Essay Writing Fundamentals Sophomore and Junior English Mr. Ambrose

Introduction One of our major goals is to become better writers. Let’s begin to do that by becoming very fundamentally sound writers and by organizing our essays in a very structured way.

Thesis Should respond directly to the prompt Answer the question asked, not the one you wished they asked Something that can be proven ▫Othello, a tragedy involving a military general, is a play by William Shakespeare. = not a thesis ▫Othello, Shakespeare’s darkest play, features his most tragic protagonist, a virtuous military general whose malicious ensign drives him to do evil.= pretty decent thesis Three-tiered thesis (or “threesis”)

Introductory Paragraph Structure ▫Hook ▫Thesis ▫3 Examples ▫Clincher (Transition) Be sure to include these elements: ▫Author’s Name ▫Book Title ▫Response to Each Element of the Prompt Move from general to the specific. ▫See inverted triangle on graphic organizer.

Body Paragraphs Topic Sentence ▫A thesis for your paragraph Examples and Elaboration ▫“Quote Sandwich” Clincher

Concluding Paragraph Transition Sentence Restate Thesis “Snappy Ending” Move from the specific to the general. ▫See triangle on graphic organizer.

Quick Tips for Improving Writing 1 Drop some literary terms. ▫Novel ▫Novella ▫Protagonist ▫Antagonist ▫Dynamic Character ▫Static Character ▫Turning Point ▫Canon ▫Modernist Literature

Quick Tips for Improving Writing 2 Use the active voice with active verbs. Use the author’s name or character’s name as subject of the sentence. ▫Beowulf journeys from Geatland to Daneland to confront the antagonist Grendel, who is ravaging the kingdom. ▫Sandra Cisneros presents a collection of inter- related vignettes that tell about her coming-of-age experiences in America.

Let’s put these fundamentals in action As a class ▫Review essay prompts and rubric ▫Review graphic organizer ▫Write an introductory paragraph together Work independently or with a partner ▫Brainstorm ▫Write thesis ▫Outline essay I will circulate to work with you if you need help.