Introduction to Thesis Statements Lesson Plan

A Guide to Presenting the Thesis Statement in AP US, World, and European History

Objective: To make a historically defensible claim

Description: (Video Explanation: 8 mins)

In this lesson, students will participate in a scaffolded approach to thesis writing. Students should be
familiar with European colonization and conquests of the Americas, as well as, reasons for migration to
the British colonies in America. If teaching APUSH, I would use this lesson at the end of Period 2. If
teaching AP World, I would use this lesson during Unit 4. If teaching AP Euro, I would use this lesson
during Unit 1.

To begin, students will as a class watch the video “How to Write: The Thesis” while individually
answering questions on pages 1-2 of the worksheet. [The video explains the rubric point, provides
sample types of prompts, a step by step guide for writing a thesis statement, sample statements for
evaluation PLUS a simpler formula for students who are still experiencing challenges. The video uses
the APUSH Prompt #2 from the 2021 exam: “Evaluate the extent to which trans-Atlantic voyages in the
period from 1491 to 1607 affected the Americas.” While this is an APUSH prompt, this content is
covered in all three AP History courses and thus is a perfect prompt to practice in any of these
courses.] Teachers should pause the video at appropriate moments to give students time to brainstorm
evidence, put evidence into categories, practice writing their own thesis statements, and evaluating
sample thesis statements.

After the video, students can move to the “Additional Practice” section (pages 3-4). Depending on the
needs of your students, this could be done individually or with a partner. I would not recommend a
small group because students may be more likely to listen and copy instead of being an active
participant. In this section, students will get a new prompt, “Evaluate the relative importance of causes
of population movement to colonial British America in the period 1607 to 1754.” This prompt is the
2022 #2 question from APUSH but, again, covers content from all three AP History courses. Students
will complete the same process for this question, however, this will not have examples provided for
them in the video.

To conclude, teachers could collect worksheets from students and anonymously read thesis statements
to the class and have them evaluate whether or not it qualifies for the point.

Prep:
- Post “How to Write: The Thesis” Video and/or Google Slides to your Google Classroom or
website if desired (Linked below in Resources)
- Print the “How to Write: The Thesis” Worksheet for each student. (Linked below in Resources)

Activity:

Step 1: Handout the “How to Write: The Thesis” Worksheet to students.

Step 2: Watch the “How to Write: The Thesis” Video as a class and pause at appropriate moments.

Step 3: Have students work individually or with a partner to complete the “Additional Practice” section.

Step 4: Read student essays (anonymously) to the class and evaluate for accuracy.

Resources:
How to Write: The Thesis Video
How to Write: The Thesis Google Slides
How to Write: The Thesis Worksheet
How to Write: The Thesis Worksheet Answer Key