In this activity, you will begin learning about the Short-Answer Questions (SAQ), which are assessments included on the AP^® World History: Modern exam. The short-answer questions along with the other free-response questions on the AP exam will, according to the College Board, “assess students’ ability to identify and explain historical developments and processes”. The specific goal of this activity is for you to become more confident with responding to SAQ prompts. Understanding what you are supposed to do based on the prompts is an important first step to helping you succeed on this type of assessment.

In this activity, you will begin to unpack the short answer questions (SAQs) prompts are asking on the AP exam. Specifically, you will unpack what they mean when they use the verbs, “describe,” “identify,” and “explain.” Then you will practice translating SAQ prompts into your own words, and you will wrap up by matching some SAQ questions to their correct responses. Not sure what an SAQ is? That’s okay, the first thing you’ll do is discuss that with your class. Here is how the College Board describes SAQs, “Short-answer questions assess students’ ability to analyze patterns and connections between and among historical developments and processes using historical reasoning (e.g., comparison, causation, continuity and change).” Some SAQs include primary sources, and each SAQ really consists of three sub-questions, all focused on the same topic. Here is an example of what an SAQ with a source looks like.

Sample SAQ from the 2017 released AP World History Exam

Now that you have a better understanding of what a short answer questions is, it’s time to start really understanding what those SAQs are asking! This may sound silly, but it can often be a lot harder than it sounds. Thankfully, the exam structures all its SAQ questions in a similar way, by asking you to either “describe,” “identify,” or “explain” a historical event or process.

Now, think about what the words describe, identify, and explain mean and share your ideas with the class. Your teacher will then share how the College Board defines these words. Once you’ve discussed these definitions with your class, take out the SAQ Practice – Introduction worksheet and work through it in small groups.

1. First, write the definition of the verbs “describe,” “identify,” and “explain” into your own words, while keeping to the same meaning of the College Board definitions. Be prepared to share your definitions with the class.
2. Second, re-write some prompts into your own words while keeping to the meaning of the SAQ verbs “describe,” “identify,” and “explain.”
3. Finally, practice your new understanding of the meaning of the verbs “describe,” “identify,” and “explain” by matching SAQ prompts with responses on the worksheet.

Once you are done, reflect upon what aspects of the verbs “describe,” “identify,” and “explain” that you found most challenging and be prepared to discuss this with your class. Be sure to keep your notes so you can review if your SAQ responses don’t get full scores.

The Americas from the thirteenth to the fifteenth century were home to varied and complex societies that took several different forms. Haudenosaunee was a confederation of related peoples. The Aztec and Inca states were empires with sophisticated bureaucracies. City-states like Mayapan governed themselves independently. During this period, these states grew more connected to their neighbors and themselves.

This survey of communities the Americas will introduce you to several different types of states in the Americas. You will be able to use this information for comparison with other regions. It will also help you to establish background knowledge within the cultural developments and interactions theme. You will use this knowledge when you look at networks and exchange in Unit 2.

Think about the following question as you read the article: To what extent does this article explain how and why states in the Americas developed and changed over time? Write this question at the top of the Three Close Reads worksheet. You will be asked to respond to this question again after the third read in the Evaluating and Corroborating section of the worksheet.

Read 1—Skimming for Gist

Fill out the Skimming section of the Three Close Reads worksheet as you complete your first close read. As a reminder, this should be a quick process!

Read 2—Understanding Content

For this reading, you should be looking for unfamiliar vocabulary words, the major claim and key supporting details, and analysis and evidence. By the end of the second close read, you should be able to answer the following questions:

1. What type of state was Haudenosaunee, and how was it governed?
2. What type of state was the Aztec state? How was its diverse population ruled, according to the author?
3. What evidence is there of connections between the Aztec society and Mayapan?
4. What kind of a state was the Inca state, and how was it governed?

Read 3—Evaluating and Corroborating

At the end of the third close read, respond to the following questions:

1. To what extent does this article explain how and why states in the Americas developed and changed over time?
2. What factors stand out to you as particularly distinct and important in the way communities were organized in the Americas in this period?
3. How do these seem similar or different to other parts of the world you have studied for this period?

Migrations from the Central and South American mainland to the Caribbean islands began c. 5000 BCE. Over the course of thousands of years, indigenous peoples created communities and established networks of exchange between islands and with the mainland. Trade goods such as jade, ceramics, shells, and teeth moved across aquatic highways. However, these highways would change dramatically after 1492 with the arrival of the Spanish and the sustained connections between the Eastern and Western Hemispheres.

This video provides information about pre-colonial Caribbean communities and networks that are often overlooked in textbooks. You will use the evidence presented here to support, extend, and challenge the networks frame narrative. This video will also provide you with evidence to answer the Unit Problem.

Think about the following question as you watch the video: How does this video help you explain the development of different societies in the Americas and how these societies changed over time? You’ll be asked to respond to this question again at the end of the video.

Preview—Skimming for Gist

Before you watch the video, open and skim the transcript. Additionally, you should always read the questions below before you watch the video (a good habit to use in reading, too!). These pre-viewing strategies will help you know what to look and listen for as you watch the video. If there is time, your teacher may have you watch the video one time without stopping, and then give you time to watch again to pause and find the answers.

Key Ideas—Understanding Content

Think about the following questions as you watch this video:

1. What were the two major moments of migrations to the Caribbean islands and when did these take place?
2. Dr. Hofman states that the soil has to be opened like a book in order to learn about these early Caribbean peoples. What types of information can archaeologists learn by doing this?
3. What were belief systems like in the early period of migration? How did these beliefs change in the later periods?
4. How do we know that there were continued contacts and exchanges between islands and between the Caribbean islands and the mainland of Central and South America in the pre-colonial period?
5. How did the indigenous Caribbean peoples help the Spanish and what occurred as a result of this help?
6. Who were the Kalinago and where did they settle?

Evaluating and Corroborating

1. How does this video help you explain the development of different societies in the Americas and how these societies changed over time?
2. In the video, Dr. Hofman states that 1492 marks “the beginning of the true globalizing world.” What evidence does she give to support this statement, and do you agree with her? Explain your reasoning.
3. How does the history of the pre-colonial Caribbean support, extend, or challenge what you’ve learned about networks and communities in this unit?

Extensive trade routes developed across the Americas before 1500. For a long time, historians assumed that these networks were quite small. In recent decades, however, scholars have uncovered evidence that long-distance trade was common, especially in Mesoamerica. This article explores trade linkages in the cities of Teotihuacan and Tenochtitlán, which were located in the same region at different times. Luxuries were the most common goods to travel long distances because they were light, and Mesoamerican merchants had to carry their goods on their backs. Despite barriers to trade, Mesoamerica formed the center of extensive long-distance trade networks—probably.

With its focus on the economic systems theme, this article provides a comparison to the developments you’ve read about in Afro-Eurasia. As you read, think about the similarities and differences between trade in the Americas and in Afro-Eurasia. Several societal collapses took place in Mesoamerica during the period covered in the article. This article will provide you with evidence for evaluating how trade helps systems restructure and recover after collapse.

Think about the following question as you read the article: Prepare an argument that describes the effect long-distance trade had on the development of states in the Americas over time. Write this question at the top of the Three Close Reads worksheet. You will be asked to respond to this question again after the third read in the Evaluating and Corroborating section of the worksheet.

Read 1—Skimming for Gist

Fill out the Skimming section of the Three Close Reads worksheet as you complete your first close read. As a reminder, this should be a quick process!

Read 2—Understanding Content

For this reading, you should be looking for unfamiliar vocabulary words, the major claim and key supporting details, and analysis and evidence. By the end of the second close read, you should be able to answer the following questions:

1. What were some barriers to trade in Mesoamerica?
2. What made Teotihuacan an important trading center?
3. What sort of goods traveled across long-distance routes in the Americas?
4. Why don’t we know very much about merchants in Teotihuacan? Why do we know more about merchants in Tenochtitlán?
5. What was life like for merchants in the Aztec Empire? What roles did they play in the empire, other than trade?

Read 3—Evaluating and Corroborating

At the end of the third close read, respond to the following questions:

1. Prepare an argument that describes the effect long-distance trade had on the development of states in the Americas over time.
2. Think about the region you live in. What environmental features would have made it easier or harder for you to trade with other regions if you had to carry all your trade goods only on your back or in a canoe?
3. How does the evidence in this article support, challenge, or extend what you have already learned about the Americas in the period prior to about 1500?

In this final vocab activity of the unit, as with all the final vocab activities in each unit, you will engage in a deeper exploration of the unit’s vocabulary. You’ll move beyond simply defining words to applying them in this activity, and by doing so, you’ll solidify your understanding and use of the words in context.

In this activity, you’re going to create a live concept map using Unit 1’s vocabulary. In case you haven’t heard of a concept map, it’s typically a diagram that shows the relationships among concepts, with the concepts drawn in circles or boxes. Lines are used to connect the related concepts. In this activity, either string or hand holding will function as the connecting lines.

Your teacher will either give you a vocab card or assign a word and have you make your own card. Then, you’ll take a few minutes to go around the room, making connections to other students’ words. Connections can be made in a number of different ways: You can think about synonyms, antonyms, word families, and even connections to similar ideas. Each time you make a connection, explain what it is to the other student, and then write the word on the back of your vocab card. Every few minutes, your teacher will ask you to explain your current connection. You will start to notice some patterns!

The Aztec Empire emerged from a bunch of city-states. One of these city-states, Tenochtitlan, was kind of an underdog. But in the context of a civil war, it formed a strategic alliance with other city-states to form the famous Aztec Empire—with Tenochtitlan as its seat. For a while, this system worked. But when the empire was invaded from outside, the city-state system could not hold the empire together.

By describing the context of the formation and decline of the Aztec Empire, this video will provide evidence for understanding the Americas in the period 1200-1450. This will help you to compare and contrast states within this massive region with other parts of the world in this period.

Think about the following question as you watch the video: To what extent does this video explain how and why states in the Americas developed and changed over time? You will be asked to respond to this question again at the end of the video.

Preview—Skimming for Gist

As a reminder, open and skim the transcript, and read the questions before you watch the video.

Key Ideas—Understanding Content

Think about the following questions as you watch this video:

1. What did Aztec society have in common with ancient Greece?
2. What was the Triple Alliance, and in what context did it develop?
3. How did the system of city-states help Hernando Cortes conquer the Aztec Empire?
4. The author of the video describes the Aztec Empire as advanced. What evidence does the author give for this claim and is the author’s argument convincing?
5. How did Aztec political communities differ from Maya political communities?

Evaluating and Corroborating

1. To what extent does this video explain how and why states in the Americas developed and changed over time?
2. How does the Aztec state compare or contrast to different types of states and communities you have learned about in Afro-Eurasia?

Macuilxochitl was a Mexica (Aztec) poetess. Her life and her poetry are evidence of the structure of the Aztec state and the networks built by the Mexica people and their neighbors prior to the Columbian Exchange.

The Americas often seem less familiar and easy to grasp than Afro-Eurasia in the pre-Columbian period. But we know quite a bit about how some states, especially the Aztec state, actually worked. Tribute played a central role in both the economy and the governing of the state. One of our sources for understanding the Aztec state is the poetry of Macuilxochitl, in particular the poem about the emperor Axayacatl. Use this source to help you to build your understanding of networks and communities in pre-Columbian Mesoamerica.

Read 1: Observe

As you read this graphic biography for the first time, review the Read 1: Observe section of your Three Close Reads for Graphic Bios Tool. Be sure to record one question in the thought bubble on the top-right. You don’t need to write anything else down. However, if you’d like to record your observations, feel free to do so on scrap paper.

Read 2: Understand

On the tool, summarize the main idea of the comic and provide two pieces of evidence that helped you understand the creator’s main idea. You can do this only in writing or you can get creative with some art. Some of the evidence you find may come in the form of text (words). But other evidence will come in the form of art (images). You should read the text looking for unfamiliar vocabulary words, the main idea, and key supporting details. You should also spend some time looking at the images and the way in which the page is designed. By the end of the second close read, you should be able to answer the following questions:

1. Who was Macuilxochitl and how does she describe herself?
2. She describes the Tenochtitlan (Aztec) conquest of Tlacotepec as “forays for flowers [and] butterflies.” What does this mean?
3. She writes that Axayacatl spared the Otomi warrior partly because he brought a piece of wood and deerskin to the ruler? What does this tell you?
4. How does the artist use art and design emphasize and demonstrate the importance of tribute?

Read 3: Connect

In this read, you should use the graphic biography as evidence to support, extend, or challenge claims made in this unit of the course. On the bottom of the tool, record what you learned about this person’s life and how it relates to what you’re learning.

1. To what extent does this article explain how and why states in the Americas developed and changed over time?
2. How does this biography of Macuilxochitl support, extend, or challenge what you have learned about the state and economy in Mesoamerica in this period?

To Be Continued…

On the second page of the tool, your teacher might ask you to extend the graphic biography to a second page. This is where you can draw and write what you think might come next. Here, you can become a co-creator of this graphic biography!

On the vast Colorado Plateau of the American Southwest, the Ancestral Pueblo built large agricultural communities, big cities, and monumental architecture. Yet the Ancestral Pueblo relied on movement—on repeated migrations—to sustain their communities and thrive in a challenging landscape. In this video, Jerad Koepp speaks with Theresa Pasqual (Acoma), Natalie Martinez (Laguna), and archaeologist Kurt Anschuetz about how the Pueblo people have managed their patterns of life in this region for thousands of years. We can learn about this history from archaeologists and by listening to the oral history traditions of Pueblo communities today.

You’re learning some big, world-historical narratives about the diverse global tapestry of the world before 1200 CE. Many of the communities you’re encountering will fit the world-history narratives about the development of complex, agricultural societies. But when we start looking more closely at patterns in different parts of the world, we often find evidence to challenge or complicate those big narratives. The example of Ancestral Pueblo societies and their use of migration as a strategy provides you with new evidence to complicate those narratives.

Preview – Skimming for Gist

Remember to open and skim the transcript, and then read the questions below before you watch the video.

Key Ideas – Factual

Think about the following questions as you watch this video.

1. How does the story of the Ancestral Pueblo challenge world-historical narratives about agriculture and complex societies?
2. How does Theresa Pasqual characterize Pueblo origin stories?
3. According to Dr. Natalie Martinez, why are these origin stories important today?
4. According to Dr. Kurt Anschuetz, what are some strategies that Pueblo people used to thrive on the Colorado Plateau?
5. How does Theresa Pasqual describe the movement of the Ancestral Pueblo people?

Evaluating and Corroborating

1. The people in this video suggest that oral histories should be taken seriously as historical evidence, on par with archaeological evidence. What do you think are the differences in what we can learn from archaeology and oral traditions? What do you think historians should do when the two types of evidence disagree?

The Inca Empire started off as the Kingdom of Cusco. Under the leader Pachacuti, the Inca brought other groups under their control and under their collected tribute system called the mita (Mit’a) system. This system helped the Inca build its famous monuments and grow into a sophisticated empire with ten million residents.

By describing the formation and operation of the Inca Empire, this video provides evidence at the level of a single, large state for comparison and contrast with states in other regions of the world. The evidence this article provides will also help you evaluate whether the governance theme provides an accurate framing of this period.

Think about the following question as you watch the video: To what extent does this video support, challenge, or extend your understanding of how states changed and developed in the Americas over time? You will be asked to respond to this question again at the end of the video.

Preview—Skimming for Gist

As a reminder, open and skim the transcript, and read the questions before you watch the video.

Key Ideas—Understanding Content

Think about the following questions as you watch this video:

1. Who was Pachacuti?
2. What did the Inca call themselves? What did Inca mean?
3. What made the Inca an empire?
4. How many people were living in the Inca Empire prior to its decline?
5. What was the Mit’a system?

Evaluating and Corroborating

1. To what extent does this video support, challenge, or extend your understanding of how states changed and developed in the Americas over time?
2. What are unique features of the Inca Empire, and what features seem similar to states in other parts of the world during this era?