NHD Thesis Workshop 2019

Start with a Research Question

Examples:

What do you want to learn?

How did the Allegheny Portage Railroad improve transportation? Who benefited?

On July 26, 1948, President Harry Truman issued Executive Order 9981, which ordered desegregation of the military and established a committee tasked to research methods to enforce integration.

Formerly enslaved men and women escaping enslavement to become "contraband of war" at Fort Monroe eventually led to emancipation.

Research enough to be able to take a position.

"The Portage" created the first direct route between Philadelphia and Pittsburgh over and through the Allegheny Mountains. It served merchants, passengers going west, and enslaved people in pursuit of freedom.

American colonies overcame the final barrier to statehood by incorporating variations of a declaration of religious rights suggested by Virginia and New Hampshire representatives.

Thesis Statement

Keep it Short

• blueprint

President John F. Kennedy and Soviet leader Nikita Khrushchev temporarily broke barriers in enmity by using secret back channels to avert a nuclear war.

Include Theme Words

• connects to the theme

• Between 40 - 60 words is a good target

How do the parts relate to Breaking Barriers in History?

Why is it important?

• explains significance

What are synonyms for barrier?

Project Trailer

The Allied invasion of Normandy conquered the deadly Atlantic Wall of 2,400 miles of mines, artillery, and armed German forces.

The innovative incline system broke the Allegheny Mountain barrier to western travel, causing Pennsylvania to become a powerhouse industrial state in the nineteen century.

• Provide just enough information to explain the argument

Leave out Facts; Leave in Arguments

What is the main point?

• It can be multiple sentences

The first women's rights convention in the U.S. at Seneca Falls promoted religious, social, and civil liberties for women.

Be specific, but save details for inside project.

• Avoid adverbs and find a stronger verb.

Test the Strength

1. Is it clear what the project will be about?

• Active voice saves words and reads easier

Is there at least one possible opposing position?

2. Is it arguable?

How would you argue against the topic's significance in history?

• Avoid superlatives

Could someone argue the topic is significant for a different reason?

Include All 5 W's

3. Is there something that has to be proven?

• Use quantifiers carefully

Do Not What if?

How would you refute those arguments?

Why is your view stronger?

4. Will research be necessary to prove the thesis?

Wild Penguins

attacked my sister.

Who are the important people or groups?

My sister

was attacked

by wild penguins.

How to Make a Movie Trailer; Auralnauts Published on Aug 14, 2017

Write, Revise, Research, Revise

5. Is there only one main idea?

+

Where did it happen?

Impact

Topic

Theme

=

Thesis

6. Is it about something in the past that is important?

What happened? What is it?

Every sentence in the project should support your argument.

When?

It explains what the research can prove or support with appropriate facts and details.

How did it impact politics, societies, cultures, economies?

Topic

Immediate Impact

Long Term Impact

Why should I care?

Create an argument that expresses the topic's significance and demonstrates how the NHD theme plays a central part.

Turquoise Glass Background, by Circe Denyer, Public DomanePictures.net

Shattered Glass Animation; Uploaded by: NrbPhm,May 8, 2011