- Identify the topic.
- Provide background information.
- Hook the reader.
- Close with a thesis statement.
II. Body
- Begin each paragraph with a topic sentence that supports the thesis.
- Organize the paragraphs logically (according to time, space, importance, for examples).
- Use transitions to connect ideas.
- If there is a reasonable counter argument to what you are saying, identify it briefly at the end of the body of the essay.
III. Conclusion
- Summarize the main ideas of your essay.
- Restate your thesis without repeating it.
- Express an opinion if doing so is appropriate.