An essay is the easiest type of academic paper. If you cannot cope with it, you cannot move further.
There are several steps you should take before starting your first essay paragraph. The first thing you should know is your topic. Usually, the teachers give one to students. However, from time to time, they wish to check your ability to select relevant problems by allowing a free choice of topic. Some students benefit from it while others sit for hours without being able to start the first paragraph.
It is a good idea to get free help by attending websites with perfect essay examples. You can also download several templates to make your project out of them. When you look through the examples, keep in mind that the selected topic must be related to the subject you study. It must be easy to develop a strong thesis statement based on the chosen problem.
It is better to know which types of essays there are in the academic world. The tone of each paragraph depends on the type of paper. You can write one of the following essays:
- Definition
- Narrative
- Character analysis
- Argumentative
- Analytical
- Critical thinking
- Compare and contrast
- Reflection
It might be helpful to consider all possible types of essays before starting your first paragraph.
Even though there is a generally accepted essay paragraph structure, it would be better to plan the structure of the project. Decide how many arguments there should be, how many paragraphs the main body must occupy, etc. Will there be three or five arguments to defend the main topic idea? By creating an outline, you’ll always know the structure and length of every sentence.
Overall Essay Structure
A standard essay has three main parts. Sometimes, it has four parts in case some sources should be applied. On the whole, the plan looks like this:
- Introduction (roughly 10% of the total text. It can be a single paragraph or several paragraphs, depending on the size of the whole paper). In the first section, a writer has to introduce the topic or main idea. The primary sentence which is thesis must capture the attention of the reader. Find out how to write a good thesis here. A writer can end up posting a question or shocking fact. If it’s a question, an answer must be provided throughout the text. If it’s a claim, at least three arguments have to support it. Share the background information. Restrict the scope of discussion by choosing the idea. Impose a research question. Reflect the pain of coverage along with your line of viewpoint or outcomes. P.S. A writer can make his personal agenda to avoid too much generalization or narrow down the focus.
- Three to five body paragraphs (depending on the number of arguments you wish to consider as the evidence to support your thesis statement). Every new body paragraph must contain the main idea known as the argument. So, there should be as many points as many paragraphs you decide to make. The first sentence of each part would be a topic sentence. Write sentences that would create links between the paragraphs and all arguments.
- Conclusion. Write only one concluding paragraph. It should restate thesis as well as provide a summary of the entire paper. Focus on summing up your information by recalling the arguments with reference to the essay question. Explain how the findings may influence your community. End up the last section by mentioning potential implications or future directions.
Make sure that you have achieved the main objectives of your essay depending on the preferred essay type. Your paragraphs should either identify, contrast, analyze, explore, or criticize the main idea based on the found evidence.
Some Other Tips on Writing Essay Paragraphs-by-Paragraph
How should you know whether you did a good job? Answer to the three main questions: “What?”, “How?”, and “Why?” once you submit the essay to your teacher.
Beginning your revision from scanning your piece for mistakes is the best decision. Check your English and text uniqueness. Mind that all sources should be properly cited and put down at the end (the last page is called Works Cited in MLA). Each part of your paper should contain proper formatting, so follow the writing style guides all the time.
Does your evidence sound credible enough? Avoid using unreliable sources like Wiki, Ask, Quora, and other places where every internet user can easily edit the information or provide the wrong answer to the set question.
Make sure that each paragraph contains a strong argument. Every next sentence must follow in a logical manner. In other words, the links between all paragraphs should be obvious to your reader.
Only once you check the entire material, you can deliver the paper to your teacher or professor. Go to EvelynLearning for more information on tips for good quality academic writing and don’t forget about the opportunity to order custom essay or paper editing from the professional writers online.