AP World History Summer Assignment2019-2020 School Year

“Why do we have to do a summer assignment?” This is a commonly asked question within educational circles and groups of local high school students. The reason is NOT because we are trying to take away from your summer and burden you with a heavy workload. You must complete a summer assignment for two reasons… First, it keeps your mind active and thinking about history when you are away from school. We want you ready to go when you return on August 1. Second, AP World History covers thousands of years of human history. That’s a lot of information to pack into the 8 months we will have together before you take the AP Exam on May 14, 2020. In order to be prepared for a strong start in August, we need to be sure everyone has a working knowledge of the academic vocabulary we will use in class and the locations we will be discussing.

The summer assignment is broken down into four tasks. That’s about one task every two weeks during the summer. Plan ahead and budget your time. You will need to submit the summer assignment on the FIRST DAY OF SCHOOL, August 1, 2019. No late assignments will be accepted, unless a student registers after that date.

Unless otherwise noted, your summer assignment tasks should be handwritten and submitted in a binder or presentation folder. At our meeting before the summer break, I will show you some examples of acceptable folders. You might have questions during the summer. If you do, please email me at my school account (lgahr@tanq.org). I will be checking this account regularly, though it might still take a couple days for you to get a response. This entire summer assignment will also be available for download from my school webpage, should you accidentally misplace your copy.

Finally, let me say WELCOME TO AP WORLD HISTORY! You should be proud of yourself for choosing the more challenging path. You will be asked to work hard and think deeply, but you will also gain wonderful experience that will serve you well in future endeavors. Competitive universities look at your transcripts to see if you have challenged yourself and opted for the most rigorous course load available at your high school. Have a great summer. Rest up, relax, manage your time, and be ready to hit the ground running in August. Remember, I will be right there with you. We’ll work hard together!

JOIN OUR REMIND: Text “@tvhsapwh” to 81010. Or download the Remind app and usethat same code to join the class. Parents are welcome to join, too, so share the code with them!

TASK 1: Why Study History?

Read “Why Study History?” by Peter Stearns. This article discusses why the study of history is essential to our society, and also how it can benefit you as a person making your way into your adult life. It may be accessed at:

https://www.historians.org/about-aha-and-membership/aha-history-and-archives/historical-archives/why-study-history-(1998)

This link is on my webpage at tanq.org. If, for any reason, you are unable to access the link, you may simply perform a Google search for the article. Type in “Why Study History by Peter Stearns”, and multiple formats will appear. Be sure to choose one that includes the whole article, and not a review of the article by a third party.

Before you read any scholarly article with questions to follow, start by reading the questions FIRST! It’s always helpful to know what you should be looking for as you read. So, here are the questions…

1. What arguments does Mr. Stearns make to support the idea that it is beneficial for a society when its members study history? Please site specific evidence from the text.

2. In what ways does Mr. Stearns show the study of history to be beneficial to the individual, both on a personal level and in whichever career path he or she may choose? Please site specific evidence from the text.

Now, go ahead and read the article. Read slowly. Make sure you understand each paragraph before moving on to the next.

After you finish reading, answer the two questions above on a piece of notebook paper labeled “Task 1”. This will be the first entry in your Summer Assignment binder or folder.

TASK 2: Maps

You will be labeling and shading four maps. For maps 1 through 3, the information may be obtained in any atlas or on the internet. For map 4, you will need to use the AP World History Course and Exam Description, which may be accessed at:

http://media.collegeboard.com/digitalServices/pdf/ap/ap-world-history-course-and-exam-description.pdf

However, if you cannot make that specific web address work, just search “AP World History Course and Exam Description.” Specifically, you will need the World Regions, A Closer Look Map. It should be somewhere around page 30-35 in the course description at the link above.

Familiarity with these locations and regions will be key to an underlying understanding of each unit as we begin. Be sure to WRITE NEATLY and COLOR NEATLY. I will not spend time trying to decipher crazy handwriting or labels scrawled all over the papers.

Map #1 = World Continents and OceansMap #2 = Western HemisphereMap #3 = Eastern HemisphereMap #4 = AP World History Regions (a closer look)

Please note that you will be tested on this material soon after school starts in the fall. Spend time with your maps this summer. Familiarize yourself with them. It will help you when you try to learn about different cultures, and how they interacted with each other throughout history.

When you finish all four maps, take them out of this packet and put them into your Summer Assignment binder or folder right behind Task 1.

Map #1: World Continents and Oceans

Label:

AfricaAntarcticaAsiaAustraliaEuropeNorth AmericaSouth America

Arctic OceanAtlantic OceanIndian OceanPacific OceanSouthern Ocean

Color each continent a different color. Take care where you break Europe and Asia and Africa, because while these continents do “blend” into each other, there are clear borders between them, as decided upon by geographers and cartographers. We will discuss the concept of Eurasia and Afroeurasia at the start of school. For now, let’s blindly accept the notion of 7 continents on our planet!

Map #2: Western Hemisphere (Americas)

Label water bodies:

Caribbean SeaGulf of MexicoAtlantic OceanPacific OceanBering Strait

Draw and label rivers:

Amazon RiverMississippi RiverRio Grande River

Draw ∧∧∧∧∧∧∧ and label mountain ranges:

Andes MountainsSierra Madre MountainsAppalachian MountainsRocky Mountains

Label landforms:

Yucatan Peninsula

Map #3: Eastern Hemisphere

Label water bodies:

Adriatic SeaAegean SeaArabian SeaAtlantic OceanBaltic SeaBering StraitBlack SeaCaspian SeaEast China SeaIndian OceanMediterranean SeaNorth SeaPacific OceanPersian GulfRed SeaSea of JapanSouth China Sea

Draw ∧∧∧∧∧∧∧ and label mountain ranges:

AlpsAtlas MountainsHimalayasHindu KushUral Mountains

Draw and label rivers:

Congo RiverEuphrates RiverGanges RiverHuang He River (Yellow River)Indus RiverNiger RiverNile RiverRhine RiverTigris RiverYangtze River

Shade yellow and label deserts:

Arabian DesertGobi DesertKalahari DesertSahara Desert

Map #4: AP World History Regions (a closer look)

Shade and label regions (use striping or another pattern to indicate overlaps):

North AfricaWest AfricaEast AfricaCentral AfricaSouthern AfricaMiddle EastEast Asia

Central AsiaSouth AsiaSoutheast AsiaLatin AmericaCaribbeanNorth America

TASK 3: The Worst Mistake in the History of the Human Race

The Neolithic Revolution is also called the Agricultural Revolution. It is considered one of the pivotal events in the history of the human species. In a period of several thousand years, humans went from a largely migratory species to an increasingly sedentary and agricultural society. Historians have often noted the fundamental and positive significance of the change from hunting and gathering to farming. However, some do not agree. In AP World History, you will develop your ability to question mainstream interpretations of history. Read “The Worst Mistake in the History of the Human Race,” by Jared Diamond. Mr. Diamond is one historian who disagrees with the positive view many have about the Neolithic Revolution. He argues that not only was the shift to agriculture NOT a positive change, but that it led to many of society’s troubles that exist in the world even today.

Jared Diamond’s article may be accessed at:

http://www.ditext.com/diamond/mistake.html

But, once again…if the link does not work, you can always perform a Google search to find the article in any number of online locations.

After reading the article, write a response addressing the following prompt. This is an opportunity for me to see your writing skills, so be sure to form your thoughts well on paper. Use good conventions. Please keep your response to 250 words or less, and remember to handwrite!

Prompt: (Did you remember to read the prompt before reading the article? Good job!) What is Jared Diamond’s thesis in this article? Which evils of modern society does Mr. Diamond cite as evidence that the Neolithic Revolution was a negative event in the history of mankind? Please site specific evidence from the text.

TASK 4: World History Vocabulary

The following is a list of terms that will be used over and over throughout the course. They apply to many different cultures throughout history. It is important that you become familiar with their meanings, and that you learn to use them in your speaking and writing. Traditions and Encounters is a college-level text, so it does not have separate vocabulary sections the way some high school textbooks might. You will understand our reading and our class discussions much more easily if you are comfortable in the use of some academic terms used by historians as they study different cultures. For each term on this list, please use a dictionary or the internet to find a definition THAT BEST RELATES TO THE STUDY OF WORLD HISTORY. For instance, the term, “commercial,” has many definitions. Clearly, when studying world history, we don’t usually talk about commercials as paid advertisements on TV. A better definition for our purposes would be one that relates the term to commerce and business in various societies. Remember, as with the rest of this summer assignment, your definitions should be handwritten on notebook paper.

1. Absolutism2. Agrarian3. Aristocracy4. Bias5. Bureaucracy6. Capitalism7. Cash crop8. Caste system9. Civilization10. Clan11. Commercial12. Communism13. Coup d’etat14. Demography15. Diaspora16. Diplomacy17. Economic18. Empire19. Epidemic20. Globalization21. Hegemony22. Infrastructure

23. Kingdom24. Merchant25. Monotheism26. Nation27. Neolithic28. Nobility29. Nomad30. Paleolithic31. Pandemic32. Papacy33. Pastoral34. Patriarchal35. Periodization36. Political37. Polytheism38. Prehistoric39. Rural40. Secular41. Serf42. Social43. Steppe44. Urban