Assignment
Write 6 to 8 pages on a topic of your choosing from American history prior to 1870. This week, you will prepare for your Week 5 project by brainstorming your topic and completing an introduction and outline.
Part I: Topic
Be very specific and very narrow. For example, the US Civil War is too broad, while the Gettysburg Battle is appropriately narrow. You can select a person, an event, a cultural phenomenon, an invention, etc. For example, you might write on the religion or musical traditions of enslaved persons or the influence of the Caribbean Islands on slavery in the South. You could also choose to do a biography, such as a study of Hamilton, Franklin, Jefferson, Sojourner Truth, or Frederick Douglas. The invention of the cotton gin, steam power, the railroad, and the McCormick reaper are good examples of inventions you might discuss in your final project.
Part II: Write an introduction and then an outline for your project.
Include a list of references that lists at least five research sources (including the course textbook). Your introduction for your final paper should explain why your topic is important in early US history. Your introduction should go from the general to the specific. Then have a Thesis Statement or your argument which is your theme. Following your introduction and drawing from research, develop an outline for your paper. The outline should include topic sentences (headings) for body sections and subheading topics that include potential article examples to be used.
Format your assignment according to the following formatting requirements:
(1) The answer should be typed, double spaced, using Times New Roman font (size 12), with one-inch margins on all sides.
(2) The response also includes a cover page containing the title of the assignment, the student's name, the course title, and the date. The cover page is not included in the required page length.
(3) Also include a reference page. The Citations and references should follow APA format. The reference page is not included in the required page length.