Created by: Jack Crawford

COMPOSING A THESIS STATEMENT

Engage
“What is not started will never get finished” – Johann Wolfgang von
Goethe
An essay is not finished until it has a complete and properly formatted
thesis statement!
Students will learn to compose a thesis statement for an essay where
they will be taught step by step on how to compose one, then use 2-3
days of class time to have other students peer review their example
statements as students prepare to write their first essay.
How do I create a thesis statement?
How will a thesis statement help my writing?

Explore
To start (as a class), watch the short (3 min) video on creating a thesis
statement for beginners.
https://youtu.be/wCzuAMVmIZ8
Write down 3 questions you have about the video:
(EX: “How does this change how I have been writing previous
essays?”)
NEXT: In groups of 2-3 in the classroom read the given article from
Purdue University and highlight/take notes on anything you find that is
either: challenging, interesting, or something you want to know more
about/ask more questions on.
https://owl.purdue.edu/owl/general_writing/the_writing_process/thesis
_statement_tips.html

After reading the article as a group, students will then work

TOGETHER to create possible thesis statements of their own, where I
will walk around and check progress and help. (If there is something
you don’t understand about creating an example one, maybe your
group members will!)

The Goal: Students will have had practice and a general idea on how
to form a thesis statement at this point, and have worked with groups
to form their own examples. Students should be able see connections
as to how this will fit into their own writing, thus how to incorporate it
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also.

Explain
This section is in connection with the last.
As stated previously, students will use the resources above to get a
general idea of how to compose their thesis statement and what a thesis
is. The group work is where everything will come together and the
students will see each other’s examples, and learn from them as well as
myself when I am coming around the room. Through power point, I
will show hos the student’s example statements can be fit into an essay,
based on their composed statements (regardless of the subject) so they
can get an idea of how regardless of the subject, they are able to
compose an essay out of the given statement. (NOTE: students will
NOT be composing an entire essay out of their composed statements, it
is solely for the idea that students realize that they are able to take a
basic thesis statement, and understand that that single sentence can
have an entire essay composed out of it.

Apply/Elaborate
Now that we have gotten an idea of what a thesis statement is and how
to make one, with our examples, ask yourself this question: “Could I
take this thesis statement and write an entire essay about it?”
If not, you may need to rethink your thesis, or maybe even add a little
more to it to cover what you would write about!
IDEA: For some students, when forming an essay, actually don’t create
a thesis statement for their essay until the entire essay is written.
Why is that?: Sometimes it can be easier to create a thesis when you
already have the information in each paragraph done, that way your job
is to make sure that when you add that statement to your introduction
paragraph later, that it has all the elements you already wrote about in
your essay!

Reflect/Evaluate
Now that we have the information and strategies on creating a thesis
statement… Let’s use this knowledge to form our essays!

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The topic of your essay is for you to choose! Maybe you want to use
one of the example ones you wrote today to base your essay off of. If
you are struggling to find a thesis or topic to write about, please see
me so we can brainstorm or reevaluate your thesis examples you wrote
today. When thinking about your essay…
REMEMBER: EACH BODY PARAGRAPH MUST RELATE BACK
TO YOUR THESIS!! If you have your thesis written and ready to go,
your body paragraphs will have to do with each thing that your thesis
statement mentions.
Reflection:
Students, ask yourself:
“Why is a thesis important in my essay? How does it help my topic”
and remember: A thesis statement paves the way for your entire essay.
Without a thesis statement, there is no essay!
As you are writing your essays, if you can clearly see that your writing
relates back to that single sentence (thesis) written in your intro
paragraph, that you can safely assume you’re on the right track.
IMPORTANT REMINDER: Because this is the first essay we will be
working on, focus a little LESS on what your essay is about, and more
so on the fact that you know how to properly form a thesis statement
and that it is used correctly in your essay.

Remember: Your thesis statement is a sentence that has multiple ideas,

that is created to set the scene for an essay.
A thesis statement will help your essays stay organized for this class,
and for your future!

Please see me (email, in person) if you need help grasping the idea of
a thesis statement, or any questions about them or your essay.
GOOD LUCK!
(assignment would be due 2-3 days after the lesson provided above)

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