A five-paragraph essay is a widespread form of checking students’ knowledge and improving the necessary skills. In fact, college students often face this form of academic assignment throughout their studies. To get a high grade, you need to follow certain rules. Mastering this assignment will also help you get ready for passing standard academic tests and writing other essay types easily and without errors.
A five paragraph essay should be 500 to 800 words long including an introductory paragraph, three supporting paragraphs and a concluding paragraph.
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How to write 5-paragraph essay
Learning how to write the five-paragraph essay correctly will help you master the skill of giving a clear answer on a particular topic. It has a special format that you should take into account before you start writing this paper. The rules of writing this type of essay are not difficult to understand. The first thing you should do is to learn how to make your future essay organized, easy to read, and well-structured.
Structure of 5-paragraph essay
To succeed in writing this task, you should accurately follow the guidelines and meet the rules of formatting and structuring the future text. Correct structure of the five-paragraph essay includes three compulsory parts:
- Introduction
As a small outline to the essay, the introductory part should include a thesis statement. It must be eye-catching and captivating to draw the reader’s attention. Its purpose is to tell the reader what the essay is about. Note that this paragraph must end with a transitional link leading to the next part of the essay.
- Body paragraphs
Paragraph #1 should contain the main argument to emphasize the beginning of your essay. Here you should use the “reverse link” as a way of connection with the transitional link in the introductory part of your paper. At the end of it goes yet another transition leading towards the next part of the main body.
Paragraph #2 contains yet another strong argument, while the topic of this body part should be explained in the 1st or 2nd sentence. It should also contain the main points reflected in the thesis statement.
Paragraph #3 usually includes the weakest point with a reverse and transitional link just like all other paragraphs in the main body. It should also contain the end hook to notify the audience what the major point of the essay is.
On the whole, the main body part should be easy to read, comprehensible and, most importantly, always linked to the given topic.
- Conclusion
Conclusion of the essay is a brief summary of the whole paper. It’s important to emphasize the thesis here one more time together with several supporting arguments expressed in a powerful manner. This is done to persuade the audience that all the information you provided is valid.
Steps to writing 5-paragraph essay
There are a few important steps to take when writing this essay type. This will let you do everything correctly and get a good grade for your paper.
#1 Choose the topic
You may be given a list of topics to choose from. Try to choose the one that supports the main thesis. It should contain three reasons in support of three main body paragraphs.
#2 Do a bit of research and gather data
Dig into research by checking some facts and finding data related to the main topic. It’s better to gather more data than you will possibly need. That’s because it’s always easier to erase excessive information than to find new facts in the middle of the writing process especially if the deadline is coming closer.
#3 Write a thesis statement
The thesis should reflect the main idea of your essay, although it can still be changed and improved after doing the research. If you polish the thesis to perfection, the next step will go smoother.
#4 Make an outline for the essay
This is a very important step of the writing process simply because it will help you make your work more organized. When making the outline, take into account the next points:
- Write down your thesis;
- Find three main ideas to support it. They must go separately but should still be connected to the key point of the text;
- Find a link between all three ideas to demonstrate in what way they prove your essay’s thesis.
Note: the ending of your essay mustn’t contain any new ideas. Instead, everything you’ve written before should be interlinked to form a well-organized paper.
#5 Start writing the essay
Organize your thoughts and gather the materials to write the 5-paragraph essay according to the structure described above.
#6 Revise the essay and make corrections
There are several revision tips that will help you make your essay free from errors.
- Reread the text all by yourself and try to detect possible mistakes;
- Read it aloud once again and see how smooth the flow of writing is – this will let you detect any missing words, excess wordiness or inappropriate transitions;
- Ask your friend or relative to read your text and give feedback.
#7 Submit the essay If you’ve done everything correctly, you’ll surely get a well-deserved grade. Just don’t forget to submit the essay timely to meet the deadline.