How to Write a
Five-Paragraph Essay
Five Paragraph Essays
•Follow a defined format
•1st paragraph = introduction
•2nd through 4th paragraphs = body of
essay
•5th paragraph = conclusion
•Every paragraph is important!!!
A good introductory paragraph
includes all three of the
following.
 An attention grabber
 A general topic statement
 A thesis statement
To illustrate the information on
the following slides, we will
pretend to be writing a fiveparagraph essay about how
playing violent video games
can negatively affect
teenagers.
Introductory Paragraph
1.Attention Grabber
very first
• Use the
sentence(s) of your essay to
GRAB the reader’s attention so
that they want to read further!
Use one of the following
suggestions.
 Ask
a provocative question
Can a video game lead to murder?
 State
fact
a shocking or interesting
The game Grand Theft Auto has
sold more than 35 million copies,
with worldwide sales approaching
$2 billion.
an anecdote (a very short
story)
 Use
Police in Alabama believe that months of
playing Grand Theft Auto day and night
led an eighteen year old man to shoot and
kill three people. The District Attorney’s
office claims that the video game
essentially trained the shooter how to
commit the crimes by serving as a “murder
simulator”.
 Begin
with a quote
"Life is like a video game.
Everybody’s got to die
sometime" (Moore, 2005).
2.
General Topic Sentence

Video games are becoming
increasingly violent.


Grand Theft Auto is the most
notorious of the violent video game
genre.
Many parents do not check the
ratings on the video games they buy
for their teenagers.
 In
a five-paragraph essay
you use your thesis
statement to list the three
points
you will be discussing
in your essay in the order
you will be discussing them.
Teenage access to violent
video games should be
further restricted because
such games increase
aggressive thoughts and
behaviours, and decrease
self-control in adolescents.
Police in Alabama believe that months of playing
Grand Theft Auto day and night led an eighteen year
old man to shoot and kill three people. The District
Attorney’s office claims that the video game
essentially trained the shooter how to commit the
crimes by serving as a “murder simulator”. Grand
Theft Auto is the most notorious of the violent video
game genre.Teenage access to such games should be
further restricted because they increase aggressive
thoughts and behaviours, and decrease self-control in
adolescents.
There are three body paragraphs
in a five-paragraph essay. These
paragraphs further develop the
three main points (subtopics) you
listed in your introduction in the
order you listed them.
 increase
aggressive thoughts in
teens
 increase aggressive behaviour in
teens
 decrease an adolescent’s ability
to exercise self-control
Therefore, the body
paragraphs for our essay
would follow the format below.
#1 = how such games increase
aggressive thoughts in teens.
#2 = how these games increase
violent behaviour in teens
#3 = how these games decrease
adolescent self-control

Restate a reworded Subtopic
One and give your supporting
information/examples.
Violent video games can
increase aggressive thoughts in
teenage players. Research by
the American Psychological
Association has shown that this
negative effect occurs in part
because adolescent’s may imitate
characters they can relate to (APA,
2005). In video games like Grand
Theft Auto, the player takes on the
identity of the shooter. Therefore,
if the player begins to associate
with this character more and more,
their aggressive thoughts may
develop into violent acts.
Conclusion
The conclusion brings closure to
the reader, summing up your
points or providing a final
perspective on your topic. All the
conclusion needs is three or four
strong sentences that do not
need to follow any set formula.
As evidenced by many
recent tragedies, violent video
games can be a negative
influence on teenagers. Bloody
games like Grand Theft Auto
and Doom can increase
aggressive thoughts and
behaviours in adolescents.
While created with the purpose to
entertain, these games can
actually decrease a teen’s ability
to censor their own actions.The
only feasible way to prevent these
negative outcomes is to further
restrict teen access to violent
video games.