately Never Needed to Use], Western Union Telegram to Mr and Mrs.
Harry Gannon Fleming, WAC Pamphlet, Incoming Message to Commander in Chief Army
Forces Pacific, Japanese Capitulation.)
“Home was a Horse Stall.” Us. vs. Them. (Japanese American Internment)
Spielberg, S. Price for Peace: From Pearl Harbor to Nagasaki. (documentary)
Brokaw, T. The Greatest Generation. (excerpts)
Rain of Ruin (documentary excerpts)
Suess, D. Dr. Suess Goes to War.
Truman, H. Truman Justifies the Bombing.
Major Activities and Assessments: [cr 2,3,4,7,8]
Powerpoint Presentation: WWII Propaganda Posters and Photos
Cube of Knowledge: Homefront Issues of World War II
Nicenet Online Discussion Forum: Reactions/Review of Price for Peace
Socratic Seminar: Decision to Drop the Bomb. Using 1988 DBQ
FRQ: “When a government sends an army into battle it is also sending the entire nation into war.”
Evaluate this statement in light of our study of World War II AND in light of our current war in Iraq
and Afghanistan.
FRQ Option #2: “At a time in their lives when their days and nights should have been filled with
innocent adventure, love, and the lessons of the workaday world, they were fighting, often hand
to hand in the most primitive conditions possible ...They fought their way up a necklace of South
Pacific islands few had ever heard of before and made them a fixed part of American
history....New branches of the services were formed to get women into uniform. Other women
went to work in the laboratories and factories, developing new medicines, building ships, planes
and tanks and raising the families that had been left behind...I am in awe of them and I feel
privileged to have been a witness to their lives and their sacrifices....I think this is the greatest
generation any society has ever produced. I know that this [is] a bold statement and a
sweeping judgment, but...I believe I have the facts on my side.” -Tom Brokaw, Excerpted from
The Greatest Generation Evaluate this statement in light of our study of World War II.
Unit Exam, Chp. 37-38
UNIT 22: THE ORIGINS OF THE COLD WAR
Key Objectives: [cr 1,3]
Origins of the Cold War, Historical Tensions between East and West
Truman, Kennan and Marshall: Aid and Containment
The Formation and Role of the UN in the Post War World
Creation of Post War Alliances: NATO, SEATO, ANZUS vs. Warsaw Pact
Berlin Airlift and Tensions in Europe
The Fall of China and Korea the “Forgotten” War
McCarthyism and the Second Red Scare
Eisenhower and Dulles Diplomacy
The Middle East and Latin America: Cold War Pawns?
Required Reading (Textbook, Other Sources, Documents): [cr 3,6,7]
Bailey, Chp. 39-40
Kennan, Foreign Relations of the United States
Truman-MacArthur Conflict Documents (excerpts)
O’Reilly, K. Evaluating Viewpoints: Critical Thinking in United States History, Book Four: SpanishAmerican War to Vietnam. (excerpts)
Flint, A. “What of Our Past? Historians Disagree” Boston Globe.
Zinn, H. “A People’s War?” A People‟s History of the United States. (excerpts)
Korea: The Forgotten War (PBS documentary excerpts)
Major Activities and Assessments: [cr 2,3,5,6,7,8]
Socratic Seminar: Cold War Origins Three Historian Views using Evaluating Viewpoints: Critical
Thinking in United States History, Book Four: Spanish-American War to Vietnam.
Nicenet Online Discussion Forum: The Cold War: Beneficial to America?
Document Based Discussion: Modification of “Waging Cold War in the Middle East.” Choices
Education Project, Brown University
DBQ: What were the Cold War fears of the American people in the aftermath of the Second
World War? How successfully did the administration of President Dwight D. Eisehower address
these fears? (2001 Released AP Exam)
Interdisciplinary Newspaper Project: In conjunction with the English curriculum and The Crucible,
students are grouped to research and write a Cold War Era newspaper.
UNIT 23: AMERICAN CULTURE AND THE CIVIL RIGHTS MOVEMENT
Key Objectives: [cr 1,2,4,5]
Economic Expansion and Its Impact on Daily Life
Suburbia, Conformity and the Great American Barbeque
The Way We Never Were: The Nostalgia Trap of the 1950s
Social Perceptions and Social Critique of the 50s
Civil Rights Movement as Second Reconstruction and in Context of Scope of African American
History
Tactics, Achievements and Failures of the Civil Rights Movement
Splintered Factions of the Movement: Was the Movement a Success
The Tangled Knot of Race, Ethnicity, Gender and Social Class
The Movement as a Springboard for Other Movements: Latinos, Women, Native Americans, Gay
and Lesbians
Required Reading (Textbook, Other Sources, Documents): [cr 1,2,4,5,6,7]
Bailey, Chp. 39-40
Coontz, S. The Way We Never Were.
Eisenhower, Military-Industrial Complex (excerpt)
Galbraith, J. The Affluent Society (excerpt)
Southern Manifesto
Separate is Not Equal: Brown v. Board Document Packet. Smithsonian National Museum of
American History, Behring Center.
Alabama Literacy Test 1965 (excerpts)
Birmingham Clergy Letter/Appeal to Martin Luther King
Music of the Movement (CD compilation)
King, M.L. Letter from a Birmingham Jail
King, M.L. March on Washington Speech
Race, The Power of Illusion (documentary excerpts)
Stetson, J. The Meeting
Eyes on the Prize (documentary excerpts)
Four Little Girls (documentary excerpts)
Black Panther Party Platform and Program
Richer, M. Busing‟s Boston Massacre.
Farragher, T. Image of an Era: Reluctant Symbol Ted Landsmark at Peace with His Assailant and
Boston. Boston Sunday Globe.
Berlin, I. Overcome by Slavery
“Race Barrier at Prom Ends.” Boston Globe. (2002).
Major Activities and Assessments: [cr 1,2,4,5,7]
Public Speech: Students will give a three minute persuasive speech on a past/present social
justice cause of their own choosing
Nicenet Online Discussion: Is the suburb the American dream or the American nightmare?
Nicenet Online Discussion: The Kerner Commission announced "our nation is moving toward two
societies, one black, one white -- separate and unequal,"
Assess the validity of this statement based on the Civil Rights Movement from 1954-1970.
Project: Civil Rights Scrapbook: Students create a scrapbook of 20 articles within the past five
years on a civil rights cause of their own choosing. Project also entails a precise for each article,
an overall reflection/perspective essay and an emblematic symbolic image.
Socratic Seminar: How successful was the Post WWII Civil Rights Movement? The basis of the
discussion are the 1995 Released DBQ documents.
Unit Exam, Chp. 39-40 and Civil Rights Aspects of 60s-70s (Chp. 41-42)
UNIT 24: THE STORMY SIXTIES
Key Objectives: [cr 2,3,4]
1960 Election and Kennedy’s New Frontier
Crises in Cuba and Berlin
Kennedy’s Assassination and Johnson’s Great Society
Vietnam War
Antiwar and Countercultural Revolutions
Required Reading (Textbook, Other Sources, Documents): [cr 2,3,4,7]
Bailey, Chp. 41
Kennedy‟s Inaugural Address
Harrington, M. The Other America (excerpt)
Johnson, L. Great Society Speech.
Tonkin Gulf Resolution
SDS, Port Huron Statement
State Department Office of Media Services Viet-Nam Information Notes
Office of the White House Press Secretary Press Releases
Music of the Antiwar Counterculture (CD compilation)
We Were Soldiers (film excerpts)
Vietnam: A Television History (PBS documentary excerpts)
Selective Service Classification Questionaire and Draft Lottery Tables
Dear America: Letters Home from Vietnam (documentary excerpts)
Shapiro, S. “Healing the Wound: For Three People Kent State Remains a Haunting Memory.”
Baltimore Sun. 1995.
Major Activities and Assessments: [cr 2,3,4]
Simulation: Missiles in Cuba: A Decision Making Game
Powerpoint Presentation: Iconographic Images of the Vietnam Era
Nicenet Online Discussion Forum: Case Study in Chaos: 1968 Reflections
Vietnam Era Roundtable #1: Abu Ghraib and My Lai: Do They Change the Way We See the
Mission...and Ourselves? Based on Appy. C. “Faces of War.” Boston Globe.
Vietnam Era Roundtable #2: The Vietnam Factor: In Iraq, the scale is thus far smaller but are
there echoes of Vietnam? Based on Thomas, E. “The Vietnam Factor.” Newsweek.
Vietnam Era Roundtable #3: Rights and Responsibilities of the Media During Wartime What
should the role of the media be during wartime? Should limits be placed on what they are able to
access or cover? Are images neutral? What images of war have had a profound effect on you
and/or the American public? Should the media be allowed to publish/broadcast images of
American death/suffering/inappropriate action?
Optional Art: Create a unique 1960s bumper sticker promoting an issue of your choice.
Unit Exam, Chp. 41
UNIT 25: THE STALEMATED SEVENTIES AND THE RISE OF CONSERVATIVISM IN AMERICA
Key Objectives: [cr 1,2,3,4]
Nixon and the Silent Majority
Nixon Foreign Policy: Vietnamization and China
OPEC, the Oil Embargo and “Stagflation”
Watergate
Reagan-Bush Conservativism
Reagan-Bush and the End of the Cold War
Culture Wars and the Politics of Distrust and Division
A Post 9/11 World and the War on Terror
Required Reading (Textbook, Other Sources, Documents): [cr 1,2,3,4,6]
Bailey, Chp. 42-43
Nixon, R. Acceptance of Ford‟s Pardon
Reagan, R. On El Salvador
Bush, G., Gorbechev, M., Thatcher, M., Mitterrand, F. Four Views on the End of the Cold War
Angelou, M. On the Pulse of Morning.
Major Activities and Assessments: [cr 1,3,5]
Nicenet Online Discussion Forum: Do you have an optimistic, pessimistic, idealistic or cynical
view of politics and politicians? What factors have influenced your perceptions?
Socratic Seminar: State of the Union: Take the role of a policy advisor to the president. Discuss
the most significant domestic issue and most significant foreign policy issue for the nation today?
What makes these topics rank as the highest priorities for your administration?
Unit Quiz, Chp. 42-43.
UNIT 26: POST AP EXAM INDIVIDUAL RESEARCH PROJECT
Individual Research Project Opportunities
A Picture’s Worth a Thousand Words Project
Cereal Box Project
Oral History Family Biography Project
Historical Movie Review