How many documents should i use in the dbq

For example, you may have to compare sources, contrast differing documents, or describe a historical account. Next, turn your attention to the sources. Read over each one carefully, paying close attention to how the documents are similar or different. Assess their time period, their point of view, and any other context you can glean.

To make the most of your limited time, create a brief outline to organize your thoughts. Be sure to include at least five paragraphs in your essay. It should start with an introduction, end with a conclusion, and have at least three body paragraphs in between.

After organizing your essay, start writing a compelling introduction. Along with drawing in the reader and explaining what the essay covers, the introduction should include your thesis statement. Since the entire essay depends on a good thesis statement, take an extra moment to make sure you are making a solid argument and responding to the original question. Finally, write the essay, and take care to support your thesis statement throughout.

Reference the historical sources repeatedly, and use your analytical skills to examine what the documents say and why. End with a conclusion that wraps up your argument, and if possible, mention how the issue affected history.

When you take any AP exam, you have limited time to work with. Focus on writing the best essay you can that answers the prompt. If you are ready to tackle this challenge, keep reading! Complexity cannot be earned with a single sentence or phrase. It must show up throughout the essay. A complex argument starts with a complex thesis. A complex thesis must address the topic of the prompt in more than one way. Including a counter-claim or alternate viewpoint in the thesis is a good way to set up a complex argument because it builds in room within the structure of your essay to address more than one idea provided your body paragraphs follow the structure of your thesis!

A complex argument may include corroboration - evidence that supports or confirms the premise of the argument. A clear explanation that connects each piece of evidence to the thesis will help do this. In the DBQ, documents may also corroborate or support one another, so you could also include evidence that shows how documents relate to one another. A complex argument may also include qualification - evidence that limits or counters an initial claim.

An example of this might be including continuity in an essay that is primarily about change. A final way to introduce complexity to your argument is through modification - using evidence to change your claim or argument as it develops. Fully discussing your claim and its line of reasoning, and fairly addressing your counterclaim or alternate view is the strongest structure to aim for a complexity point!

Watch Melissa Longnecker break down documents and describe Analysis and Reasoning here. There are fewer documents and more points available, but the writing process is largely unchanged for the modified DBQ. Analyze the prompt, analyze the documents, then write your best essay.

Because the DBQ has so many different components, your prep work before writing is critical. You are allotted a 15 min. There is no specified reading period for this modified DBQ. You have just 45 min. It is still a good idea to set aside some time to plan your writing. You will need to interpret the prompt and analyze the documents in order to use them most effectively.

You can afford to spend min. The very first thing you should do with any prompt is to be sure you understand the question. Misunderstanding the time period, topic, or geographic region of a prompt can kill a thoughtful and well-argued essay. Later on, you can re-phrase it mentally without all the work. As you think about the question, start thinking about which reasoning skill might apply best for this prompt: causation, comparison, or continuity and change over time.

Example: Original prompt : Evaluate the extent to which cultural traditions or belief systems affected attitudes toward merchants and trade in the period Once you know what to write about, take one minute to brainstorm what you already know about this time period and topic. This will help you start thinking about contextualization and outside knowledge as you read the documents.

As you read, pay attention to the source line that introduces the author, date, etc. It should contain information that will help you with your sourcing analysis. Mark this info with a symbol that is relevant for you, such as H for the historical situation, I for the intended audience, etc. Try to analyze each one though, since you have to choose at least three to write about sourcing in your essay. Read the document for content next. Think about what the document is saying or showing.

Summarize it briefly in the margin or in your head and note how it connects to the prompt and to other documents in the set. Example download modified DBQ prompts here :. Documents that reject merchants on moral grounds: 2, 3, 4? Documents that permit trade, despite dishonesty of merchants: 4, 6 Documents that see wealth a religious blessing: 1, 5.

This list shows a sample of different ways the documents might connect to build a thesis and structure an essay. The three bolded notations here correspond to the topics selected for the sample thesis. After reading all of the documents, take a minute to organize your thinking and plan your thesis. Decide which documents fit best to support the topics of your body paragraphs and choose your three or more documents for sourcing analysis.

Once you have a plan you like, start writing! TL;DR - Introduce your essay with contextualization, then link that to your complex thesis. Follow that with a body paragraph that is organized using one of the course reasoning skills, and use evidence from the documents and your brain to develop your topic sentence. Continue with the analysis that relates to a specific document or elaborates on your argument overall. Repeat, as needed, until you use all of the documents and fully answer the prompt.

Your introduction should include your contextualization and thesis. Start with a statement that establishes your time and place in history, and follow that with a brief description of the historical situation. Connect that broader context to the theme and topic of the prompt. Then, make a claim that answers the prompt, with an overview of your reasoning and any counterclaim you plan to address. Body paragraphs will vary in length, depending on how many documents or other pieces of evidence you include, but should follow a consistent structure.

Start with a topic sentence that introduces the specific aspect of the prompt that paragraph will address. Follow your topic sentence with a piece of evidence from one of the documents. This should be paraphrased in your own words, and you should explain how that evidence specifically supports your argument.

After sentences of evidence, make an argument about sourcing. Follow the sourcing with additional pieces of evidence, sourcing, and explanation. Ideally, you would do this with documents relating to one topic sentence per paragraph. Somewhere in your body paragraph, you should also introduce a piece of outside evidence and connect it back to your topic sentence as well. Each body paragraph will follow this general format, and there are no set number of paragraphs for the DBQ minimum or maximum.

Write as many paragraphs as you need to both use all seven documents and fully answer the prompt by developing the argument and counter-argument if applicable from your thesis. If you have time, you may choose to write a conclusion. You could re-state your thesis with different words, or give any final thoughts in terms of analysis about your topic.

You might solidify your complexity point in the conclusion if written well. Do your best work with those documents. Answer the prompt. Include evidence from each document and from your outside knowledge. Write sourcing arguments and analysis. End your essay well. Was this guide helpful? Create a free account to bookmark content and compete in trivia. Score requirements are highlighted in bold. During Step 1: Analyze the Prompt.

During Step 4: Proofread Skim for any glaring errors and, if you have time, check again to make sure your response meets each of the DBQ requirements. A high-scoring DBQ response will include the following components: Thesis: Make a thesis or claim that responds to the prompt. The thesis or claim must be based on historical facts and must establish a line of reasoning. Context: Provide context relevant to the prompt by describing a broader historical development or process.