1. Short Answer and Open Ended Response
ACE Strategy- A way of organizing your writing and “showing” what you know

2. GOAL
Answer opened ended and short answer questions by citing several sources and using effective textual evidence to clearly and convincingly support your response.

3. What is the ACE Strategy?
Answer the question
Answer the question while restating the question in your response
Cite your evidence
Cite the evidence that BEST supports your answer
Explain and extend your response
Explain how/why your evidence supports your claim

4. Textual Evidence What is it? Why do I need it? When will I use it?
Support for your response, opinion, or idea
Why do I need it?
To prove that you are not just making up your answer, opinion or idea
When will I use it?
In every writing response! It’s your proof that you know what you’re talking about!
How about outside of school?
In real life, people who can back up an opinion with specific information are taken more seriously than people who can only give a reason of “just because” or “because I said so.”

5. ACE your response Answer the prompt while restating the question.
Start your response with a topic sentence.
This should be a declarative sentence.
Answer the prompt while restating the question.
Stay on topic and respond to the task fully
Make sure you have support for your claim
Make it easy to follow the progression of your ideas

6. Citing Explicit Evidence
ACE your response
Citing Explicit Evidence
Introduce your direct evidence with a “text talk” prompt
From the reading I know that…
The illustration/graphic shows that…
Based on what I read…
An example on page ___ is…
I know because…
According to the text…
The author wrote…
Make sure your starter matches your evidence type (reading, video, graphic, etc.)

7. Citing Inferential Evidence
Prove it!
ACE your response
Citing Inferential Evidence
Introduce your indirect evidence with an
evidence based prompt/term
Prompts
I can infer from…
I know because…
I think because…
Terms
Because
For instance
For example
Make sure your starter matches your evidence type (reading, video, graphic, etc.)

8. Explain and extend your response
ACE your response
Explain and extend your response
Don’t leave your evidence hanging! Explain it!
This shows…
This is because…
This means…
This reveals…
This illustrates …
This highlights…
After your evidence is explained, finish your response with a concluding sentence.

9. Sample ACE response How can geography shape a civilization?
Prompt
How can geography shape a civilization?
Geography can greatly impact a civilization and the way in which people live. The ancient city-state of Athens was influenced to be a trading settlement based on its location of being 4 miles from the Aegean Sea. According to the article, “Maritime Traders of the Ancient Greek World” the ancient Athenians became one of the wealthiest civilizations because of their ability to trade with neighboring regions. They exported goods such as olive oil, wine, grapes in exchange for gold, timber and wheat.(p. 2). This shows that if they weren’t located along the Aegean Sea and close to a body of water, the Athenians might not have been one of the wealthiest cities of the Ancient World. In fact, Athens rival Sparta was not located near a body of water and as a result they established themselves as a farming city-state instead of a wealthy trading power. Even today geography plays a major role in shaping our economy and industry based on where nation’s are located and the valuable resources within.
Topic sentence
Answer
Cite direct textual evidence (source & page #)
Explain & extend
Concluding sentence

10. Sample ACE response
Prompt
How can a single action change the course of history?
Topic sentence
A single moment in time may seem insignificant and yet it is in that moment that history has changed. The history of ancient Greece is filled with many noteworthy moments, but it is the moment when Greece fell into the Darks Ages that changed the course of history. According to the article, “The Rise of Hellenic Civilization,” the ancient Greeks recovered from the Dark Ages by the middle of the eighth century and “a new civilization emerged” (p. 5). This shows that if it weren’t for the lowest of lows, the Greeks wouldn’t have reached the height of its civilization. Greece went on to create city-states, start colonies and even developed democracy. These are ideas that emerged after the Dark Ages and have continued to impact the course of history. Emerging from the Dark Ages is just one action that changed history, but it has played a significant role in the development of Greece and the development of our country, the United States, today.
Answer
Cite direct textual evidence (source & page #)
Explain & extend
Concluding sentence

11. Let’s try an Open Ended Response using the ACE strategy
How were the Greek City-States able to defeat the much larger Persian Empire?

12. Reasons for the Greek City-State Victory 1) Spoke the same language and were united 2) Fought on their own soil 3) Better weapons and armor

13. Answer
The Greek city-states were able to defeat the mighty Persian Empire during the Persian Wars was as a result of being able to fight on their own soil, speaking the same language and having advanced weapons and armor.

14. Cite the Evidence and Explain/Expand
Reason #1- Spoke the same language and were united city-states
From the textbook History Alive, it states that the Athenians declared their “common brotherhood with the Greeks.”
This reveals the unity amongst the Greek city-states and that the Athenians refer to other Greeks as family and calls them “brothers.”

15. Cite the Evidence and Explain/Expand
Reason #2- Fought on their own Soil According to the Eyewitness History article “The Battle of Marathon, 490BC,” one of the most important battles in ancient history and the first of the Persian Wars was fought on Greek soil at a marshy plains area called Marathon. This shows that the Greek city-states were at an advantage because it was close to the city-state of Athens and they knew the terrain unlike the Persians.

16. Cite the evidence and Explain and Extend
Reason #3 – Better weapons and armor From the History Channel video “The Last Stand of 300,” it explains that the Persian soldiers had light armor and weren’t able to fight off the Greek dory (spear) during the first day of the Battle of Thermopylae. As a result of the weak armor of the Persian infantry, the Greeks had a major advantage with their heavily armored soldiers that carried a 3 foot shield called a Hoplon.