HINT: It is not the subject of your essay What is a thesis? HINT: It is not the subject of your essay

What is a thesis statement? is a road map for the paper; in other words, it tells the reader what to expect from the rest of the paper. directly answers the question asked of you. A thesis is an interpretation of a question or subject, not the subject itself. The subject, or topic, of an essay might be World War II or “Thank-You, M’am”; a thesis must then offer a way to understand the war or the short story. makes a claim that others might dispute or disagree is usually a single sentence somewhere in your first paragraph that presents your argument to the reader. The rest of the paper, the body of the essay, gathers and organizes evidence that will persuade the reader of the logic of your interpretation.

How do I make a thesis statement? Begin by looking at the question prompt. Ask yourself if you have enough information to make a very broad statement. For example, did Mrs. Jones know that Roger was probably homeless or at least without someone to care for him? Provide evidence from the text to support your answer. (THESIS-Some kids don’t have anyone to help guide them in their lives and make wrong choices.) With this thesis someone may argue that it is not up to others to help one another, while someone else may argue it is necessary and appropriate to help others less fortunate than themselves.

Evidence to support the thesis Evidence collected from the text will support your argument. You discover it using close reading strategies. Read topic sentences of a paragraph Mark the text with the information which supports the topic sentence. Use the evidence to support the thesis statement explaining how it relates or agrees with your statement.