apush dbq writing workshop
TRANSCRIPT
APUSH DBQ WRITING WORKSHOP
FOR SOUTH LAUREL STUDENTS
BYRD-APUSH 2017
Document Based Question
15 minute mandatory reading period
40 minutes suggested for writing
You must do the following in your essay:
State a relevant thesis that directly addresses ALL
parts of the question
Support the thesis with evidence from all, or all but
one, of the documents
Incorporate analysis of all, or all but one, of the
documents
Focus your analysis of each document on one
of the following: historical context, intended
audience, purpose, and/or point of view (HIPP-)
Support your argument with analysis of historical
evidence outside the documents (-O)
Connect historical phenomena relevant to your
argument to broader events of processes
Synthesize the elements above into a persuasive
essay that extends your argument, connects it to a
different historical context, or accounts for
contradictory evidence on the topic
*
*
Essay Prompt:
Explain the Causes and
Consequences of international and
domestic challenges the United
States faced between 1968 and
1974.
Step 1:
Read all parts of the question carefully
Identify the subject of the essay question
Identify the periodization or date range (if any)-circle it
Identify the required tasks
To what extent
Compare and contrast
Continuity and change
Underline key words
Explain the Causes and Consequences of
international and domestic challenges the
United States faced between 1968 and 1974.
Step 2:
Write down any outside information you know
about the time period or theme BEFORE you start
reading the documents.
Create a rough outline of what you might want to
write
Step 3:
The Documents…
Note the order- chronological? No? – does their order help in
applying the historical thinking skill?
Read the documents quickly and carefully
SOURCE!!!!! Author, date, place it came from
Underline key words
Note point of view
Summarize in a few words the main idea of the doc
ADDRESS AT LEAST ONE OF THE FOLLOWING:
Historical Context, Intended Audience, Purpose, Point of View
Note any additional outside info that comes to mind at this point
H-I-P-P-…O
Used for document analysis
Very important for DBQ documents – always try
to determine these 5 points
Note: it is possible you won’t be able to determine
all 5 for all of the documents, all of the time
H – Historical Context
When is it taking place?
Where is it taking place?
What is happening in the document?
What is happening in America? (socially, politically,
economically)
What is happening in world history?
I – Intended Audience
Who is the speaker addressing? (don’t forget to look in the description
of the document)
P – Purpose Why is this document created?
P – Point of View Who is the author?
What is their view of the subject being discussed?
Is there bias?
O – Outside Info Are there any other People, Events, Documents, Laws, Ideas, Groups
(PEDLIG) that come to mind?
I return to the question with which I
began: How can the Union be saved?
There is only one way. That is by a full
and final settlement based on the
principle of justice, of all the disputes
between the two sections. The South
asks for justice, simple justice. Less it
ought not to accept. It has no
compromise to offer but the Constitution,
and no concession or surrender to make.
It has already surrendered so much that
it has little left to surrender. Such a
settlement would remove all the causes
of dissatisfaction. It would satisfy the
South that it could remain honorably and
safely in the Union. It would bring back
the harmony and good feelings between
the sections that existed before the
Missouri question. Nothing else can
finally and forever settle the questions at
issue, end agitation, and save the Union.
John Calhoun, March 4, 1850
Historical Context: Speech given at the
height of the tension and debate over the
various elements of the Compromise of
1850. The vote on the measures were in
doubt and the North and South were in
great conflict.
Intended Audience: Southern
conservatives, other states’ rights
supporters, and Northerner opponents.
Point of View: The Compromise was
flawed. Slavery was a constitutional right of
property that could go anywhere. The
South demanded justice.
Purpose: To bolster the South and unite its
supporters in opposition to the
Compromise.
Organization/Use: Depending on the
prompt, it could be used as evidence:
• to show growing sectionalism in 1850
• to show the consequences that had
emerged from the land
• acquired in the Mexican-American War
• to show the South’s mindset that
eventually led to secession
Citing a DBQ Document
Let’s say we have the following prompt:
Analyze the factors that led to the colonists developing a
sense of their own identity and unity as Americans by the
eve of the American Revolution (causation)
This is one of the documents!
When we do a HIPP of this document, we may come up
with the following:
Historical Context: cartoon was produced at the start of the French and Indian War to unite colonists
against the French and their Native American allies
Intended Audience: colonial legislatures who Franklin wanted to convince to support the Albany
Congress
Purpose: generate stronger colonial defense on the frontier against the French & Native Americans
Point of View: Franklin was a newspaper publisher & an organizer of the Albany Congress trying to
unify the colonies
NOW FOLLOW THIS…
Use the following formula, you will do extended analysis on the
documents (have to do 4 to get point, we do at least 5 just in case)
What’s the formula? Simple
Noun (name of doc or author, Extended Analysis (HIPP),
document analysis that supports the argument in response to the
promptSome examples:
“Join or Die, produced at the start of the French & Indian War to unite the colonies against the French, illustrates the view of colonists
like Franklin that the colonies had the same threats which helped to unify them even before the American Revolution”
OR
“Join or Die, produced for colonial legislatures who often did not see the threat of the French impacting their interests, illustrates the
view of colonists like Franklin that the colonies had the same threats which helped to unify them even before the American Revolution
OR
“Join or Die, designed to generate greater unity among the colonies in the face of threats from the French, illustrates the view of
colonists like Franklin that the colonies had the same threats which helped to unify them even before the American Revolution
OR
“Join or Die, written by Franklin who was a leader in the organization of the Albany Congress seeking to unify the colonies in the French and Indian War, illustrates the view of colonists like Franklin that the colonies had the same threats which helped to unify them
even before the American Revolution
Identify it – Say what it is! (DON’T SAY “In document 1…”)
Example:
The political cartoon …
In the excerpt …
Verb it- Say what it is doing! (states, explains, demonstrates says, argues, etc.)
Example:
The political cartoon by ______________ shows how…
In the excerpt from… the author explains…
Explain it – finish your thought!
Example:
The political cartoon by Chan Low implies that the instability in the Middle East has been ongoing.
In the excerpt from The Ideas that Conquered the World, by Michael Bishop, the author explains how the Industrial Revolution changed the world by threatening traditional social institutions
*At the end of the sentence you can cite the document by putting the NUMBER in parenthesis – example: (1)
Incorporate your HIPP
incorporate Historical Context, Intended Audience, Purpose or
Point of View FOR EACH DOCUMENT
How?
Historical Context: write a sentence that describes how the document
fits into the historical process; include the phrase “the historical
context of this document is…”
Intended Audience: write a sentence about how the source was
created and how this affects reliability or accuracy; “the author’s
intended audience was ___” and “is shown by ___”.
Purpose: write a sentence explaining why the source was produced
at the time and/or what the goal was; include a phrase like “the
author’s purpose in writing was to ___” and “is shown by _____”
Point of View: write a sentence identifying who the author is and
explain how the author’s personhood might have impacted the
document
Important final step for Documents:
After incorporating your analysis be sure to write a
sentence that does ONE of the following:
Explains why the source is important in relation to the
question being asked
OR
Explains what the source has to do with the question
being asked
Step 4:
Re-read the prompt and Write your thesis
Make sure it takes a (1) takes a stance, (2) answers all parts
of the question, and (3) is defensible
GOOD THESIS FORMULA:
X. However A and B. Therefore, Y.At the conclusion of World War 2 two superpowers emerged, the Soviet Union and the United States. The result was a greater
struggle to defeat communism by the US, and a determination to spread communism by the Soviets. (X) Vietnam was a major
conflict over the struggle to contain communism throughout Southeast Asia and the eventual end of Communist Russia.
(A)However, during the period 1964-1975 America was racked by growing unrest and disenchantment over why the war was
being fought,(B) who should run it and how the war should be waged, (C)and how much of American financial investment
should be expanded into running the war. (Y)Therefore, in the end, the Vietnam war damaged America's confidence in
themselves and their government.
DBQ Essay Format
Paragraph 1 – Thesis Statement & Setting the Scene (Contexualization)
Fully addresses the question
Takes a position
Provides organizational categories (social, economic, political)…ROADMAP
Provide the historical context – what’s going on?
Example: what major events/moments in history led to what you are discussing
Step 5: Organize Your Essay
Paragraph 2,3, & 4 (depends on prompt) – Body
Paragraphs
Always connect to your thesis – what does this paragraph have to
do with the point you’re trying to make?
Be SPECIFIC with MULTIPLE examples & explanations
For DBQs:
Use documents to support your arguments
HIPPO!
Paragraph 5 – Conclusion/Synthesis
Do not add any additional support/info to your argument
Make a connection to another time, event in history (PAST OR PRESENT!!)
REMEMBER:
Do not quote long passages of the documents if you have
to quote at all; it’s better to summarize in your own words
Note relationships: similarities, differences, causes/effects
of all of the documents in the group
The DBQ IS NOT ABOUT THE DOCUMENTS! They are
there to merely help you… your ARGUMENT should be the
basis of the essay, which can be guided but should not be
only based on the documents.
Must use all or all but 1 of the documents.
Step 6: Write your essay
Some DBQ final tips as you write your essay:
Don’t use “I” statements… “I think that Document A…”
Don’t summarize the document, use it to help your argument
Don’t quote documents
Don’t spend so much time on documents you don’t have time to
write your essay