DBQ: Document Based Question

DBQ—what it is

Writing an essay in a specific time period where you emphasize what you know about history/the topic and use primary sources for proof! – An introduction showing the setting of the topic should lead into

the thesis statement (opinion of topic with hint of what essay will explain)

– ¾ of essay should be historical knowledge that you know

– ¼ of essay should reference relevant documents that address points you make

– Terms that are used should be defined such as social, political, economic, industrial, revolution

– A conclusion should explain what the essay means—such as are the positives more powerful, long lasting, meaningful, etc. than the negative aspects of the Industrial Revolution?

DBQ—what it is not

It is not:

– Writing about documents

– Ignoring the documents

– Quoting the documents

Using Primary Sources

SOAPSToneS: A strategy to get information from a variety of primary source documents (maps, letters, quotes, pictures, political cartoon, official documents, etc.) that can be useful for including in the essay. This strategy can also show which documents you might wish to ignore.

SOAPSToneS

Subject

– What kind of document is this?

– What is the general topic, content ,ideas in the text, picture, etc.?

– Describe subject in a few words

SOAPSToneS

Occasion –What event is going on in history?

–How does this document fit into history—setting/context of the piece?

–What are the circumstances around this document?

SOAPSToneS

Audience –Who is supposed to read, hear,

receive this document?

– Is the audience important?

SOAPSToneS

Purpose –Why was the document created?

–What did the author/creator want the audience to think, say, do, believe?

SOAPSToneS

Speaker –Who wrote this?

–Who spoke this?

–What is the author/speaker’s background

SOAPSToneS

Tone

–What emotion/feeling is in the piece?

–What bias is evident?

–What Point of View is being shown?

SOAPSToneS

Significance or (So what?) – What important meaning is shown in the

document?

– How has your understanding of the topic/time period changed?

– How does this document relate to other evidence information about the topic?