The Five Paragraph Essay &Grammar Review

The Five Paragraph essay Introduction (first paragraph) Hook Thesis Outline topics (in sentence form) Body (three paragraphs) Topic Sentence Evidence (at least 1 example) Explain Evidence Transition Conclusion (last paragraph) Restate thesis Review information Final Thought

Introduction First thing’s first: Your introduction is the “first impression” your paper will make on its reader. It should be interesting, to the point, and it should outline the body of your essay. Not only will this “outline” guide your reader; it will guide you too. First thing’s first: Hook: the hook is the first sentence of your introduction and the first sentence of your essay. MAKE IT COUNT. Some people like to ask a question as their hook, while others give a fact or a statement. Thesis: the thesis is the part of your introduction that tells readers what your entire paper is about. It’s like a topic sentence on steroids; it doesn’t just give the reader the overall topic of your essay, but the topics of each of your body paragraphs. The topics of each body paragraph should be mentioned IN THE ORDER YOU WILL MENTION THEM IN YOUR PAPER.

Body For a five paragraph essay, you will have THREE body paragraphs. Each paragraph will contain a minimum of FIVE complete sentences. In each body paragraph you will include: Topic sentence: this sentence tells what the paragraph will be about. BAD EXAMPLE: This paragraph is about how propaganda is used to control citizens. GOOD EXAMPLE: In The Book Thief, propaganda is used by the Nazi party to control the citizens of Germany. Evidence: Evidence comes in the form of specific examples and/or quotes from the text. It is not enough to insert a quote or example. You must explain the relevance of the evidence you use.

BAD EXAMPLE: “We have to find the flag!” GOOD EXAMPLE: In Part Two of The Book Thief, Rosa and Hans frantically search for their Nazi flag. “We have to find the flag! If we don’t show it, they will come for us”(59). They know that they are under surveillance and that if they don’t represent their support of Nazi Germany, they will be caught and punished (59- 65). Transition: A transition is exactly what it sounds like; it transitions the reader from one topic to another. Transitional sentences typically occur at the end of a paragraph. GOOD EXAMPLE: Though citizens being under constant surveillance is a strong example of a dystopian characteristic in The Book Thief, there are plenty of other examples as well. One of the strongest is the use of propaganda to control citizens.

Conclusion In your conclusion, you have a few things to do. First of all, you need to reword and restate your thesis. THIS DOES NOT MEAN rewrite the entire thesis from your introduction word for word. What it does mean is that you need to reword your original thesis and use this as the topic sentence for your conclusion. Then, you need to give a brief recap of each of your body paragraphs. Lastly, you should leave your readers with a final thought.

Things to avoid Grammar Errors Writing in the first person This is NOT a paper about YOU or about your opinions. Writing in second person This is also not a paper about me or my opinions Retelling the story We know what happened in the story. It’s not your job to tell us AGAIN what we already know. Grammar Errors See next slide for a more comprehensive list of grammatical errors that we see frequently (yes, you make them too) on module assessments.

Grammatical issues Random “had” Liesel had stolen the book because she wanted it. Propaganda had been used by the Nazis to control Germany. Gone/Gon vs. Going She gon be sorry she stole that book. Subject/verb agreement Liesel buy the book for herself. Rudy and Liesel steals apples because they hungry. Using big words INCORRECTLY She stole the book overwhelmingly because she wanted it. Swapping Back and Forth Between Tenses She was going to the bonfire and stole a book.

More on Grammar Weird Capitalization or Lack of Capitalization Capitalize proper nouns and the first word of each sentence ONLY. (Names, cities, states, titles of books, etc.) Contractions Don’t Can’t Won’t DO NOT USE THESE. Write out BOTH words. (DO NOT, CAN NOT, WILL NOT) Proper Use of Commas You may NOT end a sentence with a comma. You may not combine sentences with a comma.

TIPS Organize your thoughts with a list/graphic organizer/outline ALWAYS write about Literature in the present tense (as if it’s happening RIGHT. NOW). Read and RE-READ your paper. Think before you write. Know your weaknesses. LOOK for your weaknesses. Double and triple check your rough draft tomorrow for those same kinds of errors.

Graphic Organizer Example 3 Body Paragraph 1 Topic Sentence: Evidence: Transition: Body Paragraph 2 Topic Sentence: Evidence: Transition: 2 1 Introduction Hook: Thesis: Outline of Topics: 5 4 Body Paragraph 3 Topic Sentence: Evidence: Transition: Conclusion Reword and restate thesis: Review info from each body paragraph: Final thought: