Beyond Five Paragraphs: Advanced Essay Writing Skills Finding a Focus Beyond Five Paragraphs: Advanced Essay Writing Skills

Focus= which aspect of the topic you want to zero in on What is a Focus? Focus= which aspect of the topic you want to zero in on E.g Topic of Essay= Climate change Focus= present arguments/examples of how climate change is the result of human activity

Looking for Your focus in the essay prompt Action verbs Your purpose Type of essay recall, recount To tell readers about a personal experience narrative describe, portray, depict To create a vivid impression od scene, moment, person, or thing descriptive explain, report, outline, define, clarify, illustrate, demonstrate, present, clarify, analyze, compare, contrast To present factual information that informs the reader about an issue or subject, or explains how to do something expository justify, argue, defend, prove, critique, evaluate, assess, discuss, analyze, compare, contrast To make a claim about a topic and justify it with specific evidence or reasons argumentative/persuasive

Type Description Author’s Purpose Text Elements Descriptive Presents sensory details (sight, sound, smell, taste, feel) about a person, place, event, or thing To create a strong impression and “paint” a picture with words in the reader’s mind figurative language such as similes, metaphors, imagery mood Narrative Tells a story about an event or experience in the writer’s life To reveal a life lesson or insight conflict action and plot Expository Objectively presents researched facts, statistics, expert opinions, details, and example To inform, explain, describe, or define the subject thesis statement clear introduction, supporting body paragraphs, and conclusion Argumentative/Persuasive Presents evidence, reasoning, and arguments to support an opinion or point of view To convince readers of an opinion or move readers to perform an action

Narrowing Your Focus Through Exploratory Writing Cubing 1. Describe it 2. Compare it 3. Associate it 4. Analyze it 5. Apply it 6. Argue for or against it 5Ws and H: create questions and brainstorm answers Mind Mapping: create visual links between related ideas