The 5-Paragraph Essay

Parts of an Essay

1.Introduction
2.Body Paragraph A
3.Body Paragraph B
4.Body Paragraph C
5.Conclusion

How to Write Introductions

The first thing you have to do as a writer is grab your readers attention,
and I dont mean by saying, Hey, you! or Pssst or yelling Fire!
You can, however, do any of the following:
Tell your reader a story. Everybody loves a good tale.
It was a dark and stormy night. Once upon a
time,... You wont believe what happened! Of course, you would
never actually begin an academic essay with any of these, but you
get the idea. A story is engaging.
Surprise them. Who doesnt like to be startled with unexpected
facts?
A deer is more likely to kill you than a shark.

Introductionscont.
Quote someone famous or not so famous. We tend to pay
attention to what famous people say. As for not so famous ones,
quoting them is a bit like eavesdropping, and you know how much we
all like to do that.
To be or not to be, that is the question. (Shakespeare)
Ask not what your country can do for you. Ask what you can do for your country.
(J. F. Kennedy)
Just because you can, doesnt mean you should. (My mother)

Ask a question. That always gets someones attention. Well, almost

always. Maybe not when theyre texting, Snapchatting, or watching
an exciting football game on TV, but most of the time

Introductionscont.
Relate your topic to recent news.
Yesterday, yet another teenager died after falling off a cliff at
Stone Mountain State Park.
Exit polls show that in the presidential election last week, 1%
more people under age 25 voted than in 2008.
Investigation of the four-alarm fire at the Lakeside Apartments
reveals that the fire started when a deep fat turkey fryer exploded
on a wooden deck.

Justify your qualifications. Lets face it. People

listen if they think you know what youre talking about.
So tell them.
I have been a Master Gardener for fifteen years, and Id like to

Introductionscont.
Provide background information leading to a stated thesis.
This approach works when you know your audience is interested in
your topic or on exams when you dont have much time.
Every year, millions of parents in America face the dilemma of whether or not to
put their child in daycare. With so many two-income families, this decision is
becoming more and more commonplace. Many parents fear daycare will have an
adverse effect on their child. Those parents can relax. Research shows that
children benefit emotionally, socially, and cognitively from a good daycare
experience.

Avoid at all costs:

In this essay, I will _________________.
This paper will show that _________________.
Throughout history, _________________.

Introductionscont.
Important! Be wise! Read and
heed this advice!
No matter how engaging your
anecdote, how amazing your
startling fact, how memorable your
quotation or how important your
question is doesnt matter unless
you relate your opening directly
to your topic! After you grab
your readers attention, tell them
your purpose and main idea. You

THESIS
STATEMENT.
do this with a

Thesis
Your thesis is like a road-map; it tells your reader
where you are going
It is the LAST sentence (or sentences) in the
introduction
A thesis should include your argument and three key
ideas to be found in each body paragraph:

A, B, C

A is the key word or idea you will find in body

paragraph #2
B is the key word or idea you will find in body
paragraph #3

Body Paragraphs
CLAIM: Topic sentence states the aspect of the
thesis that you will cover/develop.
DATA: Support sentences, among many options, can
give specific examples, textual evidence, information,
opinions, direct quotes, and elaboration.
WARRANT: The analysis of the data. The warrant
interprets the data and shows how it supports your
claim. The warrant, in other words, explains why the
data proves the claim.
A summary sentence sums up the entire paragraph,
offers insight, and transitions to the next paragraph.

Integrating Quotes/Quote Sandwich!

See the Video Here

Other Examples Here

Quote Sandwichfor example

Transitions
In both academic writing and
professional writing, your goal is to
convey information clearly and
concisely, if not to convert the
reader to your way of thinking.
Transitions help you to achieve
these goals by establishing logical
connections between sentences,
paragraphs, and sections of your
papers.

Transitions
Check out this website full of transitions!
transitions are phrases or words used to
connect one idea to the next
transitions are used by the author to help
the reader progress from one significant
idea to the next
transitions also show the relationship within
a paragraph (or within a sentence)
between the main idea and the support
the author gives for those ideas
different transitions do different things....

A Good Conclusion Should...

stress the importance of the thesis
statement
restate the thesis in a creative way
give the essay a sense of completeness
leave a final impression on the reader

A Good Conclusion Should...continued

Answer the question "So What?"
Show your readers why this paper was important. Show
them that your paper was meaningful and useful.
Synthesize, don't summarize
Don't simply repeat things that were in your paper. They
have read it. Show them how the points you made and
the support and examples you used were not random,
but fit together.

A Good Conclusion Should...continued

Redirect your readers
Give your reader something to think about, perhaps a way to
use your paper in the "real" world. If your introduction went
from general to specific, make your conclusion go from
specific to general. Think globally.
Create a new meaning
You don't have to give new information to
create a
new meaning. By demonstrating
how your
ideas work together, you can
create a new
picture. Often the sum of
the paper is
worth more than its parts.