SECOND SECTION OF TODAY´S CLASS: THE PROCESS OF WRITING AN ESSAY

1) THINK ABOUT IDEAS TO WRITE ABOUT

1) We need a topic

2) We need an idea about the topic – a controlling idea.

3) We have to know /decide how we are going to develop the essay; the mode of development we are going
to use.

 If we have to write a cause-analysis essay, there has to be an indicator of cause-analysis in the thesis
statement (and possibly in the topic sentences). Examples of indicators of cause-analysis:

Zilker Park is a model city park in that (because) it offers outdoor sports facilities, cultural programs,
and opportunities to appreciate nature.

There may be several reasons, but three stand out.

 If we have to write an effect-analysis essay, there has to be an indicator of effect-analysis in the

thesis statement (and possibly in the topic sentences).

4) Write a draft of the Thesis Statement (check that the thesis statement has a topic and remember it´s just
one topic, the controlling idea, and an indicator of mode of development).

5) Break the topic down into smaller ideas (analysis); these ideas should at least be two and no more than
three. They will become the topic sentences of your outline and essay.

6) Write a draft of your Topic sentences.

7) Write down the supporting ideas with which you are going to develop each of the topic sentences. You
should think of at least two supporting items for each topic sentence.

8) Write the drafts of your supporting ideas. In the outline they will be expressed in noun phrases.

2) WRITE ALL THE ABOVE DOWN IN AN OUTLINE, FOLLOWING THE CONVENTIONS

AGREED UPON IN LANGUAGE III. (Presentation on Outlines Slide 3)
In the outline to your essay, you will write the thesis statement in full (as it will appear in the essay) without
any label.

Below the thesis statement you will write the first topic sentence in full (as it appears in the essay), which
you will signal by means of the letter A.

Below the first topic sentence you will list the supporting ideas or evidence, which you will signal by means
of Arabic numerals (1, 2, 3, etc.). These ideas will be expressed in noun phrases.

Below the supporting items for A (your first topic sentence), you will write your second topic sentence, and
you will signal it by the letter B. You will list the supporting ideas as you did for A.

If you have a third topic sentence, you will do as you did for A and B.

If you were to include sub-supporting items, you should use lower-case letters (a, b, c).

3) WRITE THE ESSAY

First, write the title to your essay or leave a space to write it once you´ve finished writing your essay.

Second, copy the thesis statement from your outline. It should be exactly like the thesis statement you
wrote in your outline.
The thesis statement should be the last sentence in the introductory paragraph to the essay. But, you
probably remember that in Language III we won´t be writing introductory paragraphs. So, you should write
the thesis statement by itself, as a paragraph of just one sentence.

Third, start writing the first developmental paragraph. You should start by copying the first topic sentence
from your outline, which should be exactly like the topic sentence you wrote in your outline.

Supporting Item 1

 Step 1: Right after the topic sentence, you should introduce the first supporting item (A 1 in your
outline). You may want to use a connector to introduce each supporting item. In these kinds of
essays, it will most likely be an additive connector. The supporting items should be introduced
straightforwardly. You should try to use a similar wording to the one used in the outline, but in the
essay it should be a full sentence. Introduce the supporting straightforwardly, leaving any further
explanation or details for the following sections of the paragraph.
 Step 2: Once you’ve straightforwardly introduced the first supporting item, you should clearly
explain it in several sentences so that the reader, who may have not read the story, can understand
your ideas.
 Step 3: After the explanation of the supporting item, you should give evidence from the text.
Sometimes you may use connectors like “for example” (please, check punctuation when using “for
example”, “for instance”, “such as”, etc.).

Supporting Item 2

Once you’ve finished the three steps for the first supporting item, you should repeat the same three
steps for supporting item 2.

 Step 1: First you should straightforwardly introduce the second supporting item (A 2 in your outline).
You will use an additive connector to indicate that you are now dealing with the second supporting
item. Again here you should try to use a similar wording to the one used in the outline, but
remember in the essay it should be a full sentence. Introduce the supporting straightforwardly,
leaving any further explanation or details for the following sections of the paragraph.
 Step 2: Once you’ve straightforwardly introduced the second supporting item, you should clearly
explain it in several sentences so that the reader, who may have not read the story, can understand
your ideas.
 Step 3: After the explanation of the supporting item, you should give evidence from the text.
Sometimes you may use connectors like “for example” (please, check punctuation when using “for
example”, “for instance”, “such as”, etc.).

Finally, write a concluding sentence to the paragraph. It should be just one sentence where you round
off everything you said in the paragraph. What you will say is similar to what you expressed in the topic
sentence.

Fourth, start writing the second developmental paragraph. You should start by copying the second topic
sentence from your outline, which should be exactly like the topic sentence you wrote in your outline. Here
you should follow the same process as in the first developmental paragraph. Right after the topic sentence,
you should introduce the first supporting item (B 1 in your outline). You may want to use a connector to
introduce each supporting item. In these kinds of essays, it will most likely be an additive connector. You
should follow the three steps explained above for both B1 and B2, and include a concluding sentence after
finishing the third step in B2.