1. Ancient Civilizations EQ Writing
“What role does religion play in forming a culture?”

2. How is writing in history different than writing in English?
Example
“Until the early fourth century, the Christians were persecuted much more by Rome than the Jews had been persecuted. The Jews were not seen as a threat to the Roman Empire. But Christianity was perceived as a threat, ironically for several of the same reasons that Judaism had been viewed with suspicion in the ancient world. Christians formed small private groups and were relatively exclusive, they had strange rituals such as communion, and their loyalty to Christ challenged their loyalty to the Emperor. Christians were persecuted by Rome for over two hundred years, and were sometimes even given the choice between conversion and death. However, this atmosphere changed dramatically with the conversion of Emperor Constantine to Christianity.”

3. How to write about historyDo
Use facts
Interpret those facts with confidence and context
Don’t
Use first person (I, In my opinion, I think…)

4. Writing a History Research Paper
Step by Step

5. Step 1: Topic Sentence
Question:
“What role does religion play in forming a culture?”
Answer this question in one sentence.
State your answer to the question in a brief, general statement.
Topic sentence must be able to be supported later.

6. Step 1 Write three points that support your topic sentence
One sentence
General concept that supports topic sentence
NOT FACT, but based on fact
Example: “Egyptian culture revolved around its religious beliefs about the afterlife.”

7. Step 2 Give 1-2 facts that support each point Must be FACTS
Serve as proof that point is true
Example:
Point- “Egyptian culture revolved around its religious beliefs about the afterlife.”
Fact 1- “Early pharaohs spent most of their lives building their tombs in preparation for their death.”
Fact 2- “Egyptian people made offerings at the temples of the Egyptian gods.”

8. Step 3
Closing sentence
Similar to topic sentence
Concludes your paragraph and ties your points together
Example: “In these ways, religion was a part of everyday life, and therefore an important part of the development of culture in ancient civilizations.”

9. Tie it all together!
Write a final draft of your history research paragraph!
Tie your topic sentence, 3 points, and closing sentence together TS
fact
Point
fact
Point
fact
fact
fact
Point
fact CS