Opening Paragraph including a (brief!) historical context and your thesis (argument) based on the primary sources (Links to an external site.).

2-4 body paragraphs, each of which offers supporting evidence for your thesis and focuses on one aspect or theme from your argument. You should be able to boil down every body paragraph into a topic sentence (Links to an external site.).

Concluding paragraph which can re-state your argument, offer further ideas to explore, and/or showcase personal reflections. The concluding paragraph may contain “I” statements.

Cite all quotes and direct references