Essay writing summary 9 Feb

• Engels
• Middelbare school
• vwo
• Leerjaar 6

Welcome! 

Road map

• Essay writing 

How?

• Planning
• Shaping
• Drafting
• Revising
• Editing/proofreading
• Hand in

Planning

• purpose, audience, tone
• choose your topic that you care about/know about/like
• develop a thesis statement
• think! / gather information

Thesis statement

An argumentative essay makes a claim about a topic and justifies this claim with specific evidence. 

The claim could be an opinion, a policy proposal, an evaluation, a cause-and-effect statement, or an interpretation. 

The goal of the argumentative paper is to convince the audience that the claim is true based on the evidence provided.

Source: OWL-Purdue 

Thesis statement

'It tells your readers what your essay's topic is and indicates what you will say about this topic', 'direct and straightforward'.

The Wadsworth Handbook, p. 43. 

Thesis statement

• Can people reasonably disagree?
• Can you formulate an antithesis?
• Can you support your TS by evidence?
• Does your TS make your position clear to your readers? 

Thesis statment 

High school graduates should be required to take a year off to pursue community service projects before entering college in order to increase their maturity and global awareness.

What are the topsentences following this TS?

Top sentences in support

High school graduates should be required to take a year off to pursue community service projects before entering college in order to increase their maturity. 

High school graduates should be required to take a year off to pursue community service projects before entering college in order to increase their global awareness.

Framework

Introduction with your thesis statement

• anecdote, reason you chose the topic, background

Body: your actual argument

• one topic per paragraph
• argument in support
• argument in support
• refutation of opposing argument 

conclusion

Framework

Introduction with thesis statement:  50

Body: 

• argument in support: 95
• argument in support: 95
• refutation of opposing argument 95

Conclusion: 50

Total: 385 words 

www.student.unsw.edu.au

Drafting

• Take your framework
• Focus on the top sentences
• Write your paragraphs 
• Add an introduction with your TS
• Add a conclusion 
• Add a title

Coherence

A paragraph and its larger entity, the essay, are coherent when all its sentences/ paragraphs clearly relate to one another.

Coherence

• arranging details
• transitional words/phrases/sentences
• parallel structures
• repeating key words and phrases

Questions?

Choose your content

• Read a book
• Work on an English exam
• Writing skills - finish your rough draft
• Prepare Chaucer test

Word Snake

Hangman

- 30 seconds -