prompts, thesis statements and topic sentences

Prompts, Thesis Statements and Topic SentencesOr: All I wanted to know about writing but was afraid to ask.

Prompts

• A ‘prompt’ is basically an order. That is, it is an instruction for you to do something. For writing tasks, your prompt will usually be given on a sheet of paper.

• Examples:‘READ’ the following quotation…‘THINK’ about your neighborhood…‘WRITE’ an essay explaining…

Finding the Right Prompt

• For writing, by far the most important prompt is the one which starts “WRITE”!

• More often than not, this writing prompt will be given to you in the form of a statement, not a question:

“Write an essay explaining why it is important to eat breakfast.”

Rewrite the Prompt as a Quesiton

“Write an essay explaining why it is important to eat breakfast.”

• This is not a question, which immediately makes it harder to answer, so…

• Always change your prompt into a question:“Why is it important to eat breakfast?”

Prompt = Question

• Now that we have converted the prompt into a question, we can answer that question.

“Why is it important to eat breakfast?”

Your Thesis Statement is the Answer!

“Why is it important to eat breakfast?”• Now that you have a clear question, you can give an

extensive answer. That answer is called your THESIS STATEMENT, and it’s basically your main idea.

• A thesis statement can be made in one of two ways: LONG or SHORT.

Short Thesis

• A short thesis statement answers the question, but does not name the supporting reasons that the paper will discuss.

“Why is it important to eat breakfast?”

Short Thesis:

Breakfast is a crucial meal due to the many heath benefits it gives people.

Supporting Reasons

Short Thesis:

Breakfast is a crucial meal due to the many heath benefits it gives people.

• In our short thesis, we mentioned that breakfast gives people ‘many health benefits’, yet we didn’t specifically say what those benefits were. In this essay, those benefits will be called our supporting reasons.

Supporting Reasons

• These supporting reasons should be general! They shouldn’t be specific examples!

Short Thesis: Breakfast is a crucial meal due to the many heath benefits it gives people.

Such as: 1. It gives people more energy in the morning.2. Breakfast helps people have a better attitude.

Long Thesis Statement

• In my long thesis statement, I include my supporting reasons with my answer.

• This is a great idea for most writers: it gives the writer some structure, and it gives the reader a preview of what the essay will be about:

“Breakfast is a crucial meal because it gives people an energy boost in the morning and helps them bring a positive attitude to their day.”

Supporting Reasons are Topic Sentences

• In my long thesis, I included supporting reasons. These reasons will become my topic sentences. They will help to control the essay (and help to take up some extra space if necessary).

“ …Breakfast is a crucial meal because it gives people an energy boost in the morning and helps them bring a positive attitude to their day. One reason it is essential that people eat breakfast is because of the energy it can provide to them. In the morning, it is sometimes hard to get going…”

What is a Body Paragraph?

• A body paragraph is different from an introductory paragraph or concluding paragraph.

• A body paragraph is built from your supporting reasons. It starts with a topic sentence and contains examples and a closing sentence.

“ …Breakfast is a crucial meal because it gives people an energy boost in the morning and helps them bring a positive attitude to their day. One reason it is essential that people eat breakfast is because of the energy it can provide to them. In the morning, it is sometimes hard to get going. Without proper nutrition, the body lacks fuel for the morning’s activities. A healthy breakfast, for example, such as granola or a hard-boiled eggs, can give a person much-needed calories. Thus, the morning meal is very helpful in making a person have a productive and successful day.”

Examples

• Examples are like a snapshot of your supporting reason. They show your supporting reason in real life. They are specific, and should give the reader a tangible image of the supporting reason.

“ …Breakfast is a crucial meal because it gives people an energy boost in the morning and helps them bring a positive attitude to their day. One reason it is essential that people eat breakfast is because of the energy it can provide to them. In the morning, it is sometimes hard to get going. Without proper nutrition, the body lacks fuel for the morning’s activities. A healthy breakfast, for example, such as granola or a hard-boiled eggs, can give a person much-needed calories…”

Body Paragraph - Closing Sentence

• Now that your body paragraph has both a topic sentence as well as a supporting example, you need to wrap it up.

• Your closing sentence will tie your example to your topic sentence. It will end your body paragraph.

“ …Breakfast is a crucial meal because it gives people an energy boost in the morning and helps them bring a positive attitude to their day. One reason it is essential that people eat breakfast is because of the energy it can provide to them. In the morning, it is sometimes hard to get going. Without proper nutrition, the body lacks fuel for the morning’s activities. A healthy breakfast, for example, such as granola or a hard-boiled eggs, can give a person much-needed calories. Thus, the morning meal is very helpful in making a person have a productive and successful day.”

What about the intro?

• Your introduction goes at the beginning of your paper. It often comes directly before the thesis statement. There are a few different ways to introduce a paper, but the most important idea is don’t jump into your main idea or your examples when you introduce your paper.

• A few strategies for introducing your paper include background, personal story, and generic.

Let’s start with background…

Intro via Background

• ‘Background’ introductions usually give some history or context to the subject. They talk about the past of the subject or the current situation of the topic, for example:

“The morning meal has always been a necessary part of human history. These days, as people become busy they are passing up breakfast more and more. This can have potentially devastating effects…Breakfast is a crucial meal because it gives people an energy boost in the morning and helps them bring a positive attitude to their day. One reason…”

Intro via Personal Story

• Some introductions can start off the paper with an actual example from the writer’s life. This can add a personal touch and show that the topic is relevant to the writer:

“One morning, I decided to skip my breakfast because I was tired. This made me feel so sleepy and sluggish that I could hardly think. On most mornings, this wouldn’t have been such a big deal. On that day, however, I realized why the morning meal is important. That was the morning I took the SAT…Breakfast is a crucial meal because it gives people an energy boost in the morning and helps them bring a positive attitude to their day. One reason…”

Generic Intro

• The generic intro is a basic introduction that is short, but works in almost all cases. It’s a good way to start a paper when you can’t really think of an exciting introduction.

• The generic intro makes a basic statement about the subject, usually like:

“Although there are many X, Y is the most important”

• You may have to change your generic intro depending on what topic you are discussing!

“Although every meal is important, breakfast is by far the most necessary of all…Breakfast is a crucial meal because it gives people an energy boost in the morning and helps them bring a positive attitude to their day. One reason…”

Breakdown

“The morning meal has always been a necessary part of human history. These days, as people become busy they are passing up breakfast more and more. This can have potentially devastating effect. Breakfast is a crucial meal because it gives people an energy boost in the morning and helps them bring a positive attitude to their day.

One reason it is essential that people eat breakfast is because of the energy it can provide to them. In the morning, it is sometimes hard to get going. Without proper nutrition, the body lacks fuel for the morning’s activities. A healthy breakfast, for example, such as granola or a hard-boiled eggs, can give a person much-needed calories. Thus, the morning meal is very helpful in making a person have a productive and successful day.”

Intro

duct

ory

Para

grap

hB

ody Paragraph # 1

Introduction

Thesis Statement

Topic Sentence/

Supporting Reason

Supporting Example

Concluding Sentence

Let’s Review

• A ‘prompt’ is an order. Know how to locate a writing prompt.• Always rewrite the prompt as a question!• A ‘thesis statement’ is actually an answer. The ‘question’ comes from

your prompt.• There are long and short thesis statements. Long thesis statements give

more detail and are usually better.• Topic sentences go at the beginning of body paragraphs and help add

clarity and structure. Concluding sentences come at the end of body paragraph and tie your supporting reason back to the thesis and topic sentence.

• Supporting reasons are not examples, they are the basic reasons for your thesis statement.