May 28

For writing into the day, we responded to the weekend's reading.  Then, we talked about the structure of the five paragraph essay and wrote it on the board:

Introduction (3-4 sentences)

• Outline/purpose of essay
• Thesis

Paragraph 1 (6-8 sentences)

• Transition
• Main idea/position for point 1
• Supporting information/quotes/examples
• Mini-thesis/conclusion of thought

Paragraph 2 (6-8 sentences)

• Transition
• Main idea/position for point 2
• Supporting information/quotes/examples
• Mini-thesis/conclusion of thought

Paragraph 3 (6-8 sentences)

• Transition
• Main idea/position for point 3
• Supporting information/quotes/examples
• Mini-thesis/conclusion of thought

Conclusion (3-4 sentences)

• Summary of paper
• Restate thesis

In small groups, we discussed the questions on slide 28 of the PowerPoint.  In whole group, we had the following discussion:

• My experience with the five paragraph essay is in school.
• Our experiences with the outline we made on the board.
• My only experience is early high school.
• The department of education says that teachers have to use it.
• The five-paragraph essay is the building blocks.  It is the structure to expand off of.  Instead of a five-paragraph, you can move it into a five page.
• Teacher said: “The structure is used to review and ensure information retention.”
• It helps them to look at all the students’ papers and have a structure to grade it.  It makes it easier for them to look at.
• Small in class assignment and other assignments that aren’t important can use the five-paragraph essay.
• The five-paragraph essay helps organize your paper.
• It’s a structured way to write your thoughts and a structured way to write your essay.
• It’s a basic form.
• The five-paragraph essay is the structure that sticks with most students.
• You can’t boil it down passed a five-paragraph essay.  If you don’t introduce your topic and have your points in order, it’s going to be confusing and off topic.
• With the format, you might have two paragraphs on one topic.
• In speech class, if you use the five-paragraph essay, you have a pretty good speech.  It can generate a 3-5 minute speech.
• You can use it as a structure to start the drafts.  Then you don’t need to follow it with the second draft.
• You might not use it with a research paper.
• We wouldn’t be taught it if it was ineffective.
• It’s not effective for good academic writing in college.  It’s a good starting place.
• You still need to use the structure, you’re still use the structure.
• You might use more than five-paragraphs, it’s still the structure.
• It’s not broken; it’s just elementary.
• It’s what-not-to-do in college.
• You can’t go that much into detail with the five-paragraph essay.
• It’s more for learning the standard.  Then you have to throw it out the window.
• Using only five paragraph is early school.
• The structure works (introduction, body, conclusion).  Using only five paragraphs doesn’t always work.
• The introduction is always true (attention grabber, details that you’ll use in the paper, thesis).
• For personal narrative, you might not need a thesis.
• You can use this as an effective introduction:

1. Attention grabber
2. Motivator (why this matters to your audience)
3.  Establish your credibility
4. Present central idea
5. Preview of your main points

• I had a teacher who said he didn’t want “In conclusion” and a summary of your points.
• We summarize at the end for the repetition and they remember it.  It’s a connection between all of your points.  It’s tying it together.
• Some papers are long.  It refreshes the ideas in the paper.
• In a speech, they always sum it up.
• Whoever is reading your paper, the last thing they read will be the thing they remember.
• It’s what you want them to understand when they are done reading your paper.

We completed independent writing about the questions on slide 29 of the PowerPoint.  We concluded with the following discussion:

• The amount of information you know will affect the length.  You might have three paragraphs on one point.
• I organize my paper based on what the subject is.  I make an outline.
• I ask the professor what he/she wants.
• You move on when you have completed your thoughts; then you start a new paragraph.
• I usually start a new paragraph after 5-6 sentences.
• The point of each paragraph is to push an idea out.  If it doesn’t fit into the whole of the paper, it doesn’t belong.
• The outline is so important to your organization because you are deciding what goes in each section.
• Everything starts and ends with your outline.  When you have that done, detail by detail, all you have to do is transfer it and add words.
• Outline topics and subtopics.
• I wean out the stuff that isn’t entertaining because I want my writing to entertain.
• If you just start writing, you can generate something even if you don’t have an outline.
• You figure out what the subject is and what points you need to explain in order to get your ideas across.  If you are talking about baking a cake, the introduction will say that you are going to take about mixing the ingredients, preheating the oven, etc.  You can put it chronologically.
• I haven’t learned another way to brainstorm other than outlining.
• You have to start off writing it and then take out what needs to be taken out.
• How you write, when you end, etc will be determined by your audience.
• Revision helps you know if you have said enough or said too much.  You need to rewrite it.
• You can get a peer or teacher to read it and ask for when it should end.
• If I said what I need to say, you’ll feel comfortable.  You’ll know it needs to end.
• That’s why you need a narrower topic.

To think about how to organize and conclude a paper, we created a hypothetical paper on the board.  The paper is about three students taking the same three topics.  The paper follows each student through each subject and discusses the strengths and struggles each student has in each class.  First, we debated how the paper should be organized and what information should go in which paragraphs.  

Next, we decided on the purpose of the paper.  We said the purpose was to find out which strategies are most effective for learning.  With that purpose in mind, we thought about how to conclude the essay.  We said we could end it with analysis (explaining generally what worked or did not work.  In this kind of conclusion, we would assert things like, "Flashcards seem to be most effective for learning in math." We also said you could conclude by answering the question, "What is the point of this paper?"  In this case, we could write sentences like, "If flashcards are effective in math, we might also be able to use them in other subjects like english."

Homework:

The following readings can be found in Models for Writers:

• Read "Simplicity" on pages 176-179.
• Read "Map Your Organization" on pages 17-18.
• Read "Thesis" on pages 81-83.

*Note: The homework is different than what is listed in the daily syllabus.  I changed the homework based on what we accomplished in class.