How to Write a Five Paragraph Essay

When I was in middle school I was fortunate enough to have a brilliant English teacher. He taught me skills that have guided me through many assignments. One of these is the five paragraph essay. In order to become a writer that can communicate his ideas in an orderly fashion, the five paragraph essay is necessary foundation to have. The basic outline of a five paragraph essay will look like this:

First Paragraph: The introduction and thesis statement.

Second Paragraph: Discussing your first point.

Third Paragraph: Discussing your second point.

Fourth Paragraph: Discussing your third point.

Fifth Paragraph: Conclusion and restating the thesis statement.   

We will discuss each of the paragraphs individually. 

The first paragraph is known as the introduction. It is important to grab the readers attention with the first few sentences. Never start out an essay with sentences like “Today I will be writing about…” or “The reason I think…”. Those types of sentences usually do not make for very good reading. After you have introduced your topic you should conclude your paragraph with a thesis statement. Dictionary.com defines a thesis statement as an explanation of the topic or purpose of a research paper. For example, if I was writing an essay on why dogs are the best pet, my thesis statement could be: Dogs are clearly the best pet to own because they are cute, loyal, and make good companions. This statement will be the outline of your paper. 

Paragraphs two through four will have basically the same structure. In each of these paragraphs you will be discussing one of your three points. For example, for the second paragraph you will discuss why dogs are cute. In the third you will discuss why they are loyal, and finally in the fourth you will discuss why they make good companions. Use as many examples and personal experiences as possible. The more examples you use, the stronger your argument.

The final paragraph is the conclusion. Like the name implies, you will be finishing with this paragraph. This is where you tie everything together and then restate your thesis. Ex. Dogs are obviously the best pet. Through all of the good times and bad my dog has been with me. His cuteness, loyalty, and companionship has proved that dogs are the superior pet. 

Click the link below for an example of a five paragraph essay.

http://authspot.com/thoughts/example-of-a-five-paragraph-essay-fearlessness-vs-courageousness/

It is imperative that you master the five paragraph essay early in your writing career. It is truly the foundation from which you will build your writing career. I hope I was able to help! Happy writing everybody!