Riverside STEM Academy
AP European History Summer Work Packet
(2015-2016 School Year)
Welcome to AP European History!
I am very excited about the new school year that will be starting in a few months, and I look
forward to working with you all in one of your first college-level classes.
As this is an Advanced Placement class, it will be taught in a similar manner to a Western
Civilization/Humanities course in any college. You will be expected to complete all of the readings
and assignments in a timely manner (according to the reading schedule you will get in the Fall). You
will be expected to work on homework consistently. Developing good study habits early in the year
will make this course less stressful and more enriching. Bottom line, if you put forth the effort, work on
your homework consistently, and don’t slack off, you will do well, learn a lot, will be prepared for the
AP European History test in May, and will be very well prepared for the hard classes you’ll need to
take here as an upperclassman.
On all of your work, whether tests, homework, or classwork, I expect you to give me your best
effort. On the issue of the diligence you put forward to doing your work, I must make one issue
extremely clear. My expectation is that you will not cheat. I define cheating as any attempt to take
credit for someone else’s work, whether on a test, homework assignment, study guide, or any other
assignment to which points are given. I also consider it cheating to allow others to cheat off of you.
I do encourage collaboration in studying, and on brainstorming ideas, but when it comes to the
work you get credit for (including this Summer work), it is important that you do your own work, both
to comprehend the material being studied as well as to maintain your integrity.
Lastly, I am happy to answer any questions you may have about the course or this summer
work. If you’d like to contact me, please use the e-mail address below. I will respond to you as soon
as possible.
I wish you the best of luck over the break and I look forward to an excellent year.
Best,
Alexander P. Ponce (Teacher)
Riverside STEM Academy
[email protected]
Directions
In an effort to have you knowledgeable about the basics of Western Civilization and prepared for the
class before the start of the term, I am assigning required, as well as suggested summer work.
I.
(Required) You must be able to locate each of the following places on any map of Europe or
any World map.
a. Bodies of Water
16. South America
1. Atlantic Ocean
c. Countries
2. Black Sea
17. France
3. Indian Ocean
18. Germany
4. English Channel
19. Greece
5. Mediterranean Sea
20. Great Britain/ England
6. North Sea
21. Hungary
7. Strait of Gibraltar
22. Italy
b. Geographic Regions
23. Russia
8. Africa
24. Spain
9. Alps
25. Turkey
10. Asia
d. Cities
11. Australia
26. London
12. Balkan Peninsula
27. Paris
13. Europe
28. Rome
14. North America
29. St Petersburg
15. Scandanavia
30. Vienna
For the next 3 items, you will have to get the current AP European History textbook from the Library
(Western Civilization, by Jackson Spielvogel, 6th edition). We’ll use the 8th edition in class. See Mrs.
Greenwood for info.
II.
(Required) Read the following sections from the textbook. As you are reading these sections,
you will need to answer the questions from this homework packet.
[ “Introduction to Students of Western Civilization” and “Western Civilization to 1300”
on pages xxi(21)-xxvi(26), and Chapter 11, entitled “The Latter Middle Ages: Crisis
and Disintegration in the Fourteenth Century”]
III.
(Required) Once you have completed the homework packet, respond to the following FRQ
(Free Response Question).
“The Bubonic Plague of the fourteenth Century was the primary turning point of the middle
ages.” Using specific evidence from your reading, agree with or refute (disagree with) the
previous statement.
Your essay should be well detailed and well-defended, and should use specific
evidence in their proper historical context. The essay should be concise, clear, well
structured, and fully capable of answering the prompt. In order to have the necessary
structure and content, a good essay should be around four to five (full) paragraphs in length
(maybe longer). As with any serious historical essay, no personal pronouns may be used
(You may not use the words “I,” “we,” “you,” “us,” etc. Remember, it’s not about what you
think or feel; it’s about what the historical record can prove.)
As this is a persuasive essay, I strongly suggest that you make sure you understand
what the question is asking, and make sure you answer only that question. So take a side
(agree with or disagree with the statement), prove your argument with specific evidence,
and convince me that you are right. (Reread the question and make sure you answer the
question I’ve asked you)
Your essay will need to be turned in handwritten, unless specifically approved by me.
You should also turn in any outlines or rough drafts of your essay, as I would like to see
your work.
IV.
[Suggested—but not until the beginning of next year]:
You will need to buy an AP European History test preparation book. Many different
companies produce them. In the past I have liked the books produced by the Princeton
Review and by REA, although there are many other good ones that have come out on the
market in recent years. If you have friends who will also be taking this class, it may be a
good idea for you to get different books, to get a slightly different presentation of the
material contained therein, as well as different practice tests to study from. NOTE: Make
sure you buy a prep book that reflects the recent changes to the AP Euro History exam.
Buying an older test prep book may give you a wrong impression of the testing material and
what is expected of you. Again, contact me if you have any questions.
V.
[Suggested]:
Spend some time watching TV or movies over the summer. Specifically, watch the History
Channel, PBS, A&E, Biography, etc. Oftentimes the material covered in historical
documentaries can be just as good, or even better than the material presented in the
textbook. So watch the documentaries over the summer.
Shortly after returning from the summer (about one week into the term), I will give a test based on
your summer work. So, be sure to do the required work, take good notes, and pay attention to what
you are reading. If you have any questions regarding this work, I will be checking my school email
periodically at [email protected]. Since the school will be closed during the summer, it will be
imperative that you understand what is required of you before you go home for the break.
AP European History Bookwork: Read these directions first
Answer each of the following questions to the best of your ability. As most of the time in class will be
spent unpacking material found in the book at home, it is extremely important that you focus on
understanding each of these questions. Especially later on in the year when you’ve forgotten a lot of
the details learned over the summer and the fall, your homework (like this) will serve as a study
guide. If you’ve invested the time doing this work, you will do much better in class.
From “Intro to Students of Western Civilization,” (starting on page xxi)
1. What are those things that, according to Jackson Spielvogel (the author of the textbook) are
“unique aspects of Western Civilization?”
2. In regards to the dating of time, what does “AD” mean? How is it used to date things?
3. In regards to the dating of time, what does “BC” mean? How is it used to date things?
4. Why have many historians began shifting to using CE and BCE?
5. From what year to what year was the 3rd Century AD?
6. From what year to what year was the 1th Century AD?
7. What century (AD) are we in now?
From “Western Civilization to 1300” (starting on page xxiii)
8. What is the legacy (according to Spielvogel) of the ancient Hebrews/Jews?
9. What are the ideological (ideas) and philosophical (beliefs/ ways of thought) developments of
the ancient Greeks?
10. How did Greek culture spread from a handful of cities to the entire Eastern Mediterranean
region and points east?
11. How well received was Christianity in the ancient Roman World—at least up through the end
of the 3rd Century?
12. What institution of the old Roman Empire survived the collapse of the empire and survived
until the Middle Ages?
13. What are fiefs, and how did they function?
14. Describe the medieval nobility.
15. Describe the role of the Catholic Church and the clergy (the church officials-priests, monks,
etc) during the middle ages.
From Chapter 11 (starting on page 283)
16. What was the climate change that occurred in the early 1300s?
17. What was the outcome of the climactic change?
18. What was the impact of the plague across Europe?
19. How did the population density impact the spread of the plague?
20. What was the mass-psychological response that people had to the plague?
21. Who were the flagellants?
22. How were the Jews impacted by the Plague and the after-effects of it?
23. What happened to wages as a result of the Plague? Why?
24. Describe the French Jacquerie. Why did it start? How did it play out?
25. Describe the English Peasants’ Revolt. Why did it start? How did it play out?
26. Describe the revolt of the ciompi in Florence.
27. How were the three previously mentioned revolts similar?
28. How were the three previously mentioned revolts dissimilar?
29. What was the dispute that sparked the “Hundred Years’ War” between England and
France—what was Edward III’s claim to the French throne?
30. How were the French and British armies in The Hundred Years’ War different?
31. Describe the battle of Crecy.
32. How did the campaigns of the English Black Prince impact the French countryside?
33. So what was the Battle of Agincourt, and how did Henry V “win” the Hundred Years’ War?
34. Who was Joan of Arc, and how did she change the direction/course of the war?
35. How did relations between Lord and Vassal (or kings and lower nobility) change over the
course of the 1400s?
36. Describe how the English Parliament’s role changed over the course of the mid 1400s.
37. Describe the physical and political makeup of the Holy Roman Empire.
Describe each of the following Northern Italian city/states in the 1400th Century
38. Milan
39. Florence/Tuscany
40. Venice
41. How did taxes impact church-state conflicts in the late Middle Ages (especially conflicts
between the large nation-states and the papacy)?
42. Why did the papacy (the office of the pope) move to Avignon, France?
43. Why were there eventually two different rival popes (in what became known as the Great
Schism)?
44. So which countries tended to support the French pope?
45. Which countries tended to support the Roman pope?
46. How did the “Babylonian Captivity” (term often used to describe the time when the papacy
had been relocated to Avignon) and the “Great Schism” impact the prestige of the Roman
Catholic Church?
47. How did the “Great Schism” finally end?
48. Why would people have been attracted to the “Brothers of the Common Life,” (or “Sisters of
the Common Life”) rather than seeking fulfillment in the traditional Catholic Church?
49. So the educated people spoke Latin. What exactly is the “vernacular?” What does
Spielvogel mean when he discusses the “development of vernacular literature?”
Give a 1-2 sentence summary of each of the following literary works:
50. Dante Alighieri’s Divine Comedy
51. Francesco Petrarch’s poetry
52. Giovanni Bocaccio’s Decameron
53. Geoffrey Chaucer’s Canterbury Tales
54. Christine dePizan’s The Book of the City of Ladies
55. What was the significance of Giotto’s art?
56. How did the Bubonic Plague impact European Art?
57. How did the Plague change economic opportunities for the survivors?
58. Did traditional social roles (the husband working, the woman staying in the home and out of
the public eye) become more pronounced or less pronounced during the 14th Century?
59. How did the plague change the practice of medicine?
60. How effective were guns by the early 1400s?