AP US History Course Syllabus

Teacher: Mrs. Julie Smith

E-Mail Address:

Welcome to AP US History (APUSH). This course is the equivalent of a college history course designed to prepare students for the rigor of a college-level study of history. The history of the United States will be surveyed from the age of exploration and discovery to present day, organized into nine historical periods.

In this course you will be developing and utilizing historical thinking skills, including, but not limited to:

  1. Chronological reasoning
  2. Comparing and contextualizing
  3. Crafting historical arguments and using historical evidence
  4. Interpreting and synthesizing historical narrative

The APUSH course is also designed so that students will develop the skills and strategies needed for successful completion of the AP US History exam on Friday, May 5, 2017. To this end, students are expected to come to the class already possessing well-developed reading and writing skills. As this course is the equivalent of a college survey course, APUSH students must also possess willingness - and ability - to devote time outside of class to homework, reading, writing, and research.

The breadth of topics in APUSH necessitates independent study. Students are expected to be responsible for the course content through consistent homework completion and study. Many of the themes and topics in the course will be discussed and examined in depth during class time. However, as we are on a very tight schedule during the year, it is impossible to address every topic area during class. With time constraints in mind and considering students have studied many APUSH topics in 8th Grade US History, class time will not be regularly used to review homework, chapter readings and factual information. Homework assignments are students’ responsibility and will be necessary preparation for all class discussions and activities.

APUSH Course Themes

The course structure organizes US History into seven overarching and overlapping themes that capture “big ideas” in American history. The following themes set forth in the College Board’s APUSH Course and Exam Description Manuel will be incorporated into class lessons, assignments, and assessments throughout the course.

●American Identity

●Peopling - Migration and Immigration

●Work, Exchange, and Technology

●Politics and Power

●Environment and Geography

●America in the World

●Ideas, Beliefs, and Culture

APUSH Course Units of Study for 2016-2017

The course outline is structured around the study of themes and concepts in nine chronological periods. This outline is also set forth in the College Board’s APUSH Course and Exam Description Manuel.

●Period 1: 1491-1607

●Period 2: 1607-1754

●Period 3: 1754-1800

●Period 4: 1800-1848

●Period 5: 1844-1877

●Period 6: 1865-1898

●Period 7: 1890-1945

●Period 8: 1945-1980

●Period 9: 1980-present

Course Grading

Major Assessments (50% of Quarter Grade)

  • Unit Tests
  • Free Response and Document Based Essays

Classwork/Homework (30% of Quarter Grade)

  • Text Reading and Questions
  • Document Reading and Analysis
  • Reading Quizzes

Daily Preparation (20% of Quarter Grade)

  • Bell Ringer Journal
  • Class/Group Discussion

Semester Grades will be calculated as follows:

  • 1stor 3rd Quarter Grade – 40%
  • 2nd or 4th Quarter Grade – 40%
  • Final Exam – 20%

***ALL students must complete an end of the year project/exam, which will count as the final exam for their 2nd semester grade. This includes students who sign up for and take the APUSH examination.

Final Course Grades will be calculated as follows:

  • 1st Semester Grade – 50%
  • 2nd Semester Grade – 50%

***Because this is an Advanced Placement course, students will have the opportunity to earn 5 quality points, which will be added to their final course grade.

Notebooks

  • Every student will maintain a Composition Book for their Bell Ringer Journal. Journals will be kept in the classroom, and will be graded weekly.
  • Every student will have a spiral notebook or 3-ring binder for taking notes, keeping up with class handouts and grading rubrics, and completing classwork/homework assignments.

Acceptance of Late Work

  • Late work will be accepted for up to 5 days past the due date, with 10 points being deducted for each day the work is late. After 5 days, late work will no longer be accepted, and the student will receive a zero for the assignment.

Make-up Work

  • When a student is absent from class, it is his/her responsibility to ask for and complete his/her make-up work.
  • Following an absence, students will have 5 days to complete any make-up work or to arrange for the make-up of a test or in class essay.

Copying, Plagiarizing, and Cheating

You are expected to approach their assignments with honor and integrity; therefore, it is essential that you do not plagiarize, copy, or cheat from someone else or from internet sources. This class is largely about reading, so if you are tempted not to read and think about how to formulate your answers on your own, then you may not want to take this class.

Just so we are on the same page, plagiarism as defined by Merriam-Webster means, “to steal and pass off (the ideas or words of another) as one’s own; to use another’s production without crediting the source.” Copying means, “to make something that looks exactly or almost exactly like something else.” Cheating means, “taking something from (someone) by lying or breaking a rule to gain an advantage.”

Expectations and Class Rules

  • Students are expected to come to class prepared with notebooks, textbooks, a writing implement, and an open mind every day.
  • Electronic devices (including cell phones) should be used appropriately and at the direction of Mrs. Smith. Any electronic devices that are used at inappropriate times or in inappropriate ways will be collected and held until the end of the class period. Devices will be collected and turned in to administration if students repeatedly use them inappropriately.
  • All rules outlined in the Student Handbook will be enforced in this class.

Acknowledgement Page

***After reviewing the course syllabus, please read the following statements, sign your acknowledgement, and return this page to Mrs. Smith no later than Friday, August 19, 2016.

I have read/reviewed the APUSH Course Syllabus, and I understand the expectations of this class.

______

Student SignatureDate

We have read/reviewed the APUSH Course Syllabus with our student, and we understand the expectations of this class.

______

Parent/Guardian SignatureDate