Grade 7 – English
Quarter 4 – Truth Essay
Big Fish
This year we have explored the concepts of storytelling, truth and heroes. The
movie, Big Fish, also explores the concepts of storytelling, the differences between
truth and fantasy and heroes. Choose one of the questions below. Your task is to
write a persuasive essay (maximum 5 paragraphs) that answers the question. You
must answer the question and convince the reader that your answer is correct.
Choose one of the characters (Ed
Bloom, Will Bloom, Joséphine Bloom,
Sandra (née Templeton) Bloom, and
Jennifer Hill) in Big Fish. Is she/he a
hero?
Edward Bloom, the main character of
Big Fish, shares his life through his
stories. Do you believe him? Is he
telling the truth?
A persuasive essay is a piece of writing in which the writer aims to persuade the reader to adopt a
certain point of view. The writer uses a clear argument, sound logic and solid evidence by stating facts,
giving logical reasons, and using specific examples from the text. You must write a clear thesis
statement that answers the question. Use the PEE (point, evidence, explanation) format to help you
organize your body paragraphs. Remember to use the tools and language of persuasion we have
learned this quarter. Transitional words are also key words to use to help you organize your ideas.
Here is a guide that might help you organize your ideas:
i.
ii.
iii.
iv.
v.
Introduction
 Brief plot summary
 Introduce character
 Thesis statement
Reason #1
 Point
 Evidence
 Explanation
Reason #2
 Point
 Evidence
 Explanation
Reason #3
 Point
 Evidence
 Explanation
Conclusion
 Summary of main points
 Restate thesis statement
Grade 7 – English
Quarter 4 – Truth Essay
Thesis Statements
What is a thesis statement?
 One sentence that shows relationship between ideas and presents them in order
 Provide the reader with a “guide” to your arguments
 Provide the reader with a “roadmap” to your essay
How do I write a good thesis statement?
 Narrow the topic
 Take a stand
 Be specific
 Explain the order of your arguments
 Keep to one main idea
What is the main question I am trying to answer?
Thumbs up or Thumbs down?
1. People use many lawn chemicals.


Bad – observation
Better – People are poisoning the environment with dangerous chemicals to keep their lawns
green.
2. The thesis of this paper is the difficulty of solving environmental problems.


Bad – announce subject; no main idea or argument
Better – Solving our environmental problems is more difficult than many environmentalists
believe.
3. The American steel industry has many problems.


Bad – Too broad; need to narrow focus
Better – The primary problem of the American steel industry is the lack of money to renovate
old equipment and modernize plants.
4. World hunger has many causes and effects.


Bad – vague; need to be more specific
Better – Hunger persists in Mongolia because jobs are scarce and farming infertile soil is not
profitable.
Grade 7 – English
Quarter 4 – Truth Essay
5. I am going to write about senior citizens who volunteer at literacy projects, and I am going to show
that they are physically and mentally invigorated by the responsibility of volunteering.


Good
Better – Senior citizens who volunteer at literacy projects are invigorated physically and
mentally by the responsibility of volunteering.
6. Because half of all American elementary school children consume nine times the recommended daily
allowance of sugar, schools should be required to replace the beverages in soda machines with healthy
alternatives.

Good
Write your own thesis statement for your essay.
_____________________________________, one of the main characters in the movie entitled
Big Fish, is (not) a hero because ___________________________________________________
______________________________________________________________________________.
Edward Bloom, the main character in Big Fish, shares his life through his far-fetched stories,
which I believe are __________________________________________________________
because ___________________________________________________________________.