1. Writing 5-Paragraph EssaysBy
Mr. Gonzalez
Language Arts Teacher
DORAL MIDDLE SCHOOL
Revised and Edited by
Ms. White 1

2. What is an Essay?
An essay is a composition that discusses, describes or explains one topic. It can be serious or funny. It can describe personal feelings or state your opinion, or it can just explain facts. 2

3. TYPES OF ESSAYS
An Expository Essay is one that explains, analyzes, or shares information.
☻ How-to essay
☻ Informative essay
A Persuasive Essay is one where the writer presents his or her opinion and tries to convince the reader to agree.
☻ Opinion essay
☻ Problem-solution essay 3

4. EXPOSITORY VS PERSUASIVE
Convinces the reader to accept a particular point of view, or
Convinces the reader to take a particular action
Often about a controversial issue
Usually begin by stating the belief or the action the reader is to accept
Supports the argument with FRIES
States logical reasons to support the writer’s point of view
Recognizes/refutes an opposing argument
Usually concludes with the strongest argument
Often plays on the emotion of the reader
Explains something, or
Provides information, or
Clarifies a process, or
Defines a concept
Usually begins with a statement of purpose
Develops with FRIES
Enhances the reader’s understanding of objective
Not dependent on emotion 4

5. The BASIC Structure of an Essay
Paragraph 1: Introduction
- General Statement (Attention Getter)
- Thesis or opinion statement
- 3 Reasons (blueprint)
- Concluding and/or transition sentence
Paragraphs 2, 3, and 4: Body
- Reason 1(topic sentence) + at least 3 supporting details)
- Reason 2(topic sentence) + at least 3 supporting details)
- Reason 3(topic sentence + at least 3 supporting details)
Paragraph 5: Conclusion
- Statement reflecting back on thesis
- Restatement of key points
- Concluding Statements
Your essay should start with an introductory paragraph.  There are actually many different ways to begin an essay; therefore, the format of the introductory paragraph is flexible.
Your second, third and fourth paragraphs generally begins the body of the paper. 
The form of your conclusion, like your introduction, is flexible and should relate to the introduction.  5

6. MAKE YOUR ESSAY LIKE A HAMBURGER WITH LARGE FRIESC T S R E A S O N I N C D E T S E X A M P L S S T A I C
(The Top Bun)
Thesis Statement + 3 Reasons
Topic Sentence (meat), Detail 1 (lettuce),
Detail 2 (tomato), Detail 3 (cheese)
Topic Sentence (meat), Detail 1 (lettuce),
Detail 2 (tomato), Detail 3 (cheese)
FRIES
Topic Sentence (meat), Detail 1 (lettuce),
Detail 2 (tomato), Detail 3 (cheese)
(The Bottom Bun) 6

7. The Introduction (The Top Bun)
I.  Introduction
Introductory statement (Attention Getter):
quotation
anecdote
interesting fact
statistics
question
Thesis/opinion statement
Blueprint (three reasons)
Concluding/transition sentence
Your essay should start with an introductory paragraph.  There are actually many different ways to begin an essay; therefore, the format of the introductory paragraph is flexible. Often, essays begin with a general introductory statement.  This statement could be an anecdote, description, striking statistic, a fact that will lead to your thesis, etc. Beginning this way, you will use the first few sentences to prepare, or "lay the groundwork" for your thesis, and use the last sentence of the first paragraph to present your thesis.  However, your thesis statement can be anywhere in your introduction.  In a longer essay, you can even wait to present your thesis until the second paragraph or later.  Also for a longer essay, you should begin to introduce a few supporting ideas in the first couple of paragraphs.  These supporting ideas should be the topics that you will discuss in full in your body paragraphs.  For a short essay, presenting supporting ideas during the introduction is optional. 7

8. The Body First Reason Paragraph Second Reason Paragraph
Transition
topic sentence (MEAT)
Three Supporting Details (Lettuce, tomato, cheese)
Remember to add FRIES
Second Reason Paragraph
                   
Third Reason Paragraph
Three Supporting Details (Lettuce, tomato, cheese)
                  
(For a longer paper, the body of the paper may not begin until the third paragraph or later).  This paragraph should begin with a topic sentence that introduces the first supporting idea (the support for your thesis).  You should use the middle of the paragraph to discuss your support, give examples, and analyze the significance of these examples.  Your last sentence of the body paragraph could be used to draw a conclusion for that supporting idea, or to transition into the next paragraph. 8

9. The Conclusion (The Bottom Bun)
III. Conclusion
Transition
Statement reflecting back on thesis
Restatement of key points
Concluding Statements
The form of your conclusion, like your introduction, is flexible and should relate to the introduction.  One good way to conclude a paper is to begin the last paragraph with a statement that reflects on what has been stated and proved, without repeating it exactly.  Then you should briefly restate your key points to gently remind the reader how well you proved your thesis.  Your conclusion should end with a statement or idea that leaves a strong impression and provokes further thought. 9

10. Sample Essay: The Hazards of Moviegoing
Introduction:
I am a movie fanatic. When friends want to know what picture won the Oscar in 1980 or who played the police chief in Jaws, they ask me. My friends, though, have stopped asking me if I want to go out to the movies. Going to the movies has become a hazardous activity for me. The problems in getting to the theater, the theater itself, and the behavior of some patrons are all reasons why I often wait for a movie to show up on TV. I think it is better to stay home.
► General Statements
► Thesis Statement
► Blueprint
► Concluding Sentence 10

11. Sample Essay: The Hazards of Moviegoing
Body: Supporting Paragraph # 1
First of all, just getting to the theater presents difficulties. Leaving a home equipped with a TV and a video recorder isn't an attractive idea on a humid, cold, or rainy night. Even if the weather cooperates, there is still a thirty-minute drive to the theater down a congested highway, followed by the hassle of looking for a parking space. And then there are the lines. After hooking yourself to the end of a human chain, you worry about whether there will be enough tickets, whether you will get seats together, and whether many people will sneak into the line ahead of you.
► Transitional Words
► Topic Sentence (Reason 1)
► Supporting Detail # 1
► Supporting Detail # 2
► Supporting Detail # 3 11

12. Sample Essay: The Hazards of Moviegoing
Body: Supporting Paragraph # 2
Furthermore, once you have made it to the box office and gotten your tickets, you are confronted with the problems of the theater itself. If you are in one of the run-down older theaters, you must adjust to the musty smell of seldom-cleaned carpets. Escaped springs lurk in the faded plush or cracked leather seats, and half the seats you sit in seem loose or tilted so that you sit at a strange angle. Even, the newer twin and quad theaters offer their own problems. Sitting in an area only one-quarter the size of a regular theater, moviegoers often have to put up with the sound of the movie next door. This is especially jarring when the other movie involves racing cars or a karate war and you are trying to enjoy a quiet love story. But, whether the theater is old or new, it will have floors that seem to be coated with rubber cement. By the end of a movie, shoes almost have to be pried off the floor because they have become sealed to a deadly compound of spilled soda, hardening bubble gum, and crushed Jujubes.
► Transitions
►Topic Sentence
►Supporting Detail # 1
► Supporting Detail # 2
►Supporting Detail # 3 12

13. Sample Essay: The Hazards of Moviegoing
Body: Supporting Paragraph # 3
Finally, some of the patrons are even more of a problem than the theater itself. Little kids race up and down the aisles, usually in giggling packs. Teenagers try to impress their friends by talking back to the screen, whistling, and making what they consider to be hilarious noises. Adults act as if they were at home in their own living rooms and comment loudly on the ages of the stars or why movies aren't as good anymore. And people of all ages crinkle candy wrappers, stick gum on their seats, and drop popcorn tubs or cups of crushed ice and soda on the floor. Also, they cough and burp, squirm endlessly in their seats, file out for repeated trips to the rest rooms or concession stand, and elbow you out of the armrest on either side of your seat.
► Transitions
►Topic Sentence
►Supporting Detail # 1
► Supporting Detail # 2
►Supporting Detail # 3 13

14. Sample Essay: The Hazards of Moviegoing
Conclusion:
All in all, after arriving home from the movies one night, I decided that I was not going to be a moviegoer anymore. I was tired of the problems involved in getting to the movies , dealing with the theater itself, and some of the patrons. Because of that, I arranged to have cable TV service installed in my home. I may now see movies a bit later than other people, but I'll be more relaxed watching box office hits in the comfort of my own living room.
►Transitions
►Statement reflecting back on thesis
►Restatement of key point # 1
►Restatement of key point # 2
►Restatement of key point # 3
►Concluding statements 14

15. ARE YOU READY TO WRITE YOUR OWN ESSAY
ARE YOU READY TO WRITE YOUR OWN ESSAY? BEFORE YOU WRITE YOUR ESSAY, YOU NEED TO READ AND UNDERSTAND THE PROMPT YOU ARE GIVEN. 15

16. THERE ARE DIFFERENT TYPES OF PROMPTS, BUT WE WILL ONLY DISCUSS TWO OF THEM.
EXPOSITORY PROMPTS
AND
PERSUASIVE PROMPTS 16

17. A PROMPT HAS TWO PARTS: The Writing Situation:
The Directions For Writing:
Introduces the topic
Helps you to think of a main idea for your essay and directs you to write about it. 17

18. SAMPLE PROMPT: Writing Situation:
The principal at your school wants to plan an activity to welcome students back to school at the beginning of next school year.
Directions For Writing:
Think about a welcoming activity that would be fun for the students.
Now write to convince your principal to choose your idea for a welcoming activity.
WHAT IS THE GENERAL TOPIC OF THE ESSAY?
- A welcoming activity that would be fun for the students.
WHAT TYPE OF ESSAY WILL YOU WRITE?
- Persuasive
REMEMBER
IN A PERSUASIVE PROMPT, YOU WILL FIND THE WORDS PERSUADE, CONVINCE OR TELL WHY SOMEONE SHOULD DO SOMETHING. 18

19. SAMPLE PROMPT: Writing Situation:
Everyone has something valuable that he or she would like to put in a trunk for the future.
Directions for Writing:
Think about something valuable that you would like to put in a trunk for the future.
Now write to explain to your readers why you would like to put that in a trunk for the future.
WHAT IS THE GENERAL TOPIC OF THE ESSAY?
-Something valuable that you would like to put in a trunk for the future.
WHAT TYPE OF ESSAY WILL YOU WRITE?
-Expository.
REMEMBER
IN AN EXPOSITORY PROMPT, YOU WILL FIND THE WORDS
EXPLAIN, TELL HOW, OR TELL WHY. 19