John Handley High School
Social Studies Department
Wednesday, May 20, 2015
Dear Parent/Guardian and Student:
Welcome to Handley High School and welcome to Honors World History and Geography I. I am
excited to meet you this upcoming year. More to the point, I am thrilled that you have chosen to
seize this opportunity to challenge yourself by taking Honors World History I. This course is
designed around two key goals. First, to offer a general introduction to the major themes,
events, people, ideas, concepts, and views from World History until approximately 1500. The
second is to teach students how to “do” history, or to “think historically,” or simply to have
students “become historians,” even if not as a career choice. This will mean, in part, asking hard
questions: Are there stories that tell the “story of us all?” What are these stories? How do
historians create and understand these stories? Why are these stories important? What do
these things from hundreds and thousands of years ago have to do with our own time period?
To be clear: this is not designed to be an easy course. This course is meant to shape you as
thinkers, writers, students, and citizens of our local, national, and global community. This is a
reading and writing intensive course that will require a great deal of effort. Students who are
not willing to engage in hard work should consider discussing course options with a guidance
counselor.
To introduce students to some of the major themes of world history, as well as to the types of
reading and writing assignments that can be expected throughout the course, students are
required to complete a summer reading assignment. All students will read This Fleeting World:
A Short History of Humanity by David Christian and to complete the related summer assignment
found on the following pages. Please contact me or a guidance counselor if purchasing the
book represents a financial hardship.
Should you have any questions, please contact me via email ([email protected]). I will not
be accessible by email from June 6-June 22. Aside from these dates, I will check email the
remainder of the summer. Additionally, students may log-in to Google Classroom
(classroom.google.com) using your WPS login information. Use the access code ns6p3f. You
may leave a comment in the “stream.” You will also find some useful resources, as well as an
extra copy of this information, on the “About” Tab at the top of the page.
To ensure that all students receive this assignment, please send me an email acknowledging
that you have received these instructions.
Again, I look forward to meeting you all soon.
Regards,
Jeffery W. Keller, Teacher
Social Studies Department
John Handley High School * 425 Handley Blvd. * Winchester, Virginia *540.662.3471
Summer Assignment Instructions: Honors World History and Geography I
For this assignment, you are to read David Christian's This Fleeting
World: A Brief History of Humanity. It can be purchased from
Winchester Book Gallery on the Loudoun Street Mall. If you purchase
your copy through Winchester Book Gallery, be sure to mention that it
is for my class to receive 15% off. This would make the price roughly
$20, quite comparable to the online sellers. Alternatively, students may
purchase the book new through Amazon or used through any number
of reputable online book sellers.
Students may skip the Preface, the Publisher’s Note, and the
Acknowledgements. Students should read the Introduction, and
should read everything else starting with “Prequel.”
As part of your reading, you may find it helpful to watch the author’s TED Talk, available at
this link: http://goo.gl/aPzSc3 . I will also post a link to this on the Google Classroom portal.
Part I: Reading Notes - 100 points possible
The first part of your assignment is to keep a reading journal following the Cornell
Method. The format of your journal is less important than demonstrating your
understanding of the text. Your journal may be handwritten or typed. Be sure that your work
is your work. Plagiarism on this or any part of the summer assignment will not be tolerated;
you will receive a zero on the assignment and further repercussions may ensue.
For a Cornell style journal, divide your notebook page into two sections, one left and one
right. On the left side you are to take notes as you read. You should summarize the main
points of the chapter, explaining what the author is discussing and giving a specific example
or two. These may be in bullet form, outline form, or some other method. I do not
recommend writing long sentences or paragraphs. On the right side you are to react to
what you have read. What did you think about this? Was the argument or key point
interesting? Do you agree with the author? Why/why not? You should also write out the key
vocabulary words with definitions, and list of any important individuals/people, places, etc
with a short description of each. Use any specific organizational pattern that works for you,
but stick to it! (Example: Defining all the vocabulary words first in blue ink; then listing the
people in green ink, then writing your reactions).
Left Side: Notes: Part 1: Title; Section 1: Title
Your reading notes go here. Summarize the main idea(s) of
each section. Demonstrate that you understand what the
author is saying with specific examples
Right Side: Thoughts and Reflections:
Part 1: Title; Section 1: Title
1. Your reaction to the author's
points and arguments. What do
you make of them?
2. Vocab and definitions
3. Key individuals and descriptions
4. Anything you are confused about.
How you will be assessed: A well done, neat, organized and generally “complete” set of
notes with details on the left side, and thoughtful reflections and vocab/key individual lists
on the right side will earn 100 points.
John Handley High School * 425 Handley Blvd. * Winchester, Virginia *540.662.3471
Part II: Book Review - 50 points possible
After you have read the book and taken notes, take a few some time away from the
book. Go for a run. Go see a movie. Take a nap. Do something not related to the book to
give your mind a little break.
Ready to get back at it? In part two of this assignment, you will write a short (2-3 pages,
double spaced, 12 pt. font) book review. The review must be typed and should be a
separate sheet from your journal. Please be sure to put your name in the top right-hand
corner.
A book review evaluates what you have read. There are some resources for writing a good
book review in the “About” tab of our Google Classroom Summer Reading area. The
basics are this:
A history book review:
 Gives a brief summary of the author’s main thesis. What was the author trying to
accomplish with this book?.
 Assesses the strengths/weakness of the book in terms of its contributions to the
study of history: Did the author prove his thesis? What evidence was compelling?
What evidence was lacking? What should he have done differently?
 Assesses the book as a work of art: Was the book interesting? Boring? Well
written? Poorly written?
Some tips: Remember to avoid using the words “I, You, We,” and “Us” in formal writing.
How you will be assessed: A thoughtful, well written book review that addresses the key
points outlined above that contains minimal (less than 2-3 minor) spelling and grammar
issues will earn 50 points.
Part III: Discussion Questions - 25 points possible
Somewhere along the line, people lost track of what it is that historians actually do. While
you might think that historians answer questions about a specific topic, that is quite the
opposite. More than anything, historians ask questions. You are to write 12 good questions
about what you have read. If you wrote down some “I wonder” type question in the right
hand section of your reading journal, you may simply reuse those here.
So, what makes a good question? Good history questions are hard to write. In general,
good history questions ask “how and why” more than “who or what.” Good history questions
are “ungoogleable.” In other words, you can’t look for a simple answer by asking Google (or
Siri!!). Good history questions are complex and nuanced and might have multiple ways of
answering them. You should not feel that you must know the right or wrong answer to
these questions.


Example of a poor question: When did Christianity begin?
Example of a good question: How did the Roman perspective on Christianity change
over time?
John Handley High School * 425 Handley Blvd. * Winchester, Virginia *540.662.3471
Please write three questions for each of the sections. Like your notes, these questions can
be typed or neatly handwritten. The four sections are: 1) Prequel, 2) Beginnings, 3)
Acceleration, 4) Our World.
How you will be assessed: Twelve thoughtful questions, three for each section, will earn
25 points.
Deadlines:
This assignment is due on or before the first day of class.

First Semester (Fall 2015): You may submit in class on Monday, August 10,
2015. Ten extra credit points will be given if the summer assignment is submitted on
Monday, August 3. You can submit via email ([email protected]) or you may
drop it off in the General Office any time before 3:30pm.

Second Semester (Spring 2016): You may submit in class on Monday, January 4,
2016. Ten extra credit points will be given if the summer assignment is submitted on
or before Friday, December 18, 2015. You can submit via email or drop it off in
Room 1305 before 3:30pm.
John Handley High School * 425 Handley Blvd. * Winchester, Virginia *540.662.3471