Byron Nelson High School Summer Reading Assignment AP World History Welcome to AP World History.

. To assist you in the transition to reading the textbook for advanced course, over the summer, you are to read the following chapters of our adopted textbook The Earth and Its Peoples by Dr. Bulliet, et. al. version 2: Bulliet *Chapter 1 From the Origins of Agriculture to the First River-Valley Civilizations, 8000 1500 B.C.E. Chapter 3 Chapter 4 Chapter 5 The Late Bronze Age in the Eastern Hemisphere, 2200-500 B.C.E. The Formation of New Cultural Communities, 1000 B.C.E. 400 C.E. Greece and Iran, 1000-300 B.C.E.

These chapters are available on my netSchool account. Please obtain an enrollment key from your counselor or the main office at BNHS to enroll. If you do not have internet access, you may obtain a printed copy which is available from the main office. Reading at the AP level is interactive. When taking notes on what you read, you should focus on how the informative details within each chapter relate the 5 themes and big picture questions which are a focus of this AP course1. One process that helps students to sort and analyze this information is to use PERSIAN charts to organize the data (see attachments 1 and 2). Note taking is such an important process in the study of Social Sciences you will be allowed to use these notes when writing the first compare/contrast essay; and on various assignments throughout the course. The key to success with this type of note taking is to read twice. Before you read, look through the chapter, read the title, look at the graphs, maps and pictures. This will help you to get an overall feel for the main idea of the chapter and Periodization. The first time you should just read the chapter no distractions. Break it up if necessary into sections and read some each day. Then, for the second reading, take notes. Your notes should NOT be more than 10% of the chapter. For example, if the chapter is 30 pages long, your notes should be no more than 3 pages. Do not simply copy down terms from the chapter, place information into the appropriate context as it correlates to the themes. For example: Politically, what changed in this chapter? What stayed the same? Most importantly, WHY? Compare and contrast the information? What is similar, what is different; and again most important why? What prompted social changes or causes social norms? When you return to school, we will spend the first week going over the reading, learning how to write the compare/contrast essay and discussing any questions you have. Your first
1

The Five Themes

Theme 1 Interaction between humans and the environment Theme 2 Development and Interaction of Cultures Theme 3 State-building, expansion and conflict Theme 4 Creation, expansion and interactions of Economic Systems Theme 5 Development and transformation of social structures

assessment will be over the material covered in class during the first and the chapters assigned. It will be in two portions: the essay will be administered on Thursday, August 30th (compare/contrast essay 40 minutes; formative assignment) and Friday, August 31st (a timed, AP style multiple choice test; summative assignment). This will serve to give you an idea of what will be expected from you as you begin this course. For information as to the criteria used to grade your essay, a Compare/Contrast rubric is linked on my web page, and attached here (attachment 3). Please note that as the beginning of the school year is busy, and you are new to a survey course of this challenging level, this reading assignment offers you the opportunity to take your time to acclimate to this course. I encourage you to take advantage of it. If you have any questions over the summer, you may e-mail me at thanshew@nisdtx.org. I will respond to you in a timely manner.

Attachment 1

How to take notes

Pre-reading and notes for the History textbook 1. 2. Read the title of the chapter. What is the chapter about? Type or write the title at the top of your paper (attached). You should put the date (todays date) at the top as well so you can organize your notes and study with them later. Next, look through the chapter, at pictures, maps and for any key terms that you dont know. Make a list of the terms you know nothing about in the left column (see sample). As you complete the second reading, make note of the meanings of these words, or any words used differently than you thought. It is important to do this from the chapter and NOT from the glossary. Often words have multiple meanings and those frequently change throughout time. Next, read the chapter summary or conclusion if there is one in your book. Now go through and read the captions under every map, chart and pictures. Now go back and read the title again. Close the book. Think about what this chapter is about. What regions are covered? What questions do you have about the maps and pictures? What ideas do you have about this chapter? Write these in the left side margin (see sample). Read the chapter no writing, no highlighting, and no distractions. Go back and read the chapter again, this time take PERSIAN notes. Skim it one more time if necessary to define the key terms and answer the questions on the right side of the page. Write a summary of the chapter in your own words. Be brief (2 or 3 sentences at most), and try to include the most important points. As a rule, youre notes should not exceed 10% of the pages you are reading. So if the chapter is 30 pages, you should NOT have more than 3 pages (front only) of notes. Anything more is just copying information.

3. 4. 5. 6. 7. 8. 9. 10. 11.

Attachment 2

Chapter Title
Key terms I do not know and questions I have: Neolithic Revolution Semitic Hammurabi Why is the term civilization so ambiguous? What is patrilineal? When did religion shift from goddess to god or feminine to masculine? Your summary, 3 5 sentences in your own words.

Date:_____________

Big Picture What happened in this chapter?

What do those terms mean? Why is it important? Did I answer the questions on the left? What does it all mean?

Section Title Main Idea: Political: State building, expansion, and conflict
Political structures and forms of governance; Empires; Nations and nationalism; Revolts and revolutions; Regional, and global structures and organizations Economic: Creation, expansion, and interaction of economic systems Agricultural and pastoral production; Trade and commerce; Labor systems; Industrialization; Capitalism and socialism Religious: Development and interactions of cultures Belief systems, philosophies, and ideologies; Religious/philosophical/ ideological writings and their influence Social: Developments and transformation of social structures Gender roles and relations; Family and kinship; Racial and ethnic constructions; Social and economic classes Intellectual/Arts: Development and interactions of cultures Science and technology; The arts and architecture; Construction/building projects and achievements Nature: Interaction between humans and the environment Demography and disease; Migration; Patterns of settlement; Technology

Why it matters now:

Attachment 3

ADVANCED PLACEMENT COMPARATIVE ESSAY RUBRIC

BASIC CORE (Shows competence) Points Has an acceptable thesis. Addresses comparisons of the issues and themes specified in the prompt. 1 Expands beyond the basic core of 1 to 7 points. A student MUST earn seven points in the basic core area BEFORE earning points from the expanded core area below. Has a clear, analytical and comprehensive thesis. Addresses all parts of the question (as relevant): comparisons, chronology, causation, connections, themes, interactions, content. Provides ample historical evidence to substantiate thesis. Shows the ability to relate comparisons to larger global context. Shows similarities and differences amongst groups. Makes direct comparisons consistently between or among societies. EXPANDED CORE (Shows excellence) Points

0-2

1) Addresses all parts of the question, though not necessarily evenly or thoroughly. Addresses most parts of the question. For example, deals with similarities but not differences.

(1)

Substantiates the thesis with appropriate evidence. Partially substantiates thesis appropriate historical evidence. with

2 (1)

Makes at least two relevant, direct comparisons between or among societies.

2) Analyzes at least two reasons for a similarity or difference identified in a direct comparison. SUBTOTAL

ADDITIONAL COMMENTS

9 GRADES: 9=100, 8=92, 7=87, 6=82, 5=77, 4=72, 3=67, 2=62, 1=57, 0=50