*Assessment for Spanish-American War

It is April 10, 2015. You are the editor of the Lawrenceville Times newspaper.
You must write a short essay for the newspaper on the events of the Spanish-American War.
Your essay should address the following question:
- Did the United States have a good reason to go to war with Spain after
the U.S.S. Maine exploded?
Answer these questions by using your materials from class, then use your answers to form your
essay:
- Why did the U.S. want territories?
_____________________________________________________________
_____________________________________________________________
_____________________________________________________________
_____________________________________________
- Why did the U.S. want to have some influence in Cuba?
_____________________________________________________________
_____________________________________________________________
_________________________________________________
- Who did the United States blame for sinking the U.S.S. Maine?
_____________________________________________________________
_____________________________________________________

Outline your essay:

Thesis statement:
____________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________
Pieces of Evidence:
____________________________________________________________

____________________________________________________________
________________________________________________
Explanation:
____________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________
____________________________________________
Conclusion:
____________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________
________________________________________________

Now write your essay!

Your essay will be graded on the following rubric:

Main Idea:
(.7 points)

Essay does not

have a thesis, or
it does not
address the
prompt.

Essay has a
thesis that is
unclear or
unfocused. It
somewhat
addresses the
prompt.

Essay has a clear

thesis. It mostly
addresses the
prompt.

Essay has a
clear, focused
main idea. It
fully addresses
the prompt.

Evidence:
(2 points)

Essay uses no
evidence from
class materials.

Essay uses a few

pieces of
evidence from
class materials.

Essay uses some

pieces of relevant
evidence from
class materials.

Essay uses
evidence from
many relevant
class materials.

Evidence used
loosely supports
main idea.

Evidence used
supports main
idea.

Evidence used
clearly supports
main idea.

Evidence is

Evidence is

Evidence is

Evidence used
does not support
main idea.
Evidence is not
analyzed/

Organization:
(1 point)

Grammar/
Spelling
(.3 points)

Comments:

explained.

somewhat
analyzed/
explained.

analyzed/
explained.

analyzed/
explained in
detail.

Essay has an
unclear
introduction,
does not state
the main idea.

Essay has an
introduction,
does not clearly
state the main
idea.

Essay has an
introduction that
states the main
idea.

Essay has a
strong
introduction
that clearly
states the main
idea.

Evidence is not
presented.

Evidence is
presented.

Essay has no
conclusion.

Essay has a
conclusion.

Evidence is
presented in a
somewhat clear,
logical order.
Essay has a
conclusion that
restates the main
idea.

Evidence is
presented in a
clear, logical
order.
Essay has a
strong
conclusion that
restates the
main idea.

Fragments,
sentences
difficult to
understand.

Some sentences
are wellconstructed,
some sentences
difficult to
understand.

Most sentences
are wellconstructed, few
sentences
difficult to
understand.

All sentences
are wellconstructed, no
sentences
difficult to
understand.

Numerous
spelling and
grammatical
errors.

Many spelling
and grammatical
errors.

Some spelling
and grammatical
errors.

Few spelling
and
grammatical
errors.