1. Bellwork Think about an argument or debate
What are you trying to accomplish?
What is most useful in convincing your audience?
How do you present this information?
Convincing your audience your perspective is correct, addressing their counter arguments
2. Relavent evidence, well presented to support
3. Interspersed with your own opinions, in logical progression

2. How to write about history

3. Keep in mind!
This is a crucial skill that you will be working on and developing over the next several years- don’t expect to be perfect right from the get go.
Writing is an ESSENTIAL skill to success in school, and in real life
Ask questions!

4. Essays vs. Reports
Kiss your report writing days goodbye- its essay time!
Reports tell me about something that happened- detailing facts and events
Essays use those facts and events to prove or defend a point

5. Topic
Focused, specific, narrow enough that you can sufficiently answer/defend it
Example-”How did sectional differences contribute to the beginning of the Civil War?”- focuses on one specific aspect
Counter Example- “What caused the American Civil War?”- would take books to answer this question, if you could ever answer it!
Concepts to consider that will narrow a topic: geography, time, perspective, etc.

6. Topic Specific formatting will be discussed later Thesis statement
Central idea or argument that binds your essay together
Absolutely essential to a well formed essay
Can be argued
Specific formatting will be discussed later
Examples: Ellie Goulding is the best artist of 2013 because of its meaningful lyrics and complex alternative sound; The industrial nature of the northern economy lent the union a distinct advantage in the civil war
Counter example:
Stop, have them write example in notes.

7. Structure Clear introduction and conclusion
Mention your arguments, but unnecessary to state them overtly
Restate arguments made in intro and body during your conclusion
At least 3 points supporting your argument
Distinct from each other
Each clearly supported

8. Sources and Research Your argument is only as good as your sources.
Genuine and trustworthy
Genuine= authentic, i.e. did this person actually say this (plausibility)
Trustworthy- reliable- having authority and knowledge enough to be trusted

9. Sources and Research Primary Sources Original records
political, economic, artistic, scientific, social, intellectual
Produced by people who participated in and witnessed the past
First hand accounts
Examples
Audio- oral histories, interviews, music
Images- photographs, videos, film, fine art
Objects- clothing, tools, pottery, gravestones, inventions, weapons
Statistics- census data, population statistics, weather records
Text- letters, diaries, original documents, legal agreements, treaties, maps, laws advertisements, recipes, sermons/lectures
Bring my primer

10. Sources and Research Secondary Sources
Documents, texts, images, and objects created by someone who typically referenced the primary source for their information
Examples
Textbooks
Magazine/journal articles that interpret previous research or events
Biographies
Encyclopedias

11. Physical sources
Do not underestimate the value of visiting the library. Ask a librarian for help!
Look at the date of publication- how old is it?
Research the author- did this person have an agenda?
Agenda- Spike Lee, Democratic/repulblican websites
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12. Online sources Today, most of your resources will be found online.
Look for websites ending in .edu- comes from a college or university- scholarly websites
Examine the site
Can you find an author?
Where was this article published?
Wikipedia and yahoo answers= unacceptable
Scan through search- Abraham Lincoln

13. Documentation and Plagiarism
The great pitfall of historical writing- don’t let it happen to you!
Quotations and paraphrasing- both must be documented!
You will get more practice recognizing what needs to be cited- but if in doubt, cite!
Use quotes appropriately, not just as a space filler
MLA style
The OWL at purdue

14. Closure Discussion Essays vs. Reports Primary and Secondary Sources
Sources- Genuine and Trustworthy
Documentation