AP U.S. History

Description: In AP U.S. History, students investigate significant events, individuals, developments, and processes in nine historical periods from approximately 1491 to the present. Students develop and use the same skills and methods employed by historians: analyzing primary and secondary sources; developing historical arguments; making historical connections; and utilizing reasoning about comparison, causation, and continuity and change. The course also provides eight themes that students explore throughout the course in order to make connections among historical developments in different times and places: American and national identity; work, exchange, and technology; geography and the environment; migration and settlement; politics and power; America in the world; American and regional culture; and social structures.

Students will need to devote approximately 60-90 minutes per day for this class. The grade is based on participation, quizzes over the readings and lectures, essays, as well as mid-term and final exams. This class is worth 1 high school credit in Social Studies or History.

Grade Level: 9-12 (ages 14-18) No student beneath the 9th grade can register for this course.

Prerequisites: Completion of a basic middle school American history class is helpful (but not required). Students should be able to read a college-level textbook, willing to work hard, and able to write grammatically correct, complete sentences. Students should also be prepared to write extensively in preparation for the AP exam.

Required texts: The American Pageant by David Kennedy and Liz Cohen. Primary sources are a significant part of the course and are provided online. Students will also need a headset microphone (built-in microphones also work).

Please Note: We have had students in the past also take the U.S. History 1 and 2 CLEP Exams after taking this class, with great success. Passing both U.S. History 1 and 2 CLEP Exams would result in 6 college credits. Typically colleges and universities allow students to use one or the other, not both.

Dual Credit: This course is approved for dual credit through Colorado Christian University. Learn more about our partnership here. Students can opt to either take the AP exam or get credit through CCU.

AP Requirements: Students interested in taking the AP test for this class, please note that you must secure a testing site where you can take the exam. Memoria Academy does not provide AP tests or collaborate with testing centers to schedule the exam for students.