The DBQ
What you need to know
about writing a document
based essay
Purpose of a DBQ
 Not
to test a student’s prior
knowledge, but rather to
evaluate their ability to formulate
and support an answer from
documentary evidence
 Think like a historian
How to answer the question
 Use
prior knowledge with the
information gathered from the
documents to formulate an answer
to the question
 You will be given several
documents with information related
to your essay question.
The Documents
 Documents
are chosen for their
information and the perspective
they convey (POV)
 All documents are relevant in
answering the question
The Documents
 Enclosed
in boxes
 Usually background information
is given – READ the BOXES
Document Analysis
 You
should analyze each
document very quickly before
writing your essay
 If
given topic prior, Use
SOAPPSTone for written
documents
 If given topic prior, Use OPTICS for
visual documents
SOAPPSTone
 Subject
 Occasion
 Audience
 Purpose
 Point
of View
 Speaker
 TONE
OPTICS
 Overview
 Parts
 Title
 Interrelationships
 Conclusion
 Source
Point of View
 You
will be asked to show
understanding of Point of View
(POV) in your essay at least twice
 You not only must say who’s
point of view it is but explain why
the author has that point of view.
 Explain thoroughly
Point of View
Ex: A document about Mrs. McGee
being a great teacher or not might be
different if it is written by a student who
loves history versus a student who
hates history. The fact that the student
loves history may influence how they
feel about Mrs. McGee because she
teaches history.
Rubric (from WHAP)
 Thesis
 Uses
all, or all but one
document
 Supports thesis with evidence
from the documents
 Understands the meaning of the
documents
Rubric
 Analyzes
bias/POV in 2-3
documents
 Groups documents in 1, 2, or 3
ways
 Appropriate additional
document, identify missing voice
Grouping
 Documents
are grouped by what
part of your answer they support.
 Documents can be included in
more than one group.
Additional Document
 Usually
put in the conclusion
paragraph but doesn’t have to be
 Does not have to be a known
document
 What voice/POV is left out of the
given documents?
 Why do I need that voice?
Additional Document
Ex. If all documents about Mrs.
McGee came from students and
principals, but none from
parents; then an additional
document might be needed to
fully explain why Mrs. McGee is
the best.
Additional Document
“To better understand to what extent
Mrs. McGee is an exceptional
teacher, a document expressing the
viewpoint of a parent would be
beneficial. Parents must also be
able to work with teachers to
provide the best education for their
child.”
Citing Documents in the Essay
You will use very simple citation in your
essay, not anything formal
 You can simply put the number/letter of the
document in parentheses after you discuss
it in your essay or begin the sentence with
the document number.
Ex: Mrs. McGee’s organization is shown in
her scheduled timing of class and
punctually updating her website(Doc. 3).

Essay Outline
 Introduction
with thesis
 Body (use a grouping of
documents)
 Body (a different grouping)
 Body (a different grouping)
 Conclusion with additional
document (missing voice)
Getting Started
 Read
the question. What is being
asked? Do you already have an idea of
an answer based on prior knowledge?
 If available, Read each of the documents
thoroughly. SOAPPSTone/OPTICS
them.
 How can you answer the essay question
with the document?
Next Step
 How
can you group the documents?
 What can your thesis statement be?
 In which statements can you
discuss POV?
 What can an additional
document/voice be?
Write
 Remember
your outline.
 Remember to cite each
document.
 Remember to discuss POV in 2-3
documents.
 Remember to write about an
additional document.
Editing and Grading the DBQ Essay
• Have another student read your essay.
• With red grading pen mark spelling and grammar
errors.
• In pink highlight the thesis statement.
• In orange, highlight every time a document is
cited.
• In blue, highlight POV.
• In green, highlight where the additional document
is discussed.
• Put a yellow star beside every paragraph that
has grouping of documents.
• Mark the rubric for the grade accomplished
• Peer graders need to print and sign their
name onto Rubric