✍️ English Grammar and Writing · Essay Writing
Writing a Thesis Statement cheat sheet
Everything you need on one page. Print it, or switch on test-yourself mode to blur the answers and check your memory.
Is it a thesis? Five look-alikes
- Topic: names a subject (school lunch)
- Fact: already true, nothing to argue
- Announcement: says what you will do (This essay will...)
- Question: asks, but does not answer
- Thesis: claim + reason that answers the prompt (informative essay: a specific controlling idea)
The recipe (argumentative thesis)
- Topic + claim + because
- Weak thesis: add a claim, make it specific, add the reason
- Road-map thesis (optional): name the main reasons in order
Three kinds of essay
- Argumentative: a claim a reasonable reader could disagree with
- Literary analysis: a claim about what the work shows, not a plot summary
- Informative: a controlling idea that organizes the explanation, not a debate
Five-question checklist
- Does it answer the prompt?
- Is it arguable (or a real controlling idea)?
- Is it specific?
- Is it one clear claim?
- Can you support it with evidence?
Placement
- End of the introduction
- Each body paragraph supports one part of it, starting with a topic sentence
- The conclusion returns to it in fresh words
Writing a Thesis Statement cheat sheet from HighSchoolQ.com, for personal study use.