1. October 27, 2017
Turn in: Limiting Topic Sheet Due to Maners by end of period
Take out:
* Fall Essay Intro & TRS
* Limiting Topic Sheet (pink)
Agenda:
* Research Question & Thesis Review
* Library Work Time
* Limiting Topic completed
Objectives:
* Research and thinking writing…
Upcoming dates:
* 10/30: TRS Sheet, Boxes A & B – ed with “got it” confirmation by start of class
* 11/2: Refined Thesis (TRS Box C) and Research Notecards
* 11/6: TRS Sheet Box D (optional)

2. Feedback – what Ms. Maners can do to help
Fall Essay
Feedback – what Ms. Maners can do to help

3. Feedback Good history sources (website)
Check Thesis Statements (TRS on website)
Look at past papers (will do closer to rough draft due date)
Peer reviews (YES)
Get feedback from Maners (Meetings- me)
Analysis instruction (YES)
Thesis workshops (YES)
Provide a checklist​ (website)

4. Fall Essay
Research Questions

5. The Purpose
Research topic and develop a thesis driven essay defining and proving the topic’s impact on some aspect of European culture.
Not an informational report.
Argue how your topic is historically significant and prove that argument with concrete factual support.

6. Topic vs. Question Your topic is a noun or phrase
Marie Antoinette
the 100 Years’ War
Fascism
Your question should be a complete sentence.
Lets a few past examples

7. Focus
Too broad a topic means only covering the surface of that person or issue
The Russian Revolution would be too big to manage in a reasonable length paper
Focus on one issue within that topic
How did Tsar Nicholas’ policies contribute to the Russian Revolution?

8. Types of Questions: Reference
Reference questions are typically answered with known facts or statistics.
You will likely have to ask some reference questions in your research.
Ex: "What percentage of drug-related crime in 1999 was committed by dealers, not users?"

9. Types of Questions: Report
Review or report questions are typically answered with what is generally known about a fairly narrow topic.
Ex: “How did the original thirteen colonies become the United States?”

10. Types of Questions: Research
Research questions are open-ended. They require a variety of accumulated information from different sources to develop an answer, and the student is required to draw his or her own conclusions.
Ex: "How does Hawaii's location and climate affect its economy?”

11. Some ways to begin a research question:
Why…
How…
What are the effects of…
What are the consequences of…
Contrast (then & now)
What was the influence of ___ on ___?

12. Thesis-Driven Paper
A thesis-driven paper makes an arguable claim and defends it. Do not confuse a research paper with a report: you need to offer a thesis about your topic and then present evidence and analysis that provides support and explanation.

13. The good, the bad, the ugly
Thesis Statements
The good, the bad, the ugly

14. The Bad
Too broad
The Renaissance sparked in European minds the transformation of artists into individual achievers and artwork into a form of expression.

15. The Bad
Too specific
The pentathlon event was one of the original events from the Ancient Olympics and remains as a part of the Modern Olympics representing, as it has changed over time, the change in what society thinks is most important in athletics.

16. The Bad
Too obvious
Leonardo’s masterpieces of art and science contributed heavily to the success of the Renaissance, and as well as becoming the base for modern inventions, his contributions earned him the title of a true Renaissance man.

17. The Ugly: Un-provable
The bombing of Pearl Harbor indirectly caused the Cold War because it drew America into WWII, creating two superpowers that split Europe between two new factions.

18. The Good Specific and provable
The injustice in Lenin’s life paralleled the conditions in Russia, fueling Lenin to lead the revolution that would change the face of Russian politics.

19. The Good
Dissent and large scale protests on the part of the German people in response to the oppression and injustice they experienced under communist rule, as symbolized by the Berlin Wall, impacted Gorbachev’s policies in a way that ultimately led to the demise of the Soviet Union.

20. Things to avoid: Topics very hard to argue
i.e. people’s attitudes changing, hypotheticals, etc.
If you can plug in another topic into your thesis and it still makes sense, it’s too broad