Practice Expository Essay

Prompt Read the following: “Hold fast to dreams / For if dreams die / Life is a broken-winged bird/ That cannot fly.” Think about the following: Imagine what life would be like if we didn’t have the capacity to think ahead. Write: Write an essay explaining the effects of dreams (goals, ambitions, plans) in our lives. Be sure to… Clearly state your thesis Organize and develop your ideas effectively Choose your words carefully Edit your writing for grammar, mechanics, and spelling

Brainstorm Create a web map Select your two strongest ideas Topic in the middle Branches=different effects you could talk about Further branches=examples that illustrate the effect (you should take these from our readings OR you can add examples from personal knowledge, history, popular culture, etc.) Select your two strongest ideas These will be your two paragraphs The essay has to have at least two body paragraphs.

Create a Thesis Write this down on your first line; indent: Dreams can have many (negative/positive/negative and positive (pick one)) effects on our lives, including (effect #1 from your brainstorm) and (effect #2 from your brainstorm). Sample: Dreams can have both negative and positive effects, including motivational and de-motivational impacts. This is the most important sentence in your essay

Identify which effect you want to speak about first Identify which effect you want to speak about first. State it in your topic sentence (first sentence of your body paragraph) Dreams can have the (positive/negative) effect of (state the first effect from your brainstorm), meaning (define what you mean). For example, (state your example (summary is okay for these types of examples; you DON’T need a quote here)). This shows… (comment on how your example shows your point from the topic sentence.)

Identify which effect you want to speak about next Identify which effect you want to speak about next. State it in your topic sentence (first sentence of your body paragraph) (In addition/however), dreams can have the (positive/negative) effect of (state the first effect from your brainstorm), meaning (define what you mean). For example, (state your example (summary is okay for these types of examples; you DON’T need a quote here)). This shows (comment on how your example shows your point from the topic sentence.)

Identify which effect you want to speak about next Identify which effect you want to speak about next. State it in your topic sentence (first sentence of your body paragraph) (In addition/however), dreams can have the (positive/negative) effect of (state the first effect from your brainstorm), meaning (define what you mean). For example, (give your example (summary is okay for these types of examples; you DON’T need a quote here; you can use more than one sentence)). This shows (comment on how your example shows your point from the topic sentence.)

Conclusion paragraph Restate your thesis, but in new words and using synonyms: First thesis: Dreams can have both negative and positive effects, including motivational and de-motivational impacts. Restated thesis: Dreams, then, can have inspirational and de-inspirational consequences in our everyday lives. End with a statement on why this issue significant.