The Five-Paragraph Essay: Instructions and Exercises for Mastering Essay Writing

Write a strong essay—one paragraph at a time.

The Five-Paragraph Essay is a step-by-step guide that teaches students in grades 6–10 how to plan, write and revise clear, confident essays. Short, friendly lessons explain each part of the essay—the hook, the thesis, body paragraphs, transitions and conclusions—and hands-on Try It exercises put every skill into practice.

This expanded second edition includes:

• 17 units, from your first thesis statement to timed essays and tests
• Model essays with notes that show how every paragraph works
• Expository, persuasive, compare-and-contrast, cause-and-effect, literary-analysis and narrative essays
• More than 150 hands-on exercises, with sample answers
• Checklists, a self-check rubric, a transition word bank and a one-page Essay Guide
• Built-in Fact Files on 15 historical figures, plus the full text of O. Henry’s “The Gift of the Magi,” so no outside reading or research is needed

Perfect for students working on their own, homeschool families and teachers.