Essay Rule of Thumb
The minimum number of paragraphs that a multi-paragraph essay should have.
What is 4?
The marks, such as period, comma, and parentheses, used in writing to separate sentences and their elements and to clarify meaning.
What is punctuation?
Expresses the meaning of something written (or spoken) using different words.
What is paraphrase?
This is done in the first hour of the Writing FSA.
What is reading the passages, planning (column notes, outlines, etc)?
This sentence is the road map for your essay, it tells the reader what you will be writing about.
What is thesis statement/sentence?
The minimum number of sentences in a body paragraph when elaborating (how many sentences per evidence).
What is 2/4?
The first letter of a sentence and proper nouns.
What is capitalization?
Taking someone else's work or ideas and passing them off as one's own.
What is plagarism?
Spend about 5 minutes on this (when you start writing your essay).
What is an introduction?
The facts, examples, or sources used to support a claim.
What is evidence?
The minimum number of main ideas that have to be inferenced when responding to the prompt (in your thesis sentence).
What is 2?
Examples are: Evidently, Obviously, As a result etc.
What are elaboration starters?
A type of essay in which the writer provides information about a specific topic.
What is an informative essay?
Spend 30-45 minutes on these.
What are body paragraphs?
The opening paragraph of the essay.
What is an introduction?
The most important sentence to include in the introduction.
Examples are: According to the text, The author stated, Based on the example found in....
What are citations starters?
Start a line of text further from the margin than the main part of the text.
What is indent?
Spend the last 5 minutes of writing your essay on this.
What is a conclusion?
The closing paragraph of your essay.
What is a conclusion?
In an argument essay, this sentence states both positions and is found in one of the body paragraphs on an essay.
What is counterclaim?
Used when two words share the same sound and pronunciation but are spelled differently. Also known as commonly confused words in the English language.
What are homophones?
An essay in which the writer uses thorough research to defend their position on a disputable topic.
What is an argument essay?
After writing your essay and before turning it in.
What is proofreading?
A reference to the source of information used in your research.
What is citation?