Three Point Essay or Five Paragraph Essay
Once the boys have mastered the three point paragraph it is time for the three point essay, which is usually during 7th grade. This is important due to this is the format most colleges prefer for students to write their papers. I believe it may be due to the ease and flow which this style brings to a paper.
While this is a three point essay it is made up of five paragraphs. Each paragraph is important to the essay and contains information vital to the reader. The first paragraph needs to grab the attention of the reader. To accomplish this the writer must decide the audience being written to along with what type of essay it is and the point they want to make. During the high school years students should write a variety of different essays to prepare for the college years.
During my search for different types of essays I found it interesting that different web sites contained different types, but did share the basics. During my college years OWL, online writing lab, was recommended for use. This is a great site for writing and if a student or you are not really sure what an essay is OWL does a nice job of explaining it. Private Writing touches on some types of essays students may come across during their college years, so we will be working on those as well.
Just like the three point paragraph the three point essay follows a format that is similar to the paragraph only more detailed. For instance instead of two sentences per point there will be a paragraph for each point. Southwest Tennessee Community College has a page which clearly explains the format of each paragraph.
While not all students find writing an easy task, there are a variety of methods to aid in this. Writing does come easy for me however, there are times I have way too many ideas or one idea I want to elaborate on. In order to do this I will brainstorm using either a Venn diagram or an outline. However, there are a variety of ways to brainstorm and even some worksheets to aid in the process. This will also aid in helping the student to stay on topic without wandering.
In my next post I will discuss how I am dealing with my reluctant writer. Who can write, but does not enjoy the process.