Thesis Statements for Formal Essays

a ______ statement provides a _______ for the _________ of the _________.

*thesis, roadmap, body, essay*

what are the elements of a persuasive thesis statement?

-*Claim* -*Main points* -*Call to action* (This element is not included in an expository thesis.)

what must the main ideas be in an expository thesis statement?

The main ideas must be *distinct, separate ideas*. They should not *overlap*.

what is parallelism?

This means the *words*, *phrases*, or *clauses*, in a *series* must have the same *grammatical structure*.

what are the elements of an expository thesis statement?

-*Claim* (topic) -*Main points*-Include the main ideas that will be discussed in the body paragraphs (in the same order they will appear in the essay). Each main idea will have its own body paragraph. For a 5-paragraph essay, you must have 3 main ideas.

what are the 2 main types of thesis statements used in academic writing?

1. *persuasive* 2. *expository*

what must your persuasive thesis statement's call to action do?

Make sure your thesis takes a *specific stand* and tells the reader *exactly what action should be taken*.

what is the purpose of an expository thesis statement?

The purpose of an expository thesis statement is to *explain or inform*.

true or false- an expository thesis must have a call to action.

false

true or false- the main ideas must be in a different order than how you stated them in the thesis statement.

false

true or false- you do not have to research and plan before writing your thesis statement.

false

what is a call to action?

the action that the writer wants the audience to take.

where is the thesis statement?

the thesis statement MUST be the *final* sentence of the *first* paragraph. although this is the *last* sentence of the first paragraph, you should start your essay by writing this single sentence.

for a five paragraph essay, how many topics should it have?

3

what is the difference between persuasive thesis or an expository thesis?

a persuasive thesis statement is supposed to *persuade* the reader into thinking what your topic is about, and an expository thesis is supposed to *explain or inform* you about a certain topic.

what is a thesis statement?

a thesis statement is a *single sentence* that states the main ideas of the essay.

true or false- each main idea will have its own body paragraph.

true

what must a persuasive thesis do?

A persuasive thesis MUST encourage readers to *take action or change the readers way of thinking*.

what is a formal essay?

an *analytical* discussion of a topic in an *academic style*, with the main argument (thesis) stated in the introduction.

true or false- you should start your essay by writhing a simple thesis.

true