Step 1 - Choose a Good Topic

Сhoose a topic that is not too broad. For example, do not write about football. Choose something more specific, like football drills, the greatest football team, football equipment, football practice, etc.

Think of three main ideas that you want to discuss in the essay.

Step 2 - Organize the Essay

Organizing an essay can be done in many forms. Some people like to use graphic organizers like a web. It looks like a spider web with circles connected. In the middle circle, write the main topic. Then make three "spokes" off of the main circle and make three more circles. These will be your body paragraphs' main ideas. Write the topics in those three circles. Then from those, add two to five more lines or "spokes" from those circles to become details you want to talk about in your essay.

Another way to organize an essay is to follow this basic outline form:

Topic______________________________

Thesis Statement _____________________

Body Paragraph 1 - main idea __________

Detail 1_____________________________

Detail 2_____________________________

Detail 3_____________________________

Body Paragraph 2 - main idea __________

Detail 1_____________________________

Detail 2_____________________________

Detail 3_____________________________

Body Paragraph 3 - main idea __________

Detail 1_____________________________

Detail 2_____________________________

Detail 3_____________________________

Conclusion (leave reader with interesting thought)_________________________________

Step 3 - Writing the Essay

The essay is quite easy to write. Your ideas are organized. It is important to have good transition words between each main paragraph, such as first, second, third, also, furthermore, hence, etc. The five paragraph essay includes an introduction, three body paragraphs and a conclusion.

Another tip is not to start the essay with "my essay will be about" or "I am going to write about." These are boring and not interesting essay beginnings. Think about interesting facts about the topic or famous quotes about the topic to put in the introduction. Make sure to include a thesis statement to inform the reader about the essay's topic. The introduction can be the hardest part to write; however, it is very important that it is strong.

Another part of the essay that many students forget to write is the conclusion. A good way to get the reader to remember your essay is to leave the reader with an interesting thought.

Use proper writing conventions, such as good spelling, usage, mechanics and grammar.

An essay is usually graded on the following criteria: interesting content, organization and writing conventions.