1. Thesis Statements

2. What is a thesis statement?
It is the MAIN IDEA of an essay
It is often a point you want to argue (in a persuasive paper) or support (in an informative paper) in an essay SO
The thesis statement explains to a reader the main idea of the essay.

3. Thesis Statements A thesis statement is one sentence
It is placed in the 1st paragraph of an essay
It is the LAST sentence in the first paragraph
The essay will contain evidence and comments from the writer that support the thesis

4. A thesis statement should
Contain a TOPIC (main idea of what you are writing about)
Contain a STATEMENT about the topic (what does the reader need to KNOW about the topic)

5. Types of Thesis Statements
General thesis: good for any essay type; still needs a “because”
“The people of Hawaii value their island heritage.” This is TOO general. You need more information to tell the reader what the paper is about.
“The people of Hawaii value their island heritage, and it is reflected in daily modern life in a variety of aspects.” This tells the reader that the paper is going to be about various ways that Hawaiian heritage is still seen in modern daily life.
Three-prong thesis: specifically for 5 paragraph essays, but can be altered for slightly shorter or longer papers
“The value that the people of Hawaii place on their heritage is visible in modern daily life through the foods they eat, the art they create, and the structures that they build.” This tells the reader exactly what each of the three paragraphs is going to be about.

6. Thesis Statements avoid the following
First person
Unclear language (“it seems…”)
Attempting two topics at once, even if they seem related (pick one topic and stick with it!)

7. DO NOT USE
When writing a thesis sentence- do not start by telling the reader what you’re about to tell them…
This essay is going to be about
In the following paragraphs, certain topics will be discussed
I am going to talk about…
THESE ARE JUST A FEW EXAMPLES of BIG TIME NO-Nos!!