1. Understanding the Essay Prompt
Lesson 1
Understanding the Essay Prompt
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2. All AP essays are written in response to an essay “prompt
All AP essays are written in response to an essay “prompt.” Understanding what this prompt asks you to do is the first important skill you need to acquire.
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3. Here are two examples Sample DBQ prompt: Sample free response prompt:
How successful was organized labor in improving the position of workers in the period from 1875 to 1900? Analyze the factors that contributed to the level of success achieved.
Sample free response prompt:
Compare and contrast United States foreign policy after the First World War and after the Second World War. Consider the periods and
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4. Tip #1
The first thing you need to do is to read the WHOLE prompt, every word of it. This is especially true if the prompt is in two sentences like this one. . .
How successful was organized labor in improving the position of workers in the period from 1875 to 1900? Analyze the factors that contributed to the level of success achieved.
The first mistake that many students make is in reading and answering only part of the prompt.
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5. Tip #2
Having read the whole prompt, circle or underline the VERBS. These words will give you your task.
How successful was organized labor in improving the position of workers in the period from 1875 to 1900? Analyze the factors that contributed to the level of success achieved.
The important verb, and thus your task, is in the second sentence: ANALYZE. 5
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6. Tip #3
After finding the verbs, look carefully and mark any CONJUNCTIONS and circle or underline them. For instance
Compare and contrast United States foreign policy after the First World War and after the Second World War. Consider the periods and
You must compare AND contrast these periods to successfully complete the task. Doing only one or the other will lower your score.
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7. Tip #4
Go back and look carefully at the VERB in the prompt. This word will tell you what you are expected to do. The following is a list of commonly used verbs and explanations for the tasks they indicate. These are verbs the College Board has used recently.
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8. Commonly used verbs and verb phrases
Analyze
Explain how AND why something occurred. Any question that uses “how” and/or “why” is an analysis question even if the word “analyze” is not in the prompt.
Assess the validity
How true is the statement. The statement doesn’t have to be all true; it can be true in one instance or circumstance and false in another.
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9. Commonly used Verbs (continued)
Evaluate
Which factor was most important. You usually need to rank several events or factors and specify which is most and which is least significant.
To what extent
This prompt frequently requires you to specify a cause and effect relationship and then state which causes were more important.
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10. Commonly used Verbs (continued)
Compare AND contrast
To do this correctly you need to discuss BOTH similarities AND differences between two events or periods. It is important to both in a balanced way without shortchanging either.
Discuss or Consider
These are frequently used in free response prompts. They should be written as analysis essays.
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11. Tip #5
Define any terms in the prompt that you need to explain. For instance, a recent essay prompt asked students to assess the validity of this statement: “Reform movements in the United States sought to expand democratic ideals.” Jot down some “democratic ideals” and be prepared to explain how they are democratic. Failing to do this will lower your score.
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12. Tip #6
Clearly understand the time period in the prompt. If the prompt asks you to discuss reform between 1865 and 1900, you must include information for the WHOLE time period. You can help yourself do this by listing information from the last 10 years of the time period in the prompt FIRST, then working backward with your details.
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13. Tip #7
After you are clear as to your task (analyze, evaluate, etc.) sketch out a quick, informal outline of how you are going to proceed. This is very important to guaranteeing that you cover the whole prompt.
For instance, if you were writing the following prompt. . .
Compare and contrast United States foreign policy after the First World War and after the Second World War. Consider the periods and
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14. You might jot down a simple “outline” like the one at the right.
You would list things that were similar in BOTH periods,
Then list the differences in BOTH periods.
Your essay would then have either four body paragraphs as indicated by the circles
similarities
differences
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15. Or you might have two longer and more involved paragraphs as indicated by the two ovals. In either case, you would have organized your thinking so that you cover all of the material you need to cover to address the prompt completely.
similarities
differences
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16. Lesson 1 Summary Read the WHOLE prompt!
Mark the VERBS and the CONJUNCTIONS in the prompt. Think about that verb. What, exactly, are you being asked to do. Consider the whole prompt. ORGANIZE your thinking BEFORE you begin writing.
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18. Lesson 2
The Thesis Sentence
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19. The thesis sentence is the most important sentence in any essay
The thesis sentence is the most important sentence in any essay. It must be clear, properly structured, and in the correct place.
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20. A thesis sentence is. . . A single Declaratory sentence
That “answers” the prompt
With a clearly and simply stated opinion.
A good thesis never restates the prompt.
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21. Tip #1
After reading the whole prompt, marking the verbs and conjunctions, and sketching out how you intend to proceed. . .
Answer the prompt in a simple sentence.
For instance, consider this DBQ prompt:
How successful was organized labor in improving the position of workers in the period from 1875 to 1900? Analyze the factors that contributed to the level of success achieved.
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22. Tip #1 (continued) What do you think about this prompt?
Was the time period 1875 to 1900 a period of labor success?
Or was it a time of extreme hardship and struggle for organized labor?
YOUR OPINION IS ESSENTIAL!
And your opinion must be clear.
So. . .
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23. Tip #1 (continued)
Let’s say that you think this time period was not a period of labor success.
Write a simple statement that answers the prompt with your opinion. Like this. . .
The last 30 years of the 1900s nearly destroyed organized labor.
Or. . .
These years were a period of extreme struggle for organized labor.
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24. Tip #1 (continued)
It’s extremely important to get your thinking clearly into a simple “answer” to the prompt.
Do NOT restate the wording of the prompt.
Rather than saying “the time period 1875 to 1900,” say “the last decades of the 19th century” or “the three decades following the Civil War.”
Rather than saying “organized labor,” refer to labor unions.
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25. Tip #2
Now that you know your opinion, you need to write a sentence that is both complex and specific.
One way of doing this is to begin your thesis sentence with the word “although.”
This may seem odd, but recent AP grading rubrics award high scores only to essays that “address the complexity of the question.”
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26. Tip #2 (continued)
One of the easiest ways of doing this is to write a sentence that looks like this:
Although the last decades of the 19th century were periods of intense labor organization, they nearly destroyed the labor unions.
Or. . .
Although the post-Civil War period saw increased labor organization, it was also a time of government persecution of labor unions.
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27. Tip #2 (continued)
Writing this kind of thesis sentence sets you up from the very beginning to acknowledge the “complexity” in the essay prompt. Your opinion, your “answer” to the prompt, goes in the second half of the thesis sentence. This is the point you are going to make, the destination at which you want the reader to arrive.
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28. Tip #3
Having written your thesis sentence, you are ready to put it into your essay introduction. For most AP U. S. History essays, an introduction “paragraph” may only be two or three sentences in length. The thesis sentence should be the last sentence in your introduction paragraph. Take a step back from your thesis and write a general sentence that introduces the topic.
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29. Tip #3 (continued)
The general topic of this prompt is organized labor.
Using one of the earlier thesis sentences, the introduction might look like this:
Labor unions had existed in America since the early days of industrialization and had grown in number prior to the Civil War. Although the post-Civil War period saw increased labor organization, it was also a time of government persecution of labor unions.
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30. Tip #3 (continued)
Current AP essay rubrics award high scores to essays that have “a clear, well-developed thesis” that is “focused on the prompt” and “guides the essay throughout.” By clearly “answering” the prompt with your opinion, writing a great thesis sentence, and putting it at the beginning of your essay, you do as much in two sentences as you can do to get yourself off to a great start.
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31. Lesson 2 Summary
A thesis is a single declarative sentence that “answers” the prompt with your opinion. The thesis must address the complexity in any prompt. The thesis must be the last sentence in the introduction paragraph. One way of accomplishing all of this is to begin your thesis with the word “although.”
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33. Using Documents in the DBQ
Lesson 3
Using Documents in the DBQ
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34. Document-based questions (DBQs) require you to do several things well. . .
You must understand the prompt and come up with an “answer” that will be your thesis.
You must come up with a list of facts—names, dates, treaties, battles, significant events, etc.—from the time period.
You must use all of the documents that are provided.
You must write a clearly organized and well-written essay.
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35. General information about the documents
All of the documents will be relevant to the topic.
Plan on using all of the documents provided.
Sometimes the date or the author in the source notation may be significant.
The documents are generally presented chronologically.
Pay special attention to cartoons, charts, & graphs.
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36. Tip #1
Read the prompt thoroughly several times. Make sure you fully understand the whole prompt.
Identify the time period you are dealing with.
Brainstorm
write down all of the relevant information you can think of BEFORE reading the documents.
Sketch an outline of how your essay will be structured. . .
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37. Outlines do not have to be formal, just sketch a structure
List facts
List facts
Social
List facts
List facts
List facts
List facts
Political
List facts
List facts
List facts
List facts
Economic
List facts
List facts
List facts
List facts
List facts
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38. Tip #1 Summary
You have quickly done some very important preparation for the essay.
You have carefully read the prompt several times.
You have “answered” the prompt, decided your thesis direction.
You have quickly jotted down some facts that you can use to support your thinking.
Organized this information.
Now you are ready to deal with the documents.
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39. Tip # 2 Quickly read all of the documents.
As you go, indicate where on your essay “outline” they will go.
Remember to consider the dates in the source material.
Underline any unusual phrases.
Jot down any quick summary thoughts about the documents as you read.
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40. Tip #2 (continued) Look carefully at political cartoons.
Pay attention to any small print.
Jot down a quick summary of what the cartoon is trying to tell you.
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41. Tip #2 (continued)
Graphs and charts are important, look at them carefully.
Note the dates.
Notice that they frequently show change over time.
Jot down a quick summary of what they indicate.
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42. Tip #2 (continued) Notice dates, especially on pictures.
The picture on the left is dated 1915; the picture on the right is dated 1919.
What had changed for working women in those years? Why?
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43. Tip # 2 (continued) Look very carefully at data presented in charts.
Look for
trends,
for changes over time,
for sudden changes.
Summarize what the chart tells you in a quick sentence.
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44. Having read the documents. . .
Go back and add the documents to your essay outline.
Remember, you must use outside information AND the documents to respond to the essay prompt.
Make sure that you have both—outside information and documents—to support each point of your essay.
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45. Tip #2 Summary You have now spent about 15 minutes Reading the prompt,
Brainstorming and listing relevant information,
Planning a basic structure for your response,
Putting your information onto the essay structure,
Reading the documents,
Adding the documents to your essay outline.
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46. Tip #3: Writing the essay
Refer to the document, NEVER quote them at length—no more than a quick phrase or three or four words!
Don’t explain the document. Simply refer to it to support your thesis.
Refer to the author of the document: “In Lincoln’s letter” or “Horace Mann makes the point” or “in the Nast cartoon.”
Cite every document by using its letter, e.g. (A). You don’t need to say (doc. A).
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47. This document appeared in the 1999 DBQ. Notice the source note.
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48. The most significant thing about this document is the date, 1754, in the source note.
This document was intended to bring to mind the following:
The 1754 meeting of the London Board of Trade,
Benjamin Franklin, printer from Phildelphia and colonial agent,
Franklin’s Albany Plan of Union,
The Albany Plan of Union’s provisions for a colonial legislature,
The ultimate unpreparedness of the colonies to accept the Albany Plan of Union in 1754.
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49. The most significant thing about this document is the date, 1754, in the source note.
This document was intended to bring to mind the following:
The 1754 meeting of the London Board of Trade,
Benjamin Franklin, printer from Phildelphia and colonial agent,
Franklin’s Albany Plan of Union,
The Albany Plan of Union’s provisions for a colonial legislature,
The ultimate unpreparedness of the colonies to accept the Albany Plan of Union in 1754.
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50. Lesson 3 Summary
Understand the prompt—the time period and any terms that need defining.
Produce a brainstormed list of relevant and useful fact FIRST, before reading the documents.
Organize how you will use both the outside information and the documents.
Use all of the documents without quoting them and citing them as you go.
Write a clear and well-organized essay that demonstrates an understanding of the prompt.
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52. Writing Effective Free Response Essays
Lesson 4
Writing Effective Free Response Essays
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53. Free response essays, in many ways, are the very heart of the AP exam
Free response essays, in many ways, are the very heart of the AP exam. They measure your reasoning ability as well as your historical knowledge.
To succeed with these essays, you must understand the prompts, organize your information, and write a clear and accurate response.
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54. Free response essay prompts put a lot of responsibility on the writer:
Some prompts are very open. Here is an example of this type of prompt:
The government under the Articles of Confederation has been considered a failure. Describe three actions of the Confederation government and explain how these actions may or may not be considered failures.
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55. These prompts require you to define the terms, specify the time period, and understand the task.
For instance, read the prompt carefully:
The government under the Articles of Confederation has been considered a failure. Describe three actions of the Confederation government and explain how these actions may or may not be considered failures.
To address the prompt, he following questions must be answered:
What time period does this question address? [ ]
What were 3 (no more) actions of the Confederation Congress that you are going to discuss?
How are you defining “failure” or “success”?
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56. Some prompts provide clear time periods to be addressed:
For instance, here are two prompts that specify very clearly the time periods to be discussed:
Compare and contrast United States foreign policy after the First World War and after the Second World War. Consider the periods and
How did the African American Civil Rights movement of the 1950s and 1960s address the failures of Reconstruction?
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57. These prompts require you to limit your evidence and to define certain terms.
With the first prompt–
Compare and contrast United States foreign policy after the First World War and after the Second World War. Consider the periods and
The following need clarifying
Deal only with foreign policy decisions
You need to pick decisions that are BOTH different and similar between the early and the later time periods.
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58. Requires you to specify
The next prompt–
How did the African American Civil Rights movement of the 1950s and 1960s address the failures of Reconstruction?
Requires you to specify
Several “failures of Reconstruction”
Which implies that you know when Reconstruction occurred.
And to know several very specific results of the later Civil Rights movement that directly addressed the failures of Reconstruction.
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59. Tip #1
Make sure you understand exactly your task, what you must “prove” in the essay.
Stay strictly within the time period. Don’t wander.
You must be specific, specific, specific.
Use proper nouns—words that need to be capitalized.
Never use generalities, i.e. many reforms, lots of reformers, many things changed.
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60. Tip #2 Organize your thinking BEFORE you write.
This doesn’t need to be a long process
Decide two or three things you need to discuss,
Organize the facts you have under those headings,
Check through them to see that you “balance” the discussion—give each part of the topic equal discussion.
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61. Outlines do not have to be formal, just sketch a structure and put your facts into that structure.
List facts
List facts
Social
List facts
List facts
List facts
List facts
Political
List facts
List facts
List facts
List facts
Economic
List facts
List facts
List facts
List facts
List facts
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62. Write with clarity and confidence– don’t be timid!
Be definite. Your thesis should ANSWER the prompt with your opinion.
Having brainstormed then organized specific facts, start each paragraph with a clear topic sentence.
Refer to specific facts to support your thinking. Stick to your structure, refer to your outline as you write.
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63. Good writing is a problem-solving situation. Work the process!
After writing your thesis paragraph, go back and re-read the prompt.
Ask yourself, “Have I ‘answered’ the prompt with my thesis?”
What three or four points MUST you make to support your thesis. Write these down.
As you write, look back at the prompt and at your thesis. Are you sticking to the topic?
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64. Plan your time so that you can read your essay before you finish.
Check the clock. Know how much time you have to produce the essay.
Check your thesis and your outline frequently.
Make sure that you have time to go back and read quickly through your essay.
Don’t ignore a conclusion paragraph. Sometimes it makes up for weaknesses earlier in the essay.
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65. Lesson 4 Summary Read the prompt completely more than once.
Know your task.
Write a thesis that addresses the prompt.
Specifics—proper nouns—only. No generalizations.
Organize before writing.
Check your thesis and your outline as you write.
Leave time to read your essay before finishing.
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