Expository Essay Writing
Expository Essay
Investigate an idea, evaluate evidence, expound on the idea, and set forth an argument concerning that idea in a clear and concise manner. This can be accomplished through comparison and contrast, definition, example, the analysis of cause and effect, etc.
Introduction
An intro should contain something intriguing to catch your audience’s attention. It’s usually a hook: a starting point that makes your readers keep reading your essay.
The next significant part of your introduction is the thesis statement. It’s the leading thought of your paper that reveals to the reader the essay’s subject matter. A clear, concise, and defined thesis statement that occurs in the first paragraph of the essay.
Body
Body paragraphs contain supportive arguments and evidence. They have to be solid and persuasive.
Each paragraph should be limited to the exposition of one general idea. This will allow for clarity and direction throughout the essay. Each paragraph in the body of the essay must have some logical connection to the thesis statement in the opening paragraph.
Conclusion
After everything is written, you are to conclude the ideas you’ve delivered. A conclusion does not simply restate the thesis, but readdresses it in light of the evidence provided. Do not introduce any new information into the conclusion; rather, synthesize and come to a conclusion concerning the information presented in the body of the essay. Think Big Picture – Attention Grabbing Statement. Leave the reader with a thought- provoking sentence or question for closure.
Dos & Don'ts
8th Grade Essay Do’s
Look for reliable sources to find arguments and evidence.
Choose the topic that is interesting for you if you have such an option.
Use academic language, special terms, consistent phrases, and correct grammar.
Use clear and logical transitions between the introduction, body, and conclusion.
Use good quotations from reputable sources to solidify your ideas.
8th Grade Essay Don’ts
Don’t write dully: an essay is a story. It should be exciting and consistent.
Don’t make all your examples too similar: diversity is of the essence.
Don’t use unreliable sources and websites for citation.
Don’t be afraid of honest self-expression. Your identity and thoughts are what make your 8th-grade essay unique.
Don’t forget to revise your text after you’ve finished writing it.
Writing Strong Research Questions
You can follow these steps to develop a strong research question:
- Choose your topic
- Do some preliminary reading about the current state of the field
- Narrow your focus to a specific niche
- Identify the research problem that you will address
Research questions anchor your whole project, so it’s important to spend some time refining them. The criteria below can help you evaluate the strength of your research question.
Focused and researchable
| Criteria | Explanation |
|---|---|
| Focused on a single topic | Your central research question should work together with your research problem to keep your work focused. If you have multiple questions, they should all clearly tie back to your central aim. |
| Answerable using credible sources | Your question must be answerable using quantitative and/or qualitative data, or by reading scholarly sources on the topic to develop your argument. If such data is impossible to access, you likely need to rethink your question. |
| Not based on value judgements | Avoid subjective words like good, bad, better and worse. These do not give clear criteria for answering the question.
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| Research objectives | Research question formulations |
|---|---|
| Describing and exploring |
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| Explaining and testing |
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| Evaluating and acting |
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Complex and arguable
| Criteria | Explanation |
|---|---|
| Cannot be answered with yes or no | Closed-ended, yes/no questions are too simple to work as good research questions—they don’t provide enough scope for robust investigation and discussion.
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| Cannot be answered with easily-found facts |
If you can answer the question through a single Google search, book, or article, it is probably not complex enough. A good research question requires original data, synthesis of multiple sources, and original interpretation and argumentation prior to providing an answer. |
