I HAVE MADE HISTORY!

ESSAY ASSIGNMENT

A Document-Based Question (DBQ) requires you to use a series of documents to create a purposeful and thorough response to a historical question. Historical documents are found in many forms such as maps, photographs, drawings, diary entries, letters, court transcripts, and law codes. As part of DBQ assignments, you will be required to read and analyze several documents to help you answer the question. These documents must be used as support for the main idea found in your thesis.

Process #1: Read and analyze the question.

QUESTION: How does Mesopotamia serve as a model for civilization?

Process #2: Study source line and document for subject, occasion, audience, purpose, and bias.

DOCUMENT A
Source: The Ziggurat at Ur built around the 6th century B.C.E.

DOCUMENT BASED QUESTION ESSAY #1

QUESTION: How have your childhood experiences shaped you as an individual as you begin your high school career?

HOMEWORK: Find 6 artifacts from your personal belongings that correlate with your childhood experiences (can be from middle school) that you would be willing to share with the class. Then, provide a drawing or a photograph of your 6 artifacts in a neat and organized manner. Each artifact should be labeled starting from Document A and ending with Document F. Also, provide a source line to aide a historian in understanding the significance of the artifact. The source line should be a simple statement to provide a point of reference for your reader by explaining what and when the artifact was produced.

DUE: TBD

WORLD HISTORY 1
Mr. George / Name______Block_____
I Have Made History! Essay Assignment - Rubric / Date______

Imagine that an alien historian in the year 3011 has discovered your six “personal artifacts”. Answer the following question in a well-developed five paragraph essay.

QUESTION: How have your childhood experiences shaped you as an individual as you begin your high school career?

The artifacts should also provide a context for what life was like in America in the early 21st century.

Task / Beginning / Developing / Focused / Exemplary / Pts
Paragraph Structure / No paper was submitted.
Paper is poorly structured. Paragraph requirements not met or very weak.
0 pts / Few parts are well structured in paragraph format. Few parts are organized from beginning to end. Major paragraph sections missing. Line of development is not logical. Ideas were not connected with a transition.
Topic sentences don’t relate to paragraph.
Need to separate and organize your ideas into separate paragraphs.
24 pts / Some parts are well structured in paragraph format. Some parts are organized from beginning to end.
Paper did not include introduction, body or conclusion.
Line of development is somewhat logical and coherent. Ideas could have been connected with a smoother transition.
Consider more descriptive topic sentences that lead-in to a developed paragraph.
Concluding sentence should bring paragraph to a close.
32pts / Well structured and thought out in paragraph format. Clear and organized structure from beginning to end. Paper included introduction, body and conclusion. Line of development is logical and coherent. Ideas are connected with smooth transition. 40pts / 40
Language, Sentence Mechanics, Grammar & Spelling / No paper was submitted. Spelling and grammatical errors are unacceptable.
0 pts / Many spelling, grammar, punctuation and capitalization errors; Word selection, word choice and sentence structure needs improvement.
Need to proofread final product. Needs extensive editing. 24pts / Few spelling, grammar, punctuation and capitalization errors; Could have been more carefully edited. Word selection, word choice and sentence structure could have been more varied. 32 pts
One error is -3 pts / Excellent spelling, grammar, punctuation and capitalization; carefully edited. Excellent word selection. Varied word choice. Varied sentence structure.
40pts / 40
Content and Response / Inadequate content. Does not meet requirements.
0 pts / Content is weak. Few details.
24 pts / Acceptable content. Lacks details.
32 pts / Very meaningful content. Very thoughtful response; Demonstrated critical thinking; Six artifacts included in an organized manner, labeled with source line.
40pts / 40
Rec’d on time.
Rec’d within 24 hours (1 day) after due. -24pts
Rec’d within 48 hours (2 days) after due. -48pts / After 2 days – you’ll receive a zero unless a previous arrangement has been made.
Total Points 120

One other experience that changed me was 9-11-01 when the terrorists attacked the World Trade Center. This experience really made me wake up and realize that the world wasn’t as peaceful as a kid my age would believe it to be. The front page of the “Daily Express” showed a firefighter crying, which illustrates that many people in America had a similar reaction.

When I was a little boy, I always loved to build. I built with Duplos, then Legos, and all kinds of blocks. For example, one of my documents shows a fort that I built. This shaped me because it made me think about being an architect.