Five Paragraph Format

Introduction
Thesis:
Your answer to the question and main supporting points

Body
Topic Sentence:
Evidence Point Supporting Overall Thesis
(In this paragraph I will prove that)

Body Body Conclusion

Restate Thesis

This short presentation is designed to help you understand how to write history papers using the five paragraph format. Please note that while is called the "five-paragraph format", the same basic structure can be used for essays that are a minimum of three paragraphs, to a maximum of however many paragraphs you want.
The first paragraph in this format is the introduction. The key element of the introductory paragraph is the "thesis statement". The clearly states, in a succinct manner, what the paper will argue. If the paper is in direct response to a question, you should briefly provide your answer to the question. The thesis statement is not just what your paper is about, but what stance you will take. For instance, if you were asked to write a paper about the origins of the American Revolution, you wouldn't want to use a vague thesis statement such as "This paper is about the American Revolution". Nor do you want to simply restate the question. Instead, you want to be specific that you're ANSWERING the question: For instance, "The American Revolution was caused by factors a, b, and c" The following paragraphs are referred to as the "body" of the essay. Here you will break down your overall argument into smaller sections or "mini-arguments". The first sentence in a body paragraph is the "topic sentence", which is basically the "thesis statement" for the paragraph. Again, do not use a statement of fact or a quote for your topic sentence. One way you can focus on writing good topic sentences is to write your topic sentence and then mentally put the following statement in front of it: "In this paragraph I will prove that ... ". Note that you don't actually have to put that phrase in your paper - it's a mental exercise to help keep you focused. Following the topic sentence you will provide the specific evidence which supports and proves the assertion you made in the topic sentence. You will present not only relevant historical facts, but also HOW they relate to proving your point and answering the question. Throughout your paper you should always refer constantly back to your central thesis. If the paper is written in response to a question, you should always be asking yourself: "Does this help answer the question?" The final paragraph should be the conclusion. In this paragraph you will summarize your argument - what your paper has proven. This should echo your introductory paragraph. In other words, you start the essay by stating "this is what the paper will prove" and you end it by stating "this is what the paper has proven".

Mistakes Made With Evidence

Incorrect Irrelevant No context No explanation for why a fact supports your thesis
In any argumentative paper the proper use of evidence is critical. Here are a couple of pitfalls to watch for: 1/ The first one is pretty obvious: make sure your facts are accurate. Most people are aware of this, but they often get careless and don't check their facts. Obviously if your argument is not supported by accurate facts, it won't be persuasive. 2/ The second point is a little less obvious and a very common mistake made by students. Make sure that the facts you're using are actually relevant to proving your argument. Very often students will do a "brain dump" - they'll throw in a lot of evidence and facts just to give their essay volume, but they don't actually contribute to proving anything. When I see a paper that utilizes a lot of irrelevant information it tells me that the student doesn't really have a clear understanding of the question or how they're trying to answer to the question. 3/ The third point is the most subtle. People will often put information which is accurate and relevant into their essay, but fail to connect it to their argument. Do not simply throw out a fact and expect the reader to make the argument for you. YOU need to show that you understand the connection and relevance. For instance, if you were writing the essay on the origins of the American Revolution cited above, you might use as a fact that in March 1770 British troops fired upon and killed five American colonists. That fact is accurate and it is relevant to answering the question, but HOW is it relevant? What does it show?