Essay Writing - 1 - 5V

• Engels
• Middelbare school
• vwo
• Leerjaar 6

Welcome! 

Road map

Essay writing 

• what?
• for whom?
• how?

Essay writing

'The whole is more than the sum of the parts'.

 - Aristotle

Essay writing

Sentence

Paragraph 

Intro - Body - Conclusion

Essay

Sentence

Compare:

A walk down the Esk to Goathland.

vs.

John walks down the Esk to Goathland.

Sentence

Subject and predicate (verbs)

What?

Writing an article for a certain audience with a definite objective.

- reflect 

- inform

- persuade

- evaluate

For whom?

Always consider your audience

and consequently your tone!

Language should be formal!

Formal

- use of passive

- preferably no 'I' statements!

- no 'gonna', 'wanna'

- no swearing, rude words, abbreviations, contractions

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

• clearly stated in one sentences: what  you intend to discuss and the direction your argument will take.  

Thesis statement - examples

Instead of continuing its reliance on fossil fuels, the Netherlands should increase its use of renewable energy. 

A gap year can give students the life experience they need to appreciate the value of higher education and to gain more from it. 

Thesis statement

• clearly stated: what do you intend to discuss and direction your argument will take.  

Thesis statement

• direct 
• straightforward
• no abstract language
• no unnecessary details  
• no 'I believe' / 'I hope to show' etc. 

Start!

Pick a topic from the long list and start!

• Gather information
• Start on a thesis statement

Write an argumentative essay of about 250 -300 words. 

Homework

Pick a topic from the long-list in your booklet.