A P ESSAY GUIDE

  1. READ THE PROMPT CAREFULLY! Students often score low because they only give a partial answer. If the prompt asks for apples, and you give some magnificent peaches, you will have a low score.

  2. CREATE A TITLE THAT GIVES INSIGHT INTO THE ESSAY: clever not cute.

  3. YOUR FIRST PARAGRAPH SHOULD CONTAIN A CLEAR "WHAT" AND A CLEAR "HOW." The "what" is the CENTRAL IDEA: it should reflect not restate the prompt. The "how" is the THESIS STATEMENT: it explains how you will prove your central idea (what) and is essentially a compilation of topic sentences for the body of your essay.

  4. THE BODY OF THE ESSAY MUST PROVE THE CENTRAL IDEA. The number of paragraphs in an AP essay varies, but two to five paragraphs are usual. Each paragraph should begin with a topic sentence: a portion of the thesis statement.

  5. AVOID PLOT SUMMARY: AP prompts always warn you to avoid plot summary---believe them! Select incidents that support your topic sentence. Keep them brief. You may work chronologically.

  6. USE DIRECT QUOTES WHENEVER POSSIBLE. If you can't remember the exact words, paraphrase them. Take-home essays should have two or three quotes per body paragraph. This is the best proof available.

  7. QUOTES MUST BE JUSTIFIED BY YOUR COMMENTARY. You can't just stick in a quote and assume the reader will know why it's there. Your commentary should put the quote in context and offer insight and analysis. The quote is the ________ the commentary is the _______.

  8. CONCLUDE BRIEFLY BY RESTATING THE CENTRAL IDEA AND THESIS. You may introduce some brilliant observations that may be a bit off the central idea just before your conclusion. But don't be too cute. UNIVERSAL APPLICATION.

  9. KEEP ESSAY IN THE PRESENT TENSE: Including references to the literary work. Avoid passive sentence constructions.