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How to Write an Essay
There are many ways to write an essay. However, the standard essay form follows the same basic patterns as discussed in this "how to".
Difficulty Level: Average Time Required: 30 minutes

Here's How:
1. Select the topic of your essay.
2. Choose the central idea, or thesis, of your essay. For example: Information technology has revolutionized the way we work.
3. Outline your essay into introductory, body and summary paragraphs.
4. The introductory paragraph begins with an interesting sentence. For example: Home workers have grown from 150,000 to over 12 million in the past 5 years thanks to the wonders of the computer.
5. After this first sentence, add your thesis statement from above.
6. Use one sentence to introduce every body paragraph to follow. For example: The Internet has made this possible by extending the office into the home.
7. Finish the introductory paragraph with a short summary or goal statement. For example: Technological innovation has thus made the traditional workplace obsolete.
8. In each of the body paragraphs (usually two or three) the ideas first presented in the introductory paragraph are developed.
9. Develop your body paragraphs by giving detailed information and examples. For example: When the Internet was first introduced it was used primarily by scientists, now it is common in every classroom.
10. Body paragraphs should develop the central idea and finish with a summary of that idea. There should be at least two examples or facts in each body paragraph to support the central idea.
11. The summary paragraph summarizes your essay and is often a reverse of the introductory paragrah.
12. Begin the summary paragrah by quickly restating the principal ideas of your body paragraphs. For example: The Internet in the home, benefits and ease of use of modern computer systems...
13. The penultimate sentence should restate your basic thesis of the essay. For example: We have now passed from the industrial revolution to the information revolution.
14. Your final statement can be a future prediction based on what you have shown in the essay. For example: The next step: The complete disappearance of the workplace.

Tips:
1. Use strong verbs and avoid modals to state your opinion. It is better to write: The workplace has evolved than THe workplace seems to have evolved
2. Do not apologize for what you are saying. An essay is about your opinion.
3. Do not translate from your mother tongue, it will quickly get you into trouble!
Structure your essay to help your reader
All documents need a start, a middle and an end. Traditionally, we think of the Introduction, Body and Conclusion as the key parts of an essay. Logically, this helps us set the context for the essay (introduction), present the facts and develop the arguments (body) and summarize the main points or the answer to the question set (conclusion).
Writing an essay Introduction
This introduces the main idea of your essay and draws the reader into the subject. A good introduction gets to the heart of the subject and captures the interest of the reader. It should:
• Summarize the issues to show an understanding of the question.
• Look at the issues raised by the question.
• Outline the main issues you intend presenting.
• Present the method of research or experiment.
• Summarize the essay.
• Answer the question set.
Most students write poor introductions that needlessly repeat information and turn off the reader with too much background information. If you want to gain a top grade for your essay, you have to start strongly and gain your reader’s attention immediately. This means concentrating on either writing a powerful summary of the essay or directly answering the question set.
In trying to gain the reader’s attention, you do not need to say anything controversial or mind-blowing. All you need to do is concentrate on writing the most relevant information.
Don’t write a mystery novel
Putting a powerful summary or directly answering the question set at the start of the essay lets your reader assess the information and arguments as you present them. The standard student essay presents information, opinions and arguments, but does not tell the reader what they mean until the end. This turns an essay into a mystery novel with the illuminating conclusion only apparent as the reader turns the last page. Avoid this temptation and spill the beans. By letting your reader know your conclusions at the beginning of the essay, he or she can assess and evaluate the evidence as you present it.
Make your introduction factual
Too often, students write a warm-up first paragraph. Phrases such as: The purpose of the essay is to examine the various contributory factors leading to... or In this essay I shall examine the methodology used to assess... usually give little information. Such phrases could introduce any essay and do not present any information. For example:
Weak opening paragraph
The purpose of this essay is to examine the effect of Einstein’s theories in the historical context of accepted propositions and laws of motion and the effect these theories had on current thinking in the field of physics. In so doing, the author will show that despite opposition to Einstein’s theories when first published, these were indeed special works that reshaped current thinking to replace the ideas propounded by Galileo and Newton.
Stronger opening paragraph
Einstein’s Theory of Special Relativity and Theory of General Relativity reshaped the world of physics by contradicting the existing laws of motion proposed by Galileo and developed by Newton. Although Einstein faced great opposition when proposing his theories, his work reshaped the thinking of future generations of physicists.
Use the journalistic technique of basing your information around the Five-Ws in writing: Who, What, When, Where and Why. These will help you keep to solid information.
Remember, don’t use your introduction as a warm-up — make it direct, relevant and impressive so it sets the tone for the rest of the essay.
Writing an essay Body
This consists of supporting paragraphs, logically arranged to develop your main ideas. List the points you wish to develop, place each point in its own paragraph, and expand on each point with supporting facts, details and examples. Each paragraph should:
• clearly present the relevant information,
• discuss and evaluate information and opinions, and
• develop an argument based on the information and a review of opinions.
This is 80-90 percent of the essay and must satisfy the reader’s appetite. To do this, the body of the essay must reflect solid research, show a clear understanding of the subject, and develop your points logically.
Writing an essay Conclusion
The conclusion draws together the ideas and information presented in the essay. It summarizes or restates the main idea, argument or findings.
The conclusion often:
• gives a clear answer or restatement of the answer to the central question,
• summarizes the main points in the essay,
• repeats the key information and arguments, and
• points out what the evidence suggests.
The conclusion is vital. It is the last impression the reader has of the essay. Use it well, making sure your essay doesn’t fizzle out. Make it a strong statement, confidently answering the question, summarizing the position, and reviewing the topic. If you are in doubt what to put in the conclusion, think about the key information or argument the essay has presented and repeat it in a short, direct form.
Answer the essay question
Make sure that you answer the question when writing an essay. If you are asked to assess, describe or discuss make sure you do assess, describe or discuss the essay question. When you look at the question set, concentrate on the key verb. For example:
Analyze Break down into main ideas and discuss, examine or interpret the proposition.


Compare Examine and identify similarities and differences, but concentrate on similarities.


Contrast Examine differences and explain their relevance.


Compare &
Contrast Examine both similarities and differences.


Criticize Analyze and evaluate the subject critically, looking for weak points in the proposition. You may need to come to a judgment or conclusion based on your analysis and evaluation.


Define Describe, explain and set the limits of the proposition.


Describe Give a precise picture of the characteristics and qualities of the subject.


Discuss Debate the pros and cons of the issue in the question, paying particular attention to areas of controversy or conflict.


Evaluate Assess the proposition by looking at the information and expert opinion. Come to your own conclusions based on the evidence that supports the proposition.


Illustrate Use examples, analogies, and comparisons to explain the proposition.


Interpret Explain the meaning of the proposition, commenting on its effect and describing its relationship to data. Give examples. Evaluate its validity.


Outline Describe main ideas, characteristics, information or events


Prove Support with facts to agree with the proposition.


State Produce the exact information asked.


Summarize Give a brief account, concentrating of the conclusions reached from the proposition.


Trace Describe and analyze the order of events or progress.


Warning: Don’t fall into the trap of writing all you know about the subject — 70 percent will be irrelevant and will not earn you any marks. You’ll also find the irrelevant material detracts from the essential information contained in the essay.
Expanded Five Paragraph Essay
or view an outline of the essay


Introductory Paragraph
People are mistaken who believe the high Rockies are hard to climb. To the traveler who has passed through the plains of Kansas and eastern Colorado, the high Rockies might seem like a beautiful but forbidding wilderness, approachable by only the toughest mountaineers. It is true that the 53 peaks in the Rockies that soar over 14,000 feet in elevation should only be attempted by seasoned climbers. However, the peaks under 14,000 feet, the fourteeners, can be easily climbed by the average person. Actually, climbing Colorado's fourteeners is hardly a rugged experience because most of them take only a day to climb, involve no more than hiking and simple scrambling, and are conquered by many people each year. Click on the arrows to see
a detailed explanation. Motivator
Thesis Sentence

First Body Paragraph
Surprisingly, unlike expeditions to Mt. McKinley or Mt. Everest, a climb up one of Colorado's 14,000 foot peaks rarely takes more than a day. Pike's Peak, with the state's greatest base-to-summit elevation gain, is admittedly a strenuous climb, yet a retired college professor in his middle seventies makes the hike every day in the summer. A friend of mine, Carson Black, in a day, once climbed four fourteeners, three of which--Crestone Peak, Crestone Needle, and Kit Carson Peak--are the most challenging in the state. Even more revealing is the Bicentennial celebration by the Colorado Mountain Club. It planned to have members on the summit of every fourteener in the state on July 4, 1976. Only a handful of ascents took more than a day. Topic Sentence
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Second Body Paragraph
Colorado's 14,000-foot peaks are also fairly easy to climb because they require no special climbing techniques. The "knife-edge traverse" on Capitol Peak is probably the most infamous challenge, yet most hikers who carry ropes don't use them when they see the ridge is not very intimidating. The highest peak in the state, Mt. Elbert, is so simple to climb that a jeep made it in 1949, and one man "rode a 24-year-old bicycle to the summit in 1951" (Perry Eberhart and Philip Schmuck, The Fourteeners, p. 38). I personally saw two motorcycles on the 14,000-foot ridge between Mt. Democrat and Mt. Lincoln. Topic Sentence
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