Waltham Public Schools

Unit 1: Period 1: 1491–1607

8 Class Periods 

4–6% AP Exam Weighting

UNIT 1 KEY CONCEPTS

KC-1.2

Contact among Europeans, Native Americans, and Africans resulted in the Columbian Exchange and significant social, cultural, and political changes on both sides of the Atlantic Ocean.

KC-1.2.I

European expansion into the Western Hemisphere generated intense social, religious, political, and economic competition and changes within European societies.

KC-1.2.II

The Columbian Exchange and development

of the Spanish Empire in the Western Hemisphere resulted in extensive demographic, economic, and social changes.

KC-1.2.III

In their interactions, Europeans and Native Americans asserted divergent worldviews regarding issues such as religion

- Bartolome de Las Casas reading analysis

- Cahokia Reflection

- Summer Textbook Work

- Chapter/Unit Tests

Unit 2: Period 2: 1607–1754

14 Class Periods 

6–8% Ap Exam Weighting

:UNIT 2 KEY CONCEPTS

KC-2.1

Europeans developed a variety of colonization and migration patterns, influenced by different imperial goals, cultures, and the varied North

American environments where they settled. They competed with each other and American

Indians for resources.

KC-2.1.I

Spanish, French, Dutch, and British colonizers had different economic and imperial goals involving land and labor that shaped the social and political development of their colonies as well as their relationships with native populations.

KC-2.1.II

In the 17th century, early British colonies developed along the Atlantic coast, with regional differences that reflected various environmental, economic, cultural, and demographic factors.

KC-2.1.III

Competition over resources between European rivals and American Indians encouraged industry and trade and led to conflict in the Americas.

KC-2.2

The British colonies participated in political, social, cultural, and economic exchanges with Great Britain that encouraged both

stronger bonds with Britain and resistance to

Britain’s control.

KC-2.2.I

Transatlantic commercial, religious, philosophical, and political exchanges led residents of the British colonies to evolve in their political and cultural attitudes as they became increasingly tied to Britain and one another.

KC-2.2.II

Like other European empires in the Americas that participated in the Atlantic slave trade, the English colonies developed a system of slavery that reflected the specific economic, demographic, and geographic characteristics of those colonies.

- Bacon’s Rebellion Document Analysis

- Olaudah Equiano Reading and Response

- Great Awakening Document Activities

- Reading Guides/ Packets for each textbook chapter

- Chapter/Unit Tests

Unit 3: Period 3: 1754–1800

17 Class Periods

10–17% AP Exam Weighting 

UNIT 3 KEY CONCEPTS

KC-3.1

British attempts to assert tighter control over

its North American colonies and the colonial

resolve to pursue self-government led to a

colonial independence movement and the

Revolutionary War.

KC-3.1.I

The competition among the British, French,

and American Indians for economic and

political advantage in North America

culminated in the Seven Years’ War

(the French and Indian War), in which

Britain defeated France and allied

American Indians.

KC-3.1.II

The desire of many colonists to assert

ideals of self-government in the face of

renewed British imperial efforts led to a

colonial independence movement and war

with Britain.

KC-3.2 The American Revolution’s democratic and republican ideals inspired new experiments with different forms of government. KC-3.2.I The ideals that inspired the revolutionary cause reflected new beliefs about politics, religion, and society that had been developing over the course of the 18th century. KC-3.2.II After declaring independence, American political leaders created new constitutions and declarations of rights that articulated the role of the state and federal governments while protecting individual liberties and limiting both centralized power and excessive popular influence. KC-3.2.III.i New forms of national culture and political institutions developed in the United States alongside continued regional variations and differences over economic, political, social, and foreign policy issues. KC-3.3 Migration within North America and competition over resources, boundaries, and trade intensified conflicts among peoples and nations. KC-3.3.I In the decades after American independence, interactions among different groups resulted in competition for resources, shifting alliances, and cultural blending. KC-3.3.II The continued presence of European powers in North America challenged the United States to find ways to safeguard its borders, maintain neutral trading rights, and promote its economic interests.

- French and Indian War Document Stations

- Boston Massacre Source Activity - 

“Who was at fault?”

- Declaration of Independence source work and analysis

- Document-Based Question: Road to Revolution

- Articles of Confederation and Constitution document analysis

- Hamilton v. Jefferson

- American Creation Quiz

- Reading Guides/ Packets for each textbook chapter

- Chapter/Unit Tests

Unit 4: Period 4: 1800–1848

17 Class Periods 

10–17% AP Exam Weighting

UNIT 4 KEY CONCEPTS

KC-4.1

The United States began to develop a modern

democracy and celebrated a new national

culture, while Americans sought to define the

nation’s democratic ideals and change their

society and institutions to match them.

KC-4.1.I

The nation’s transition to a more participatory

democracy was achieved by expanding

suffrage from a system based on property

ownership to one based on voting by all adult

white men, and it was accompanied by the

growth of political parties.

KC-4.1.II

While Americans embraced a new national

culture, various groups developed

distinctive cultures of their own.

KC-4.1.III

Increasing numbers of Americans, many

inspired by new religious and intellectual

movements, worked primarily outside

of government institutions to advance

their ideals.

KC-4.2

Innovations in technology, agriculture, and

commerce powerfully accelerated the

American economy, precipitating profound

changes to U.S. society and to national and

regional identities.

KC-4.2.I

New transportation systems and

technologies dramatically expanded

manufacturing and agricultural production.

KC-4.2.II

The changes caused by the market

revolution had significant effects on U.S.

society, workers’ lives, and gender and

family relations.

KC-4.2.III

Economic development shaped settlement

and trade patterns, helping to unify the

nation while also encouraging the growth of

different regions.

KC-4.3

The U.S. interest in increasing foreign trade

and expanding its national borders shaped the

nation’s foreign policy and spurred government

and private initiatives.

KC-4.3.I

Struggling to create an independent global

presence, the United States sought to claim

territory throughout the North American

continent and promote foreign trade.

KC-4.3.II

The United States’ acquisition of lands in

the West gave rise to contests over the

extension of slavery into new territories

- Marbury v. Madison

- Lewis and Clark Debate

- War of 1812 Documents and Madison’s War Message

- Industrial Revolution/Life in the Mills/Erie Canal/Fulton

- Missouri Compromise Document Analysis

- Jacksonian Democracy/ Bank Veto Message

- Institution of Slavery Document Analysis

- Texas Annexation Documents

- War with Mexico Primary Sources

- Document-Based Question: Culture and Reform

- Reading Guides/ Packets for each textbook chapter

- Chapter/Unit Tests

Unit 5: Period 5: 1844–1877

17 Class Periods

10–17% AP Exam Weighting 

UNIT 5 KEY CONCEPTS

KC-5.1

The United States became more connected

with the world, pursued an expansionist

foreign policy in the Western Hemisphere, and

emerged as the destination for many migrants

from other countries.

KC-5.1.I

Popular enthusiasm for U.S. expansion,

bolstered by economic and security

interests, resulted in the acquisition of new

territories, substantial migration westward,

and new overseas initiatives.

KC-5.1.II

In the 1840s and 1850s, Americans

continued to debate questions about

rights and citizenship for various groups of

U.S. inhabitants.

KC-5.2

Intensified by expansion and deepening

regional divisions, debates over slavery and

other economic, cultural, and political issues

led the nation into civil war.

KC-5.2.I

Ideological and economic differences over

slavery produced an array of diverging

responses from Americans in the North and

the South.

KC-5.2.II

Debates over slavery came to dominate

political discussion in the 1850s,

culminating in the bitter election of 1860

and the secession of Southern states.

KC-5.3

The Union victory in the Civil War and the

contested reconstruction of the South settled

the issues of slavery and secession, but left

unresolved many questions about the power of

the federal government and citizenship rights.

KC-5.3.I

The North’s greater manpower and

industrial resources, the leadership of

Abraham Lincoln and others, and the

decision to emancipate enslaved people

eventually led to the Union military victory

over the Confederacy in the devastating

Civil War.

KC-5.3.II.i

Reconstruction and the Civil War ended

slavery, altered relationships between

the states and the federal government,

and led to debates over new definitions

of citizenship, particularly regarding the

rights of African Americans, women, and

other minorities.

- Fugitive Slave Law Documents

- Kansas-Nebraska Act

- Analyzing the Lincoln-Douglas Debates

- John Brown Sources

- Lincoln’s Inaugural Address Excerpts

- Emancipation Proclamation and Gettysburg Address Source Work

- Robert Gould Shaw and the 54th MA Regiment

- Reconstruction Plans and Reconstruction Document Analysis: What is freedom?

- Reading Guides/ Packets for each textbook chapter

- Chapter/Unit Tests

Unit 6: Period 6: 1865–1898 

18 Class Periods 

10–17% AP Exam Weighting

KC-6.1

Technological advances, large-scale

production methods, and the opening of new

markets encouraged the rise of industrial

capitalism in the United States.

KC-6.1.I

Large-scale industrial production—

accompanied by massive technological

change, expanding international

communication networks, and pro-growth

government policies—generated

rapid economic development and

business consolidation.

KC-6.1.II

A variety of perspectives on the economy

and labor developed during a time of

financial panics and downturns.

KC-6.1.III

New systems of production and

transportation enabled consolidation within

agriculture, which, along with periods of

instability, spurred a variety of responses

from farmers.

KC-6.2

The migrations that accompanied

industrialization transformed both urban and

rural areas of the United States and caused

dramatic social and cultural change.

KC-6.2.I

International and internal migration

increased urban populations and fostered

the growth of a new urban culture.

KC-6.2.II

Larger numbers of migrants moved to

the West in search of land and economic

opportunity, frequently provoking

competition and violent conflict.

KC-6.3

The Gilded Age produced new cultural and

intellectual movements, public reform efforts,

and political debates over economic and

social policies.

KC-6.3.I

New cultural and intellectual movements

both buttressed and challenged the social

order of the Gilded Age.

KC-6.3.II

Dramatic social changes in the period

inspired political debates over citizenship,

corruption, and the proper relationship

between business and government

- Haymarket Affair Document Analysis

- Gospel of Wealth Reading and Reflection

- Gilded Age Cartoon Analysis

- Eyewitness at Wounded Knee and image analysis

- Chinese Immigration/ Exclusion Documents

- “New South” Document

- Document-Based Question - Gilded Age:

Robber Barons or Titans of Industry

- Reading Guides/ Packets for each textbook chapter

- Chapter/Unit Tests

Unit 7: Period 7: 1890–1945

21 Class Periods

10–17% AP Exam Weighting

UNIT 7 KEY CONCEPTS

KC-7.1

Growth expanded opportunity, while economic

instability led to new efforts to reform U.S.

society and its economic system.

KC-7.1.I

The United States continued its transition

from a rural, agricultural economy to an urban,

industrial economy led by large companies.

KC-7.1.II

In the Progressive Era of the early

20th century, Progressives responded to

political corruption, economic instability,

and social concerns by calling for greater

government action and other political and

social measures.

KC-7.1.III

During the 1930s, policymakers responded

to the mass unemployment and social

upheavals of the Great Depression by

transforming the U.S. into a limited welfare

state, redefining the goals and ideas of

modern American liberalism.

KC-7.2

Innovations in communications and technology

contributed to the growth of mass culture,

while significant changes occurred in internal

and international migration patterns.

KC-7.2.I

Popular culture grew in influence in U.S.

society, even as debates increased over the

effects of culture on public values, morals,

and American national identity.

KC-7.2.II

Economic pressures, global events, and

political developments caused sharp

variations in the numbers, sources, and

experiences of both international and

internal migrants.

KC-7.3

Participation in a series of global conflicts

propelled the United States into a position of

international power while renewing domestic

debates over the nation’s proper role in

the world.

KC-7.3.I

In the late 19th century and early

20th century, new U.S. territorial ambitions

and acquisitions in the Western Hemisphere

and the Pacific accompanied heightened

public debates over America’s role in

the world.

KC-7.3.II

World War I and its aftermath intensified

ongoing debates about the nation’s role in

the world and how best to achieve national

security and pursue American interests.

KC-7.3.III

U.S. participation in World War II transformed

American society, while the victory of the

United States and its allies over the Axis

powers vaulted the U.S. into a position of

global, political, and military leadership.

- Imperialism Debate Quotes/Thought Web/Map of Expansion

- Progressivism Case Studies

- Muckraker Excerpt Analysis

- Theodore Roosevelt and Woodrow Wilson Cartoon Analysis

- Roaring Twenties Advertisement Analysis

- Sacco and Vanzetti Case Document Analysis

- President Harding Reading/Reflection

- Black Tuesday and Stock Market Crash Document Analysis

- Fireside Chat - Bank Holiday Analysis

- Japanese Internment Document Work

- D-Day Reading and Questions

- Atomic Bomb Debate

- Reading Guides/ Packets for each textbook chapter

- Chapter/Unit Tests

Unit 8: Period 8: 1945–1980

20 Class Periods 

10–17% AP Exam Weighting 

KC-8.1

The United States responded to an uncertain

and unstable postwar world by asserting

and working to maintain a position of global

leadership, with far-reaching domestic and

international consequences.

KC-8.1.I

United States policymakers engaged in

a cold war with the authoritarian Soviet

Union, seeking to limit the growth of

Communist military power and ideological

influence, create a free-market global

economy, and build an international

security system.

KC-8.1.II

Cold War policies led to public debates

over the power of the federal government

and acceptable means for pursuing

international and domestic goals while

protecting civil liberties.

KC-8.2

New movements for civil rights and

liberal efforts to expand the role of

government generated a range of political

and cultural responses.

KC-8.2.I

Seeking to fulfill Reconstruction-era

promises, civil rights activists and political

leaders achieved some legal and political

successes in ending segregation, although

progress toward racial equality was slow.

KC-8.2.II

Responding to social conditions and the

African American civil rights movement,

a variety of movements emerged that

focused on issues of identity, social justice,

and the environment.

KC-8.2.III

Liberalism influenced postwar politics

and court decisions, but it came under

increasing attack from the left as well as

from a resurgent conservative movement.

KC-8.3

Postwar economic and demographic changes

had far-reaching consequences for American

society, politics, and culture.

KC-8.3.I

Rapid economic and social changes in

American society fostered a sense of

optimism in the postwar years.

KC-8.3.II

New demographic and social

developments, along with anxieties over

the Cold War, changed U.S. culture and led

to significant political and moral debates

that sharply divided the nation.

- Marshall Plan and Truman Doctrine Document Questions

- Red Scare/ McCarthyism Documents

- Wheeling Speech and Declaration of Conscience Speech Analysis

- Decades Assignment and Collaborative Slides

- Baby Boomer Analysis

- Feminine Mystique

- Brown v. Board of Education Analysis

- Montgomery Bus Boycott Documents

- Watergate Documents

- Reading Guides/ Packets for each textbook chapter

- Chapter/Unit Tests

Unit 9: Period 9: 1980–Present

8 Class Periods 

4–6% AP Exam Weighting 

UNIT 9 KEY CONCEPTS

KC-9.1

A newly ascendant conservative movement

achieved several political and policy goals during

the 1980s and continued to strongly influence

public discourse in the following decades.

KC-9.1.I

Conservative beliefs regarding the need for

traditional social values and a reduced role

for government advanced in U.S. politics

after 1980.

KC-9.2

Moving into the 21st century, the nation

experienced significant technological,

economic, and demographic changes.

KC-9.2.I

New developments in science and technology

enhanced the economy and transformed

society, while manufacturing decreased.

KC-9.2.II

The U.S. population continued to undergo

demographic shifts that had significant

cultural and political consequences.

KC-9.3

The end of the Cold War and new challenges to

U.S. leadership forced the nation to redefine its

foreign policy and role in the world.

KC-9.3.I

The Reagan administration promoted an

interventionist foreign policy that continued

in later administrations, even after the end

of the Cold War.

KC-9.3.II

Following the attacks of September 11,

2001, U.S. foreign policy efforts focused on

fighting terrorism around the world.

- Berlin Wall Speech Analysis

- Reagan and the Rise of Conservatism

- Who ended the Cold War? Debate

- Presidential Report Cards

- Review Materials for College Board Exam