Change Over Time Essay Outline
AP World History
Prompt:
Analyze the social and economic transformations that occurred in the Atlantic world as a result of new contacts among Western
Europe, Africa, and the Americas from 1492-1750.
Step 1: Underline key aspects of the prompt
Step 2:Rewrite the prompt into a question
Step 3: Brainstorm at least three social or economic changes (at least one of each), and at least one continuity.
Social changes include ethnic mix of population, changes in religion or belief systems, new social pyramids, gender relations, etc.
Economic changes include new trade systems or goods, new labor systems, new types of agriculture, new economic models (e.g.
capitalism or mercantilism)
Potential Changes (social or economic?)
Step 4: Analyze changes and continuities in chart below
Potential Continuities (social or economic?)
Social or
Economic
What was the situation like at
the beginning of the period?
What was the situation like at
the end of the period (or at
some points within the period)?
What were some of the key
causes or consequences of
the change or continuity?
Change #1
Change #2
Change #3
Continuity #1
Step 5: Write a draft thesis statement. Be sure to identify your changes and continuities in the thesis
Step 6:
Write a topic sentence for each paragraph—topic sentences should signal what your paragraph is going to be about, e.g. what
change or continuity you are going to discuss.
Topic Sentence 1:
Topic Sentence 2:
Topic Sentence 3:
Step 7:
Brainstorm key terms/evidence for the changes and continuities that you identified. Evidence could include statistics, names
of trade routes or commodities, names of labor systems, key historical individuals, etc.