1. Mrs. Sammons’ APUSH Class
How To Write the LEQ
Mrs. Sammons’ APUSH Class

2. Thesis – 1 point
A. Thesis: shows the Historical Thinking Skill, Time Period, Topics and TAKES A STANCE! (1 point)
Prompt: Evaluate the extent to which the Seven Years’ War marked a turning point in American relations with Great Britain.

3. Support for Argument (0-2 points)
1 point - Describes what prompt is asking for in argument
Example: “Both before and after the war, officials attempted to place taxes on colonial goods to finance the empire.”
1 point – Explains the extent to which the historical development specified in prompt was different from, and similar to…
Example: “Once Great Britain changed its economic policy in America from Salutary Neglect to rigid economic control, tensions began rising and the relationship between the colonies and the colonizers changed drastically. This became evident with the establishment of taxes on the American colonists in hopes of paying back the debt that had accrued from the war.”
**Needs to explicitly illustrate relationship among historical evidence.

4. Application of targeted historical thinking skill for argument!
Continuity and Change Over Time – Explains the reasons for historical continuity and change over time. Cover the entire time period!
Comparison- Explains the reasons for similarities AND difference among historical individuals, events, developments, or processes.
Causation- Explains the reasons for the causes, AND/OR effects of a historical event, development, or process. Be sure to cover both causes and effects.
Periodization- Explains the extent to which the historical development specified in the prompt was different from and similar to developments that preceded and/or followed.**If the prompt requires evaluation of a turning point, then responses must discuss developments that preceded AND followed.

5. Using Evidence in Argue Development (0-2 points)
1 point – Addresses the topic of the question with specific examples of relevant evidence.
Example: *Colonial attitudes toward autonomy prior to the war with House of Burgesses or Enlightenment ideas
*Colonial resentments over treatment of colonial forces by British regulars
*British debt from the Seven Years’ War
* Albany Plan of the Union

6. Using Evidence in Argue Development Continued… (0-2 points)
1 point – Utilizes specific examples of evidence to fully and effectively substantiate the stated thesis or relevant argument through analysis and explanation. – Answering WHY??
Example: “Great Britain tightened its economic control after the Seven Years’ War through the use of new policies, such as the Sugar and Stamp Act, that not only directly taxed the colonists to repay the British debt from the war, but also clamped down on smuggling. ” OR
“After the Seven Years’ War, the land that the colonists fought for, west of the Appalachian Mountains, was prohibited by the British government with the Proclamation of 1763 and led to greater tension as the colonists continued to push farther west and the British troops continued to force them off any land they tried to settle or claim.”

7. Conclusion -Contextualization = 1 point
Why did all of this take place in the essay during this time period?
Contextualization is the background that sets the stage for a particular moment in American history.
“Same in time, different in kind”
It CANNOT be a topic already discussed in your essay.
Must be 3 to 4 detailed sentences in conclusion.
To earn this point, the response must relate the topic of the prompt to broader historical events, developments, or processes that occur before, during, or continue after the time frame of the question. This point is not awarded for merely a phrase or a reference

8. Contextualization Example
The French and Indian War began after a series of incidents in the upper Ohio River valley, which the French and British governments both claimed as their territory due to its strategic access to the Mississippi River. Military forces assembled by both imperial powers built forts in the region and attempted to capture each others’ forts. These skirmishes, which included an expedition led by George Washington to protect British forts, ultimately led to the escalation of a wider, full-scale war between Great Britain and France. As a result, the American colonists were dragged into this war.

9. What If I Run Out of Time on APUSH Exam??
The DBQ and LEQ are the last part of your AP Exam after the break.
You will be given 15 minutes to look over the documents for the DBQ AND the LEQ prompt as well.
After that 15 minutes, you may begin to write. The DBQ is first with 45 minutes allotted and the LEQ is last with 25 minutes allotted.
HOWEVER, if you spend more time on the DBQ than you anticipated, when you get to the LEQ, write your thesis, 1 body paragraph and your conclusion (contextualization) to enable you to get the maximum amount of points in a short period of time.