AP US History Lesson Database

Dozens of recommended lessons and resources are listed below.  The lessons are organized chronologically by unit.   Some lessons are available to download in full directly on this site, while others require finding the sources provided.  Contact us at resources@effective-educator.com if you’re looking for something in particular that isn’t  listed below, or if you have questions about how to use these lessons in the classroom.

Unit 1: The American Colonies

• What Happened to Roanoke? (see Kevin O’Reilly’s Critical Thinking in United States History)
• How Accurate is Disney’s Pocahontas? Pocahontas Lesson
• The Labor Problem at Jamestown (see edited version of Edmund Morgan’s original article in Graebner and Richard’s American Record) Jamestown Reading Questions
• America’s Most Wanted: Runaway Slaves and Indentured Servants in Colonial America (see Chapter 3 of Brown and Shannon’s Going to the Source) Runaway Advertisements Chart
• What Caused the Salem Witch Trials? (see Kevin O’Reilly’s Critical Thinking in United States History)

Unit 2: The American Revolution and the Constitution

• Who Fired First at Lexington and Concord? (see Kevin O’Reilly’s Critical Thinking in United States History)
  
• What Caused the American Revolution? (see Kevin O’Reilly’s Critical Thinking in United States History)
  
• Analyzing the Declaration of Independence Declaration of Independence Lesson
  
• Articles of Confederation Document Analysis Lesson How Effective Were the Articles of Confederation?
• Constitution Scavenger Hunt Constitution Scavenger Hunt Lesson
  
• The Articles of Confederation & Constitution Document Analysis Lesson Comparing the Articles of Confederation and Constitution

Unit 3: The Early Republic

• Jefferson v. Hamilton Reading Time Magazine Article
• Should Jefferson Have Freed His Slaves? (adapted from Reasoning with Democratic Values by Lockwood and Harris) Should Jefferson Have Freed His Slaves?
• Did Jefferson Impregnate Sally Hemmings? Sally Hemings Lesson and Time Magazine Article
• How Much “Good Feeling” Was There in the Era of Good Feelings? Era of Good Feelings Document Analysis Lesson

Unit 4: The Age of Jackson & The Market Revolution

• Andrew Jackson — Tyrant or True Supporter of Ordinary Americans? Andew Jackson Document Analysis
• Were the Lowell Girls Treated Fairly? Lowell Girls Document Analysis
• The Impact of the Market Revolution Market Revolution Document Analysis

Unit 5: Slavery, Westward Expansion, and the Coming of the Civil War

• Harriet Jacobs Reading Incidents in the Life of a Slave Girl
• How Effective Were Anti-Slavery Organizations? Abolitionists Document Analysis
• Misremembering the Alamo Misremembering The Alamo
• Did Manifest Destiny Unite or Divide Americans? Manifest Destiny Document Analysis
• Was John Brown Crazy? John Brown Lesson
• Dred Scott Lesson The Dred Scott Case
• Was Slavery in the South the Principal Reason for the Civil War? Coming of Civil War Document Analysis

Unit 6: The Civil War and Reconstruction

• The War Experience of Ordinary Soldiers Hayfoot, Strawfoot
• How Much Did Lincoln Care About Freeing the Slaves? Lincoln and Slavery Document Analysis
• Were Slaves Really Free in the Years Following the Civil War? Reconstruction Document Analysis
• The End of Reconstruction and the Problem of Lynching (see withoutsanctuary.org) Without Sanctuary Handout

Unit 7: Industrialization and the Gilded Age

• Did the Federal Government Favor the Wealthy During the Gilded Age? Gilded Age Document Analysis
• Was Andrew Carnegie a Robber Baron or Captain of Industry? Andrew Carnegie Lesson
• The Pullman Strike Lesson (see Kevin O’Reilly’s Critical Thinking in United States History)
• William Jennings Bryan & The Cross of Gold Speech Cross of Gold Speech Lesson
• Populist Party Political Cartoon Activity Populist Party Political Cartoons Populists Political Cartoon Handout
• The Populists and the Wizard of Oz Was the Wizard of Oz Really About the Populists?

Unit 8: Imperialism, the Progressive Era, and World War I

• Images of American Imperialism   The Images    Images of Imperialism Handout
• Racism and Lawlessness in the Philippines (see Major Problems in American Military History by Chambers, Piehler, and Paterson)
• Upton Sinclair’s The Jungle The Jungle Lesson
• The Triangle Shirtwaist Factory Fire Triangle Fire Readings
• IQ Testing During World War I IQ Testing Reading and Exercises

Unit 9: The 1920s, Great Depression, and World War II

• Were Sacco and Vanzetti Guilty of Murder? Sacco and Vanzetti Part 1     Sacco and Vanzetti Part 2  (adapted from Kevin O’Reilly’s Critical Thinking in the United States History)
• The Simpsons and Prohibition Prohibition Handout
• 1920s Metaphor Project Metaphor Assignment
• What Should Be Done to Help Americans Suffering During the Great Depression? (adapted from Kevin O’Reilly’s Critical Thinking in United States History)  Solving the Great Depression Handout
• FDR Political Cartoon Activity FDR Political Cartoons   FDR Cartoons Handout
• Was the New Deal a Success? Evaluating the New Deal
• World War II Propaganda Activity World War II Propaganda Handout WWII Propaganda Cartoons — Video Links   WWII Propaganda Images
• Pearl Harbor: History v. Hollywood Pearl Harbor Lesson
• Japanese-American Internment Camps (see Reasoning with Democratic Values by Lockwood and Harris)

Unit 10: The Cold War, Civil Rights Movement, and Modern America

• Should the United States Have Dropped the Atomic Bomb? Atomic Bomb Documents
• Communism Simulation (adapted from History Alive! materials)  Simulation Instructions and Debrief    Student Handout
• McCarthyism Simulation (adapted from History Alive! materials) Simulation Rules    McCarthyism Student Handout   McCarthyism Political Cartoons
• Alabama Literacy Test 1965 Alabama Literacy Test
• Letter from a Birmingham Jail Letter from a Birmingham Jail Lesson
• The JFK Assassination (adapted from Kevin O’Reilly’s Critical Thinking in United States History)  Kennedy Assassination Handout
• Was the US Right to Get Involved in Vietnam? (adapted from Kevin O’Reilly’s Critical Thinking in United States History)  Vietnam Handout
• Was the Women’s Rights Movement a Success? (adapted from Kevin O’Reilly’s Critical Thinking in United States History) Womens Rights Movement Handout
• Reagan, Republicans, and Recent American Politics  Reagan, Republicans and Recent American Politics
• 9-11 Political Cartoon Lesson 9-11 Political Cartoons    9-11 Political Cartoon Handout
• America Today Metaphor Activity Metaphor Activity