Essay+Writing+Guidelines

General Essay Writing Guidelines

I. It is best to start with some type of graphic organizer, or **mental map**, to help you organize. II. Next you should create a **//basic// outline** to help you further organize. __Use the rubric to help you write your notes and bring both to class on the day you are going to write.__ It should include, with key words: i. Title ii. Main topic iii. Thesis statement iv. Body Paragraph topics v. Conclusion III. **Essay Formatting** (font: Times New Roman, size: 12, margins: normal) [|Sample Essay] i. For example: “//While my country’s political and social system has many problems with true democracy, my own life is actually quite democratic.//” ii. Or “//Both my personal life and my country have some aspects of democracy and some limitations on democracy.”// i. 1 introductory or topic sentence ii. //At least// 1 detail sentence iii. 1 concluding or transition sentence //(which should make reference to your thesis)//
 * 1) **Introductory Paragraph**
 * 2) General Topic Sentence or “Hook” (either a statement that introduces the topic of your essay in the most general way possible, or some sort of interesting fact, question, or quote that will attract your reader’s interest, and “hook” them into the essay).
 * 3) Provide some further introductory details, or lay out what your body paragraphs will discuss.
 * 4) **Thesis** – End your introductory paragraph with a statement that sums up the main point, or argument, of your essay.
 * 1) **Body Paragraphs**
 * 2) Your body paragraphs should deal with the supporting details of your essay.
 * 1) Each body paragraph should have //at least// 3 sentences:
 * 1) **Remember** that the purpose of each body paragraph is to __support your thesis__, if the paragraph does not do that you are wasting time and space, and weakening your essay. Also, each paragraph should stick to the topic you mention in the //topic sentence.//
 * 1) **Conclusion Paragraph**
 * 2) The conclusion brings closure to the essay, summing up your points or providing a final perspective on your topic.
 * 1) All the conclusion needs is at least three or four strong sentences which do not need to follow any set formula. **Simply review the main points** (//being careful not to restate them exactly//) or briefly describe your feelings about the topic, and **reword your thesis**.


 * 1) __DO NOT BRING NEW INFORMATION INTO YOUR CONCLUSION__

How to cite your sources Citing sources is not simply a matter of copying the URL of whatever website you got your information from. Websites are not necessarily reliable sources, and your information will appear much more reliable if your source is an article from a credible news source or some sort of “.org” or “.edu”, rather than //www.wiki-whatever// or //[|www.yahoo.ask.imlazy.etcetera]// I. **In order to properly cite a research based paper, there are two main things you must include:** **__1. FOOTNOTES__** a. Cite, in a footnote, any direct statistic, quote, or integral idea that you have lifted from a source i. ALL of your sources that you use should be referenced in **footnotes** at least once, either: 1. At the end of a sentence which directly utilized the source. 2. At the end of a paragraph in which you gained most of your ideas from a certain source. **__2. BIBLIOGRAPHY PAGE__** b. Create a separate **Bibliography** **page** in which you list all the sources which you cited in footnotes throughout the paper *** __How to insert footnotes__** 1. Go to “Referencias” (references) 2. “Nota al Pie” (footnote) - //(use numbers, and set the footnote size to 10)// // (in the old version of Microsoft go to “insert” then “reference” then “footnote”) // How to format footnotes //(includes title of document, title of page, author of page if known, source of page, last updated, date accessed and URL)// || 8"Yum! China," __Yum! China Division__, 2005, Yum Brands, Inc., 11 Nov. 2005 <[]>. || //(includes title site, author of site, source of site, last updated, date accessed and URL)// || 9Cedar Grove: The Thomas Cole National Historic Site, ed. Elizabeth Jack, 2004, Green County Historical Society, 11 Nov. 2005 <[]>. || If your source is not one of those shown above, check the Modern Language Association (MLA) website: []
 * An **article** in a newpaper || 7Eric Lipton, "Deal to Replace Schools After Katrina Is Faulted," __New York Times__ 11 Nov. 2005, national ed.: A1. ||
 * A document from an **internet** site
 * An entire **internet** site

How to format your __BIBLIOGRAPHY PAGE__ 1. Your title should simply be Bibliography, using normal size and font, centered at the top of the page. 2. Alphabetize each entry by first letter. 3. Use italics for all titles of books, magazines, films, etc. 4. A simple URL is insufficient (//see table above//). 5. Put quotation marks around the titles of poems, short stories, and articles. 6. Indent (sangria) the 2nd line, the 3rd line, and all subsequent lines of each citation. 7. Double-space all entries. 8. Do not put bullet points, numbers, or anything else, just list them in alphabetical order indented when necessary.

How to use quotations in your writing Using quotations is a //great// way to references another person’s ideas without plagiarizing. It is also a great way to acknowledge someone’s help in shaping your ideas, or to show someone’s direct thoughts on a topic. It often makes an essay more interesting to read as well. How to: You can easily fit a quote into your writing, review the following examples: 1. In his __Black Book of American Intervention in Chile__, Armando Uribe, a high-ranking diplomatic official who served in Allende’s administration, said of U.S. officials and the right-wing Chilean reactionaries who conspired in the coup of 1973, “Their words were //de jure//, their actions //de facto//.”// 2. The United States’ actions towards Chile before, during, and after Allende’s presidency serve as an important example of the preference for stability over popular  democracy in U.S. foreign policy. Hans Morgenthau, in a critique of U.S. Secretary of State Henry Kissinger, puts it in clear and forceful terms: // Since the causes and effects of instability persist, a policy committed to stability and identifying instability with Communism is compelled by the logic of its interpretation of reality to suppress in the name of anticommunism all manifestations of popular discontent and stifle the aspirations for reform. Thus, in an essentially unstable world, tyranny becomes the last resort of a policy committed to stability as its ultimate end. Transition Words Furthermore, therefore, in addition, regardless, however... **Don’t** I. Say things such as, “I will say that”, “It can be said that”, “I can say that”, and so on. II. Don’t say etc. Say “and so on”, if you must. See above line. III. Don’t randomly skip lines, keep to paragraphs of at least 3 sentences. IV. Also: a. Moreover b. Furthermore V. Don’t start a sentence with “because” a. Therefore, b. Thus, VI. Don’t say “because for example” VII. “, such as” is better than “like”

// //Armando Uribe __The Black Book of American Intervention in Chile__ (Boston: Beacon Press) 150.//

Quoted in John G. Stoessinger __Henry Kissinger: the Anguish of Power__ (New York: W.W. Norton and Co., 1976) 217.