I.                  In class during the first meeting

Syllabus distribution and presentation (in-class)

Assignment: handout - What Is History? Quotation analysis and discussion (in-class)

II.           20,000 years in three pages

                       Textbook and Packet Distribution – Pre-Columbian Americaand Exploration

            Discussionand in-class competition

III.            The Coming of the English

The American Pageant(hereafter referred to as “Text”, Preface (first two paragraphs only, pp 27-33)

Your text book was written specifically for high school students enrolled in the AP US History class. The language and style are readable, and the book is largely organized chronologically.  This first text assignment is typical of most daily reading assignments: approximately 6-8 pages in length. 

How did Virginians overcome the handicaps encountered in their initial settlement?  Explain.

IV.            TheSouthern Colonies

Text pp 35-41(all), 74-76 (1^st paragraph)

In what ways doesslavery define the settlement of the early southern colonies?  Which are seeming exceptions to the rule?

V.            New England

Text pp 46-53 (1^st column), 80-84 (first column)

Are early NewEngland colonies theocracies?  Explain.

VI.          Middle Colonies

Text pp 56-62 (all), 64-66

According to yourtext, “the middle colonies were in many respects midway between New England andthe southern plantation group”.  Howso?  How are they unique?

VII.         Life inColonial America

Text 76-77, 84-86; David M. Kennedy and Thomas Bailey’s The American Spirit(hereafter referred to as “Spirit”) Fontaine (72-73),Mather (81-83), Mittleberger (88-90), De Crevecoeur (90-92)

What evidence ofclass structure in early America is illustrated by these readings?  Is it uniform among the three primaryregions?

VIII.       Mercantilism and America                  

Text pp 55-56, 93-96 (1^st section), 127-129 (1/21^st column); Spirit 136-137 (Smith)

MODERATION

Should Britain’s mercantile policy towards its American colonies be considered a success or failure? Why?

IX.       The Enlightenment, Religion, and Politics

Text pp 97-104 (1/2 1^st column), Spirit 93-94(Franklin), 94-96 (Edwards)

UNIT II- THE REVOLUTIONARY ERA

I.         The Contest for Empire  

Text 112-120

What role do the American colonies play in the struggle for empire between the British and the French?

II.                 The Watershed Treaty of Paris  

Text 120-124; Spirit 112-113 (Parkman)

MODERATION

How does the French and Indian War illuminate the differences between the Americans and the British?

III.              The Cracks widen

Text 126-127 (1^st column), 129-136 (1st paragraph)

What amount of taxation is considered reasonable?  Were the colonies acting petulantly in their responses to the Stamp Act?

IV.              Toward Independence

Text 136-139, 142-144, 146-152

Are the various causes of colonial discontent legitimate?

V.                 From Grievances to War

Spirit 130-132 (Franklin), 139 – 140 (cartoons), 141-142 (Leonard), 142-143 (Henry)

Class Debate: Who is more to blame for the deteriorating relationship between the British and her American colonies?

VI.              The War against the Redcoats

Text 154-155 (Makers of America – The Loyalists), 156-160 (3rd paragraph), 162-166

Can loyalists during the Revolution be considered a persecuted minority?  Why or why not?

VII.           Revolutionary Diplomacy and the Treaty of Paris part deux

 Text 160-161, 166-168; Spirit 172-173 (Adams), 173-174 (Deane)

                   Who are the “winners” and “losers” of the American Revolution?

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