Essay writing skills.

• “….but that’s not what we have to do in

history/performing
arts/biology/geography/TOK/media studies”
(delete as applicable)
• There are differing conventions to essay
writing in different subjects
• Style may be different, but approach and
structure should not be.
• There are key skills to be harnessed in all
essay writing
Pinning Down the Argument
• There needs to be an over-arching argument
that links all the strands of your response
together.
• It needs to be clear immediately what the
argument will be
• The best way to start thinking about your
argument is to write a thesis statement.
• A paragraph or so that sets out your own
answer to the question as part of your plan
• To help write the introduction
• To remind you of your central focus at every
stage of the essay-writing process.
 The Thesis Statement
Where is the debate?
• How far was the desire for wealth the principal
motive for participants in the First Crusade?
(History)
• “In Wuthering Heights love is presented as an
emotion which provokes violence rather than
tenderness.” To what extent do you agree with
this view? (English)

• How would you start teasing out an argument?

Let’s take one we can all look
at….
“The fish finger should only ever be
consumed in a sandwich of white bread, with
a smidgeon of tomato ketchup” (Dr. Simon
Gibbons)
To what extent do you agree with Dr.
Gibbons’ view?

Spend 2 mins on your tables drafting a thesis

statement.
 The plan….
• Don’t forget this!
• Spider diagram
• Agree/Disagree table (in a debate style question)
• Bullet point list
• However your brain works!
• Relevant evidence (subject dependent)

• MOST IMPORTANT – the order in which you

sequence your ideas….
• Organisation will depend on subject – speak to your
teachers!
• How would you go about working out a structure?
 The plan – part 2 - structuring
• Put your arguments on slips of paper.
• In your groups move the ideas into an order –
make sure you discuss which you think the best
order is.

• How are you connecting your ideas?

• Look at the question.
• Look at your thesis statement.
• On other slips, write connecting phrases
between your ideas.
Introduction
• This should confidently set out exactly what
you think the answer to the question is and
how you are going to prove it
• Think of it as a signpost, telling the reader
what they should expect from your essay.
• Do not be tempted to include something just
in the hope that you will impress the reader
with your knowledge of the subject – it
should be tightly focused on the essay
question.
Writing the Body of the Essay
• Make sure that every paragraph opens and concludes
with a statement that shows how this point contributes
to your argument and thereby answers the question.
• In coursework essays a useful technique to check
whether or not you have actually done this is to copy
and paste the first and last sentence of every
paragraph into a word document.
• You can then read these and check whether you can
see an argument develop through these sentences.
• If the sentences appear to be a mixture of random
points then it is clear that you have not used each
paragraph to structure your argument effectively
enough.
Concluding
• This part of the essay is used to draw
your points together
• It should make it clear to the reader
the final destination that your
argument has reached.
• However, one thing to be careful of is
simply repeating everything that has
already been said.
• How do you avoid this?