Reverse OutliningA simple technique

for seeing the structure and

organization of your essay

Writing Process

Pre-writingOutline EssayWhere is this piece

going?What is my thesis?What information do

I need to include to prove my thesis?

Post-writingEssay OutlineWhere did this piece

go? Is it easy to follow? Is it logical?Too repetitive?Are there any gaps

in my reasoning?

By the end of this lesson, you will be able to…

1. Complete a reverse outline.2. Understand the difference between an

organized and disorganized essay.3. See how to re-organize your Into the

Wild essay.4. Use the reverse outline to revise your

first draft of the Into the Wild essay.

http://writingcenter.unc.edu/handouts/reverse-outline/

Step 1

1. Take out your essay, 3 different colored highlighters, and a pencil.

2. Label your hook (attention grabber), bridge (background information), and thesis

3. Underline the sentence you think states the main claim (thesis) of your essay.

4. If you do not have a thesis, add a sentence in that states your claim and highlight it.

Step 2

1. Read through each body paragraph.

2. As you read you will complete steps 3 and 4 for every paragraph.

3. Do not complete these steps for the intro or the conclusion.

Step 3

1. Choose one highlighter color.

2. For each paragraph you will use the same color for this step.

3. Identify the main idea of your paragraph. This might be the first sentence or maybe somewhere else and highlight it.

4. In the margin, write the overarching topic in one to several words.

Step 4

Once you figure out the main idea of each paragraph, then go back through and identify the following:

1. Details: quotes, examples, observations, facts, etc. Highlight these in another color.

2. Explanations: this is any sentence that explains how the details relate to the main idea of the paragraph and supports the main claim (thesis). Highlight these in another color.

While this actual ad just has a picture of Kelly Ripa, an oven, and a lot of cakes, this ad also encourages the audience to imagine certain things and make certain associations. It makes me think of the perfect working mom, someone who works all day and then comes home and is able to take care of her kids and bake beautiful desserts for her friends. Many women would look at this ad and see Kelly as an example of a woman who is able to balance a career and a family. Mostly women watch Kelly’s shows, and they probably know she has a husband and children because she talks about them on her show. So when people look at this ad, they might imagine themselves being successful like Kelly, making millions of dollars at her job and still having the time to cook for family and friends. The ad suggests that if a viewer buys the Electrolux oven, which is very high quality, that person will save time and be able to make gourmet food in an expert way. The ad implies that Kelly could come home from work and bake over twenty cakes if she wanted to since she has such a nice oven. It may make a viewer think, “if only I had a better kitchen and better appliances, I might be able to be more like Kelly. I might be able to have the time and energy to cook for my family and friends after a long day at work.”

ExampleAd=specific im

agery

and associations

Detail #1: image is

perfect working

mom balances

career and family

Explanation: seeing

image is

internalized and

leads to buying the

product

Final StepAsk yourself the following questions:

• Do each of my body paragraphs have a main idea?

• Does each main idea help to develop and support my main point/argument?

• Do I stick to my main idea in each sentence of my paragraph? Do I need to delete or move sentences that do not fit?

• Do I have a combination of details and explanation in each paragraph? Do I need to add more of one to make sure there is more of a balance?

• Overall, do I provide enough details and explanation to prove my main point/argument to my reader?