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loping%20Thesis%20Statements
DEVELOPING THESIS STATEMENTS
Level One: Identifying Thesis Statements
A thesis statement is the backbone of an essay. It must:
1) clearly state your argument (your stance or side) as fact
2) answer the question or prompt to which the essay responds
3) be the main idea of you essay
Student-generated personal examples:
1.

Subject: School start times

Thesis statement:
Classes which begin before 9:00 a.m. are
inhumane.
2.

Subject: Siblings
Thesis statement:

Older siblings try to control ones life.

3.

Subject: State parks

Thesis statement:
Van Damme State Park is the best in the state,
because it has
redwoods, soccer fields, and
unlimited fishing.
Practice #1: Identify the following sentences by writing yes if the sentence
is a thesis statement and no if it is not. Remember that a thesis statement
MUST have and argument.
A. YES
Schools should provide lockers for students, because heavy
backpacks cause harm to
students backs.
B. NO

Students have to carry all their books and supplies in backpacks.

1.
radio.

Clear Channel has too much influence over what is played on the

2.

Sacramento is the capitol of California.

3.
Self-expression through personal style should be the right of
every person.

4.
fires.
5.

Clear-cutting is the best way keep forests healthy and to suppress

More people live in California than in any other state.

THESIS STATEMENTS - Level One: Identification Practice

Writing thesis statements for history and social science essays follows the
same guidelines as thesis statements for personal essays. A thesis statement
must:
1)
2)
3)
4)

clearly state your argument (your stance or side) as fact

answer the question or prompt
be the main idea of your essay
be proven by your essay

Historical Thesis Examples:

1.

Subject: the Articles of Confederation

Thesis statement:
The Articles of Confederation purposefully
limited the power of the
central government.
2.

Subject: influences on the creation of the new U.S. government

Thesis statements:
English law, Enlightenment philosophy, and
American political
models shaped the new
government.
3.

Subject: ratification of the Articles of Confederation

Thesis statement:
Conflicts over western land claims delayed the
ratification of the
Articles of Confederation.
Practice #2: Identify the following sentences by writing yes if the sentence
is a thesis statement and no if it is not. Remember that a thesis statement
MUST have and argument.
1. ______
During the Revolutionary War, many colonies wrote state
constitutions.
2. ______
The new government was not revolutionary; it simply
expanded on ideas found in English political tradition and promoted by
Enlightenment philosophers.
3. ______
Many state constitutions restricted the governors authority,
just as the Magna Carta had limited the powers of the British monarchs.

4. ______
Political philosopher John Lockes ideas about natural rights,
such as religious freedom and equality before the law, are obvious in
founding documents of the U.S.
5. ______
liberties.

Most state constitutions expanded suffrage and protected civil

6. ______
The Articles of Confederation intentionally created a central
government with limited powers.
7. ______
Under the Articles of Confederation, the national government
consisted only of the Confederation Congress, in which each state had one
vote..
8. ______
Without a chief executive or president, the nation suffered
from lack of leadership.
9. ______
Laws needed approval of nine of the thirteen states in the
Confederation Congress.
10. ______
The Northwest Ordinance wisely banned slavery throughout
the Northwest Territory, including present-day Illinois, Indiana, Michigan,
Ohio, and Wisconsin.
THESIS STATEMENTS - Level Two: Finding the Argument
List the four requirements of a thesis statement:
1)
2)
3)
4)

__________________________________________________________
__________________________________________________________
__________________________________________________________
__________________________________________________________

Practice: Underline the argument in the following thesis statements:

Example:
Prompt: How did the closure of British ports to American goods affect the
United States?
This might be an initial statement:
Thesis A:
U.S. economy.

The closure of British ports to American goods hurt the

This is much better as a thesis statement:

Thesis B:
The closure of British ports to American goods hurt the
U.S. economy because it ended trade with the British West Indies and
Canada.
1. Prompt: In what ways did Spain take advantage of the United States
weakness under the Articles?
Thesis: Spain unjustly took advantage of the new nations inability to
protect its citizens or enforce treaties by taking control of the lower
Mississippi River.
2.

Prompt: What caused the decline in American exports?

Thesis: American exports declined as a result of extremely high tariffs

and trade restrictions, which made importing goods expensive for merchants
and costly for consumers.
3. Prompt: What was the status of trade across state lines under the
Articles of Confederation?
Thesis: Under the Articles of Confederation, trade between states was
difficult because each state had different trade laws and there was no
national court in which to work out disagreements.
THESIS STATEMENTS - Level Three: Answering the Question
Practice: Answer each question with a thesis statement. Notice in the
previous practice how each thesis uses the question above it as it answers
the question. Make sure that each of your thesis statements includes an
argument.
1. What did Bacons Rebellion indicate about the relationship between
classes in Colonial Virginia?
Thesis:______________________________________________________________________
______________________________________________________________________________
______________________________________________________

2. How did Hamiltonian policies affect the foundation of the U.S. economy
during the first decade of the countrys existence?
Thesis:______________________________________________________________________
______________________________________________________________________________
______________________________________________________
3.

What did Shays Rebellion reveal about the national government?

Thesis:______________________________________________________________________
______________________________________________________________________________
______________________________________________________
4.

How did the War of 1812 affect the economy of the United States?

Thesis:______________________________________________________________________
______________________________________________________________________________
______________________________________________________
5. How did the sale of western lands between the Appalachians and the
Mississippi River affect social relationships in the United States?
Thesis:______________________________________________________________________
______________________________________________________________________________
______________________________________________________
THESIS STATEMENTS Level Four: Judging Simple and Complex Theses
Detailed Guidelines:
1. Clearly state your argument (your stance or side) as fact.
2. Answer the question or prompt in your thesis statement.
3. Make your thesis the main idea of your essay, as support it
throughout your essay.
4. Avoid using personal pronoun phrases, such as I think or I
believe, etc.; it weakens
your position.
5. A thesis statement should be only one sentence long.
6. Be concise. Dont try to grab the readers attention with colorful
adjectives or adverbs in
your thesis statement itself. Just say what you
mean and then stop.

Determine which guidelines these poor theses violate. Why are the others
better?

Poor Thesis

Simple Thesis

Complex Thesis

The Backstreet Boys,

whose dress, hair, and
dancing make me want to
puke, are also artistically
lacking and contribute to
the moral decay of the
planet.

The Backstreet Boys

makes terrible music.

Although some young

people enjoy their music,
The Backstreet Boys has
little musical talent.

The smell of burning fries

and congealed mayonnaise
wafted through the
enormous fast-food
restaurant while a flock of
patrons, overwhelmed by a
tight schedule, tried to
finish their lunches in the
meager 25 minutes
allowed for their lunches.

Fast food is bad.

Even if it provides enough

nutrition to get people
through the afternoon,
most fast food contains
levels of some ingredients
which harm the public
health in the long run.

Liberal people are those

who supported Al Gore in
the last election, and one
of those groups was the
NEA.

Teachers are more liberal

than the general
population.

While there are a number

of conservatives among
their ranks, teachers are,
as a group, more liberal
than the general
population.

I think capital punishment

should be abolished.

Capital punishment should

be abolished.

Capital punishment should

be abolished because it

violates the Eighth

Amendments protection
against cruel and unusual
punishment, even if it
prevents the worst
criminals from committing
other crimes.
Abortion is wrong, unless
you really want to have a
baby, and then its OK.

Abortion is morally wrong.

Abortion is morally wrong,

except in cases of rape and
incest.

The September 11th attack

was a terrible tragedy.

United States foreign

policy led to the
September 11thattack.

Although it may have

contributed to the end of
the Soviet empire, U.S.
support of the Mujahideen
during the Soviet-Afghan
conflict ultimately
strengthened the Al-Quaida
terrorist network.

THESIS STATEMENTS Level Five: Developing Theses from Evidence

Steps to developing a good thesis from evidence:
1. Rewrite the question in your own words.
2. List your evidence.
3. Evaluate your evidence; form an argument based on what you can
prove with your evidence.
4. State your thesis clearly and concisely.
5. Refine your thesis as you write your paper. Remember, you must
prove your thesis in
your paper.
Thesis Statement Practice:
On piece of paper, follow the steps and write a thesis statement for three of
the following questions. Each statement should be clear, relevant, and
succinct.

1. How did the intersection of race, class, and gender in the colonial
Chesapeake area affect
the basic racial paradigm of the United States?

2.

What alternatives did President Jackson have to Indian removal?

3. Was the U.S. Constitution designed to limit democracy and individual

freedom?
4. Should the U.S. have dropped the atomic bombs on Japan in 1945?

5.

What conditions led the English North American colonies to revolution?

6.

How did the Vietnam War divide the United States?