The 5-paragraph academic is a fundamental skill for academic success. It is also a formula that can be recognized, understood, and then replicated for success in any subject area. 

Learners in this class will learn the essential ingredients in an essay, and then work together to identify them in a sample essay. They’ll see how the parts all fit together and then practice them by writing their own essays.

A total of TWO essays will be written for this course. 

The FIRST essay will be a “Class Essay” that we will develop and plan together as a class before learners take the final step to write their own essay.  

The SECOND essay will be an “Original Essay” on a topic of the student’s own choosing - with guidance from the teacher along the way.

Below is a rough breakdown of what we will cover in the four classes:

Class One:
-- Examine the essential ingredients in a proper 5-paragraph essay. 
-- See how these ingredients are used by deconstructing a sample essay together.  
-- Discuss methods of creating the most important ingredient of all - The THESIS.  
-- HW - Students will have to develop arguments for our class essay, and choose a thesis for their own, ORIGINAL essay.

Class Two:
-- Collect the class brainstorm of arguments for our class essay.
-- Use strategies to determine the three best arguments for our body paragraphs
-- Transfer ideas and arguments from the brainstorm to create an OUTLINE. 
-- HW - Students will apply what they have learned so far to write their own version of the “Class Essay.”

Class Three:
-- Examine learners' first essay and mark them together as a class using the "Essential Essay Ingredient Checklist". All student work handed in on time will be marked and given direct feedback.
-- HW - Following the same steps we used for the class essay, learners will write their second essay on a topic of their own choosing.

Class Four:
-- “Original Essays” are due in class today. We will mark them together as a class using the "Essential Essay Ingredient Checklist". All student work handed in on time will be marked and given direct feedback.

Completed essays should be submitted by choosing REPLY to my post in the Outschool classroom and attaching a .doc, .docx, .pdf, or an “accessible” GoogleDocs link. If these writing applications/programs are not available, you can copy and paste your whole essay and send it to me in a private message.

*DUE DATES ARE ASSIGNED*
I like to give feedback on each learner’s essays. In order to receive individualized feedback on the work completed, learners must turn in the assigned work before class time of the due date. Work turned in after that will not receive feedback. 

*Note: The price for the class is a little higher than my other classes so that I can provide extra time to mark and give quality feedback on student's essays.