Essay Format Part #1:

General Format & the Thesis Statement

9/1: Thesis/Essay Notes page 4R

A Standard 5 paragraph essay follows a certain format:

1. INTRODUCTION: with a “hook” and an opinionated thesis statement

1. BODY: 3 separate paragraphs where the argument is explained and supporting evidence is cited.

• CONCLUSION: where main points are summarized and reviewed and the reader is left with something to think about.

First…Know Your Audience…• Before you start writing, you should know your

audience:– Who will read your writing? Who do you need to

convince?– The audience may be your friends, your teacher, your

parents, your principal, the readers of a newspaper or the President of the United States!

– Will you be graded? On What?– Should you be casual or professional?– What does your audience already think about your topic?

Second… Pick a side!

• The writer must clearly state his/her position and stay with that position. Pick a side! Don’t be in the middle, or undecided!

• Your opinion about the topic, or your answer to a driving question is your THESIS!

In order to convince the reader you need more than just an opinion; you need facts or examples to back your opinion. So, be sure to do the research!

Three: Do Your Research…

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Four: MAKE A PLAN, then write! The Standard 5 Paragraph Essay:

1. Introduction/Hook/Thesis2. Argument 1 with support3. Argument 2 with support

4. Argument 3 with support5. Conclusion

Start with your Thesis Statement• A thesis statement is one sentence at the end of your

introduction paragraph that states your opinion. • It needs to be strong.• It is the single-most important statement of your

opinion in your essay.

* Always start essays by brainstorming your thesis statement first, and then build your essay around that idea!

Start with your Thesis Statement• One method is the 3-point thesis statement:

– First, choose 3 main focus points to discuss in your essay. These points will become the focus of three paragraphs in the body of your paper.

Let’s use fast food as an example again.Fast food…(3 Discussion Points)

• rapidly increases weight • causes high blood pressure

• leads to sluggishness

Writing the Thesis Statement• Now list your three point in your sentence. Put your

completed thesis statement at the end of your first paragraph.

THREE MAIN FOCUS POINTS• I believe fast food is harmful because it rapidly increases

weight, causes high blood pressure, and leads to lethargy.

Revised • Fast food is harmful because it rapidly increases weight,

causes high blood pressure, and leads to lethargy.

* Remember: You opinion is stronger when you don’t say “I believe,” or “I think…”

Practice: • Answer the following question based on your

opinion: “Who’s to blame for America’s growing weightProblem?”

• What three reasons will you discuss in your essay?

“________ is to blame for America’s weight problem because (1) , (2) , and __(3) .

An Umbrella Thesis

This approach summarizes your 3 main points into one category, or umbrella

THREE MAIN FOCUS POINTS• Fast food is harmful because it rapidly increases

weight, causes high blood pressure, and leads to lethargy.

COMPLETED THESIS STATEMENT• Eating fast food frequently is a poor choice, as many

fast foods can cause negative health effects.

Thesis Statements continued…• Your statement should be debatable.

– Non-debatable example: • Many people blame the fast-food

industry for making them fat. – Better example:

• The fast-food industry is to blame for making people fat.

ESSAY FORMAT: Part 2:

The Introduction Paragraph

The Great Introduction…What makes an good introduction?• It grabs or “hooks” the reader’s attention by using one

or more of the following strategies: – An anecdote or scenario– A quotation– An interesting fact or statistic– A question

• It tells how the writing will be organized. • The author’s position is clearly stated in a thesis

statement.

Introduction

• To be the MOST clear, use this format: • 1st sentence: hook (question, statistic, general

statement of the problem)• 2-3th sentences: necessary background

info/description of the problem• 4th sentence: In “Title of work,” Author’s full

name claims, summary of author’s argument.• 5th/ LAST sentence: YOUR thesis

The Inverted Triangle Introduction

• Goes from general information to the most specific aspects of your essay.

• Thesis should almost always be the last sentence in your intro paragraph.

General info about topic

Specific opinion (thesis)

Grabbing Your Audience…

Good strategies used in introductions:• Use an Anecdote/ Scenario

– The writer provides a personal experience or made-up situation to introduce the position.

• Questioning– The writer asks thought-provoking questions to capture the

reader’s interest.

• Interesting fact or statistic– The writer gives an interesting piece of information to grab the

reader’s attention.

Lets Take A Look….

You Could Start with a Riddle:• Get your reader’s attention with a challenging

thought.• “What’s plain, and boring? What makes all students

in a school building look the same and lose their individuality? If you guessed UNIFORMS, you’re correct!”

You Could Begin with a Strong Statement:• Example:• Fast food consumption has risen 500 percent

since 1970 and today reaches nearly every part of society, including some public school cafeterias.

You Could Open with an Anecdote:• An anecdote can provide an amusing and attention-getting

opening if it is short and to the point.

• “My hands felt sticky after pulling open the doors to “Big Bobby’s Boisterous Burger Hut”. The odor smelled of fried everything. I ordered a Big Bobby Combo #2. There was enough food to serve a small third world country on my tray. I nibbled at the ¾ pound burger and my chin was covered in a mayonnaise and ketchup concoction. I asked the server if I could have a few fries with my salt. I left the place feeling like my stomach was mad at me.”

You Could Open with a Quotation:

• Example:University of Delaware professor states:

“Advertising, including television ads, billboards, and other advertising,including toys in boxed meals, has had an effect upon children as never

before.Children these days are growing up with low concern for their health and

more concern for what tastes good.”

You Could Open with a interesting fact:

• Example:• “Did you know that a typical child needs 2,000 calories for an

entire day and Burger King’s Whopper with triple cheese has 1,230 calories?”

You Could Open with a Fact or Statistic:

• Example:

• Thirty percent of the children in the survey ate fast food on any given day during the survey, and they ate an average of 187 calories a day more than those who did not eat fast food. These additional calories could account for an extra six pounds of weight gain per year, according to Ludwig.

You Could Open with a Question:

• Ex) How many times have you eaten fast food this month?

• BUT use a sophisticated question…NOT like this, “Do you think that fast foodIs bad for you?”

Open with an Outrageous Statement:

• Example:• “Fast food is killing America!”

Our Introductory Paragraph:

Fast Food Is Killing America!

Did you know that a typical child needs 2,000 calories for an entire day and Burger King’s Whopper with triple cheese has 1,230 calories? That is far more calories than anyone needs in one day! Fast food consumption has risen 500 percent since 1970 and today reaches nearly every part of society, including some public school cafeterias. Fast food is harmful because it rapidly increases weight, causes high blood pressure, and leads to sluggishness. Fast food is unhealthy and consumers should limit their intake.

CATCHY TITLE

HOOK THE READER

THESIS STATEMENTYOUR THREE ARGUMENTS

Three Supporting Paragraphs:• Use each of the main arguments you used in

your introductory paragraph and expand on each giving facts and reasons.

• In our example, you would write one paragraph on how fast food increases weight, one paragraph on how it causes high blood pressure and one on how it leads to sluggishness.

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Conclude or End Your Essay…What makes an good conclusion? Last paragraph summarizes your main point. End using one or more of the following strategies:

–Call the reader to action–Anecdote or scenario–Make a Prediction

The last paragraph wraps up the writing and gives the reader something to think about.

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Strategies for Conclusions• Call to Action

– Ask the reader to do something or to make something happen “I challenge you to watch what you eat and to avoid fast food.”

• Provide a solution– Provide an answer to the problem “Fast food doesn’t have

to be “bad food.” Make better choices like salads, fruit and low fat treats.”

• Make a Prediction– Explain what might be the consequences of action or

inaction “If people continue to eat lots of fast food, they put their health at risk. If kids don’t make better choices today, they won’t grow into healthy adults.”

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Concluding Paragraph:Restate your thesis.

End with…– A comment (Don’t make your body suffer!)– A question (Are you willing to risk your health?)– A call to action (I highly recommend you consider your options the next time your faced with a

decision about what to eat.)

In closing, it’s important to remember that too much fast food can have negative effects on your health. If not eaten in moderation, you can gain weight, suffer from high blood pressure and become slow and sluggish. Is it worth the risk to your body? Eat Healthy and Make good choices!

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Don’t Forget…

• Make sure to read over your work and edit for mechanics and spelling.

• Write neatly!• Include detail and great

vocabulary.• Follow proper format:

Proper heading and skip lines!

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Essay Format Part #3:

CITATIONS

Quotations• Cite any outside information or statistics you

reference, including information from the original article (Weintraub’s).

• Cite words that you paraphrase• Don’t plagiarize – better safe than sorry!• MLA format (See Purdue Owl cite) • Purdue MLA

• In-text quotations must reference the author’s first and last name the first time it is used.

• Subsequent uses – only use the last name.

• Name of essays/articles are placed in quotations. Books and movies are italicized. – Ex) In Daniel Weintraub’s article, “The Battle

Against Fast Food Begins in the Home,” blah blah blah.

– According to Supersize Me, blah blah blah…

Citation

• The author’s last name and page number must always be cited.– Either in-text citation OR parenthetical citation

• Ex) He said, “Blah blah” (Weintraub 66).– Notice the punctuation: “( ).– There is no comma between the last name and the

page #.– If you mention the author’s name in the sentence,

only cite the page number at the end.• Ex) Weintraub states, “Blah blah” (88).

Embed your quotes: Don’t leave them naked!

• Naked quote: – “My own home is by no means a fast food-free

zone” (Weintraub 43). In this quote, Weintraub is saying…

• Embedded Quote:– Weintraub gives context to his own home life by

saying, “My own home is by no means a fast food-free zone” (43).

Examples• Wordsworth stated that Romantic poetry was marked

by a "spontaneous overflow of powerful feelings" (263). - direct citation with author’s name

• Romantic poetry is characterized by the "spontaneous overflow of powerful feelings" (Wordsworth 263). - direct citation without author’s name

• Wordsworth extensively explored the role of emotion in the creative process (263).

-paraphrased

Practice• Embed and cite this quote according to the

information given:– Daniel Weintraub. Pg 42. Obesity is the fault of the

parents who let their kids eat unhealthy foods.

1.Direct quote using author’s name in the sentence

2.Direct quote without using the author’s name in the sentence

3.Paraphrase the quote and cite it