AP® English Language and Composition review sheet from Aim for Five (aimforfive.com/lang/units/6/6-1)
Unit 6 · Topic 6.1
6.1 Synthesizing several sources in one argument
Synthesis means building one argument of your own out of several sources. Instead of reporting what each source says, you choose the most useful details from different sources and connect them to your claims. It's the core skill of the synthesis essay (Question 1), and it makes any argument you write more convincing.
Key terms
- synthesis
- source
- citation
- commentary
- line of reasoning
Synthesis is not summary
When you summarize, the sources are in charge: you walk through Source A, then Source B, then Source C. When you synthesize, you're in charge. You have a claim, and each source is a witness you call when its evidence helps you prove a point.
A simple test: cover up the source citations in your paragraph. If what's left is still an argument with a clear claim and reasons, you're synthesizing. If what's left is "this person thinks this, and that person thinks that," you're summarizing.
On the exam, Question 1 gives you six sources on one issue, including visual or numerical ones such as a chart, graph or table. You write an argument that takes your own position and uses evidence from at least three of the sources. You get a 15-minute reading period at the start of the essay section, which is meant for reading the sources and planning.
Choose the most useful details
You don't have to use every source, and you shouldn't use everything in the sources you pick. Choose details that are specific and that fit the exact claim you're making in that paragraph. A precise number, a short phrase in quotation marks or a concrete example usually does more work than a long quotation.
Ask three questions about each detail before you use it: Does it actually support this paragraph's claim? Is it specific enough that a reader can see the point? Can I explain why it matters in a sentence or two? If the answer to the last question is no, pick a different detail.
Make the sources talk to each other
The strongest synthesis puts two or more sources in the same sentence or the same stretch of reasoning. You might show that two sources confirm each other, that one source explains a pattern in another, or that two sources pull against each other and your position resolves the tension.
| Move | What it does | Sentence frame |
|---|---|---|
| Confirm | Two sources back the same point from different angles | Both the numbers in Source B and the director's experience in Source A point to the same result: ... |
| Explain | One source explains a pattern in another | Source C helps explain why Source B's numbers changed: ... |
| Complicate | One source limits or adds a condition to another | Source D's warning about cost doesn't erase Source A's point, but it does show that ... |
| Resolve | Your claim settles a tension between sources | The sources disagree about ..., but that disagreement matters less once you notice ... |
Cite as you go
Name the source each time you use it, either with a parenthetical label like (Source B) or by naming the author or publication in your sentence. Citing protects you from plagiarism, and it shows the reader exactly which evidence you're using. A citation doesn't replace commentary, though. Every piece of evidence still needs your explanation of how it supports your claim (3.1).
Organize your body paragraphs by your claims, not by the sources. A paragraph that starts "Source A says" is almost always headed toward summary. A paragraph that starts with your own reason, then brings in two sources to support it, is headed toward synthesis.
Worked examples
Try each one yourself first, then open the solution.
- Example 1
Building a synthesis paragraph from three sources
Practice sources (written for this practice set; the library and its numbers are invented): Source A, a library director's blog post: "When we stopped charging late fines, the number of returned items barely changed, but the number of families coming back through our doors went up." Source B, a table from the same library: In 2022, with fines, 4,100 of 38,000 card holders had accounts blocked for unpaid fines, and 87% of items came back on time. In 2024, without fines, 600 of 41,000 card holders had blocked accounts, and 85% of items came back on time. Source C, a city budget analyst: Fines brought in about 60,000 dollars a year, roughly 1 percent of the library's 6-million-dollar budget, and collecting them took staff time. Your thesis: Public libraries should end overdue fines, because the little money fines raise isn't worth the readers they push away. Write a body paragraph that synthesizes at least two sources.
Show the solutionHide the solution
- Step 1: Start with your own claim, not a source. The paragraph's claim is that fines block more readers than they're worth.
- Step 2: Pick the sharpest detail from each source. From B: blocked accounts fell from about 11% of card holders (4,100 ÷ 38,000) to about 1.5% (600 ÷ 41,000), while on-time returns dipped only two points. From C: fines were about 1 percent of the budget. From A: families came back.
- Step 3: Connect the sources instead of listing them. B shows the cost to readers, C shows how little the library gained, and A explains what the numbers mean in human terms.
- Step 4: Add commentary that answers "so what?" Explain that a tiny budget line was locking out roughly one card holder in nine, and that removing fines barely hurt returns.
- Step 5: Check the citations: each source is named once, and no sentence just restates a source without explaining it.
Answer: Model paragraph: Overdue fines cost libraries far more in readers than they ever earn in money. When one library charged fines, about one card holder in nine had an account blocked for unpaid fines; in 2024, without fines, only about one in seventy did, even though on-time returns slipped by just two percentage points (Source B). The library gave up very little to win those readers back, since fines had covered only about 1 percent of its budget and cost staff time to collect (Source C). The director's observation that more families were "coming back through our doors" (Source A) shows what those numbers mean: a fine meant to teach responsibility was mostly teaching people to stay away. A penalty that raises almost nothing and drives off the very people a library exists to serve works against the library's own mission.
Common mistakes
- Writing one paragraph per source ("Source A says... Source B says..."). Organize by your claims and bring in sources where they help.
- Stacking quotations with no explanation between them. After each piece of evidence, explain how it supports your claim.
- Using only two sources on the synthesis essay. You need evidence from at least three of the provided sources to earn more than 1 of the 4 evidence-and-commentary points.
- Twisting a source to fit your thesis, for example quoting a sentence the author was arguing against. Represent each source fairly, then explain why your position still holds.
On the exam
- Use the 15-minute reading period to read all six sources, mark two or three details per source you might use, and sketch your position before you start writing.
- Readers reward essays that put sources in conversation with one another. Two sources in one sentence, with your explanation of how they connect, is a strong sign of synthesis.
- In multiple choice, writing questions may ask which piece of added evidence best supports a writer's claim. Pick the most specific choice that matches the claim exactly, not just the topic.
Connected topics
Videos
Check yourself
3 questions on 6.1 Synthesizing several sources in one argument. Pick an answer to see if you got it, and why.
Written for this practice set: four sources a student is reading before writing a synthesis essay on whether the city of Maple Falls should ban gas-powered leaf blowers. Maple Falls is fictional.
A student plans to argue that the city should phase out gas blowers gradually rather than ban them at once. Which two sources would most directly support that specific claim?
Which sentence from a student's essay best synthesizes the sources rather than summarizing them?
Written for this practice set: a student's draft of a synthesis essay, which cites sources by letter. The sources are invented.
The writer wants to add a sentence after sentence 8 that connects the evidence from Sources A and C. Which sentence best accomplishes this goal?
0 of 3 answered