WRITING ABOUT WHAT YOU KNOW WHAT YOU NEED TO KNOW

KNOW YOUR ESSAYS THE TYPES OF ESSAYS: 1. EXPOSITORY : INFORMATIVE WRITING THAT SHARES KNOWLEDGE, CONVEYS MESSAGES, INSTRUCTIONS, OR IDEAS 2. NARRATIVE: FICTIONAL OR NON-FICTIONAL WRITING THAT RELATES A CLEAR SEQUENCE OF CONNECTED 3. PERSUASIVE: PRESENTING REASONS AND EXAMPLES TO INFLUENCE ACTION OR THOUGHT

ARE YOU READY TO HAVE YOUR OPINION HEARD? WORDS TO KNOW FIRST: 1. PROMPT (NOUN): A STATEMENT OR QUESTION MEANT TO START THE WRITING PROCESS 2. BRAINSTORMING: THE ACT OF WRITING DOWN IDEAS TO START THE WRITING PROCESS 3. THESIS STATEMENT: A THESIS STATEMENT IS A SHORT STATEMENT THAT SUMMARIZES THE MAIN POINT OF AN ESSAY AND IS DEVELOPED, SUPPORTED, AND EXPLAINED IN THE TEXT

WHAT DOES A PROMPT SAY? MORE THAN A FOX EXAMPLES: EXPOSITORY: “FRIENDS ARE IMPORTANT, BUT EVERYONE HAS A DIFFERENT OPINION OF WHAT MAKES A GOOD FRIEND. EXPLAIN WHAT, IN YOUR OPINION MAKES A GOOD FRIEND.” NARRATIVE: “THINK OF AN EXPERIENCE WHEN YOU REALIZED THAT YOU SUDDENLY UNDERSTOOD AN IDEA, A SKILL, OR A CONCEPT YOU HAD BEEN STRUGGLING WITH. WRITE A NARRATIVE THAT TELLS THE STORY OF YOUR MOVEMENT TOWARD UNDERSTANDING.” PERSUASIVE: “YOUR SCHOOL HAS DECIDED TO ENFORCE SCHOOL UNIFORM POLICY. WRITE A LETTER TO PERSUADE THE SCHOOL BOARD TO MAKE THE CHANGE OR TO KEEP THE POLICY.

THINGS TO CONSIDER BEFORE MAKING THAT OPINION PURPOSE: A WRITER’S REASON FOR WRITING EXAMPLES: “TO ENTERTAIN” “TO INFORM” “TO PERSUADE” AUDIENCE: THE INTENDED READER(S) OF THE ESSAY

BRAAINNSS…STORM THEM. WAYS TO BRAINSTORM: 1. LIST: GOOD FOR PROS AND CONS, BEST TO USE FOR PERSUASIVE WRITING 2. PLOT DIAGRAM: GOOD FOR RETELLING EVENTS OR STORIES, BEST TO USE FOR NARRATIVE WRITING 3. WEB: GOOD FOR CONNECTING IDEAS, BEST TO USE FOR EXPOSITORY OR PERSUASIVE WRITING 4. VENN DIAGRAM: GOOD FOR COMPARING AND CONTRASTING IDEAS, BEST FOR EXPOSITORY WRITING 5. STARBURST: GOOD FOR CATEGORIZING IDEAS, GOOD FOR ALL TYPES OF WRITING

THE OUTLINE: THE SKELETON OF A PAPER THE BASIC ESSAY IS FIVE PARAGRAPHS LONG AND FOLLOWS A FORM OF THE FOLLOWING OUTLINE: I. INTRODUCTION II. BODY PARAGRAPH 1: TOPIC 1 III. BODY PARAGRAPH 2: TOPIC 2 IV. BODY PARAGRAPH 3: TOPIC 3 V. CONCLUSION

INTRODUCTION: TELL THEM WHAT YOU’RE ABOUT TO TELL THEM INTRODUCTIONS SHOULD FOLLOW SOME FORM OF THIS OUTLINE: i. ATTENTION GETTER OR GRABBER: 4-5 SENTENCES TO GRAB THE READER’S ATTENTION WAYS TO DO IT: ASK A QUESTION GIVE SURPRISING FACTS OR STATISTICS TELL A BRIEF ANECDOTE ABOUT YOUR TOPIC i. THESIS STATEMENT: SENTENCE THAT TELLS THE READER WHAT THE ESSAY IS ABOUT, GIVES THE MAIN IDEA, AND REVEALS THE STRUCTURE OF THE ESSAY EXAMPLES: “ON THAT DAY, I LEARNED ____(TOPIC 1)____, ____(TOPIC 2)_____, AND _____(TOPIC 3)_____.” “IF WE ADOPT THAT POLICY, STUDENTS WILL _____(TOPIC 1)____, _____(TOPIC 2)_____, AND __(TOPIC 3)____.

BODY PARAGRAPHS: TELL THEM Body paragraphs are the “meat” of your essay. They should be 7-9 sentences in length. They should follow this outline: i.Transitional phrase: Phrases to create “flow” from paragraph to paragraph ii.Paragraph Topic Introduction: Found in the same sentence as your transitional phrase, this introduction states your paragraph’s topic iii.Details and Support: The “meat” of your paragraphs that comes from reliable sources The four types of support: (This is where research comes into play.) 1.Facts: Pieces of information that can be verified 2.Statistics: Numbers and percentages used to make a point 3.Anecdotes: Short stories or incidents used to make a point 4.Expert Testimony: Paraphrased statements or quotes from experts used to make a point iv.Paragraph Conclusion: Sentence to sum up the topic of the paragraph

CONCLUSION: TELL THEM WHAT YOU TOLD THEM THE CONCLUSION PARAGRAPH SUMS UP THE ESSAY. A CONCLUSION SHOULD BE 5-7 SENTENCES AND SHOULD FOLLOW THIS OUTLINE: i. PARAPHRASE (REWORD) THESIS STATEMENT ii. INCLUDE KEY DETAILS TO YOUR ARGUMENT iii. CLINCHER STATEMENT: A STATEMENT TO MAKE YOUR READER THINK OR A CALL TO ACTION