Lesson plan

Teacher: Roman Mariana

Lesson: The Perfect Paragraph
Materials used: students themselves, board, text-book, worksheet.
Skills: reading, writing and speaking.
Competence:
* Students will be able to anticipate the content of the structure of paragraph
* Students will be able to identify details from written messages, key-information
from authentic texts,
* Students will be able to write short paragraphs on the topic “London”
* Students will be able to express opinions related to the topic.

Opinion Essays

An opinion essay is a formal piece of writing. It requires your opinion on a topic, which
must be stated clearly, giving various viewpoints on the topic supported by reasons
and/or examples. You should also include the opposing viewpoint in another paragraph.

A successful opinion essay should have:

a) an introductory paragraph in which you state the topic and your opinion.

b) a main body which consists of several paragraphs, each presenting a separate

viewpoint supported by reasons. You also include a paragraph presenting the opposing
viewpoint and reason why you think it is an unconvincing viewpoint; and a

c) conclusion in which you restate your opinion using different words.

Introduction

Paragraph 1
state the topic and your opinion clearly

Main Body
Paragraph 2
viewpoint 1 & reason, example

Paragraph 3
viewpoint 2 & reason, example
Paragraph 4
viewpoint 3 & reason/ example*

Paragraph 5
opposing viewpoint & reason/example*

Conclusion
Final paragraph
summarise/restate opinion

 You may include more viewpoints, and thus more paragraphs in the main body.

Write an opinion essay about volunteering.

Sample

It is argued that volunteering should be made part of the school curriculum. This essay
agrees with that suggestion completely because of the benefits it brings to pupils. The
essay will first look at how voluntary work can help students develop soft skills and then
discuss how these extracurricular activities are valued by universities and employers.

Education should not be limited to strictly academic pursuits and those in education
should also develop life skills, such as teamwork, empathy and self-discipline, and one of
the best ways to hone these aptitudes is through community service. Serving those less
fortunate than ourselves teaches us many lessons including how to work with people
from other backgrounds and the value of hard work. For example, I personally
volunteered to spend 6 weeks in Africa teaching disadvantaged children and this led to a
much higher work ethic when I returned to my studies.

Many colleges and companies are also increasingly looking for this type of experience.
Most school leavers have the same grades and charitable works can help set you apart
from the herd. For example, Cambridge and Oxford receive thousands of applications
from straight-A students every year and can only accept a small percentage of applicants.
What you have done outside the classroom is often the thing that differentiates you from
everyone else and gets you that coveted spot.

In conclusion, teenagers should be made to partake in unpaid work as part of their

schooling because it will help them learn things they wouldn’t ordinarily learn from their
teachers and it will also boost their chances of getting into third level education.