Unlearning the five paragraph essay means unteaching it as well.
There’s no
shame in teaching the five paragraph essay. Not for me, anyway. Writing is
easily the most complicated thing we teach. Students need a place to start;
something they can grasp and understand and then improvise on. It's time to give the time-honored five-parter it's due.
I know this is from several years back, but you have lots of helpful ideas as I consider how to communicate some of the concepts of structuring writing without the clunkiness and rigidity of the strict 5-paragraph formula.
In response to Tom White’s in defense of the 5-paragraph essay, his point is valid that in elementary school it is a good template to teach academic writing to kids. However, with the push for stream-ligned standards like the Common Core and the huge expectations for kids to perform well on standardized tests, the 5-paragraph has become what writing is for kids. The consequence of this is they completely lose their sense of voice in their writing. As an AP Language and Composition teacher, I need to deprogram them from their default, cookie-cutter 5-paragraph essay. We need teach the kids how to write as a craft again. The modes of writing: narrative, persuasive, expository, descriptive. How to establish voice as an author: weaving themes, descriptive and figurative language, the authoritative I. There is nothing wrong with teaching the 5-paragraph essay, unless we are teaching it as the only essay kids need to write.
5 Paragraph Essay Benefits of Exercise
It’s flexible.
Not only does it work as an essay, but it also comes in handy when writing
short stories. You introduce the characters and setting in the first paragraph,
throw in a beginning, middle and end and wrap up the story with a fifth
paragraph and boom: you’ve got yourself a story. Other uses come quickly to
mind: fairy tales, pourquoi tales, even the standard three-part joke can trace
its roots to the five-paragraph format. Once you’ve mastered the five paragraph
essay, the sky’s the limit.
Like it or not, the five paragraph format is effective. There's something
appealing about introducing a topic, expanding on it in three, detailed
paragraphs and finishing with a succinct conclusion. If you can give three good
reasons for holding an opinion, then you’ve got something. If you can’t, then
you don’t. As there was no way I could come up with three good reasons why my
mom should let me play with the lawn darts after my trip to the emergency room,
the darts stayed hidden. Understanding the five-paragraph format is a useful
tool for anyone with an opinion or an agenda.
This straightforward handbook covers various aspects of writing, from the start (receiving or developing a project), to the revision and submission process, and everything in between. Along with practical writing tips, F*ck The 5 Paragraph Essay also addresses rhetorical and contextual aspects significant to the composition process, such as audience awareness, overall purpose, and even how technology factors in (Eek! Not AI?!?).
Have you moved beyond the 5-paragraph essay to writing in the wild? What has worked for you? What suggestions do you have for others who want to move beyond the 5-paragraph approach? Or do you have questions? Please post in the comments below.
Transition Words For Essays - The Ultimate List For 2025
I was asked to switch from third grade to fourth grade this year.
I'm enjoying the change, but one of the realities I'm facing is the increased
emphasis on writing instruction. Third graders learn how to write paragraphs,
while fourth graders learn how to write with paragraphs.
Consequently, I've turned to the five paragraph essay: an effective, flexible starting
point for young writers.
How to Write a Five-Paragraph Essay, With Outlines and an Example
I also chose “Writing in the Wild” because I realized that what kept me from moving beyond the 5-paragraph essay was something to be celebrated not avoided. Instead of limiting students to fake-writing assignments, one that may be easier to tame (i.e. teach and grade), what I really need to provide for my students are opportunities to write in the wild. It’s messy, to be sure, and I don’t know a single teacher who likes messy. But it’s the process of making meaning amidst that messiness where the important stuff happens—writing, and yes, thinking.
UMGC Effective Writing Center Secrets of the Five-Paragraph Essay
How did this mismatch of expectations between what we hope for young writers and what they repeatedly practice happen? We suspect it has a lot to do with the fact that K–12 teachers have too many students, have too little time, and are required to prepare their students for too many mandated standardized tests. In the rush to plan, assess, and respond to the chaos of needs throughout the school day, we have been seduced by a form that is easy to teach and easy to grade.
Unlearning the Five Paragraph Essay
While F*ck The 5 Paragraph Essay is ideal for Composition courses, it’s designed to help with writing across all disciplines. For instance, rather than outlining specific MLA formatting rules (which are commonly used in Composition courses), the formatting chapter discusses what formatting is, explains why it’s “a thing” at all, and contextualizes many of the reasons different disciplines make use of their preferred formatting styles.
[PDF] Outline for a Five-Paragraph Essay
Not necessarily. The word count of a five-paragraph essay can vary widely depending on the topic, level of detail in each paragraph, and specific instructions provided by the teacher or professor. While some five-paragraph essays might be around 500 words, others could be shorter or longer.