AP World History Summer Assignment Letter - Jackson Liberty High ...

Welcome to Advanced Placement World History
About the Course:
AP World History develops an understanding of the evolution of global processes and contacts, including
interactions over time. This non-traditional approach looks at the common threads of humanity (trade, religion,
politics, society, & technology) and investigates how each have changed and continued over time. The course
traces the human experience from the emergence of Neolithic cultures to the 21 st Century, C.E., emphasizing
historical thinking skills (interpreting facts, crafting arguments, chronological reasoning & making
comparisons), writing skills, as well as content knowledge characteristic of a college-level world history course.
Students will devote considerable time to the critical evaluation of primary and secondary sources, writing and
participation in classroom discussions/activities.
We will emphasize the development of analytical and writing skills necessary for success on a collegiate level
with a special emphasis on preparation for the National AP Exam.
The course will utilize the five themes outlined in the AP® World History Course Description consistently
throughout the course.
1.) Interaction between humans and the environment.
2.) Development and interaction of cultures.
3.) State-building, expansion and conflict.
4.) Creation, expansion and interaction of economic systems.
5.) Development and transformation of social structures.
The AP World History course content is structured around the investigation of the five themes mentioned above
and key concepts in six chronological periods from 8000 BCE to the present. Students will interpret global
events/issues and compare major societies in Africa, the Americas, Asia, Europe, and Oceana.
The course imposes a heavy reading and writing load throughout the year, and the demands on the students are
equivalent to a full-year introductory college course. Strategies & assessments include: Lecture & power point
presentations, group analysis & discussion, document/source analysis, research assignments, video analysis,
weblog posts, timeline construction, creating chapter summaries, essay writing exercises, individual & group
presentations, tests/quizzes and class participation.
Summer Assignments:
Due to the amount of material covered in the course, summer assignments are an imperative and mandatory part
of the class. Summer assignments are due on the first day of class and will be assessed thereafter.
Summer Assignment One: Students will read A History of the World in 6 Glasses by Tom Standage. The
book takes an interesting look at 6 beverages and the role they play in driving trade and interaction between
significant regions and empires. The purpose in reading the book is to gain a sense of how civilization and
cultures develop and how they are affected by various forces (political, economic, religious, social,
technological, etc.).
*** (Disclaimer: The use of this book as a summer reading assignment in NO way represents any
endorsement by the teachers or the Jackson Township School District of the consumption or misuse of

these beverages! The book is simply meant to provide an interesting view of civilizations and trade, from
which we can initiate our year-long discussions of world history.)
Summer Assignment Two: Students will be required to read the first 6 chapters in the on-line text. Students
will be provided Key Terms/People as well as a guided reading chart to aid them in organizing this information.
Students will be given a password to access the on-line text in August. It is our suggestion that you complete
the Summer Reading Assignment (Summer Assignment One) in July so you can spend all of August on
Summer Assignment Two.
***In order to receive your password to access the on-line text as well as other supplements parents are
required to email John Pelano at Jackson Memorial High School jrpelano@jacksonsd.org or William
Beaver at Jackson Liberty High School wrbeaver@jacksonsd.org ***
This email will also serve as recognition by both parents and students of the summer assignment requirements
as well as an understanding that AP World History is an academically rigorous and demanding college-level
course which requires multiple hours of study per week.

AP WORLD HISTORY SUMMER ASSIGNMENT 2013-2014
A summer reading assignment is the beginning of most Advanced Placement courses. This year`s summer
reading assignment for AP World History is a History of the World in 6 Glasses by Tom Standage. This book
traces the history of the world though a discussion of beverages that people drank in various time periods—
beer, wine, spirits, coffee, tea and Coca-Cola. Reading the book will help you develop a perspective on our
yearlong study of history of world civilization in AP World History.
The assignments listed below are MANDATORY, are due on September 9, 2013, and are pledged assignments.
Standage, Tom. A History of the World in 6 Glasses. 2006. ISBN-10 (for paperback edition): 9780802715524
or ISBN-13: 978-0802715524.
Directions:
1. Read the book. It is a great book, and is read by a large number of AP World History students each year.
2. INDEPENDENT WORK: Please note that the use of any resources on the internet regarding this book to
complete your assignments will be viewed as plagiarism. In submitting your assignments, you are
pledging that the work is the result of only your effort.
3. A HISTORY OF THE WORLD IN SIX GLASSES GUIDED READING QUESTIONS: As you read,
answer the attached reading questions for each chapter. Your answers need to be thorough, but do not
need to be lengthy- 3 to 4 sentences should suffice for all but the summary questions where a longer
request is specifically requested.
4. ANNOTATED MAPS: You must create a collection of maps to illustrate the diffusion of three of the six
beverages discussed in the book. Each beverage must be shown on a different map. (3 maps total)
a. Maps should be presented on 8.5 x11 paper- one map per page.
b. Use arrows to illustrate diffusion of the beverage (or its ingredients)- where did each beverage
originate? To what places did it spread?
c. Include at least 5 annotations on each map (i.e. - notes to explain significant events that
happened in places labeled on the map). Include dates!
d. Include a legend.
e. Maps should be colorful. You may also include symbols or illustrations. Be creative!
f. You may hand-draw your maps or create them digitally.
g. Choose three of the six maps listed below. Your maps should be titled & labeled with the
following:

Map #1: “Beer in Mesopotamia and Egypt”
Label- Mesopotamia/ the Fertile Crescent, Egypt, Tigris River, Euphrates River, Nile River, Zagros Mts.,
Anatolia, Mediterranean Sea, Red Sea, Persian Gulf, Arabian Desert, Sahara Desert
Map #2: “Wine in Greece and Rome”
Label- Greece, Crete, Athens, Sparta, Italy, Rome, Mediterranean Sea, Aegean Sea, Adriatic
Sea, Sicily, Corsica, France/ Gaul, Spain, Tiber River, Egypt, Alexandria, Anatolia/Turkey, Germany
Map #3: “Spirits in the Colonial Period”
Label- Spain, Portugal, Great Britain, France, Netherlands, Germany, Atlantic Ocean, West Africa, Canary
Islands, West Indies/Caribbean Islands, Brazil, Barbados, 13 colonies, Jamestown, Boston, Pennsylvania
Map #4: “Coffee in the Age of Reason”
Label- Ethiopia, Yemen, Arabian Desert, Mecca, Sahara Desert, Cairo, Great Britain, London, France,
Paris, Netherlands, Suriname, Haiti, Cuba, Costa Rica, Venezuela, Brazil
Map #5: “Tea and the British Empire”
Label- China, Huang-He River, Yangtze River, Mongolia, Gobi Desert, Cairo, Tibet, Himalayan Mts.,
India, Japan, Macao, South China Sea, Strait of Malacca, Dutch East Indies/ Indonesia, Netherlands, Great
Britain, London, 13 colonies, Boston
Map #6: “Coca-Cola and Rise of America”
Label- United States, Atlanta, Washington D.C., New York, Japan, Europe, Germany,
North Africa, the Soviet Union, the “Iron Curtain”- look this up!, Berlin, Israel, Egypt, Lebanon, Jordan,
Saudi Arabia, Iraq, Kuwait, UAE
5. TEXTBOOK QUESTIONS: Students will be required to read the first 6 chapters in the Traditions and
Encounters on-line text. Students will be provided key terms/people as well as a guided reading chart to
aid them in organizing this information. You can access these resources by going onto the Jackson
Liberty/Memorial website under school resources.
6. MAP LABELING ASSIGNMENT: Use the map attached to identify specifically listed continents,
bodies of water and important rivers.

Guided Reading Questions
A History of the World in Six Glasses
By Tom Standage
Introduction
1. What is the author`s main thesis (argument) in setting up his book? Why/how are these fluids “vital’?
2. Why did water get replaced by other beverages in human settlements?
“Beer in Mesopotamia and Egypt” (Chapters 1 and 2)
1. What remarkable shift began happening about 12,000 years ago? Where did it happen?
2. Describe the “ratchet effect” which caused farming to spread beyond the Fertile Crescent.
3. How might beer have influenced the transition from hunting and gathering (Paleolithic) to agriculturalbased
(Neolithic) societies?
4. What does the story of beer tell you about social and gender roles in ancient SW Asia and Europe?
5. How important do you think beer was in the growth and diffusion of the earliest civilizations? Would
the earliest civilizations of SW Asia and Egypt have been as prosperous without the discovery of beer?
6. What sources does the author use to gather his information on the use of beer and early civilizations?
7. What is the relationship between early civilizations and writing? Civilizations and health?
“Wine in Greece and Rome” (Chapters 3 and 4)
1. Based on the story at the beginning of this chapter, DESCRIBE how rulers showed power and authority
in early civilizations and empires. Then, ANALYZE why these methods were effective at that time.
2. What does the story of wine tell you about social and gender roles in the Mediterranean world? How did
this change over time?
3. What effect does wine have on the development of Christianity and of Islam (separately)?
4. How and why did wine evolve into a status symbol in Greece?
5. What does the movement of wine show us about Rome and trading networks during this period of
history?
6. How was the complex social hierarchy of Rome revealed by wine?
7. Describe and analyze the relationships between wine and empire, and wine and medicine and religion in
Rome.
“Spirits in the Colonial Period” (Chapters 5 and 6)
1. In the 18 th century, how did spirits change the balance of power amongst the western European nations
(particularly Britain and France)?
2. Describe how spirits were first invented by Muslim scholars and then spread as a medicine to Europe.
3. Describe and analyze the links between slavery, sugar, and alcohol. Then, explain how it was used by
European explorers and naval forces.
4. Why were spirits an important staple in Colonial America?
5. How did rum play a role in the American Revolution?
6. What is the connection between spirits and colonization?
“Coffee in the Age of Reason” (Chapters 7 and 8)
1. Was coffee the first true “global” beverage? Why or why not?
2. How (and why) did coffee play a pivotal role in the Enlightenment and French Revolution?
3. What different regions of the world were connected through the coffee trade? What role did each place
have in trade?
4. What important functions did coffee houses serve in the flow of information in the 1600s and 1700s?
5. How did coffee and coffeehouses impact the following:
a. Scientific thought
b. Business
c. Political thought

“Tea and the British Empire” (Chapters 9 and 10)
1. Why was tea important to China`s economy, and how did it affect China`s relationships with other
countries?
2. Explain the relationship between tea and the Industrial Revolution.
3. Compare and contrast how the British trade in tea affected America and India.
4. Why was the British Empire called “this vast empire on which the sun never sets?”
5. How did tea reach England? How did it spread from the very top of society to the drink enjoyed by coalcarters
and common working people?
6. How did Britain become a drug-dealing nation, in order to retain and grow their access to tea?
7. How do the actions of Britain against China during this period show the impact of the Industrial
Revolution on power relationships in the globe?
“Coca-Cola and the Rise of America” (Chapters 11 and 12)
1. How does the story of Coca-Cola relate to the rise of capitalism and entrepreneurship in the 19 th and
early 20 th century? How does this story show a larger global economic shift?
2. How does Coca-Cola affect people`s views of the United States? Is the spread of Coca-Cola an example
of “Americanization” around the world?
3. How did Coca-Cola successfully market its product? EXPLAIN how this example shows the
development of “consumer culture.”
4. ANALYZE how these developments exhibit the idea of globalization.
Epilogue- “Back to the Source”
1. Do you agree or disagree with Standage`s argument in the epilogue? Will water be the most influential
beverage in shaping the global situation of the next 100+ years? Why or why not?
2. Define “Developed World” and “Developing World.”
3. What differences can you see in these two “Worlds” based on their issues with this beverage?