Summer Assignment 2018-19 AP US Government & Politics Mr. Carmichael john_carmichael@olsd.us SUMMER ASSIGNMENT SUMMARY # ASSIGNMENT DUE DATE ESTIMATED TIME TO COMPLETE 1. Follow national news & political events 1 ST Day 15 minutes daily 2. Provide a 5 x 8 index card with info and picture 1 ST Day 20 minutes total 3. Bill of Rights summary 1 st Day 2-3 hours Welcome to Advance Placement United States Government! Congratulations on your willingness to take on the challenges of this course. General Overview of A.P. U.S. Government & Politics is designed as a freshman level political science course which requires an analytical approach to the study of government. the College Board curriculum is designed to give students a critical perspective on politics and government. this course involves both the study of general concepts used to interpret United States politics and the analysis of specific case studies. It also requires familiarity with the various institutions, groups, beliefs and current events which comprise the American political scene. What is Political Science? Political Science is the attempt to study politics and government in a systematic way in order to learn how power works. Political Scientists study systems of government, as well as how political systems change over time. Political Scientists study the systemic way in which governmental decisions are made. The process of who gets what, where, when and how is of great interest. A Political Scientist should be an objective observer who asks questions and studies the effects of different systems of government. The rewards of the course will vary based upon the individual efforts of each student. Each student will have the opportunity to work towards the following goals: 1.) Students will have the opportunity to satisfy their intellectual curiosity 2.) Students have the opportunity to improve their writing, reasoning and analytical skills. 3.) Students will become more familiar with current events in the US and abroad. 4.) Students have the opportunity to receive college credit by earning a qualifying score on the College Board exam.
SUMMER ASSIGNMENT #1 BECOME FAMILIAR WITH NATIONAL POLITICAL NEWS Students are required to follow the national political news throughout the summer. Students should be familiar with relevant executive & legislative branch members and leaders, and developments related to the workings of the Supreme Court. Upon our return in the fall, we will discuss current events in general and discuss how these happenings can be applied to the theory we will be studying throughout the year. WHY SHOULD I PAY ATTENTION TO THE NEWS? There are three primary reasons- It will improve your understanding of theoretical concepts through the application to real life events Building a basic understanding of current events will allow us to discuss and debate issues as a class A summative evaluation testing your familiarity of government leaders and events will occur on day 1 The assessment will cover major news stories and will include identifying political leaders (by picture). Learning Target- This assignment will aid you in applying the theoretical concepts of the course to actual events. Specific Expectations A. Monitor the major and minor political stories throughout the summer. This includes: Read the home pages of major newspapers or media outlets which contain the national & political news Read the op-ed columns in newspapers & viewing political cartoons In general, become familiar with national & political news as well as world events Local news is NOT relevant to our curriculum Facebook & Twitter are NOT legitimate news sources! Legitimate news sources would be media outlets such as CNN, Fox, MSNBC, Politico.com, Bloomberg News, Real Clear Politics.com, Washington Post, Washington Times, Wall St Journal, ABC, CBS, CSPAN, NY Times B. Be able to identify the enclosed pictures of members of government. EXECUTIVE BRANCH President (Trump) Vice President (Pence) Secretary of Defense (Mattis) Attorney General (Sessions) Sec. of State (Pompeo) OHIOIANS in CONGRESS Senator Sharrod Brown D-OH Senator Rob Portman R-OH LEGISLATIVE BRANCH Speaker, US House of Representatives - Paul Ryan R-WI Minority Leader US House of Rep.- Nancy Pelosi D-CA Ohio 12 th District Election- Aug 7 th (hint- know the winner) Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell R-KY Senate Minority Leader - Chuck Schumer D-NY POLITICAL FIGURES former P.O.T.U.S Barack Obama (D) Former Sec. of State Hillary Clinton (D) Senator Elizabeth Warren D- MA Senator Bernie Sanders D-VT Senator Ted Cruz R-TX Gov. John Kasich Robert Mueller (General Counsel investigating Trump) JUDICIAL BRANCH Chief Justice John Roberts Assoc. Justice Anthony Kennedy Possible retirements of Assoc. Justice Ruth Bader Ginsberg Assoc. Justice Anthony Kennedy or death of an Associate Justice WORLD LEADERS Kim Jung Un - North Korea Vladimir Putin - Russia Bashar al-asaad - Syria If you have never followed the news, consider following these major stories this web site: Developments related to major political events, Supreme Court rulings or policy changes which might unfold over the summer Trump/Russia investigation, several Supreme Court justices are rumored to be retiring or death of an Associate Justice General developments related to monetary policy and fiscal policy Foreign policy & military developments throughout the world including, but not limited to North Korea, Russia, Iran, Israel or Syria Pg. 2 TRY: www.allsides.com/unbiased-balanced-news
Examples of Summative Assessment questions 1. Select the correct description of political party control overthe respective branches of government or chamber. A.The Republicans control both the Senate and House chambers, the Democrats control the White House B. The Republicans control the Senate while the Democrats control both the House of Rep. and White House C. The Republicans control the House of Reps and the Democrats control the Senate and White House D. The Republicans control the White House and both chambers of Congress E. The Democrats control the White House and both chambers of Congress 2. Identify the individual listed in the picture A. Governor Chris Christie from New Jersey B. Senator Rob Portman from Ohio C. Senator Marco Rubio from Florida D. Speaker of the US House - Paul Ryan E. Supreme Court Assoc. Justice Clarence Thomas 3. Identify which statement is CORRECT A. Kim Jung Un is the leader of China B. Barack Obama is considering running for the US Senate C. President Trump & Kim Jung-un are scheduled to meet this summer D. The Secretary of Defense is Mike Pompeo E. Syria has been testing Intercontinental ballistic missiles 5. Identify this person A. POTUS Advisor Kellyanne Conway B. Sen. Elizabeth Waren C. Assoc. Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg D. former Gov. Sarah Palin E. None of these 4. The current federal debt is approximately A. 7 Trillion B. 9 Trillion C. 12 Trillion D. 14 Trillion E. 20 Trillion 6. Which statement is INCORRECT? A. Syria is in the middle of a civil war B. US combat troops are stationed in Afghanistan C. Robert Mueller is the general counsel investigating Pres. Trump & Russia D. The Russian hacked into the US & French Elections E. North Korea recently traded missile attacks with Japan Key- #1/D #2/D #3/C #4/E #5/E #6/ E What should I understand? 1) basic facts of the story 2) observations related to political or media bias NOTE As your understanding of current events develops, your ability to synthesize the news will improve and the process will become easier. Also, endeavor to vary your sources in terms of both print vs. electronic media and political bias. Pg. 3
SUMMER ASSIGNMENT # 2 STUDENT INFORMATION CARD on a 5 x 8 index card tape a picture (color or black/white) picture of you into of this you corner using clear tape. A Xerox pic is ok! (do not staple!!!!!) print FIRST NAME email cell # parent/guardian email print LAST NAME Due 1 st day! Notes- *The picture may be printed out on regular printer-paper Rubric FULL CREDIT PARTIAL CREDIT ZERO CREDIT Used 5 x 8 Card Taped picture All info enclosed Point Value 1 st Day 100% of points possible 2 nd Day 50% point deduction 3 rd Day or later 25% points available a favorite quote which represents you Describe a funny/silly fact about you or describe a unique skill List someone you admire or is a hero to you Late Submission Used card other than 5x8 Used staple instead of tape Partial info enclosed No picture No submission or submitted past day # 2 Incorrect size card Picture stapled No picture Missing information Pg. 4
PRESIDENT Donald J. Trump Names & Faces 2017 Edition VICE PRESIDENT Mike Pence SECRETARY OF STATE Mike Pompeo ATTORNEY GENERAL Sen. Jeff Session R-AL SECRETARY OF DEFENSE Ret. Gen. James Mattis TREASURY SECRETARY Steven Mnuchin CHIEF OF STAFF John Kelly Presidential Advisor Kellyann Conway W. H. PRESS SECRETARY Sarah Huckabee Sanders
US HOUSE 12TH DIST. SPEAKER OF THE HOUSE Honorable Paul Ryan R-WI HOUSE MINORITY LEADER Honorable Nancy Pelosi D-CA Vacant Special Election on August 7 th (know winner for quiz) SENATE MAJORITY LEADER Hon. Mitch McConnell R-KY SENATE MINORITY LEADER Hon Chuck Schumer D-NY US SENATE PRO TEMPORE Honorable Orin Hatch R-UT Elizabeth Warren D-MA Lindsey Graham R-SC Bernie Sanders V-I
Supreme leader Democratic People's Republic of Korea Kim Jung-un President of Russian Federation Vladimir Putin President of Syria Bashar al-asaad Special Advisor to POTUS Jared Kushner Special Counselor Robert Mueller US Supreme Ct. Chief Justice John Roberts Sherrod Brown D-OH Rob Portman R-OH Associate Justice Anthony Kennedy
SUMMER ASSIGNMENT # 3 Bill of Rights review & rewrite DUE DATE 1 st Day of School-Wed, Aug 15 We will be studying the Constitution extensively throughout the year and this assignment is designed to give you an advantage as we move through the various units of study. Learning Target: Students will interpret the US Bill of Rights and then create a working copy of the document in plain, modern and understandable language. Note- The difficulty of this assignment lies in making the Constitution understandable without altering its meaning. STEPS 1. Read the entire Bill of Rights (Amendment #1-#10) http://www.senate.gov/civics/constitution_item/constitution.htm http://www.archives.gov/exhibits/charters/constitution_transcript.html 2. Synthesize and then re-write each amendment in the Bill of Rights onto a note card using the enclosed rubric. Students may utilize the front & back of each note card. 5 x 8 are recommended, but 4 x 6 or 5 x 3 acceptable. Use more than 1 card for 5x3 if necessary. You will have a total of 10 cards when completed- 1 card per Amendment. An example is below. 1 ST AMENDMENT (print) Congress cannot make a law which establishes an official religion. This is known as the Establishment Clause. The Wall of Separation is the constitutional principle of keeping church-state separate associated with the Establishment Clause Congress cannot make a law which prohibits the free exercise of my religion. This is known as the Exercise Clause Congress cannot make laws which change fundamental freedoms of: Speech freedom of the press Which prohibit citizens from meeting or protesting if it is done so in a peaceful manner It also protects the right of citizens to send protest petitions to their government. The right to speak out about government s abuse of power or its failure to act is at the crux of the First Amendment s protections. To receive full credit: Each amendment must be: 1. Label Each Card in capital letters at the top left with the Article or Amendment 2. Each civil liberty protection must be summarized and put into plain, understandable language 3. All protections in each amendment must be summarized. Some Amendments like the 5 th will protect up to five civil liberties. 4. The assignment must be submitted on time- each day 25% will be deducted. Due 1 st Day. Pg. 8