<\/p>\n
Choosing a Topic Overview<\/strong><\/p>\n Before students begin to write essays, they must first choose their topics.\u00a0 Sometimes that is easy, because the topic is already assigned, such as “Who Am I?” or the dreaded “How I Spent My Summer Vacation.”\u00a0 Then, the challenge is simply to make it interesting enough to stand out from the 40 or so others the teacher will receive. (More about that later.)<\/p>\n Purpose of the Essay<\/strong><\/p>\n There are a few rules to remember when the topic is open.\u00a0 First, what is the purpose of the essay?\u00a0 Is it to inform, instruct, or persuade?\u00a0 If it is an informational essay, write about something you know about or are curious enough about to find more information.\u00a0 If it is a “how to” essay, write about something you already know how to do, and then list the steps and tell why each one is important.\u00a0 If it is a persuasive essay, choose a topic and take a side.\u00a0 Then, the topic can be anything from global warming to plowing the streets in your local community during a snowstorm.\u00a0 Read articles in your local newspaper for ideas, as the editorial page is full of opinions on any topic.<\/p>\n Choose an Exciting Topic<\/strong><\/p>\n Second, it is easier to make an essay interesting if the topic is interesting to the writer.\u00a0 For students, that means knowing what is interesting and exciting to them as individuals.\u00a0 If Jill wants to be a theoretical astrophysicist when she grows up, she might choose a topic about quasars and the beginnings of the universe.\u00a0 If Bill is on the football team, he might want to write about the way coaches drill during practice and how those skills are used during the game, or the way teammates learn to work together.\u00a0 If Sue takes band, choir, and plays three different instruments in the orchestra she might write about the mathematical foundations of music.\u00a0 (Hint:\u00a0 the mathematics of music goes back to ancient Greece and involves geometry.)<\/p>\n Build the Essay, Then Revise<\/strong><\/p>\n No matter what the topic is, there are a few simple rules to follow.\u00a0 To keep from staring at a white sheet of paper or a blank computer screen, write a few words or an outline to get started, as it can always be revised later.\u00a0 Even a few words on the page can make the project seem less intimidating.\u00a0 State your main ideas in topic sentences, and then build the essay from that.\u00a0 Get the ideas down on paper, and then revise and edit.\u00a0 (Do not turn in your first draft.\u00a0 Even if the first draft sounds really good, there might be errors of spelling or punctuation that the spell-check doesn’t catch.\u00a0 It’s easy to get so excited when writing that words are left out, so the sentence doesn’t quite make sense.)<\/p>\n Have Fun with an Assigned Topic<\/strong><\/p>\n If the essay topic has been assigned, it’s even more of a challenge.\u00a0 Try an interesting twist to make the topic memorable.\u00a0 If a student is involved in drama, the topic “Who Am I?” can be written from the perspective of an actor making up before a play and writing about how they are different from the character on stage.\u00a0 As the actor takes off the stage makeup, the inner person is revealed.\u00a0 In addition, most students do not go on fantastic vacations or join exciting internships in foreign lands during the summer.\u00a0 If Jenny worked 10-hour days at the local fast-food grill during the summer, she could write about her three most challenging customers, and how she solved their problems.\u00a0 If Bob played video games and cooled off in the city pool, he could write about new skills he learned while swimming, or strategies to beat the highest scorer in a virtual game.<\/p>\n Interesting in English tutoring services<\/a>? Learn more about how we are assisting thousands of students each academic year.<\/p>\n SchoolTutoring Academy<\/span> is the premier educational services company for K-12 and college students. We offer tutoring programs for students in K-12, AP classes, and college. To learn more about how we help parents and students in Philadelphia, PA visit: Tutoring in Philadelphia, PA<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" Choosing a Topic Overview Before students begin to write essays, they must first choose their topics.\u00a0 Sometimes that is easy, because the topic is already assigned, such as “Who Am I?” or the dreaded “How I Spent My Summer Vacation.”\u00a0 Then, the challenge is simply to make it interesting enough to stand out from […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":22,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"inline_featured_image":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[8],"tags":[601,697,1279,1837],"class_list":["post-5331","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-english-and-grammar","tag-essay-writing","tag-free-writing","tag-paragraphs","tag-topics"],"acf":[],"aioseo_notices":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/schooltutoring.com\/scholarship\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/5331","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/schooltutoring.com\/scholarship\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/schooltutoring.com\/scholarship\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/schooltutoring.com\/scholarship\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/22"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/schooltutoring.com\/scholarship\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=5331"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/schooltutoring.com\/scholarship\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/5331\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/schooltutoring.com\/scholarship\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=5331"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/schooltutoring.com\/scholarship\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=5331"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/schooltutoring.com\/scholarship\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=5331"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}