Tips for Structuring Essays and Evaluating Their Effectiveness

Tips for Essay Writing: Structure, Tips, Evaluation
ETRC Spring School 2010
By Daniela Munca, PhD

I. Warm up: work in teams and answer the following questions:

Team 1: How many types of essays do you know? Name several
types and give short examples.
Team 2: How should a student plan writing an essay: what should
he / she start with, what steps should be taken before the essay is
laid on the paper, etc?
Team 3: What is a paragraph? How many sentences are there in a
paragraph? How should the sentences be structured?
Team 4: How do you define a “thesis statement”? How should a student formulate
a thesis statement?
Team 5: How does a good essay start? What would make a strong introduction?
How long should the introductory paragraph be?
Team 6: If you could draw a graph of an essay structure – what would it look like?
Think of a metaphor or a symbol which would be easy for your students to
understand and memorize.

II. Look at the following cartoons: which issue related to essay writing
are they exploring? Why are they funny? How could teachers deal
with these issues?

1

Task 1: Read the following extracts and decide on the type of
essay they belong to:

1. Argumentative Essay
2. Cause and Effect Essays
Comparison and Contrast Essays
3. Descriptive Essays
4. Literary Analysis Essays
5. Narrative Essays

_____________________: These two major themes in the poem are enhanced by the
writer's use of symbolism. Byzantium, as mentioned before, is a sort of ideal land,
comparable to the scriptural heaven. This is obviously one of the most predominant
symbols in the poem. Another symbol that carries throughout the work is that of a bird.
There is a reference to a bird in each stanza, but perhaps the best indicator of its meaning
is found in stanza 4. Yeats uses the image of a bird "set upon a golden bough to sing" (30)
to refer to the timelessness and spirit he craves. The bird that is set in gold is there forever,
singing for all time, and the poet longs to be able to sing similarly through his poetry and
therefore achieve immortality. Finally, the metaphor of singing is present in each stanza
and reinforces the poet's desire to be able to create timeless music in poetry.

________________ The web can be an aid to education in the way that a calculator is an
aid to mathematics. With all of the speed and number crunching ability of a calculator, it
would be highly difficult to learn algebra directly from this device. In the same respect,
the World Wide Web is not a means to an end. It is not the magnificent force that is the
human intellect. The mind is humanity’s greatest asset and its refinement is humanity’s
greatest achievement. The evolution of such a device should not be left to anything less
than its equal. The intangibles involved in the shaping and growth of human
consciousness--the excitement of sharing knowledge, the drive to communicate in the
most effective way, the value of having a person take a personal stake in the education of
an individual-- are without parallel. In the complex chemistry of education, the computer
is just a tool. The true energy and force is in the experiment itself; the teacher is the
catalyst; and the student is the reaction.

_________________________ : Alice Walker and Maya
Angelou are two contemporary African-American writers.
Although almost a generation apart in age, both women display a
remarkable similarity in their lives. Each has written about her
experiences growing up in the rural South, Ms. Walker through her
essays and Ms. Angelou in her autobiographies. Though they share
similar backgrounds, each has a unique style which gives to us, the
readers, the gift of their exquisite humanity, with all of its frailties
and strengths, joys and sorrows.

4

___________________ : Eating disorders are a serious health problem. Personal
Counseling & Resources says that eating disorders “are characterized by a focus on body
shape, weight, fat, food, and perfectionism and by feelings of powerlessness and low self-
esteem.” Three of the most common eating disorders are anorexia nervosa, bulimia
nervosa, and binge eating or compulsive eating disorder. According to Anorexia Nervosa
and Related Eating Disorders, a person with anorexia “refuses to maintain normal body
weight for age and height” and “weighs 85 percent or less than what is what is expected
for age and height.” A person diagnosed with bulimia has several ways of getting rid of
the calories such as binge eating, vomiting, laxative misuse, exercising, or fasting. The
person might have a normal weight for their age and height unless anorexia is present.

___________________: The incident that I'm relating occurred on a hot, humid May
morning in 1947. I was a first-grade student in Miss Butler's class at Fanning Elementary
School in San Antonio, Texas. The disturbance was over in a matter of moments, but the
memory of it is imprinted forever in my mind. Miss Butler was infamous for her stern
discipline. Little hands and minds were kept busy, and anything that resembled
foolishness was quickly curtailed with a sharp rap on the head or knuckles with the long
pointed stick she carried. You can imagine the horror I felt when, while drawing in a deep
breath of air, I accidentally whistled. Miss Butler spun around from the blackboard, and
seeing my expression, demanded, "Joan, did you do that?"

__________________________ : Miss Lou Dixon owns and runs that restaurant in the
middle of the town of Sunbright, Tennessee. Miss Lou has been in business at that
location since 1954. Even though the place looks a little squalid, it is not for lack of care;
in fact, Lou is proud of how clean she keeps her place. She has often been heard to say,
with the strongest East Tennessee accent, “It don’t matter how pore a body is. They can
be clean.” She is proud of her “A” rating and prominently displays it.

Other Types of Essays
A SUMMARY explains what a text is about (not what the plot is, but what the argument is). The thesis of a
summary answers a what question, and the body of a summary demonstrates or shows the thesis. A
summary is a kind of essay, but the essays listed below include summary in them.

A CRITIQUE explains not only what a text is about (summary), but
focuses on how the text works. The thesis of a critique answers both a
what and how question, and the body of a critique first demonstrates the
what, then analyzes the how. The critique's goal is to analyze the text's
integrity: how does the text work? is the text logical? does its conclusion
follow from its claims? does it add up? Like a summary, a critique is a
kind of essay, but the essays listed below include critique in them.

An INTERPRETIVE ESSAY gives a text or texts meaning. This essay
explains not only what a text is about (summary) and how it works
(critique), but asks why the analysis is compelling. The thesis of an
interpretive essay answers a what and how question, and the body of the
essay weaves together the demonstration of the what and the analysis of
the how. Many interpretive essays ask students to "close read" or analyze
specific language in a text; others, however, might ask students to apply a

5

theoretical, historical or cultural theory to the text and to interpret it given the theory or theories. The
interpretive essay's goal, however, is to move beyond analysis (the how question) to interpretation (the why
question). An interpretive essay, also, highlights implications, more so than a summary and a critique do,
and answers the "so what?" question. So what if the text works this way? What's at stake? What idea can be
lost or gained because of the interpretation? Like a summary and critique, an interpretive essay is a kind of
essay, but the final two essays listed below include interpretation in them.

An INVENTIVE ESSAY does not merely summarize, critique or interpret one or two texts; rather an
inventive essay responds to an issue, and requires that the writer has already summarized numerous texts,
critiqued and interpreted them. An inventive essay requires that the writer understands much of the research
on his/her topic -- has entered, in other words, the "discourse community", so that s/he can "invent" her/his
own thesis. Before introducing the thesis, the writer must situate the reader in the conversation: what are the
various claims made on this topic and who makes them? Once introduced, the thesis of an inventive
argument positions itself within the conversation. The thesis of an inventive essay answers a what and either
a how or why question, and the body of the essay weaves together the answers to the three questions. An
inventive essay is, in other words, a combination of a summary, critique and interpretation essay, and adds
on top of all that an "inventive" thesis (a thesis which makes a new claim about a topic or answers a
persistent problem). The classic college research essay fits under the category of an inventive essay;
however, do not forget that a research essay needs a thesis and that you should weave, not list, its evidence
into the essay's argument. Without a thesis and woven argument, you merely write reports, or summaries of
numerous pieces of evidence. This essay is rarely assigned at Muhlenberg College.

A PERSONAL ESSAY combines an interpretive and inventive essay together. A personal essay interprets
the writer's experience, observations, and research (the essay's primary evidence) and also positions that
experience in a conversation. A personal essay is not a story; although it may use fiction writing techniques,
a personal essay contains an argument. This argument, however, is often buried -- implied by the evidence.
Writers must then earn the right to state ideas by "showing" evidence of the idea first. Ideas must also evoke
a tone, or emotion. To complicate matters, a personal essay does not need to state a thesis; rather a personal
essay may imply one. Oftentimes, other kinds of research (library, interviews, etc.) are required. The
personal essay is a very difficult essay to write well because it is subtle and seems to be a story. Always
remember, however, that ideas control the organization of an essay -- not plot (what happened). There are
many kinds of personal essays, such as the memoir, the travel essay, and the profile.

Task 2: Arrange the following steps in a logical sequence:

• Looking at Language: Editing and Proofreading
• Looking at Essay Structure
• Writing and Developing a Thesis
• Understanding the Assignment
• Developing Ideas in paragraphs

1. ___________________________________________
2.___________________________________________
3.___________________________________________
4. __________________________________________
5. __________________________________________

Task 3: Match each of the following group of tips to each step:

1) ___________________________________

6

Before you can successfully select a topic, you must understand exactly what the
assignment requires. Types of writing assignments vary from department to department,
from course to course, and from instructor to instructor, so it is important to understand
thoroughly the requirements of a particular assignment. Highlight or underline key
assignment words such as

argue describe and contrast
(agree/disagree discuss reflect on
) evaluate summarize
criticize explain
define compare

Such words tell you what kind of tasks your instructor expects
you to perform.

Consider which concepts or methods the assignment asks you
to use. Are you being asked to argue a point, to compare
similarities and differences, or to explore your own reactions
to an event, text, or idea? Does the topic ask you to go into
depth about some material already covered? Does it ask you
to evaluate a theory or model by applying it to a real-world
example? Does it ask you to use research? Essay assignments
usually ask you to use the concepts, techniques, and ways of
thinking that are featured in the course. Use these to ask
yourself questions about the topics. Look also for
controversies within the material studied.

2) __________________________________________

A thesis statement tells the reader how you will interpret the
significance of the subject matter under discussion, it is a road
map for the paper; in other words, it tells the reader what to
expect from the rest of the paper. It directly answers the
question asked of you. A thesis is an interpretation of a
question or subject, not the subject itself. The subject, or
topic, of an essay might be World War II or Moby Dick; a
thesis must then offer a way to understand the war or the
novel.

7

It is usually a single sentence somewhere in your first
paragraph that presents your argument to the reader. The rest
of the paper, the body of the essay, gathers and organizes
evidence that will persuade the reader of the logic of your
interpretation.

Formulating a thesis is not the first thing you do after reading
an essay assignment. Before you develop an argument on any
topic, you have to collect and organize evidence, look for
possible relationships between known facts (such as
surprising contrasts or similarities), and think about the
significance of these relationships. Once you do this thinking,
you will probably have a "working thesis," a basic or main
idea, an argument that you think you can support with
evidence but that may need adjustment along the way.

3) _______________________________

Paragraphs are the building blocks of papers. A paragraph is
defined as "a group of sentences or a single sentence that
forms a unit that support one main idea " (Lunsford and
Connors 116). Length and appearance do not determine
whether a section in a paper is a paragraph.

Step 1. Decide on a controlling idea and create a topic
sentence Paragraph development begins with the formulation
of the controlling idea. This idea directs the paragraph's
development.

Step 2. Explain the controlling idea Paragraph development
continues with an expression of the rationale or the
explanation that the writer gives for how the reader should
interpret the information presented in the idea statement or
topic sentence of the paragraph. The writer explains his/her
thinking about the main topic, idea, or focus of the paragraph.

Step 3. Give an example (or multiple examples) Paragraph
development progresses with the expression of some type of
support or evidence for the idea and the explanation that came
before it. The example serves as a sign or representation of
the relationship established in the idea and explanation
portions of the paragraph.

8

Step 4. Explain the example(s) The next movement in
paragraph development is an explanation of each example and
its relevance to the topic sentence and rationale that were
stated at the beginning of the paragraph. This explanation
shows readers why you chose to use this/or these particular
examples as evidence to support the major claim, or focus, in
your paragraph.

Step 5. Complete the paragraph's idea or transition into
the next paragraph The final movement in paragraph
development involves tying up the loose ends of the
paragraph and reminding the reader of the relevance of the
information in this paragraph to the main or controlling idea
of the paper. At this point, you can remind your reader about
the relevance of the information that you just discussed in the
paragraph.

4) ________________________________________

Below are several different ways to start that essay.

a) Begin with a quotation
Although this approach can be overused, it can be
very effective when you have an appropriate
quotation. That quotation may relate directly to the
subject or it may be only indirectly related (and thus
require further explanation). Do not force a quotation
into this spot; if an appropriate quotation is not
available, select another method.

b) Begin with a concession
Start with a statement recognizing an opinion or
approach different from the one you plan to take in
your essay: “ Many critics have pointed to ... Although
these subjects certainly prove their point, a close
examination of …. reveals that …”

c) Begin with a paradox
A paradox is a seeming self contradiction: “ By 1959
Vladimir Nabokov's novel Lolita had been banned in
several cities as pornographic. Today it is required
reading not only in literature courses but also in
philosophy courses that explore the nature of love.”

d) Begin with a short anecdote or narrative

9

As a child, Einstein seldom spoke. When he did, he
spoke very slowly – indeed, he tried out entire
sentences in his head (or muttered them under his
breath) until he got them right before he spoke aloud.
According to accounts, Einstein did this until he was
nine years old. Einstein’s parents were fearful that he
was retarded – of course, their fear was completely
unfounded!

e) Begin with an interesting fact or statistic

Middle school and high school students who
participated in instrumental music scored significantly
higher than their non-band peers in standardized tests.
University studies conducted in Georgia and Texas
found significant correlations between the number of
years of instrumental music instruction and academic
achievement in math, science and language arts.

f) Begin with a question or several questions that will
be answered in the paper

How could a book now acknowledged as a masterpiece
not only of fiction but also of English prose have been
banned when it was published? How could a novel that
dealt with love and art be thought of as pornographic?
Why would a society so mindful of free speech as
America ban any book in the first place?

5) ______________________________________

Task 4: Arrange the following sentences in one logic
order:

a) Students are taught by well-trained teachers and
are encouraged to continue studying at university.
b) As a result, Canada is a desirable place to live.
c) First, Canada has an excellent health care system.
d) There are three reasons why Canada is one of the
best countries in the world.
e) Finally, Canada's cities are clean and efficiently
managed. Canadian cities have many parks and
lots of space for people to live.
f) All Canadians have access to medical services at a
reasonable price.
g) Second, Canada has a high standard of education.

10

Which of these is:

1. The topic sentence? (The topic sentence is the first
sentence in a paragraph. )
2. What are the supporting sentences? (They come
after the topic sentence, making up the body of a
paragraph. They give details to develop and support
the main idea of the paragraph.
3. What is the closing sentence in the paragraph?
( The closing sentence is the last sentence in a
paragraph. It restates the main idea of your paragraph.
How do I write one? Restate the main idea of the
paragraph using different words. )

Example:

There are three reasons why Canada is one of the best
countries in the world. First, Canada has an excellent health
care system. All Canadians have access to medical services at
a reasonable price. Second, Canada has a high standard of
education. Students are taught by well-trained teachers and
are encouraged to continue studying at university. Finally,
Canada's cities are clean and efficiently managed. Canadian
cities have many parks and lots of space for people to live. As
a result, Canada is a desirable place to live.

How to teach your students write a cohesive pargraph?

1. Write the numbers 1-5 on a piece of paper.

2. Next to #1, write your answer to the question, or your
opinion on the topic, in a complete sentence. For
example, if asked to write a paragraph about your
favorite person, you might write, "My favorite person is
my mother."

3. Next to #2, write one reason in support of your answer.
For example, on the favorite person paragraph, you
might write, "She knows how to help with homework."

4. Next to #3, write another reason in support of your
answer. You might write, "She takes me wherever I
need to go."

11

5. Next to #4, write a third reason in support of your
answer. You might write, "She is very good at reading
stories."

6. Next to #5, rephrase your answer or opinion from #1.
You might write, "My mother is a wonderful person to
me."

7. Copy your sentences #1-#5, one after the other, on your
final sheet of paper. And there you have it -- a coherent
five-sentence paragraph: "My favorite person is my
mother. She knows how to help with homework. She
takes me wherever I need to go. She is very good at
reading stories. My mother is a wonderful person to
me."

Task 5: Check the following scoring system. Adapt it to
your own level / subject / curricula:

For example:

Grade / 10-9 9-8 8-7 7-6 5
Subject
Organizatio
n
Introduction
Conclusion
Arguments
Vocabulary
Grammar
and Spelling

Task 6: Watch the Visual Essay and fill in one of the
following formats:

12

ANSWERS
Task 1: Read the following extracts and decide on the
type of essay they belong to:

6. Argumentative Essay
7. Cause and Effect Essays
8. Comparison and Contrast Essays
9. Descriptive Essays
10. Literary Analysis Essays
11. Narrative Essays

Argumentative: The web can be an aid to education
in the way that a calculator is an aid to mathematics. With all
of the speed and number crunching ability of a calculator, it
would be highly difficult to learn algebra directly from this
device. In the same respect, the World Wide Web is not a
means to an end. It is not the magnificent force that is the
human intellect. The mind is humanity’s greatest asset and
its refinement is humanity’s greatest achievement. The
evolution of such a device should not be left to anything less
than its equal. The intangibles involved in the shaping and
growth of human consciousness--the excitement of sharing
knowledge, the drive to communicate in the most effective
way, the value of having a person take a personal stake in
the education of an individual-- are without parallel. In the
complex chemistry of education, the computer is just a tool.
The true energy and force is in the experiment itself; the
teacher is the catalyst; and the student is the reaction.
Cause and Effect: Eating disorders are a serious
health problem. Personal Counseling & Resources says that
eating disorders “are characterized by a focus on body shape,
weight, fat, food, and perfectionism and by feelings of
powerlessness and low self-esteem.” Three of the most
common eating disorders are anorexia nervosa, bulimia
nervosa, and binge eating or compulsive eating disorder.
According to Anorexia Nervosa and Related Eating
Disorders, a person with anorexia “refuses to maintain
normal body weight for age and height” and “weighs 85
percent or less than what is what is expected for age and
height.” A person diagnosed with bulimia has several ways
of getting rid of the calories such as binge eating, vomiting,
laxative misuse, exercising, or fasting. The person might
have a normal weight for their age and height unless
anorexia is present.

17

Comparison and Contrast: Alice Walker and Maya
Angelou are two contemporary African-American writers.
Although almost a generation apart in age, both women
display a remarkable similarity in their lives. Each has
written about her experiences growing up in the rural South,
Ms. Walker through her essays and Ms. Angelou in her
autobiographies. Though they share similar backgrounds,
each has a unique style which gives to us, the readers, the gift
of their exquisite humanity, with all of its frailties and
strengths, joys and sorrows.

Descriptive Essay: Miss Lou Dixon owns and runs that
restaurant in the middle of the town of Sunbright, Tennessee.
Miss Lou has been in business at that location since 1954.
Even though the place looks a little squalid, it is not for lack
of care; in fact, Lou is proud of how clean she keeps her
place. She has often been heard to say, with the strongest
East Tennessee accent, “It don’t matter how pore a body is.
They can be clean.” She is proud of her “A” rating and
prominently displays it.

Literary Analysis Essays: These two major themes in the
poem are enhanced by the writer's use of symbolism.
Byzantium, as mentioned before, is a sort of ideal land,
comparable to the scriptural heaven. This is obviously one of
the most predominant symbols in the poem. Another symbol
that carries throughout the work is that of a bird. There is a
reference to a bird in each stanza, but perhaps the best
indicator of its meaning is found in stanza 4. Yeats uses the
image of a bird "set upon a golden bough to sing" (30) to refer
to the timelessness and spirit he craves. The bird that is set in
gold is there forever, singing for all time, and the poet longs
to be able to sing similarly through his poetry and therefore
achieve immortality. Finally, the metaphor of singing is
present in each stanza and reinforces the poet's desire to be
able to create timeless music in poetry.

Narrative Essays: The incident that I'm relating occurred
on a hot, humid May morning in 1947. I was a first-grade
student in Miss Butler's class at Fanning Elementary School
in San Antonio, Texas. The disturbance was over in a matter
of moments, but the memory of it is imprinted forever in my
mind. Miss Butler was infamous for her stern discipline. Little
hands and minds were kept busy, and anything that resembled
foolishness was quickly curtailed with a sharp rap on the head
or knuckles with the long pointed stick she carried. You can

18

imagine the horror I felt when, while drawing in a deep breath
of air, I accidentally whistled. Miss Butler spun around from
the blackboard, and seeing my expression, demanded, "Joan,
did you do that?"

Task 2: Arrange the following steps in a logical sequence:

1) Understanding the Assignment
2) Writing and Developing a Thesis
3) Developing Ideas in paragraphs
4) Looking at Essay Structure
5) Looking at Language: Editing and Proofreading

Task 3: match each of the following group of tips to each
step:

6) Understanding the Assignment

Before you can successfully select a topic, you must
understand exactly what the assignment requires. Types of
writing assignments vary from department to department,
from course to course, and from instructor to instructor, so it
is important to understand thoroughly the requirements of a
particular assignment. Highlight or underline key assignment
words such as

argue describe and contrast
(agree/disagree discuss reflect on
) evaluate summarize
criticize explain
define compare

Such words tell you what kind of tasks your instructor expects
you to perform.

Consider which concepts or methods the assignment asks you
to use. Are you being asked to argue a point, to compare
similarities and differences, or to explore your own reactions
to an event, text, or idea? Does the topic ask you to go into
depth about some material already covered? Does it ask you
to evaluate a theory or model by applying it to a real-world
example? Does it ask you to use research? Essay assignments

19

usually ask you to use the concepts, techniques, and ways of
thinking that are featured in the course. Use these to ask
yourself questions about the topics. Look also for
controversies within the material studied.

7) Writing and Developing a Thesis

A thesis statement tells the reader how you will interpret the
significance of the subject matter under discussion, it is a road
map for the paper; in other words, it tells the reader what to
expect from the rest of the paper. It directly answers the
question asked of you. A thesis is an interpretation of a
question or subject, not the subject itself. The subject, or
topic, of an essay might be World War II or Moby Dick; a
thesis must then offer a way to understand the war or the
novel.

It is usually a single sentence somewhere in your first
paragraph that presents your argument to the reader. The rest
of the paper, the body of the essay, gathers and organizes
evidence that will persuade the reader of the logic of your
interpretation.

Formulating a thesis is not the first thing you do after reading
an essay assignment. Before you develop an argument on any
topic, you have to collect and organize evidence, look for
possible relationships between known facts (such as
surprising contrasts or similarities), and think about the
significance of these relationships. Once you do this thinking,
you will probably have a "working thesis," a basic or main
idea, an argument that you think you can support with
evidence but that may need adjustment along the way.

8) Developing Ideas in paragraphs

Paragraphs are the building blocks of papers. A paragraph is
defined as "a group of sentences or a single sentence that
forms a unit that support one main idea " (Lunsford and
Connors 116). Length and appearance do not determine
whether a section in a paper is a paragraph.

20

Step 1. Decide on a controlling idea and create a topic
sentence Paragraph development begins with the formulation
of the controlling idea. This idea directs the paragraph's
development.

Step 2. Explain the controlling idea Paragraph development
continues with an expression of the rationale or the
explanation that the writer gives for how the reader should
interpret the information presented in the idea statement or
topic sentence of the paragraph. The writer explains his/her
thinking about the main topic, idea, or focus of the paragraph.

Step 3. Give an example (or multiple examples) Paragraph
development progresses with the expression of some type of
support or evidence for the idea and the explanation that came
before it. The example serves as a sign or representation of
the relationship established in the idea and explanation
portions of the paragraph.

Step 4. Explain the example(s) The next movement in
paragraph development is an explanation of each example and
its relevance to the topic sentence and rationale that were
stated at the beginning of the paragraph. This explanation
shows readers why you chose to use this/or these particular
examples as evidence to support the major claim, or focus, in
your paragraph.

Step 5. Complete the paragraph's idea or transition into
the next paragraph The final movement in paragraph
development involves tying up the loose ends of the
paragraph and reminding the reader of the relevance of the
information in this paragraph to the main or controlling idea
of the paper. At this point, you can remind your reader about
the relevance of the information that you just discussed in the
paragraph.

9) Write the Introduction Statement

Below are several different ways to start that essay.

g) Begin with a quotation
Although this approach can be overused, it can be
very effective when you have an appropriate
quotation. That quotation may relate directly to the
subject or it may be only indirectly related (and thus
require further explanation). Do not force a quotation

21

into this spot; if an appropriate quotation is not
available, select another method.

h) Begin with a concession
Start with a statement recognizing an opinion or
approach different from the one you plan to take in
your essay: “ Many critics have pointed to ... Although
these subjects certainly prove their point, a close
examination of …. reveals that …”

i) Begin with a paradox
A paradox is a seeming self contradiction: “ By 1959
Vladimir Nabokov's novel Lolita had been banned in
several cities as pornographic. Today it is required
reading not only in literature courses but also in
philosophy courses that explore the nature of love.”

j) Begin with a short anecdote or narrative

As a child, Einstein seldom spoke. When he did, he
spoke very slowly – indeed, he tried out entire
sentences in his head (or muttered them under his
breath) until he got them right before he spoke aloud.
According to accounts, Einstein did this until he was
nine years old. Einstein’s parents were fearful that he
was retarded – of course, their fear was completely
unfounded!

k) Begin with an interesting fact or statistic

Middle school and high school students who
participated in instrumental music scored significantly
higher than their non-band peers in standardized tests.
University studies conducted in Georgia and Texas
found significant correlations between the number of
years of instrumental music instruction and academic
achievement in math, science and language arts.

l) Begin with a question or several questions that will
be answered in the paper

How could a book now acknowledged as a masterpiece
not only of fiction but also of English prose have been
banned when it was published? How could a novel that
dealt with love and art be thought of as pornographic?

22

Why would a society so mindful of free speech as
America ban any book in the first place?

10) Looking at Language: Editing and Proofreading

23

Tips for Structuring Essays and Evaluating Their Effectiveness

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