The Stalemated Seventies (1968-1980)

1. Could any of Nixon's achievements in office compensate for his Watergate crimes? What should history say about the Nixon Presidency?
2. What were the short-term and long-term consequences of the communists victory in Vietnam?
3. How was the civil rights movement affected by federal policies in the 1970s, especially affirmative action?
4. What were the consequences of America's new economic vulnerability? How did it affect politics at home and abroad in the 1970s?

Choose your top three topics for conversation. See you Monday ;)

1. Did Kennedy fulfill his promise to “get America moving again”? Why or why not?
2. What the nonviolent civil rights movement of the 1960s a success? Why or why not? Can it be argued that the violent protests of the civil rights movement were more successful than the nonviolent protests?
3. What were the causes of the Vietnam war?
4. Was America justified going into Vietnam? What if the Communist countries invaded a country to ‘contain the spread of Democracy,’ would this be justified? What is the difference between the two situations?
5. Were the cultural upheavals of the 1960s a result of the political crisis or were developments like the sexual revolution and the student revolts inevitable results of affluence and the “baby boom”?

The Cold War Begins (Honors)

Which development caused the greatest change in American society in the immediate postwar years: increased affluence, the migration to the suburbs, the entry of women into the workforce or the "baby boom?"

America in WWII (Honors)

How did America's domestic response to World War II differ from its reaction to World War I? Use direct examples from Bailey to support your response.

FDR and WWII (Honors)

America interprets Japan's attack on Pearl Harbor as an attack. Would the United States have entered World War II even if the Japanese had not attacked Pearl Harbor?

1950s: The Middle of the American Century (AP)

1. How does Eisenhower’s political leadership compare with that of other general-presidents: Washington, Jackson, Taylor, and Grant?
2. Was Eisenhower’s seeming caution and inactivity a lack of vigorous leadership or a wise prudence in the exercise of power?
3. Was the 1950s a time of American Triumph abroad and affluence at home, or was it a period that actually suppressed many problems of race, women’s roles, and cultural conformity?
4. Which writers and artists best expressed the concerns of American culture in the 1950s? Was there a connection between the rise of pop-culture figures like Elvis Presley ad Marilyn Monroe and the changes in art and writing (like the Beats and the new southern writers)?

Preparing for the "Blind Essay"

AP Ladies...

Use your handout to comment on the following: What is the difference between a "good" and an "excellent" essay?

What do you do when there IS no work?

Comment on the following...


How did the depression challenge the traditional belief of Hoover and other

Americans in “rugged individualism?”

The Cold War Begins

Which development caused the greatest change in American society in the immediate postwar years: increased affluence, the migration to the suburbs, the entry of women into the workforce or the "baby boom?"

WWII Strategy

Pictured above is President-to-be Eisenhower commanding troops. What was the wisest strategic decision in WWII, and what was the most questionable? As you write your response remember to use the ASSERTION-EVIDENCE model. This makes for a strong argument on the coming AP exam.

What was the significance of the dropping of the atomic bomb, then and now? Include at least two facts in your entry.

America interprets Japan's attack on Pearl Harbor as an attack. Would the United States have entered World War II even if the Japanese had not attacked Pearl Harbor?

FDRs Federal Government Saftey Net. The New Deal Changes everything for the Working Class

Which of Roosevelt's measures were most effective in fighting the depression?

The Prohibition Experiment

Watch this short Preview of Ken Burns' 'Prohibition.' Define prohibition. How does the movement show the influence of the "sovereign people" over the government?

America Developes despite challenge of Dreat Depression

Comment on the following ...

How did the depression challenge the traditional belief of Hoover and other Americans in “rugged individualism?”

As American Power grows, Foriegn policy changes

How does America’s foreign policy philosophy change during this period? Why is Henry Cabot lodge so resistant to the change?

America and WWI-Jigsaw Discussion

Prepare tomorrow to blog in-class about 1 of the following before a class discussion...

a) What were the ideological results of Wilson’s proclamation of World War I as a “war to end all wars” and “a war to make the world safe for democracy?”

b) Was it necessary to suppress dissent in order to win the war?

c) Was the Treaty of Versailles a violation of Wilson’s high wartime ideals or the best that could have been achieved under the circumstances?

d) What was the fundamental reason America failed to join the League of Nations?

Voting on Progressivism.

Today, we discussed Roosevelt as a social progressive and Wilson as more of an economic progressive. There is no doubting the focus that they had on focusing on the wants and needs of the American people. But let's compare the two more closely....who was the better President? T. Roosevelt or Wilson? Cast your vote and justify it.

Triple Wall of Privilege

Discuss: How does Wilson's scaling the "Triple Wall of Privilege" work to help the American people? Is this a Progressive measure?

Socratic Seminar: Wilson and Progressivsim

Prepare for our next roundtable...

a) Were Wilson’s progressive legislative achievements in his first term consistent with his New Freedom campaign? Why or Why not?

b) How was Wilson’s progressive presidency similar to Theodore Roosevelt’s and how was it different? Were the differences ones of personality or policy?

c) Was the United States genuinely neutral during the first years of WWI, or was it biased in favor of the Allies and against Germany? Was it possible for the U.S. to remain neutral