Key Parts of an Essay

The Super Sentences!

An Essay Must Have• Beginning: The Introduction

– Grabs the reader’s attention, introduces the topic, and establishes the controlling idea

• Middle: The Body Paragraphs– Fully Explain, support, and describe the

controlling idea and provide details• End: The Conclusion

– Brings the paper to a close, leaves the reader with something to ponder, to do, or to remember

The Super Sentences

• When you create an essay, there are several key sentences or sentence groups that you want to make sure you write.

• They will help you structure your paper.• They will make your paper easy to follow

and understand.

The Attention Grabber

• This sentence or combination of sentences goes in the introduction.

• It is important because it gives the reader a reason to be interested.

Example: Did you know that a recent study in California revealed that 95% of college students admit to having cheated on their homework? Cheating has become an epidemic!

The Controlling Idea• This sentence is in the introduction, and

shows your reader your topic. It sets the tone of the paper

• It is important because it controls the entire paper.

• Every single sentence in the whole paper must relate to your controlling idea.

Ex. I believe that a food court in our cafeteria would help to improve our school.

So, the introduction has…• The Attention Grabber (AG)• The Controlling Idea (CI)Ex. Do you ever get sick of using boring, old,

outdated text books in school? Studies in Iowa show students retain more information when they use technology for learning than when they use text books. I believe that if schools relied more on technology and less on paper, we could dramatically improve education.

The Topic Sentences

• Each body paragraph MUST have a Topic Sentence

• The Topic Sentence is usually the first sentence in a body paragraph

• It is important because it shows the reader the main idea for the paragraph

• It usually begins with a transition• Every sentence in the paragraph must

relate to the topic sentence

So the body paragraph has

• A Topic Sentence• Supporting sentences and details

Ex. Second, I think that increasing technology in our schools will help students prepare for the real world. The workplace is filled with computers, and more and more often jobs require knowledge of technology. If students have access to technology in school, by the time they enter the workforce, using required programs and systems will be second nature for them.

Summary Sentence

• This sentence goes in your conclusion• It restates your main ideas• It is important because it reminds your

readers of your main idea so that it sticks in their brains.

Ex. The high quality educational environment that technology provides will improve our school.

Clincher

• This sentence or group of sentences leaves your reader with a lasting impression to ponder or remember.

• It ends the paper.

Ex. Because of all of it’s wonderful qualities, I feel lucky that my home is close to a Chick-fil-a so that I can visit it whenever the craving strikes.

The Conclusion Has

• The Summary Statement (SS)• The Clincher (CS)

Ex. Nothing can improve a dog’s dedication, intelligence, and friendship. Because a dog offers all of these wonderful qualities, I realize why people say, “A dog is a man’s best friend.” I would feel fortunate to have a dog as an animal companion.

So the SUPER SENTENCES Are:

1. Attention Grabber

2. Controlling Idea

3. Topic Sentences

4. Summary Statement

5. Clincher

Source: Balog, David, Ed. The Dana Source Book of Brain Science: Resources for Teachers and Students 4th edition. Dana Press, c2006.

Source: Balog, David, Ed. The Dana Source Book of Brain Science: Resources for Teachers and Students 4th edition. Dana Press, c2006.

Transverse Section — Writing Words