AP United States History

Tips on Essay Skills

IT IS IMPOSSIBLE TO WRITE A GOOD ESSAY ON A TOPIC ABOUT WHICH YOU KNOW NOTHING!!!

Pay attention in class! Take good notes! Study for the essay!

Writing for History Consider your

audience. Different from your

English class. No personal voice!

The Prompt

Read the question or prompt carefully.

Your basic purpose is to answer the question!

Read the question three times! Paraphrase the question and know

the essential task demanded by it.

Creating a Framework

Break the question down with dates, and points asked for, make sure you are aware of the entire question.

Be mindful of the verb—what exactly are you supposed to do?

Brainstorm

Get your brain in gear! What do you know? Put down on paper everything that

comes to mind regarding the topic.

Make an Outline Organize your

thesis Develop three

main points Put your

brainstormed information in an outline or chart format for your three body paragraphs.

Introduction

Brief explanation of any key theme or complex idea contained in the thesis

May be where you put the question into historical context

May be where you explain why the question is worth answering

The Thesis Statement CRITICAL FACTOR!!! Serves as your answer to the question Acknowledges that you are aware of the

complexity of the question Main organizational points that will be used

to structure and present the data used to defend the thesis

Develop three key points from your brainstorm.

Sophistication

We don’t want a straight narrative composition!

Use key words that indicate judgment and analysis.

Don’t make a laundry list of facts Think causation, repercussions, etc.

Sophisticated Verbs Vocabulary matters! “The assassination caused the war.” “The assassination provoked the outbreak

of war.” “The diary showed the prejudice…” “The diary vividly illustrates the deep

prejudice…” Do not use the verbs SHOW, FEEL, or

BELIEVE when another stronger verb will work.

Dwell in the Gray Stay away from absolutes! Never, always, completely… Think of issues in terms of a

scale of 0 – 10. Anybody can answer true or

false. Good students of history address “how true” or “how false.” (To what extent did the Missouri Compromise create further sectionalism in the United States?)

Stay away from overly simplistic words!

Good, bad, great, fantastic.

How many body paragraphs?

Determined by the organizational list in the introductory paragraph

Generally, you should expect three body paragraphs unless the essay guides you to do more.

ALWAYS ANSWER THE QUESTION!

What order do I put them in? In order of

importance The only exception

would be if you were going to address the question chronologically.

Get your strongest point down on paper first!

Topic Sentences

Clear and relevant sentences Let the reader know what the

paragraph is about. Links back to the thesis

One thing that did unite Americans from the distant past: they’re all dead now. Use past tense.

Don’t use rhetorical questions. They abuse your reader. You don’t like to be abused, do you?

Always avoid “always”; never use “never” in your essays.

I think that first person undermines your effectiveness. We, as Americans, need to learn not to use it in expository essays.

The use of proper grammars, speling, and “wonderful verbs” shows that your smart.