Writing for the AP Exam

Writing for a purpose, not to entertain Not just informative writing Also not quite persuasive writing as you would do in English Somewhere in between

What it is NOT Grandiose, flowery statements “Throughout time there have been many questions of history that have puzzled and befuddled historians.” Unsupported generalizations “Native Americans revered the land and treated nature with respect”

What it is NOT Anachronistic judgments “European settlers in the 17 th century were pretty stupid not to realize they could bring deadly disease and wipe out Native populations.” Overlong summaries or recitations of facts. Don’t mistake vomiting facts for argument!!!

Points of Style ALWAYS use past tense!!! ALWAYS use third person!!! NEVER say “I,” “me,” “myself,” etc. NEVER use jargon, slang, or informal language

Three Types of History Narrative – To relate the story of a particular event or series of events Descriptive – To paint a complete picture of a place, people, or point in time Argumentative – To propose and defend a point of view regarding historical relationships and processes In this class, yours will nearly always be Argumentative

So what’s your point? Argumentation means you are trying to support a particular position on or interpretation of a historical event or question. Your position or interpretation is expressed in a clear, concise THESIS STATEMENT

A THESIS IS: ● A controlling idea around which your paper is built ● A one-sentence answer to the historical question being asked ● A concise statement of your essay’s argument ● A point of view adopted about a historical problem ● A proposition to be defended or argued

Good Thesis Statements: ● Deal with ALL aspects of the question ● Take a clear position on the issue ● Provide an organizational framework for the essay ● Address the core skill defined by the question ● NOT SIMPLY A RESTATEMENT OF THE QUESTION!

Sample Question “In the end, the settlement of the Americas by Europeans in the 15 th and 16 th centuries was a positive event for humanity” Refute, modify or support the above statement.

Sample Thesis Although the settlement of the Americas by Europeans following the arrival of Columbus in 1492 created many positive outcomes, the resulting issues of disease, human enslavement and biological diversity combine to make it on the whole a negative event for humanity.

Essay prompt: “To what extent and in what ways did European powers develop different patterns of colonization in North America? Support your answer with specific and relevant historical information from the period 1607 to 1754.” Chronological Reasoning: Continuity and Change over Time Thesis statement due tomorrow!!!

Skill 1: Chronological Reasoning Periodization Historical thinking involves the ability to describe, analyze, evaluate, and construct models of historical periodization that historians use to categorize events into discrete blocks and to identify turning points, recognizing that the choice of specific dates favors one narrative, region or group over another narrative, region or group; therefore, changing the periodization can change a historical narrative. Moreover, the particular circumstances and contexts in which individual historians work and write shape their interpretations and models of past events.