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LEQ Outline Generator

Paste the long essay prompt, choose the reasoning process it asks for — comparison, causation, or continuity and change over time — and build a thesis, body paragraphs of claim, evidence, and reasoning, and a complexity plan. A planning check shows which of the six AP History rubric points your outline is set up to earn. Honest templates, no AI. Free, no sign-up.

The prompt

Reasoning process the prompt asks for

Look at the task words: “compare” points to comparison, “causes” or “effects” to causation, and “extent of change” to continuity and change.

Introduction

Needs more than a phrase. Keep a different example for your evidence.

Thesis frames

Fill-in-the-blank frames for this reasoning process, with your paragraph categories worked in — honest templates, no AI.

Frame 1

___ [the development] resulted mainly from [category 1] and [category 2], with ___ the most important.

Frame 2

Although ___ [a short-term cause] triggered ___ [the development], the deeper cause was ___ [a long-term cause].

Body paragraphs

Body paragraph 1

Name each example and say what it was. A name alone, such as “the Erie Canal”, is too thin.

Body paragraph 2

Name each example and say what it was. A name alone, such as “the Erie Canal”, is too thin.

Complexity

Your LEQ outline

12 parts still to write

LEQ Outline

AP History long essay question · six-point rubric

Prompt and reasoning process

To write: Paste the LEQ prompt here, and underline the task word and the time frame.

Reasoning process: Causation

Tip: Causation: explain causes and effects and how they connect. Separate primary from secondary causes and short-term from long-term effects, and judge their relative importance.

Introduction

Tip: The thesis must be in one place, in the introduction or the conclusion. Contextualization may appear anywhere in the essay.

  1. A.

    [To write: Contextualization — describe a broader event, development, or process before, during, or after the time frame. More than a phrase.]

  2. B.

    [To write: Thesis — answer the prompt with a claim and a line of reasoning or categories. Do not restate the question.]

Body paragraph 1: [category 1]

  1. A.

    [To write: Topic sentence — name a cause (or an effect) in this category and its importance.]

  2. B.

    [To write: Evidence — name at least two specific examples and say what each was.]

  3. C.

    [To write: Reasoning — explain how the cause led to the result, and whether it was short-term or long-term, primary or secondary.]

  4. D.

    [To write: Link — tie the paragraph back to the thesis.]

Body paragraph 2: [category 2]

  1. A.

    [To write: Topic sentence — name a cause (or an effect) in this category and its importance.]

  2. B.

    [To write: Evidence — name at least two specific examples and say what each was.]

  3. C.

    [To write: Reasoning — explain how the cause led to the result, and whether it was short-term or long-term, primary or secondary.]

  4. D.

    [To write: Link — tie the paragraph back to the thesis.]

Complexity

To write: Choose how you will show complex understanding, and write the sentence or two that does it.

Planning check against the six-point rubric

Tip: A planning check against the AP History LEQ rubric (six points), not a score. The word-count tests are rough proxies for “specific” and “more than a phrase”; a reader scoring the essay decides.

  • Thesis/claim (1 point): a claim that answers the prompt, not a restatement
  • Contextualization (1 point): a broader context, more than a phrase
  • Evidence (1st point): at least two specific examples relevant to the prompt
  • Evidence (2nd point): at least two examples used to support an argument
  • Analysis and reasoning (1st point): the process frames at least two body paragraphs
  • Analysis and reasoning (2nd point): complex understanding built into the argument

Your outline is set up for 0 of 6 points.

How to Use the LEQ Outline Generator

  1. 1. Paste the prompt and pick the reasoning process. Read the task word: compare asks for comparison, causes or effects for causation, and extent of change for continuity and change over time.
  2. 2. Write the contextualization and thesis. Describe a broader context, then answer the prompt with a claim and a line of reasoning. The frames for your chosen process, with your categories worked in, can start the sentence.
  3. 3. Build two to four body paragraphs. Give each a category and topic sentence, list at least two specific examples as separate lines, and explain how they prove the claim in terms of your reasoning process.
  4. 4. Plan the complexity and read the check. Choose how you will show a more complex understanding, then see which of the six points your outline is set up to earn.

The Six Points of the LEQ Rubric

The long essay question is scored out of six in AP U.S. History, AP World History: Modern, and AP European History, and counts for about 15 percent of the exam score. The criteria below are paraphrased from the College Board's 2025 AP U.S. History scoring guidelines.

RowPointsWhat earns it (paraphrased)Where the outline helps
Thesis/claim1A historically defensible claim that answers the prompt and establishes a line of reasoning, in one place in the introduction or conclusion.The thesis frames
Contextualization1A broader event, development, or process before, during, or after the time frame, described in more than a phrase.The contextualization item
Evidence2One point for specific examples of at least two pieces of evidence relevant to the prompt; a second for using at least two pieces to support an argument.Evidence and reasoning in each paragraph
Analysis and reasoning2One point for using historical reasoning (comparison, causation, or continuity and change) to frame the argument; a second for complex understanding through sophisticated argument or effective use of evidence.The reasoning process and the complexity section

On the current exam you choose one of several LEQ prompts. College Board has announced that from May 2027 the question will be a single required prompt with a short introductory statement, and says the scoring rubrics themselves stay the same. Check the course and exam description for your year.

Matching the Outline to the Reasoning Process

  • Comparison. Organize by categories where you can describe both a similarity and a difference, and say why each existed. A paragraph that only lists differences is half a comparison.
  • Causation. Separate causes from effects, short-term from long-term, and primary from secondary. The strongest paragraphs judge which cause mattered most, not just list them.
  • Continuity and change over time. For each category, say what changed and what stayed the same, and identify a turning point. A thesis that claims only change usually needs a paragraph on continuity to be credible.

Worked Example: The Transportation Revolution

Try an example fills in an invented, exam-style prompt about the Transportation Revolution from 1815 to 1860, using the continuity-and-change process. The claims and examples are ours and not from an AP exam. Its third body paragraph looks like this:

Body paragraph 3: Continuity in the South

Topic sentence

Despite the new transportation, the South's economy remained rooted in cotton and slavery, which limits how much the whole economy changed.

Evidence

  • Cotton remained the nation's leading export in the 1850s.
  • The enslaved population grew from about 1.5 million in 1820 to nearly 4 million by 1860.

Reasoning

These examples show continuity: the region's labor system and its main product did not change, so the transformation was uneven across regions.

Notice how that paragraph also supplies the complexity: it qualifies the thesis rather than only agreeing with it. The rubric says complex understanding has to be part of the argument, not a phrase tacked on at the end.

Frequently Asked Questions

How many points is the AP History LEQ worth?
Six points: one for the thesis, one for contextualization, two for evidence, and two for analysis and reasoning. The rubric is shared by AP U.S. History, AP World History: Modern, and AP European History.
What are the reasoning processes in the LEQ?
Comparison, causation, and continuity and change over time (CCOT). The prompt's task words tell you which to use, and the rubric's first reasoning point goes to a response that uses one of them to frame or structure its argument.
How much evidence do I need in a long essay?
In the 2025 U.S. History guidelines, one point needs specific examples of at least two pieces of evidence, and the second needs at least two pieces used to support an argument. A longer list helps: effective use of at least four pieces is one way to show complexity.
What is the difference between contextualization and evidence?
Contextualization is the broader backdrop to the prompt, such as the Market Revolution before a question on antebellum reform. Evidence is a specific example that supports your claim, and it should be more specific than your context. The two must not be the same example.
How do I get the complexity point on the LEQ?
Make the argument more sophisticated: explain multiple causes, effects, similarities, or continuities; show both sides of a pair like cause and effect; connect developments across periods or regions; or use at least four pieces of evidence to support a nuanced argument. It has to be part of the argument.
Does the thesis have to be in the first paragraph?
No. The thesis must be located in one place, in the introduction or the conclusion, and it can be more than one sentence. Putting it in the introduction is the usual choice because it organizes the rest of the essay.
Does this tool write my long essay?
No. It arranges what you type into an outline and ticks the rubric rows your plan already addresses — honest templates, no AI. It knows no history, so the evidence and the reasoning are yours.

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