The Fun & Fabulous
Expository Essay
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Ex-pos-i-to-ry (adjective): serving to expound, set
forth or explain.
This is best accomplished by arguing with facts &
statistical information, cause & effect
relationships or examples.
Since they are factual, they
are usually written without
emotion and in the third
person as this gives an air
of formality.
Discovering and Limiting a Subject
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Pursue your interests and experience.
- If you’re having trouble deciding on a
topic, stick with what you know: friends,
family and school.
Match your subject to the assignment:
- What is wanted from you? For whom are
you writing? What kind of research is
required? Length? Deadline?
Subject cont.
Be specific!
Broad Topic: Summer jobs
Specific Topic: How to find a summer job
Or
What a summer job can teach
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Bail point ONE: Once you have decided on a
topic, you will need THREE different
reasons/ways/ideas of ‘proving’ your perspective.
If you cannot think of three examples within the
first five minutes of finding a topic, you might
want to BAIL and MOVE TO ANOTHER
TOPIC.
Organizing Your Ideas
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Outline, Outline, Outline, Outline, Outline,
Outline, Outline, Outline.
An outline provides the underlying structure
or foundation for your essay.
It includes a fair amount of detail: thesis (I
believe…)statement, topic sentences, main
ideas/support, transitions and concluding
statement.
SAMPLE
ORGANIZERS!
USE YOUR FAVORITE, BUT
USE ONE
Drafting Your Essay:
The First Draft
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With a solid outline in place,
your essay details are now ready for ….
you to bring this all to life.
Some tips for writing the first draft:
- Free write or stream of consciousness.
- Skip the introduction and the conclusion; start in
the middle.
TIP: Always write more than less; it is easier to
take away than it is to add to an essay.
Revise, Re-write, Re-do
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There is no such thing as good writing;
there is only good re-writing.
Once the first draft is written, you should be
on a roll and engaged in your topic; USE
THIS MOMENTUM.
Dive into your essay and remove and/or
revise anything that is a) irrelevant to your
topic and b) grammatically incorrect.
Things to Look Out For
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Does the body of the essay carry out
the purpose of the thesis?
Is the essay coherent?(logical, realistic,
believable?)
Is the sequence of ideas clear?
Are there adequate details, examples or reasons to
support each idea?
Is my essay consistent? – have I stayed true to my
claims? Does my support really further my claim?
Is my essay unified? – are all parts connected to
Now it’s time to take a break ☺
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By this time, you might be so lost in
your writing that you cannot think
clearly anymore.
It is now time to take a break;
preferably a good night’s sleep.
This allows you to attack your
essay with a fresh set of eyes in
the morning.
Final Edits
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The last step is the editing and proofing
process.
This phase should be dedicated to
fine-tuning the grammatical errors.
Some techniques: read your work out loud
or have a friend read/edit your paper.
Peer editing is a great way to have a fresh
set of eyes evaluate your paper.
Finito
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With all these elements in place, you should
be ready to release your work to the world.
While this may sound dramatic, it is the
kind of weight you should be placing on
something you have put so much
time and effort into.
Now, be proud and pat
yourself on the back.
Helpful Tips
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When teachers mark essays they look at two
major criteria: the strength of your
argument/ideas and your
formatting/grammar.
If these two areas are strong, then you will
have an effective essay.
So How Do I Write a GREAT
Essay…
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Once you are confident with the solidity of
your argument and correctness of format
and grammar, you must look to set your
essay apart.
Great essays will have original ideas, a flair
for language, clever arguments and creative
power.
They will make you say ‘ooooooooohhh….’
Great Essays Continued…
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I would argue that movies are just visual essays.
You have your good movies that make an
entertaining argument: think romantic comedies.
Then you have your trailblazers
that move away from convention
and reinvent ideas within the
framework of a movie:
think Quentin Tarantino.
If you can break new ground within
your essay while adhering to the
framework of format and grammar,
then you will have a great essay.
HAPPY WRITING!