Student Incentives
 
         *Students with good attendance, good grades, and good behavior get two (2)
         Flex Days (don't have to come to school) each Nine Weeks.
       **Each Nine Weeks that students qualify for for Flex Days, their name is put into
         a drawing for a CAR!!
         (see District Calendar for Flex Dates)
 
AP/DC Course Description
           This is a college-level survey course designed to satisfy both the requirements of the College Board for Advanced Placement U.S. History as well as U.S. History 1301 at Palo Alto College.  Students are expected to read and write extensively, to conduct independent research, and to be motivated and disciplined.  Access to a computer and the internet is required.  Students who do not have a computer or internet access need to come to campus before or after school or to find access off campus. 

 

The course is organized into Thematic Units reflecting historic eras and key issues.  Students will master factual knowledge, develop analytical skills required to deal critically with relevant problems, and demonstrate their ability to interpret evidence, including primary and secondary documents, graphical material, statistical tables, pictures, and works of art.  Assigned reading will be completed outside of class and will be tested during class.  The single most important contributor to student success is completing each reading assignment and its accompanying work. There is no substitute.              
 
All students will take the AP Exam.  The goal of the class is to assist students to pass the AP Exam with a 5 or better.  Students who score a 5 on the AP Exam generally receive an A for college credit (4 = B; 3 = C).  Dual Credit Students who pass the class with a C or better will earn 3 hours of college credit at Palo Alto.  This grade may differ from the student’s Semester Grade because the college term ends in December, while the Semester ends in January.  Students also receive credit toward high school graduation.  A grade of 80 or above is part of District requirements for a Distinguished Graduate.  Students enrolled in this class are expected to pass the Exit Level TAKS with a “commended” rating.           

 Course Grading Policy
Grades are based on student performance.  Formative grades (Daily grades, Quiz grades,etc.) count as 50% of the Nine Weeks Grade. Summative grades (Tests, Projects, etc.) comprise the remaining 50% of the Nine Weeks grade (27 Formative /9 Summative each 9 weeks).                                            
 

Semester Grades are determined by averaging the 1st Nine Weeks grade with the 2nd Nine Weeks grade.  The Semester Grade is weighted at 75%, with the Semester Exam accounting for the remaining 25% of the Semester Grade.  Progress Reports will be handed out every three weeks:

Grading Key:  A = 90-100      B = 80-89        C = 75-79        D = 70-74                        
 
Class Expectations:

·        Be present and on time.  It is easy to get behind in this class.

·        Be prepared.  Bring completed homework and supplies: pen (blue or black only), pencil, paper, highlighters, thumb drive, and a small pencil sharpener.

·        Follow directions, both verbal and written.  It is important to understand exactly what is expected.

·        DON'T make excuses for late work.  I do not accept late work.  Writing assignments and projects are due on the Due Date. No exceptions.  If you were absent, you have three class days to make up Formative grades upon your return to class.  A missed Test or Quiz must be retaken before or after school.  

·        Extra Credit is offered only to the entire class.  There is no individual Extra Credit.

·        DON'T plagiarize!  Plagiarism (copying from the internet, a book, or from another student’s paper) on Writing assignments will be rewarded with a "zero."  A subsequent offense will result in being required to complete all remaining Writing assignments in the classroom before or after school.

·        Observe District and Class Rules for behavior and dress. Class Rules are posted in the room.

·        DON'T tell me you can't get to a computer.                                                                    
Framework for the Course: (Tentative) 
 

1st Nine Weeks:

Colonial America --New Nation

2nd Nine Weeks:

             New Nation--Gilded Age

Unit 1 Colonial America 1600-1750

Unit 3 New Nation 1783-1824 (continued)

Unit 2 Revolutionary America 1700-1783

Unit 4 Age of Jackson 1824-1860

Unit 3 New Nation 1783-1824

Unit 5 A Nation Divided 1800-1861

 

Unit 6 Civil War/Reconstruction 1860-1877

 

Unit 7 The West 1865-1890

 

Unit 9 Gilded Age 1965-1890
 
Textbook and Supplements
Nash, Gary B and Jeffrey, Julie Roy.  The American People: Creating a Nation and a Society. 
  Concise 7th ed.  (Combined Volume), Boston.  Prentice Hall.  2011
Brinkley, Alan.  American History: A Survey.  8th ed., New York.  McGraw-Hill. 2003.
 

Additional books, handouts, online supplements