Changes

== Tip on Organizing the Material ==

== Tip on Organizing the Material ==

We have covered a great deal of material spanning hundreds of years.  We need to try to organize all these facts in our mind somehow.  Develop a frame of reference to do this.  You can choose whatever frame of reference you like.  For me, my frame of reference in remembering each president is to think about how conservative he was.  Every few decades we have a conservative president:

We have covered a great deal of material spanning hundreds of years.  We need to try to organize all these facts in our minds somehow.  Develop a frame of reference to do this.  You can choose whatever frame of reference you like.  For me, my frame of reference in remembering each president is to think about how conservative he was.  Every few decades we have a conservative president:

1788 – [[George Washington]]

1788 – [[George Washington]]

Any of these terms may appear on the exams in this course.  Several of our students are already planning to take the CLEP exam, and anyone doing that should know as many of these terms as possible.

Any of these terms may appear on the exams in this course.  Several of our students are already planning to take the CLEP exam, and anyone doing that should know as many of these terms as possible.

This list is not as daunting as it appears.  Homeschoolers who win the spelling bees memorize the entire dictionary, which is tens of thousands of words.  This list is only about 321 terms.  A homeschooler like Abraham Lincoln or Thomas Edison would diligently memorize and know the meaning of all the terms on this list, not because they are smarter, but because they believed in trying their best.  You can try your best -- everyone can -- and you find lots of time for this that is otherwise wasted.

This list is not as daunting as it appears.  Homeschoolers who win the spelling bees memorize the entire dictionary, which is tens of thousands of words.  This list is only about 321 terms.  A homeschooler like Abraham Lincoln or Thomas Edison would diligently memorize and know the meaning of all the terms on this list, not because they are smarter, but because they believed in trying their best.  You can try your best -- everyone can -- and you can find lots of time for this that is otherwise wasted.

This chart can be used effectively to quiz yourself.  Pick out any term, and try to identify its time period and who was president.  Does the term refer to foreign policy (e.g., dealings with a foreign country) or domestic policy (e.g., an issue internal to the United States)?  Even if you don't recall immediately the meaning of the term, try to figure it out based on what you do know.

The list below can be used effectively to quiz yourself.  Pick out any term, and try to identify its time period and who was President.  Does the term refer to foreign policy (e.g., dealings with a foreign country) or domestic policy (e.g., an issue internal to the United States)?  Even if you don't recall immediately the meaning of the term, try to figure it out based on what you do know.

Quizzing yourself in this manner will both improve your test-taking skills, and identify for yourself what you need to study more.  Use the short descriptions for these terms that will be handed out in class (and which is also available by email - contact me if you need a copy), or refer back to the lectures and the model answers.

Quizzing yourself in this manner will both improve your test-taking skills, and identify for yourself what you need to study more.  Use the short descriptions for these terms that will be handed out in class (and which is also available by email - contact me if you would like an electronic copy), or refer back to the lectures and the model answers.

As in baseball and in sales in business, simply try to improve your percentages with these terms.  If you know only 10%, try to improve that to 40%.  If you know 50%, then try to improve that to 75%.  If you know 70%, then strive for 90%.  Just as a batter in baseball should not be discouraged by failing 2 out of 3 times at bat, you should not be discouraged by low initial percentages on this key term list.  Try to improve your percentages.  With effort, you'll amaze yourself at how much better you can become.  Your classmates will be working hard on this, and do not let them pass you up!

As in baseball and in sales in business, simply try to improve your percentages with these terms.  If you know only 10%, try to improve that to 40%.  If you know 50%, then try to improve that to 75%.  If you know 70%, then strive for 90%.  Just as a batter in baseball should not be discouraged by failing 2 out of 3 times at bat, you should not be discouraged by low initial percentages on this key term list.  Try to improve your percentages.  With effort, you'll amaze yourself at how much better you can become.  Your classmates will be working hard on this, and do not let them pass you up!