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✍️ Writing & Research Grades 5–12
Essay Structure
Most school essays follow one shape: an introduction that ends with your thesis, body paragraphs that each prove one reason, and a conclusion that shows why it matters.
Learn How it works
Introduction
1. Hook: a question, fact, or short scene.
2. Context: what the reader needs to know.
3. Thesis: your claim plus your reasons, in one sentence.
Body paragraphs
Each paragraph proves one reason. Use PEEL: Point, Evidence, Explain, Link. Most essays have 2 to 4 body paragraphs.
Conclusion
Restate the thesis in new words, sum up your reasons, and answer “So what?” Don't add new evidence.
Essay types
| Type | Goal | Thesis sounds like… |
|---|---|---|
| Argumentative | Convince with evidence, and answer the other side | Schools should start later because… |
| Expository | Explain or inform | Volcanoes form in three main ways… |
| Literary analysis | Interpret a text | In The Giver, color shows… |
| Compare and contrast | Show likenesses and differences | Although both… , they differ in… |
| Narrative | Tell a true or made-up story with a point | (Often a theme instead of a thesis) |
Transitions that connect ideas
Add: also, in addition, furthermore · Contrast: however, on the other hand, although · Example: for instance, for example · Cause/effect: as a result, therefore, because of this · Conclude: in the end, overall, ultimately
Examples See it done
Model argumentative essay (short)
[Hook] Every weekday at 6:15 a.m., millions of teenagers drag themselves out of bed before their brains are ready. [Context] Sleep researchers have found that puberty shifts the body clock later, so most teens can't fall asleep before 11 p.m. [Thesis] High schools should start at 8:30 a.m. or later because teens would get more sleep, earn better grades, and drive more safely.
[Point] The first benefit is more sleep. [Evidence] When schools in Seattle moved start times from 7:50 to 8:45 a.m., students slept a median of 34 more minutes a night. [Explain] Thirty-four minutes may sound small, but over a school week it adds up to almost three hours of rest. [Link] And rested students do more than feel better.
…(two more body paragraphs on grades and driving, plus a paragraph that answers the bus-schedule counterargument)…
[Conclusion] Starting school later is a simple change that works with teenagers' biology instead of against it. More sleep, better learning, and safer roads are worth rearranging a bus schedule. The question isn't whether we can afford to change. It's whether we can afford not to.
Practice Check yourself
Answer, then tap Check. You get an explanation either way.
Point, Evidence, Explain, Link. Explaining is where you show how the evidence proves your point.