1. Thesis Maker: Three Steps to a Strong Thesis Statement A Tutorial for the Students of Mount Vernon High School by Mr. Tuel, Librarian

2. Step 1 Choose your topic. Do some reading/study about it. (Depending on the class/teacher, your topic may be chosen for you.)

3. Step 2 Choose your focus. This limits the information you will present about your topic. The focus will also identify the approach you will take toward your topic: informational/expository or argumentative/persuasive.

4. Step 3 Write your thesis statement, a single sentence that –Identifies the topic and focus of your paper –States the main idea/argument of your paper –Controls the content and direction of your paper Think of your thesis as an umbrella under which all of your paper will be covered.

5. Example 1 TOPIC: The Vietnam War FOCUS: Rationale (reason for the war) THESIS: The United States fought the Vietnam War in order to stop the spread of communism in Indochina.

6. Example 2 TOPIC: Jim Crow laws FOCUS: Effects of THESIS: “Jim Crow” laws, enacted by many Southern legislatures between 1877 and the early 1950s, mandated segregation of blacks and whites and impacted public transportation, schools, and many businesses.

7. Example 3 TOPIC: The impact of the individual in history FOCUS: The murder of Emmett Till THESIS: The gruesome and vicious murder of fourteen-year-old Emmett Till in the Deep South in 1955 for his supposed whistling at a white woman captured the attention of the nation and helped to ignite the Civil Rights movement of the 1960s.

8. Example 4 TOPIC: The rise of jazz FOCUS: Breaking down racial barriers THESIS: The rise of jazz during the Harlem Renaissance helped to break down barriers between blacks and whites in the entertainment world of the 1920s.

9. Example 5 TOPIC: The Chinese Cultural Revolution FOCUS: Attack on traditional Chinese values THESIS: During the Chinese Cultural Revolution of the mid-twentieth century, traditional Chinese values such as the honoring of one’s elders and teachers were overturned, paving the way for the advancement of communism.

10. Example 6 TOPIC: Revolution in the Arab World (the “Arab Spring”) FOCUS: United States’ response THESIS: The interests of the United States are best served by the adoption of a neutral stance toward and no military intervention in the recent uprisings in several key Arab states such as Egypt and Libya.

11. Your Turn On your own paper, write the following: –Your TOPIC: –Your FOCUS: –Your THESIS: