AP® U.S. History Crash Course Book + Online

Larry Krieger, Gregory Feldmeth

• Publisher: Research & Education Association
• Year: 2015
• ISBN:
  9780738686189
• Edition: 3
• Topic: Study Aids
• Subtopic: Advanced Placement

REA's Crash Course for the AP® U.S. History Exam - Gets You a Higher Advanced Placement® Score in Less Time

Completely Revised for the 2015 Exam!

Crash Course is perfect for the time-crunched student, the last-minute studier, or anyone who wants a refresher on the subject.

Are you crunched for time? Have you started studying for your Advanced Placement® U.S. History exam yet? How will you memorize everything you need to know before the test? Do you wish there was a fast and easy way to study for the exam AND boost your score?

If this sounds like you, don't panic. REA's Crash Course for AP® U.S. History is just what you need. Our Crash Course gives you:

Targeted, Focused Review - Study Only What You Need to Know
Fully revised for the 2015 AP® U.S. History exam, this Crash Course is based on an in-depth analysis of the revised AP® U.S. History course description outline and sample AP® test questions. It covers only the information tested on the new exam, so you can make the most of your valuable study time.

Expert Test-taking Strategies
Crash Course presents detailed, question-level strategies for answering both the multiple-choice and essay questions. By following this advice, you can boost your score in every section of the test.

Take REA's Online Practice Exam
After studying the material in the Crash Course, go to the online REA Study Center and test what you've learned. Our practice exam features timed testing, detailed explanations of answers, and automatic scoring analysis. The exam is balanced to include every topic and type of question found on the actual AP® exam, so you know you're studying the smart way.

Whether you're cramming for the test at the last minute, looking for extra review, or want to study on your own in preparation for the exams - this is the study guide every AP® U.S. History student must have.

When it's crucial crunch time and your Advanced Placement® exam is just around the corner, you need REA's Crash Course for AP® U.S. History!

PART I:

INTRODUCTION

Chapter 1

FIVE KEYS FOR SUCCESS ON THE AP U.S. HISTORY EXAM

Your AP U.S. History (APUSH) textbook is very thick and contains thousands of names, dates, places, people, and events. Trying to review all of the information in your book from pre-Columbian Indian civilizations until modern times is a daunting task. Where would you begin? What would you emphasize? What information can you safely omit? Must you study everything?

Fortunately, preparing for the APUSH exam does not have to be a nightmare. By studying efficiently and strategically with this book, you can score a 4 or a 5 on the exam. Use the following five keys for success:

1. Understanding the APUSH Scale

The College Board evaluates student performance on all AP exams and assigns a score based on the following five-point scale:

5—extremely well qualified

4—well qualified

3—qualified

2—possibly qualified

1—no recommendation

An AP grade of 3 or higher indicates a student has mastery of course content that would be equivalent to a college-level introductory course. A number of colleges in recent years, however, do not give credit for an AP exam score below 4 or 5. Check with the college you’re interested in attending to see what score it requires to receive credit for your AP exam.

2. Understanding the APUSH Concept Outline

APUSH test writers use a detailed concept outline that tells them what they can and cannot ask. This topical outline is freely available. You can access it on the AP U.S. History page of the College Board website. It describes the nine periods of American history that are covered effective with the 2015 exam. As you see in the chart below, some of the periods overlap because historians disagree about how to fix their boundaries.

Each of the chapters that follow is organized according to this outline and begins with the key concepts of the chronological period.

3. Understanding the Format of the Exam

The revised AP U.S. History exam features four types of questions:

(1) multiple choice

(2) short answer

(3) document-based

(4) long essay

The multiple-choice section consists of 55 questions. You will have 55 minutes to answer them. This section is worth 40 percent of your grade. Each question requires analysis of a stimulus, such as an image (painting, cartoon, photograph, etc.), a primary or secondary source, a graph, or a map. You will need an understanding of U.S. history to respond correctly to the question, which will have one correct response and three distractors. The exam has been designed to emphasize your ability to use historical thinking skills rather than merely recalling memorized facts.

Short-answer questions are new to the AP U.S. History exam, beginning with the 2015 exam. You will have 50 minutes to answer four questions. There is no need to include a thesis in your response, but you need to use proper grammatical English and complete sentences. An outline or a bulleted list as your response is not acceptable.

The next type of question is the document-based question (DBQ). You will have 55 minutes to answer it. Using the documents provided (which can include graphs, pictures, cartoons, and written materials), you will be asked to analyze and synthesize historical evidence found in the documents. There will be between five and seven documents, and you will need to refer to all, or all but one, of the documents in your response.

For the long essay question, the final question type, you will choose one of two comparable prompts to which to respond. You will have 35 minutes to write your response, which should include a strong thesis statement supported by relevant historical evidence.

4. Using Your Crash Course to Build a Winning Strategy

This Crash Course book is based on a careful analysis of the APUSH Course Description topical outline. Chapter 2 contains 42 key terms that you absolutely, positively have to know. Chapters 3–11 provide you with a detailed chronological review of key points derived from the Course Description’s topical outline. Chapters 12–22 give you detailed information about key events, themes, and facts. And finally, Chapters 23–26 share test-taking strategies for each section of the APUSH exam.

If you have the time, review the entire book. This is desirable but not mandatory. You can study the chapters in any order. Each chapter provides you with a digest of key information that will be helpful for you to know for the various types of questions. Unlike most review books, the Crash Course summaries are not meant to be exhaustive. Instead, they are meant to focus your attention on the most essential material you need to study.

5. Using Additional Materials to Supplement Your Crash Course

Your Crash Course contains everything you need to know to score a 4 or a 5. You should supplement it, however, with materials provided by the College Board. The College Board’s AP Central website contains a wealth of materials, including a free practice exam. In addition, REA’s AP U.S. History All Access Book + Web + Mobile study system further enhances your exam preparation by offering a comprehensive review book plus a suite of online assessments (end-of-chapter quizzes, mini-tests, two full-length practice tests, and e-flashcards), all of which are designed to pinpoint your strengths and weaknesses and help focus your study for the exam.

Chapter 2

KEY TERMS

I. PERIOD 1: 1491–1607

1. COLUMBIAN EXCHANGE

The Columbian Exchange refers to the exchange of plants, animals, and diseases between Europe and the New World following the discovery of America in 1492.

New World crops such as corn, tomatoes, and potatoes had a dramatic effect on the European diet. At the same time, Old World domesticated animals such as horses, cows, and pigs, had a dramatic effect on life in the New World.

European diseases, such as smallpox, decimated the population of the New World, while venereal diseases were carried back to Europe from the Americas.

II. PERIOD 2: 1607–1754

2. MERCANTILISM

Mercantilism, the economic philosophy guiding Great Britain in the seventeenth and eighteenth centuries, viewed colonies as existing only to benefit the mother country. Like other mercantile powers, Great Britain sought to increase its wealth and power by obtaining large amounts of gold and silver and by establishing a favorable balance of trade with its colonies.

3. HALF-WAY COVENANT

The Puritans established the Half-Way Covenant to ease requirements for church membership and retain control. The Half-Way Covenant allowed the baptism of the children of baptized, but unconverted, Puritans.

4. ENLIGHTENMENT

The Enlightenment was an eighteenth-century philosophy stressing that reason could be used to improve the human condition and that the natural world provided models for human institutions.

Enlightenment thinkers such as Thomas Jefferson stressed the idea of natural rights. This idea can clearly be seen in the second paragraph of the Declaration of Independence:

“We hold these truths to be self-evident; that all men are created equal; that they are endowed by their Creator with certain inalienable rights; that among these are life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness.”

5. THE FIRST GREAT AWAKENING

This term refers to a wave of religious revivals that spread across the American colonies during the 1730s and 1740s as the power of the Puritans waned.

III. PERIOD 3: 1754–1800

6. CONSTITUTIONAL CONVENTION

The 1787 Constitutional Convention sought to correct weaknesses in the Articles of Confederation by creating a strong central government that shared powers with the states.

7. SEPARATION OF POWERS

This term refers to the division of power among the legislative, judicial, and executive branches of government. Alexander Hamilton defended the principle of separation of powers when he wrote,

“There is no liberty if the power of judging be not separated from the legislative and executive powers. . . .”

8. CHECKS AND BALANCES

This refers to a system in which each branch of government can check the power of the other branches. For example, the president can veto a bill passed by Congr...