Nan in Mass (or other) - 5 Paragraph formula?

[Cindy in Indy]

In searching some old threads regarding teaching writing, I came across a helpful response from Nan in Mass, whose engineer-husband writes reports, etc., using the 5 paragraph formula he learned in high school.

As you can imagine, my husband was absolutely adamant that I bang that 5 para formula into our children.

Nan (or someone else who knows), can you briefly summarize what constitutes the 5 paragraph formula? It sounds like a helpful tool to teach my 9th grader this year.

TIA,
Cindy

[Jan P.]

I'm not Nan, but here is the five paragraph essay.

I. Introductory paragraph with thesis statement. Three points that support the thesis is listed briefly.
II. Body of essay which are three paragraphs. Each paragraph covers one of the supporting points and expanding on each point.
III. The last or fifth paragraph is the conclusion. It summarizes the essay. Usually the thesis is repeated in a different written format. The three points may be listed again.

There are numerous websites that give free lessons on how to do the five paragraph essay. Simply type in five paragraph essay in a GOOGLE search and you will find what you need.

Jan P.

[Cindy in Indy]

Thanks Jan!