A Review of the Five-Paragraph Essay

TONIGHT'S HOMEWORK: Decide which Outstanding American you would like to research for the 5-paragraph essay. Final choices due tomorrow!
Today in class we reviewed the 5-paragraph essay model. Students first learned the model and wrote a 5-paragraph essay back in November, and most students remembered a great deal about the formula for writing this essay. For anyone who might want a refresher, the basic formula is this:
Paragraph 1: Attention Getter, general background info about your topic, thesis statement.
Paragraph 2/Body paragraph 1: Discuss point 1 from the thesis (first reason your person is an Outstanding American in our case).
Paragraph 3/Body paragraph 2: Discuss point 2 from the thesis (second reason person is an Outstanding American).
Paragraph 4/Body paragraph 3: Discuss point 3 from the thesis (third reason person is an Outstanding American).
Paragraph 5: Restate the thesis (but word it differently), summarize main ideas, author may add his/her own commentary about the topic.
I shared the list of approved topics with students today, and I accepted several Topic Proposal forms from those who want to research someone who is not on the approved list. I will get those proposals back to students tomorrow.
Tomorrow we will finalize our topic selections, discuss plagiarism, and learn about the Works Cited page (bibliography) and why it is SO important to keep track of your resources as you conduct research.