Dear Scholar,
I would like to encourage you to accept the
challenge of AP Human Geography next year to prepare
you for college level classes and teach you about the
interesting field of advanced geographic studies.
AP Human Geography encompasses many, fascinating subjects, such as how people
interact with their world and how that world shapes them. We’ll cover topics such as
cultures, population, agriculture, cities, migration, and languages. We’re not as concerned
with where things are, but rather we delve into why they’re there.
The class is quite rigorous; you should expect to spend some time outside of school
each day studying and completing assignments for AP Human Geography. It will be
imperative that you develop effective and efficient time management and study skills to be
successful in high school and college courses.
In May, you will take the AP exam. If you score a 3 or higher out of a possible 5
points on the exam, most universities allow you to count the class for one of your history
requirements. This will save you time and perhaps thousands of dollars. It will also give
you more flexibility in arranging a schedule for your four years of undergraduate work.
And colleges view AP classes as a mark of distinction when they grant admissions. One or
more AP classes on your high school transcript show universities you are willing to work
hard and challenge yourself academically. As we approach the exam date, I will offer afterschool and weekend study sessions. These are very helpful in preparing for the exam.
This summer, you will need to study the attached form called the Basic Background
Knowledge List and complete the Most Important Events assignment. You will be quizzed
on the items from the Basic Background Knowledge List during the first two weeks of school
next year. The Most Important Events assignment will be due the second day of class, so
please don’t procrastinate on it.
This is an important challenge you’ve agreed to accept; please discuss this decision
with your parents in the next few weeks.
If you have any questions, see me at school in room 116 or email me at
[email protected]. I check my email all summer long.
Thanks,
Tom Coleman
AP Human Geography Instructor
Basic Background Knowledge List
Part of entering an AP class is an assumption of a certain level of background knowledge and
skills. Please review and be prepared to take an assessment the first two weeks of school in the
fall relating to this list. The assessment will be a multiple-choice quiz done on a computer.
Don’t stress out about this, but do some review and familiarize yourself with this information.
Think of this knowledge as the ABC’s and 1,2,3’s of geography.
Basic map and atlas skills –
 Using an atlas to locate information
 Reading and interpreting a map
 Using latitude and longitude to locate and find places
Be able to locate on a map the following placesGeneral Stuff
Major Mountain Ranges
 4 Oceans
 Himalayas
 7 continents
 Rockies
 Equator
 Andes
 Tropic of Cancer
 Alps
 Tropic of Capricorn
 Caucasus
 Urals
 Appalachian
Major Deserts
Major Climate Regions
 Sahara
 Tropical
 Great Sandy Desert
 Dry
Australia
 Mild
 Gobi
 Continental
 Siberia
 Polar
Chokepoints (Straits and
Channels)
 Strait of Gibraltar
 Panama Canal
 Suez Canal
 Strait of Malacca
 English Channel
 Bosphorus &
Dardanelles
 Strait of Hormuz
 Gulf of Oman
Major World Cities
 New York City
 London
 Tokyo
 Paris
 Cairo
 Sydney
 Sao Paulo
 Johannesburg
 Moscow
 Hong Kong
Major Rivers
 Rhine
 Amazon
 Yangtze
 Mississippi
 Ganges
 Nile
 Congo
Major Bodies of Water
 Great Lakes
 Mediterranean Sea
 Black Sea
 Caspian Sea
 Red Sea
 Arabian Sea
 South China Sea
 Caribbean Sea
 Aral Sea
 Persian Gulf
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Chicago
Beijing
Bombay (Mumbai)
Mexico City
Tehran
Washington D.C.
Lagos
Calcutta
Toronto
Singapore
Most Important Events
(30 pts)
One of the greatest challenges of AP
Human Geography is that the exam assumes a
level of knowledge about world history, US
history, and current events that many 9th/10th
graders lack. To help remedy this, please spend some time this summer familiarizing yourself
with some of mankind’s crucial moments and turning points.
Choose ten events/eras you think were the most important in
human history. Write a brief paragraph about each explaining why
you think it was so important. Give examples to support your claims.
Sample events/eras: Discovery of fire, development of agriculture,
birth of Christ/Mohammed, the Renaissance, the Reformation, invention of the cotton
gin, dropping the atomic bomb.
For each crucial event in history, you will receive one point for identifying a globally or
domestically significant event, one for stating an opinion of
why you think it was important, and one for giving one or
more examples to illustrate, detail, or support your claim.
Remember, while your claim about an event’s importance
may be an opinion, you must back it up with facts, not more opinion.
Due September 3, 2015.