Approaching+the+Prompt

The AP test:

 * There are 3 essay questions
 * 120 minutes for essay questions.
 * The essay section of the examination counts for 55 percent of the total grade.

**You will need to learn to:**

 * approach the prompt
 * answer the prompt correctly
 * use the prompt to your advantage in your essay

**Prompts tell you:**

 * The purpose of the essay
 * How the essay should be organized
 * How long the essay should be or how long you have to write
 * Your audience ( or, who is reading your essay)

**Approaching the prompt:**

 * Read the prompt. Think about it. Re-read it carefully.
 * Many writing prompts begin with “explain,” “discuss,” or “analyze” etc. This tells you that the essay should give more than just the facts and that it should also give definitions, descriptions, and illustrations of key concepts and relationships of ideas that are important for your readers to know in order for them to understand the topic.
 * Circle, or underline these words or phrases, and refer to them when you are developing your essay so that you follow the instructions properly.
 * Spend a few minutes before you begin the essay to write a brief outline so that you know how many paragraphs you will write and what the topic of each body paragraph will be; this will help you stay focused and answer ALL parts of the essay question.

**The Essay**

 * Write your thesis and introduction
 * while you do NOT want to spend too much time on this, it is your opener, and holds heavy weight in your grade, so you want it to be as strong as possible and make sure you are answering the question.
 * The body paragraphs
 * These should fulfill the purpose of the prompt using an organizational pattern. Again, answer the prompt specifically and fully. A lot of the information you need to look for in a passage can be found in the prompt itself.
 * Your conclusion
 * Refer to the purpose of the essay again before writing your conclusion. After carefully considering the purpose, you can then determine how to approach the final paragraph. Make sure your closing point is in line with your opening statements. An effective conclusion responds to the purpose of the essay with clarity and power. Remember, it //is// the last thing read.

**TIPS:**

 * When possible, use the key vocabulary from the essay question itself to help you create your thesis statement. Remember that your thesis statement MUST be a direct and clear answer to the essay prompt, BUT you do not want to simply restate the prompt.
 * Know your audience. It will be specified in the prompt, otherwise your audience is the person grading your paper. If that is the case, assume that he or she is not familiar with the topic.
 * Allow at least 5 minutes at the end to review your essay for grammar, punctuation, spelling, and other types of easily corrected mistakes.

//All this information can be found at://

[|__http://www.smc.edu/esl/Tutoring%20and%20Workshops/essay_prompt_workshop_randall.htm__]

[|__http://www.glencoe.com/sec/teachingtoday/weeklytips.phtml/62__]