Below are 14 samples, each of which includes:

• A sample essential question which introduces the argument essay prompt on some area of government.
• A draft prompt including three founding documents that could help shape the students’ arguments.

Get a great conversation going to introduce an AP Argument Essay and the Founding Documents.

I use this conversation starter with Martin Luther King’s Letter From a Birmingham Jail.  Here’s a write up of how it works.

You can visit Teach Different to sign up to receive 3-Step Think Aloud conversation starters.

AP Government Argument Essay Samples

Congressional oversight:  Is congressional oversight healthy or unhealthy for our system of government?  Prompt

Interest groups: Do interest groups hinder or promote democracy?  Prompt

Civil Rights:  Should the federal government have power over states in the shaping of civil rights policies?  Prompt

Citizen participation: Does citizen participation really matter?  Prompt

Photo IDs and federalism:  Do states have the authority to pass photo identification laws which restrict people’s ability to vote?  Prompt

Presidential power:  Do executive orders give the president too much power?  Prompt

Gridlock:  Is gridlock from divided government healthy or unhealthy for our system of government?  Prompt

Term limits:  Do congressional term limits violate or honor popular sovereignty? Prompt

Primaries and caucuses: Is the presidential nominating process democratic? Prompt

Social Media:  Is social media a healthy way for citizens to participate in our political system?  Prompt

Electoral College:  Should the electoral college be abolished?  Prompt

Representative versus direct democracy: Which is a better vehicle to serve citizen needs– a representative or direct democracy?  Prompt

Independent judiciary:  Is an independent judiciary a threat to or a savior for democracy?  Prompt

NEW! Political Parties:  Do political parties hinder or promote democracy?  Prompt

 

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MORE HELP WITH FRQs

Need help with Supreme Court comparison FRQ?    I’ve posted some samples here

Need help with the FRQ#1 Concept Prompt? Here is a sample on the electoral college    Here is a response from a student. Despite a few factual inaccuracies, my impression is that she got one point for part A, one point for part B but I couldn’t quite give part C to her because she didn’t clearly relate the amendment process to the concept of federalism. It had to be inferred.

Need help with the FRQ#2 Quantitative analysis prompt?  Here is a sample using a Congressional job approval chart. There are three versions due to the fact that I changed part C) to ask for different connections.

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