AP World History 10

AP World History 10 Summer Assignment

June, 2019

Longwood High School

Welcome to AP World History 10!


We are looking forward to a great upcoming school year, to getting to know each of you, and to beginning our journey through the modern half of world history together. AP World History 10 is an exciting and intensive course that examines human societies across the globe and analyzes the processes of change as well as the similarities and differences between different groups of people. To help you begin thinking like an historian, we have created a summer assignment that is intended to increase your interest, spark your imagination, and introduce you to some of the people and topics we will be discussing throughout the coming year. This summer assignment is broken up into two parts, an historic book review, and three SAQ questions that mirror a portion of the AP World History Exam,


AP World History 10 is a rigorous course that explores the history of the entire world from 1450 up through today! To better help understand the major themes that influence World History we will be looking at a variety of sources throughout the year. These sources will include, but are not limited to our textbook, Ways of the World, by Robert W. Strayer, which will be provided for you during the first week of school and numerous primary sources. In addition to this you will also be required to purchase a review book in the spring. More details about the review book will be provided as we approach the AP Exam..


To further your understanding of the cultural and intellectual developments in World History and develop the analytical skills of an historian, we will be examining primary sources and looking at ways to use them as historians. Extensive attention will be given to developing the critical thinking and writing skills. As we prepare for the AP Exam in World History you will become increasingly comfortable forming thesis statements, analyzing causation, changes and continuities, similarities and differences, and writing DBQs.


This summer we would like you to choose one of the books on the enclosed list to read and analyze and to complete all of the parts of the summer assignment enclosed on the following pages. You must bring a printed copy of both Part A and the hand written portion of Part B of your summer assignment to school on the first day of classes.

We hope you have a great summer and enjoy reading the book you choose. We are looking forward to meeting all of you in September and beginning our journey through World History together. If you have any questions about this assignment or the course in general, you can contact us via email over the summer at the email addresses listed at the bottom of this web page. In addition, you can call the High School at 631-345-9200.


Sincerely,


The AP World Team

Mr. Randall Grossman

Mr. Dylan O’Neill

Mr. Michael Percontino

Ms. Colleen Skadl

Mr. Dan Tapia

Summer Assignments Overview 2019

  • You must complete both assignments as per the instructions which follow.
      • Part A: Historic Book Review
        • Printed copy due on the first day of class
      • Part B: Short Answer Questions: SAQ
        • Hand written answers due on the first day of class
  • All of the work contained in the assignment must be your own work! Any research used must be cited both in text and in a works cited page at the end of each assignment. See http://library.csun.edu/egarcia/documents/mlacitation_quickguide.pdf for more help.
  • Both assignments must be brought to school on the first day of class in September.
  • Sadly, receipt of this assignment is not a guarantee that you will be placed in this course in September.

*** Any research you use in completing this assignment must be properly cited both in text and in a works cited page at the end of the paper. Failure to cite sources is PLAGIARISM, a serious academic crime that will result in a failing grade for this assignment as well as possible ejection from this course. ***


Part A. Historical Book Review


  1. Pick one book from the enclosed list. Read the book and write an historical book review on that subject.
  2. We have included an appropriate list for your grade level in hard copy form in this mailing. Copies of all books are available at the Public library. If you choose to purchase the book through Amazon.com, or wish to read reviews of the books before choosing you can use the links below.
  3. Keep in mind that choosing a book that is NOT on the list will result in a failing grade for this assignment.
  4. Please consult the guidelines below “Writing an Historical Book Review” for detailed instructions on how to complete this assignment.
  5. You must provide a paper copy of this assignment on the first day of class, along with the Part B assignment.

Writing an Historical Book Review

Writing a review as an assignment in a history course has at least four important objectives:

  1. Effective writing
  2. Building substantive knowledge about a particular historical topic.
  3. Developing an understanding of the nature and use of historical research completed by others.
  4. Establishing an ability to think critically about the work of others.

Required Elements of an Historical Book Review:

  • Your book review should be
    • 3-5 pages Long
    • Typed
    • Double-spaced
    • 1” margins all-around
    • Font Times New Roman, size = 12 pt.
  • Cover at least SIX of the following points in your historical book review:
    • What are the places and time periods covered in this book?
    • How did the author present the information; a memoir, or a straight up history book?
    • Why do you think the author presented the material this way?
    • What did you learn about history or culture by reading this book?
    • What were some of the major themes the author wrote about?
    • What message or lesson do you think the author was trying to present in the book? Do you feel the author was successful?
    • What questions or issues, if any came to mind as you were reading the book?
    • Would you recommend this book to anyone else to read? This is a serious and important question, don't just tell us you liked it because you think it’s what we want to hear, we really value your opinion, and if we find that more than a couple of students do not like a book, we remove it from the list the following year.

***The most important advice we can give is to make sure your book review is not just a plot summary!***


Part B. Short Answer Questions (SAQ)

Please complete all of the SAQ questions in Part B.


Please bring your answers to all of the Part B SAQs to school on the first day of classes.


WHAT THE SHORT ANSWER SECTION IS NOT:

  • This is NOT an essay. It is simply a series of formulaic tasks that can each be completed by writing three complete sentences.


THE FORMAT OF THE SHORT ANSWER SECTION:

  • Each SAQ question MUST be answered on its own sheet of provided paper. These should be HAND WRITTEN. Your entire answer must fit inside the border of the page.
  • Each of the four questions will be divided into 3 tasks labeled a, b, and c.
  • Each of these lettered items will be graded separately, so approach each lettered task individually as a separate, but related task (label and skip a line in between each task).
  • Before completing any tasks, look at all of the tasks so that you have a feel for the big picture.


ANSWER USING THIS THREE SENTENCE FORMAT:

  • A = Clearly ANSWER the question.
  • P = PROVIDE a specific piece of evidence. If there is a document this must be information beyond what is in the document to support your answer. The more specific, the better. ***Do not simply restate a selection from the document***
  • E = EXPLAIN how your evidence supports your answer and/or provides additional historical context.

Part B SAQ 1

SAQ 1 Refer to the passage below to answer all parts of the question that follows.


“Nomads, the historical record shows, can evade, resist, stop, sustain, exploit, destabilize, and destroy empires. They can also build enduring empires of their own, but only if they modify the essence of their being and become less nomadic. Their institutions, like their very way of life, tend to be fluid and short-lived, and they lack such classic elements of empires as state structure and surplus-generating agriculture. Indeed, to preserve their might, nearly all nomadic empires developed over time more fixed institutions of governance and production that required at least seasonal sedentarism. So too did the Comanches, although this may seem implausible at first sight. . . . At the dawn of the eighteenth century, the Comanche were a small tribe of hunter-gatherers living in the rugged canyonlands on the far northern frontier of the Spanish kingdom of New Mexico. . . . It was here, at the advancing edge of the world’s largest empire, that the Comanches launched an explosive expansion. They purchased and plundered horses from New Mexico, reinvented themselves as mounted fighters, and reenvisioned their place in the world. . . . as a hegemonic people who grew increasingly powerful and prosperous at the expense of the surrounding societies, Indian and Euro-American alike. Gradually, a momentous shift took shape. In the Southwest, European imperialism not only stalled in the face of indigenous resistance; it was eclipsed by indigenous imperialism.”

Pekka Hämäläinen, historian, The Comanche Empire, 2008

  1. Identify ONE way in which the author challenges commonly held assumptions about the Americas in the age of European colonialism.
  2. Explain ONE example of a society other than the Comanche that made the type of transition described by the author in the first paragraph.
  3. Explain ONE example of a nomadic empire other than the Comanche that successfully confronted an established state or states in world history.


Part B SAQ 2

SAQ 2 Refers to the image below.

The image shows (on left) Guo Ziyi, a Chinese general of the Tang dynasty, meeting with Uighur nomads on the frontier of China.

  1. Identify and explain ONE way in which the interaction depicted in the image represents a continuity in Chinese imperial History.
  2. Identify and explain ANOTHER way in which the interaction depicted in the image represents a continuity in Chinese imperial history
  3. Identify and explain ONE way in which the interaction between imperial China and Central Asian nomads changed after 1100 CE.


Part B SAQ 3

SAQ 3 Answer all portions of the question below.


  1. Explain ONE difference in the way in which nomadic and sedentary societies in Afro-Eurasia before 1450 CE adapted to their environment.
  2. Explain ONE similarity between economic practices of nomadic and sedentary societies of Afro-Eurasia in the period 600-1450 CE.
  3. Explain ONE major pattern of cultural interaction between nomadic and sedentary societies in Afro-Eurasia before 1450 CE.


Part B SAQ 4

SAQ 4 Answer all portions of the question below.


  1. Identify ONE way in which Judaism influenced the development of Christianity in the period 600 BCE - 600 CE
  2. Explain ONE difference between the spread of Christian communities and the spread of Jewish communities and the spread of Jewish communities in the period 600 BCE and 600 CE
  3. Explain ONE similarity between the spread of Christian communities and the spread of Jewish communities between 600 BCE and 600 CE


Part B SAQ 5

SAQ 5 Answer all portions of the question below.


  1. Identify and explain ONE cause of the Columbian Exchange
  2. Identify and explain ONE effect of the Columbian Exchange on the Americas
  3. Identify and explain ONE effect of the Columbian Exchange on Afro-Eurasia

AP World History Program Contact Information


Mr. Randall Grossman

Teacher: AP World History 10

Phone: 345-9200

Email: Randall.Grossman@Longwoodcsd.org


Mr. Dylan O’Neill

Teacher: AP World History 9

Phone: 345-9200

Email: Dylan.Oneill@longwoodcsd.org


Mr. Michael Percontino

Teacher: AP World History 10

Phone: 345-9200

Email: Michael.Percontino@longwoodcsd.org


Ms. Colleen Skadl

Teacher: AP World History 10

Phone: 345-9200

Email: Colleen.Skadl@longwoodcsd.org


Mr. Daniel Tapia

Teacher: AP World History 9

Phone: 345-9200

Email: Daniel.Tapia@longwoodcsd.org


Mrs. Barbara Merkle

Assistant Principal: Longwood HS

Phone: 345-2920


  • Communication over the summer is somewhat more difficult than during the school year. If you have questions regarding course content and the summer work, emailing an individual teacher would be the most effective.
  • For the most part, teachers of AP World History cannot be reached over the phone throughout the summer months. Email is usually the best option.

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