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How to Write an Informal Essay: A Beginners' Guide

A typical academic essay is serious writing. It is serious because it is often well-researched and written formally. The typical informal essay is the exact opposite of this.

It is often not researched at all and is written in a casual tone. Furthermore, it is commonly written for enjoyment rather than serious discourse. And for that reason, it is a non-fiction essay that does not follow the writing conventions and is purely based on the author's reasons, reflections, and ideas.

In this guide, you will discover everything crucial you need to know to write a brilliant informal essay.

What is an informal essay?

An informal essay is an essay that is written for enjoyment rather than to argue or support a thesis with scholarly evidence. The essay is usually personal in nature and based on memory. A good example of an informal essay is – The happiest day of my life.

To write this essay, you simply need to recall the happiest day of your life and then write about it chronologically. As you can see, you don’t have to do much research to write an informal essay.

The fact that an informal essay is written for enjoyment does not mean that it does not have a set structure. The typical informal essay is a five-paragraph essay with three key parts – introduction, body, and conclusion. In terms of word count, the essay is often between 700 and 1,000 words long. The only thing informal about it is the fact that it does not need serious research. Moreover, unlike most essays, the informal can be written in a casual or conversational tone. This means that it can be written in the first and second person.

In most cases, informal essays are written for consumption by the author – to show their creativity, journal an experience, or release emotions through writing pieces.

Structure of an Informal Essay

Like most college students, you are probably used to following the five-paragraph essay structure that most professors recommend for formal essays . While using this structure to write your informal essay is okay, it is not necessary. The rationale for this is that the informal essay is informal and doesn’t follow any rigid structure.

Informal essays involve subjective opinions or ideas through prose. Some common examples of informal essays include impromptu speeches, diary entries, journals, social media posts, personal essays, and personal notes.

While the informal essay does not have a rigid structure or format, it must include four elements – topic, introduction, body, and conclusion.

The informal essay must have a title. It might be informal and without a structure, but it must have a title, and the title must be specific. By giving your informal essay a title, you are basically creating a compass that you can always refer to when writing your essay to ensure you are in the right direction. If, for example, you want to argue a point but are unsure whether it deserves to be in your essay, you can refer to your title to evaluate its importance. If the point helps to contribute to your title, you should include it in your essay. If it doesn’t, you should quickly ignore it.

2. Introduction

The informal essay must have an introduction . In other words, it must simply have a paragraph presenting what you will discuss in the body section. When writing the introduction of an informal essay, there is no specific formula to follow. The only thing that you must do is to make the introduction as interesting as possible. You can do this using a relevant quote, an interesting fact, or a related statistic.

In the body of your informal essay, you must go all out to tell the story you set out to tell in the introduction. You must do the title justice; you must make sure that anyone who reads your essay will agree that what you discuss or talk about in the body section is exactly what they expected. While there is no specific structure to follow when writing the body paragraphs of your informal essay, the best way to write them is chronological. This is because chronologically written paragraphs are easy to follow.

4. Conclusion

After writing your essay, you must write the conclusion part of your essay. The conclusion is usually the easiest part to write when writing an essay. This is because all you need to do is to summarize what you have written in the body section or body paragraphs. After doing this, you simply need to end your essay with a powerful closing sentence to complete it.

The Steps to Take to Write an Informal Essay

An informal essay is written in a conversational tone, which is laid-back, entails breaking academic writing rules, and sounds like everyday communication. You can use informal transition words, short sentences, contractions, common and cliché words, adages, expressions, and personal examples.

Here are the steps to take if assigned to write an informal essay.

1. Choose a topic

When you are asked to write an informal essay, you are normally allowed to choose your own topic. If this is the case, you should choose a topic that is very interesting to you. Because by doing so, the fact that the topic is interesting to you will result in you naturally writing an interesting essay. And interesting is what you want your informal essay to be to get a top grade.

Below the informal essay sample that follows this guide is a list of exciting informal essay topics. This list should inspire you to develop your own exciting informal essay topic; a topic that will make your essay interesting.

2. Create an outline for your informal essay

After choosing an interesting or exciting topic, you should create an outline for your informal essay . An essay outline is an essay writing plan. It highlights what you will include in the introduction section, the body section, and the conclusion section of your essay. To create an outline, provide a short summary of what you will include in your introduction paragraph, your three body paragraphs, and your conclusion paragraph.

But how do you know what you will include in your informal essay paragraphs? Well, it depends. If you are writing an informal essay based on a personal experience topic, you must recall as many details as possible about the experience to plan your essay. If you are writing an informal essay based on an academic topic, you will need thorough research to find as many details as possible about the topic to plan your essay.

3. Write the first draft of your essay

After creating a comprehensive outline for your informal essay, you should write the first draft of your essay. Do this by first writing your essay introduction. After writing your essay introduction, you should write its body paragraphs and the conclusion.

Writing the first draft of your informal essay after creating an outline for it should be a relatively straightforward job. You need to follow the outline like a map and use information from it to begin and structure your paragraphs.

The body paragraphs of an informal essay should each express your main message, perspective, or point of view. You can use persuasive writing skills to convince your readers. It would help to think of the topic as a forum thread where you defend your personal views against opposing opinions. Therefore, you must develop resilient supportive facts to defend your stance.

When developing the body paragraphs, you are allowed to use informal language. You should write short, clear, concise sentences, as long formulations are boring and misleading. You should center your discussions around some emotional vibe, express your personality, and write with vigor and respect.

Following your outline will make your informal essay well-organized and structured. However, it won’t guarantee flow in your essay. You will have to create a flow with your writing and transition words. Also, it won’t automatically give your essay a conversational and laid-back tone. You have to do this on your own using conversational words and writing.

Related Articles:

• Using I in an essay.
• How to format paragraphs for better readership.
• Steps to come up with a great thesis statement.

4. Edit your essay

After writing the first draft of your essay, you should edit it thoroughly. Do this by reading it to eliminate ambiguous and unclear words and statements. After reading it to eliminate unclear words, you should read it to remove all types of grammatical and punctuation errors.

The next thing you need to do with regard to editing your essay is to review it one more time using Grammarly.com or similar software. This will help you to catch the errors you may have missed and to correct them.

After proofreading your essay using Grammarly.com, it will be ready for submission.

Informal Essay Example

Title: Benefits of living in a remote location They say no man is an island. While living in a community surrounded by friends and neighbors is a good thing with many benefits, living alone in a remote location also has its benefits. I have been living alone in a remote Pacific island for the last eight months, and the experience has been bliss. The island has a single cabin research station with basic amenities and a satellite connection. The nearest settled island is over 500 kilometers away. I had doubts when I first stepped on the island. I thought I wouldn’t last long. However, this has obviously not been the case. My stay on this island has been quite amazing. I have enjoyed many benefits, including improved mental health, improved safety, and a low cost of living. When I was living in Sydney, Australia, I was in a bad place mentally because I felt a lot of pressure to succeed. I also felt depressed and was frequently on depression medication. Living in a remote location has changed all this. I no longer feel any pressure. I no longer feel depressed or miserable. Just about every day is a good day nowadays. I wake up, check equipment, spend hours on the beach, and eat fresh food I grow in the station’s garden. I feel amazing mentally. I feel like a new person because life is so slow-paced on this island and devoid of the pressures of city life. Regarding safety, I believe living alone on a remote island is much safer than living in a big town or city. I feel safer on this island because there is literally no one around to cause me harm. I do not have to look over my shoulder when walking, sleeping, or doing anything on this isolated island. I also have no reason to watch the news, so I am not exposed to the constant reports of insecurity that city dwellers are exposed to. Not being exposed to constant reports of insecurity makes me feel even safer. Furthermore, in case of any emergency, there is an emergency number I can call at any time of the day to request urgent help. Lastly, regarding the cost of living, living isolated on a remote island is much cheaper than city or town living. I literally do not pay any rent on this island. I also grow much of my own food, and supplies are brought to me biweekly. Furthermore, I do not pay taxes and am not exposed to constant adverts that force city dwellers to make impulse purchases. And even if I want to purchase something, I wouldn’t because it probably wouldn’t have much use on a remote, isolated island. In conclusion, living in a remote location is very beneficial. If you choose to do this, you will be happier, safer, and less stressed financially. I can only equate it to living in paradise.

Informal Essay Topics

Below are some informal essay topics you can use as inspiration to come up with your own informal essay topic if asked to choose your own topic by your professor.

• The best meals in our college cafeteria
• Celebrities who are excellent role models
• My religion and why I love it
• My thoughts on marriage and divorce
• The best day in my college life
• The most embarrassing incident in my life
• How parents can understand their children better
• Why my mother is the most important person to me
• The most famous African American inventors
• Entrepreneurs who changed the world
• Alcoholism among teenagers
• Why home education is bad
• Elon Musk and life on Mars
• The Illuminati and other conspiracy theories
• Legal migration and its benefits
• Mental health in the USA
• Communism and its benefits
• The United Nations and its failures
• Gender violence in California
• Freedom of speech around the world
• The effects of sanctions on Cuba
• Education during the peak of the pandemic
• East African culture
• Why the death penalty should be abolished everywhere
• Abortion and the right to life
• What would I do if I became a millionaire overnight?
• Why soccer is the most popular sport in the world
• The pros and cons of video gaming
• The Second Amendment and its protections
• Why I would like to become a doctor
• Why I love intermittent fasting
• How I won a half marathon when undergoing chemotherapy
• Lessons from my close friend who betrayed me
• How I plan to win the next marathon
• The car I love most
• My dream job
• Places I would like to visit
• Why I love my step-dad
• The last day at my first job

Dos and don’ts when writing an informal essay

• Do write your essay in the first person. This will make it clearly informal and casual. It will also make it read much better.
• Do write short sentences. Long sentences will make your essay difficult to read. In contrast, short sentences will make your writing easier to read and more casual (which is something you want when writing an informal essay).
• Do rewrite your essay. After writing your informal essay, you should read through it to make it flawless. Do this by editing or rewriting anything that appears out of place in your essay.
• Do proofread your essay. After you are done improving the flow of your essay, you should read it one more time to ensure it has zero grammar, punctuation, and formatting errors.
• Do ensure your essay is chronological. While it is unnecessary to make your informal essay chronological, making it chronological will make it easy to read and understand.
• Do use humor. It is okay to use humor in an informal essay. But you should only do it sparingly to avoid making your essay sound like a comedy script.
• Do use conversational language. Using conversational language will make your article to read like a blog, which is a good thing when writing an informal essay. But do not go overboard with conversational language. It could make your essay difficult to understand.
• Do read any informal essay examples. Before you write your informal essay, you should try to find and read informal essay examples online. This will help to make it easy for you to write your essay because it shows you the pattern you need to follow.
• Do let your personality show. If you have a way of expressing your ideas, arguments, and so on, you should let your personality show in your writing. Let your writing be as unique as it can be. Do not try to make your essay look or even feel academic. Just write it as you would write a blog to be read by a friend. This will help make your essay delightfully informal.                                                                                                                     
• Don’t forget to ensure a good flow throughout. While an informal essay doesn’t have a set structure, it must have a good flow. Therefore, you should ensure your essay is understandable throughout.
• Don’t forget to edit your essay. The best informal essays are flawless ones. So after writing your essay, you should read it severally to edit it and ensure it is flawless.
• Don’t make it formal. When writing informal essays, many students usually use the conventional academic language they use in formal essays. This is not right. You should try hard to make your essay as flawless as possible.
• Don’t forget to include a thesis . At the end of your introduction, you should have a thesis statement, and your entire essay should be centered on this statement. A thesis is what distinguishes an informal essay from a blog article.
• Don’t include weak arguments. It is important to ensure that your essay only contains strong arguments. Doing this will ensure you get a top grade. If you include weak arguments, you risk getting an average grade.

Parting Words!

Writing a good informal essay is not an easy job. It will require you to know the structure and style you must follow when writing an informal essay. Fortunately, you now know these two things. You also know exactly how to go about writing an informal essay. So go ahead and write yours. If you get stuck at any point, hire us to help you.

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8.2 Outlining

Learning objectives.

• Identify the steps in constructing an outline.
• Construct a topic outline and a sentence outline.

Your prewriting activities and readings have helped you gather information for your assignment. The more you sort through the pieces of information you found, the more you will begin to see the connections between them. Patterns and gaps may begin to stand out. But only when you start to organize your ideas will you be able to translate your raw insights into a form that will communicate meaning to your audience.

Longer papers require more reading and planning than shorter papers do. Most writers discover that the more they know about a topic, the more they can write about it with intelligence and interest.

Organizing Ideas

When you write, you need to organize your ideas in an order that makes sense. The writing you complete in all your courses exposes how analytically and critically your mind works. In some courses, the only direct contact you may have with your instructor is through the assignments you write for the course. You can make a good impression by spending time ordering your ideas.

Order refers to your choice of what to present first, second, third, and so on in your writing. The order you pick closely relates to your purpose for writing that particular assignment. For example, when telling a story, it may be important to first describe the background for the action. Or you may need to first describe a 3-D movie projector or a television studio to help readers visualize the setting and scene. You may want to group your support effectively to convince readers that your point of view on an issue is well reasoned and worthy of belief.

In longer pieces of writing, you may organize different parts in different ways so that your purpose stands out clearly and all parts of the paper work together to consistently develop your main point.

Methods of Organizing Writing

The three common methods of organizing writing are chronological order , spatial order , and order of importance . You will learn more about these in Chapter 9 “Writing Essays: From Start to Finish” ; however, you need to keep these methods of organization in mind as you plan how to arrange the information you have gathered in an outline. An outline is a written plan that serves as a skeleton for the paragraphs you write. Later, when you draft paragraphs in the next stage of the writing process, you will add support to create “flesh” and “muscle” for your assignment.

When you write, your goal is not only to complete an assignment but also to write for a specific purpose—perhaps to inform, to explain, to persuade, or for a combination of these purposes. Your purpose for writing should always be in the back of your mind, because it will help you decide which pieces of information belong together and how you will order them. In other words, choose the order that will most effectively fit your purpose and support your main point.

Table 8.1 “Order versus Purpose” shows the connection between order and purpose.

Table 8.1 Order versus Purpose

Writing a Thesis Statement

One legitimate question readers always ask about a piece of writing is “What is the big idea?” (You may even ask this question when you are the reader, critically reading an assignment or another document.) Every nonfiction writing task—from the short essay to the ten-page term paper to the lengthy senior thesis—needs a big idea, or a controlling idea, as the spine for the work. The controlling idea is the main idea that you want to present and develop.

For a longer piece of writing, the main idea should be broader than the main idea for a shorter piece of writing. Be sure to frame a main idea that is appropriate for the length of the assignment. Ask yourself, “How many pages will it take for me to explain and explore this main idea in detail?” Be reasonable with your estimate. Then expand or trim it to fit the required length.

The big idea, or controlling idea, you want to present in an essay is expressed in a thesis statement . A thesis statement is often one sentence long, and it states your point of view. The thesis statement is not the topic of the piece of writing but rather what you have to say about that topic and what is important to tell readers.

Table 8.2 “Topics and Thesis Statements” compares topics and thesis statements.

Table 8.2 Topics and Thesis Statements

The first thesis statement you write will be a preliminary thesis statement, or a working thesis statement . You will need it when you begin to outline your assignment as a way to organize it. As you continue to develop the arrangement, you can limit your working thesis statement if it is too broad or expand it if it proves too narrow for what you want to say.

Using the topic you selected in Section 8.1 “Apply Prewriting Models” , develop a working thesis statement that states your controlling idea for the piece of writing you are doing. On a sheet of paper, write your working thesis statement.

You will make several attempts before you devise a working thesis statement that you think is effective. Each draft of the thesis statement will bring you closer to the wording that expresses your meaning exactly.

Writing an Outline

For an essay question on a test or a brief oral presentation in class, all you may need to prepare is a short, informal outline in which you jot down key ideas in the order you will present them. This kind of outline reminds you to stay focused in a stressful situation and to include all the good ideas that help you explain or prove your point.

For a longer assignment, like an essay or a research paper, many college instructors require students to submit a formal outline before writing a major paper as a way to be sure you are on the right track and are working in an organized manner. A formal outline is a detailed guide that shows how all your supporting ideas relate to each other. It helps you distinguish between ideas that are of equal importance and ones that are of lesser importance. You build your paper based on the framework created by the outline.

Instructors may also require you to submit an outline with your final draft to check the direction of the assignment and the logic of your final draft. If you are required to submit an outline with the final draft of a paper, remember to revise the outline to reflect any changes you made while writing the paper.

There are two types of formal outlines: the topic outline and the sentence outline. You format both types of formal outlines in the same way.

• Place your introduction and thesis statement at the beginning, under roman numeral I.
• Use roman numerals (II, III, IV, V, etc.) to identify main points that develop the thesis statement.
• Use capital letters (A, B, C, D, etc.) to divide your main points into parts.
• Use arabic numerals (1, 2, 3, 4, 5, etc.) if you need to subdivide any As, Bs, or Cs into smaller parts.
• End with the final roman numeral expressing your idea for your conclusion.

Here is what the skeleton of a traditional formal outline looks like. The indention helps clarify how the ideas are related.

Introduction

Thesis statement

Main point 1 → becomes the topic sentence of body paragraph 1

Main point 2 → becomes the topic sentence of body paragraph 2

Main point 3 → becomes the topic sentence of body paragraph 3

In an outline, any supporting detail can be developed with subpoints. For simplicity, the model shows them only under the first main point.

Formal outlines are often quite rigid in their organization. As many instructors will specify, you cannot subdivide one point if it is only one part. For example, for every roman numeral I, there must be a For every A, there must be a B. For every arabic numeral 1, there must be a 2. See for yourself on the sample outlines that follow.

Constructing Topic Outlines

A topic outline is the same as a sentence outline except you use words or phrases instead of complete sentences. Words and phrases keep the outline short and easier to comprehend. All the headings, however, must be written in parallel structure. (For more information on parallel structure, see Chapter 7 “Refining Your Writing: How Do I Improve My Writing Technique?” .)

Here is the topic outline that Mariah constructed for the essay she is developing. Her purpose is to inform, and her audience is a general audience of her fellow college students. Notice how Mariah begins with her thesis statement. She then arranges her main points and supporting details in outline form using short phrases in parallel grammatical structure.

Writing an Effective Topic Outline

This checklist can help you write an effective topic outline for your assignment. It will also help you discover where you may need to do additional reading or prewriting.

• Do I have a controlling idea that guides the development of the entire piece of writing?
• Do I have three or more main points that I want to make in this piece of writing? Does each main point connect to my controlling idea?
• Is my outline in the best order—chronological order, spatial order, or order of importance—for me to present my main points? Will this order help me get my main point across?
• Do I have supporting details that will help me inform, explain, or prove my main points?
• Do I need to add more support? If so, where?
• Do I need to make any adjustments in my working thesis statement before I consider it the final version?

Writing at Work

Word processing programs generally have an automatic numbering feature that can be used to prepare outlines. This feature automatically sets indents and lets you use the tab key to arrange information just as you would in an outline. Although in business this style might be acceptable, in college your instructor might have different requirements. Teach yourself how to customize the levels of outline numbering in your word-processing program to fit your instructor’s preferences.

Using the working thesis statement you wrote in Note 8.32 “Exercise 1” and the reading you did in Section 8.1 “Apply Prewriting Models” , construct a topic outline for your essay. Be sure to observe correct outline form, including correct indentions and the use of Roman and arabic numerals and capital letters.

Collaboration

Please share with a classmate and compare your outline. Point out areas of interest from their outline and what you would like to learn more about.

Constructing Sentence Outlines

A sentence outline is the same as a topic outline except you use complete sentences instead of words or phrases. Complete sentences create clarity and can advance you one step closer to a draft in the writing process.

Here is the sentence outline that Mariah constructed for the essay she is developing.

The information compiled under each roman numeral will become a paragraph in your final paper. In the previous example, the outline follows the standard five-paragraph essay arrangement, but longer essays will require more paragraphs and thus more roman numerals. If you think that a paragraph might become too long or stringy, add an additional paragraph to your outline, renumbering the main points appropriately.

PowerPoint presentations, used both in schools and in the workplace, are organized in a way very similar to formal outlines. PowerPoint presentations often contain information in the form of talking points that the presenter develops with more details and examples than are contained on the PowerPoint slide.

Expand the topic outline you prepared in Note 8.41 “Exercise 2” to make it a sentence outline. In this outline, be sure to include multiple supporting points for your main topic even if your topic outline does not contain them. Be sure to observe correct outline form, including correct indentions and the use of Roman and arabic numerals and capital letters.

Key Takeaways

• Writers must put their ideas in order so the assignment makes sense. The most common orders are chronological order, spatial order, and order of importance.
• After gathering and evaluating the information you found for your essay, the next step is to write a working, or preliminary, thesis statement.
• The working thesis statement expresses the main idea that you want to develop in the entire piece of writing. It can be modified as you continue the writing process.
• Effective writers prepare a formal outline to organize their main ideas and supporting details in the order they will be presented.
• A topic outline uses words and phrases to express the ideas.
• A sentence outline uses complete sentences to express the ideas.
• The writer’s thesis statement begins the outline, and the outline ends with suggestions for the concluding paragraph.

Writing for Success Copyright © 2015 by University of Minnesota is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-ShareAlike 4.0 International License , except where otherwise noted.

Creating Outlines

• Formal Outlines

What Is an Informal Outline?

Informal outline examples, helpful software.

A informal outline...

• is a visual listing of your paper's main concepts, broken down into main topics and supporting topics
• uses bullet points and indentation to organize these topics and subtopics in list format
• can be written in fragments or complete sentences (An outline in complete sentences is called a sentence outline .)

When constructing an informal outline, you may want to consider these factors...

• the main topic typically represents the overall topic of a single paragraph
• main topics traditionally have no fewer than two sub-topics for supporting details
• there is no standard of length for a good outline- longer papers typically have longer outlines
• the formatting of bulleted lists can vary, but indentation is extremely important to keep the hierarchy of main and supporting topics intact

When in doubt about the structure of the outline required for your assignment, please consult with your instructor and use the materials or instructions distributed in class.

• Example informal outline A short and sweet example of an informal outline.

Need help creating an outline from scratch? Check out the following information:

• Microsoft Word: Create an Outline from Scratch In Word, outlines are also called multilevel lists. The following steps show how to write a new outline from scratch.

You can also create an outline in a Google Doc. The menus for this feature are shown in the following image.

Formal outlines :

Format --> Bullets & numbering --> Numbered list --> select your style

Informal outlines :

Format --> Bullets & numbering --> Bulleted list --> select your style

• << Previous: Formal Outlines
• Next: Resources >>
• Last Updated: Dec 6, 2023 2:30 PM
• URL: https://library.tiffin.edu/outlines

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Now that you’ve narrowed down your topic, done your research, and created your thesis, it’s time to start writing, right? Instead of jumping right in…pause for a few moments before beginning to amass your information into a first draft. Return to your statement(s) of purpose. Have any of the elements (voice, audience, message, tone, attitude, reception) changed as a result of your research? If so, write up an intermediate statement of purpose, and use it as a guide as you draft and as the basis for a writer’s memo you may be asked to submit with your draft.

Once you think you have an ample supply of materials, read through your subtopic files and consider the order of the different pieces. Consider the points you want to make in relation to the information you have found and begin typing comments between your notes to assure you have a solid plan in place when you start to make your outline.

Create an outline that begins with your thesis (or message). Include the subtopics as key elements. Under each subtopic, list your supporting points you have researched as well as the ideas you plan to add.

Writing an Outline

Creating an outline might seem like an unnecessary step. However, outlines ensure that your argument is well-organized and stays on topic. In addition, a well-thought out outline can save hours of writing time. After all, it’s much easier to re-organize an outline than to re-write an entire essay!

An outline can be either informal or formal. An informal outline outlines the parts of a paper without a specific structure. An author might use bullet points, letters, numbers, or any combination of these things. On the other hand, a formal outline has a very specific structure. Main points are listed using Roman numerals (I, II, III, etc). Secondary points use capital letters (A, B, C, etc). The third level of points uses Arabic numerals (1, 2, 3, etc), and the final level uses lowercase letters (a, b, c, etc).

Below is an example of both an informal and a formal outline side by side. In an actual essay outline, each item would include specific details about the essay instead of general headings. Instead of Point 1, for example, the outline would state the actual point.

Image created by Dr. Karen Palmer and licensed under  CC BY NC SA .

When you are finished, evaluate your outline by asking questions such as the following:

• Do I want to tweak my planned thesis based on the information I have found?
• Do all of my planned subtopics still seem reasonable?
• Did I find an unexpected subtopic that I want to add?
• In what order do I want to present my subtopics?
• Are my supporting points in the best possible order?
• Do I have enough support for each of my main subtopics? Will the support I have convince readers of my points?
• Do I have ample materials for the required length of the paper? If not, what angle do I want to enhance?
• Have I gathered too much information for a paper of this length? And if so, what should I get rid of?
• Did I include information in my notes that really doesn’t belong and needs to be eliminated? (If so, cut it out and place it in a discard file rather than deleting it. That way, it is still available if you change your mind once you start drafting.)
• Are my planned quotations still good choices?

Sentence Outlines

You may be asked by your instructor to create a sentence outline, which takes a regular outline to another step. In this type of outline, each and every single line should be a complete sentence. Instead of using a short phrase or word, you should have full sentences.

Key points about a sentence outline:

• An outline is a way of organizing key ideas
• An outline helps to set up an essay or a research paper
• An outline is a tool to help revise an essay or research paper.
• An outline can be a study tool to help you summarize key ideas in reading
• A formal outline shows, in logical order, what you will be writing about.
• A formal outline helps you separate main ideas and supporting ideas
• A formal outline gives you a foundation from which to build an introduction, a body, and a conclusion.
• A formal outline often changes after you write your first draft. It will show you where you need to add more research or make other changes.
• Each line of your outline should be a complete sentence.
• The more detailed your outline, the easier it will be to write your essay.

Example Sentence Outline:

Southern Local-Color in “Désirée’s Baby” and “A Rose for Emily”

I. Intro for The Application of a Literary Critical Model to a Short Story

A. Local-color is a form of regionalism which exploits the speech, dress, mannerism, and habits of a specific region.

B. Southern local-color portrays life of the Old South.

• “Southern writers were nostalgic for a sense of place distinctly and exclusively Southern” (Lecture 5).
• “Southern Renaissance writers can also be said to transcend its specific regional settings and address universal themes of human suffering, isolation, prejudice, alienation, connection, and intimacy” (Lecture 5).

C. Kate Chopin wrote “Désirée’s Baby” and William Faulkner wrote “A Rose for Emily.”

• Both stories focus on the role of women in Southern culture and the relationship between men and women.
• The main female protagonist in each story is Désirée and Emily.

H. Thesis: Due to their old Southern culture, both Désirée and Emily experience gender inequality, their stories utilize Southern dialect and garments, and they are examples of what happens to women and other minorities when they are not given social freedom.

II. Désirée and Emily experience gender inequality due to their Southern culture.

A. “Désirée’s Baby” takes place in Louisiana before the American Civil War.

• The culture was created around the existence of slaves.
• Their plantations and economy relied on this racial caste system.
• The expectations of females limited their roles in this society.

B. Armand falls instantly in love with the young and beautiful Désirée when he sees her standing outside her wealthy plantation.

C. Désirée’s past is unknown, she was found as a baby and raised by the loving plantation owner.

• Armand purchases her fine clothes and gifts from Paris and soon the two are married, he now sees her as his property, he bought her with his wealth.

B. Armand is racist and often cruel to his slaves and treats them as property.

• When their baby is born showing African American genetic traits, Désirée is accused of being partially black and shunned by her husband.
• Désirée is so heartbroken, that she takes herself and her baby to the bayou to die.

C. After their deaths, Armand burns her fancy possessions and he finds a letter from his deceased mother who confesses that she carries the African American genetic traits.

• This confirms that Armand is the one who is partially black, not Désirée.

Choose the best choice for each question:

1. Once you are finished taking notes, you should

• start writing immediately.
• read through your notes and put them in an order that will work.
• make sure, when you write, to use all the information you have found.

2. Your outline should begin with

• your thesis (or message).
• your best quotation.
• your most interesting subtopic.

3. If you have notes that are relevant, but do not fit within the planned subtopics

• delete those notes.
• you know that you did unneeded research.
• consider adding a subtopic.

4. Once you begin to make your outline, you should

• tweak your thesis based on information you have learned.
• eliminate all information that does not directly support your thesis.
• use only your original ideas.

Attributions

• “ Managing Information ” licensed under CC BY NC SA .
• “ Outlining ” written by Dr. Karen Palmer and licensed under CC BY NC SA .
• “Sentence Outline,” created by Dr. Sandi Van Lieu and licensed under CC BY NC SA 3.0 .

The RoughWriter's Guide Copyright © 2020 by Dr. Karen Palmer and Dr. Sandi Van Lieu is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-ShareAlike 4.0 International License , except where otherwise noted.

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How to write an informal essay

• April 6, 2022

An informal essay is quite different from other types of essays . In an informal essay, you’re writing as if you are talking to a friend. You do not need to engage in a strict  academic writing process , but you should still avoid sloppiness.

• In a formal essay, you expresses your ideas quietly behind the words.
• In an informal essay, you talk to the reader in a conversational manner.

Formal and informal essays

In order to understand the difference between a formal and informal essay more clearly, let’s look at the table below.

Now that we know the general rules and definitions of an informal essay, let’s continue with the steps to write a great one.

Choose an informal essay topic

This is generally the first step of any essay writing process unless you are pre-assigned a topic already. An informal essay gives you a great opportunity in this step; you can write an informal essay on almost any topic . Here are some tips for you.

Informal essay topic tips

• Choose a topic you have knowledge and are excited about.
• Find inspiration from your own personal experiences.​
• Just think about what you like to talk about the most, and you have your topic. ​

When choosing a topic:

Put the list away for an hour after you’ve created it. Return to it later. Most probably, one topic will stand out to you more. Then, you can write about that topic. For this how-to guide, we are choosing the topic “ why I stopped eating meat ”.

Create an outline

An informal essay does not need to follow a strict structure . However, it should still be coherent. Therefore, your outline does not need to be strict either. Just create one to help organize your thoughts.

Example of an informal essay outline

• Thesis statement
• Referring to reader
• Address to the reader
• Concluding sentence

Informal essay outline best practices

• Remember you still need to do research while writing an informal essay.
• Put together your research results in your outline so that your writing process becomes way easier. ​
• Make sure to detail each part of the essay before writing, so you can write much faster.​

Write an introduction

Now, you start the actual writing process. In the introduction of an informal essay, you can basically follow the traditional introduction guide . 

Informal essay introduction example

Informal essay introduction best practices.

Before writing an introduction, you must first create an idea, identify a purpose, and collect information for the project.  The introduction also should contain a thesis statement .

Remember this type of essay is characterized by the inclusion of the writer’s viewpoint on the chosen topic , so be sure to declare your stance clearly.

Write the body paragraphs

Informal essay paragraphs example, tips for informal essay paragraphs.

• You can write the main body of your essay using cliches, idioms, and even jargon. Don't forget every paragraph needs a topic sentence .
• This is not a particularly academic type of paper; therefore, avoid sentences that are too long and complicated.​
• To create a connection with the reader, it’s important to use a relaxed tone, transition words , and transition sentences . ​
• Simple, quick, readable sentences and the use of various intonations will provide the essay with the necessary emotional context.​
• This is a basic rule: write in a language that your professor can comprehend. That is to say, even if this is an informal assignment, it should still be readable.​

Important tip

Write a conclusion.

In the conclusion paragraph , you will need to summarize your main points and make a clear final comment.

Informal essay conclusion example

Informal essay conclusion tips.

• Don’t make your conclusion repetitive.
• Just quickly list the key points of conversation to leave a lasting impact on the reader. ​
• You want them to remember and think about what you’re saying. ​

5-Paragraph Informal Essay Example

Game of Thrones: A World of Fantasy and Intrigue

Introduction

Body paragraphs, key takeaways.

• An informal essay is a type of essay that is written in a conversational style and often includes personal anecdotes and opinions.
• To write an informal essay, you should choose a topic that you are passionate about and write in a voice that is natural and engaging.
• Begin your essay with a clear introduction that hooks the reader and provides context for your topic.
• Use personal anecdotes, humor, and other storytelling techniques to illustrate your points and engage the reader.
• End your essay with a conclusion that summarizes your main points and provides a final reflection on your topic.

Recently on Tamara Blog

How to write a discussion essay (with steps & examples), writing a great poetry essay (steps & examples), how to write a process essay (steps & examples), writing a common app essay (steps & examples), how to write a synthesis essay (steps & examples), how to write a horror story.

Want to create or adapt books like this? Learn more about how Pressbooks supports open publishing practices.

Chapter 5: Putting the Pieces Together with a Thesis Statement

5.3 Outlining

Learning Objectives

• Identify the steps in constructing an outline
• Construct a topic outline and a sentence outline

Your prewriting activities and readings have helped you gather information for your assignment. The more you sort through the pieces of information you found, the more you will begin to see the connections between them. Patterns and gaps may begin to stand out. But only when you start to organize your ideas will you be able to translate your raw insights into a form that will communicate meaning to your audience.

Organizing Ideas

When you write, you need to organize your ideas in an order that makes sense. The writing you complete in all your courses exposes how analytically and critically your mind works. In some courses, the only direct contact you may have with your instructor is through the assignments you write for the course. You can make a good impression by spending time ordering your ideas.

Order refers to your choice of what to present first, second, third, and so on in your writing. The order you pick closely relates to your purpose for writing that particular assignment. For example, when telling a story, it may be important to first describe the background for the action. Or you may need to first describe a 3-D movie projector or a television studio to help readers visualize the setting and scene. You may want to group your supporting ideas effectively to convince readers that your point of view on an issue is well reasoned and worthy of belief.

In longer pieces of writing, you may organize different parts in different ways so that your purpose stands out clearly and all parts of the essay work together to consistently develop your main point.

Methods of Organizing Writing

The three common methods of organizing writing are chronological order, spatial order, and order of importance, which you learned about in Chapter 4: What Are You Writing, to Whom, and How? You need to keep these methods of organization in mind as you plan how to arrange the information you have gathered in an outline. An outline is a written plan that serves as a skeleton for the paragraphs you write. Later, when you draft paragraphs in the next stage of the writing process, you will add support to create “flesh” and “muscle” for your assignment.

When you write, your goal is not only to complete an assignment but also to write for a specific purpose—perhaps to inform, to explain, to persuade, or a combination of these purposes. Your purpose for writing should always be in the back of your mind, because it will help you decide which pieces of information belong together and how you will order them. In other words, choose the order that will most effectively fit your purpose and support your main point.

Table 5.2: Order versus Purpose  shows the connection between order and purpose.

Writing an Outline

For an essay question on a test or a brief oral presentation in class, all you may need to prepare is a short, informal outline in which you jot down key ideas in the order you will present them. This kind of outline reminds you to stay focused in a stressful situation and to include all the good ideas that help you explain or prove your point. For a longer assignment, like an essay or a research paper, many instructors will require you to submit a formal outline before writing a major paper as a way of making sure you are on the right track and are working in an organized manner. The expectation is you will build your paper based on the framework created by the outline.

When creating outlines, writers generally go through three stages: a scratch outline , an informal or topic outline , and a formal or sentence outline. The scratch outline is basically generated by taking what you have come up with in your freewriting process and organizing the information into a structure that is easy for you to understand and follow (for example, a mind map or hierarchical outline). An informal outline goes a step further and adds topic sentences, a thesis, and some preliminary information you have found through research. A formal outline is a detailed guide that shows how all your supporting ideas relate to each other. It helps you distinguish between ideas that are of equal importance and ones that are of lesser importance. If your instructor asks you to submit an outline for approval, you will want to hand in one that is more formal and structured. The more information you provide for your instructor, the better he or she will be able to see the direction in which you plan to go for your discussion and give you better feedback.

There are two types of formal outlines: the topic outline and the sentence outline . You format both types of formal outlines in the same way.

• Place your introduction and thesis statement at the beginning, under Roman numeral I.
• Use Roman numerals (II, III, IV, V, etc.) to identify main points that develop the thesis statement.
• Use capital letters (A, B, C, D, etc.) to divide your main points into parts.
• Use Arabic numerals (1, 2, 3, 4, 5, etc.) if you need to subdivide any As, Bs, or Cs into smaller parts.
• End with the final Roman numeral expressing your idea for your conclusion.

Here is what the skeleton of a traditional formal outline looks like. The indention helps clarify how the ideas are related.

• Introduction →  Thesis statement
• Supporting detail

Constructing Informal or Topic Outlines An informal topic outline is the same as a sentence outline except you use words or phrases instead of complete sentences. Words and phrases keep the outline short and easier to comprehend. All the headings, however, must be written in parallel structure.

Here is the informal topic outline that Mariah constructed for the essay she is developing. Her purpose is to inform, and her audience is a general audience of her fellow college students. Notice how Mariah begins with her thesis statement. She then arranges her main points and supporting details in outline form using short phrases in parallel grammatical structure.

• Thesis statement: Everyone wants the newest and the best digital technology, but the choices are many, and the specifications are often confusing.
• Electronic downloads
• Storage in memory for hundreds of books
• E-book readers from booksellers
• E-book readers from electronics and computer companies
• Incompatible features from one brand to the next
• Borrowing and sharing e-books
• Compact digital cameras
• Single lens reflex cameras, or SLRs
• Cameras that combine the best features of both
• The confusing “megapixel wars”
• The zoom lens battle
• 1080p vs. 768p
• Plasma screens vs. LCDs
• Home media centres
• How to be a wise consumer

Writing at Work

Word processing programs generally have an automatic numbering feature that can be used to prepare outlines. This feature automatically sets indents and lets you use the tab key to arrange information just as you would in an outline. Although in business this style might be acceptable, in college or university your instructor might have different requirements. Teach yourself how to customize the levels of outline numbering in your word processing program to fit your instructor’s preferences.

Self-Practice Exercise 5.8

H5P:  Creating a Topic Outline

The purpose of an outline for your essay is to collect your ideas and organize them in a logical order. For many people, this doesn’t need to be a formal process to be helpful. However, some instructors will require a more traditionally structured outline, so we will practice that skill today.

Take a moment to review the structure outlined in Mariah’s outline so that you can understand the structure that is expected. Feel free to use her outline as a model for your own work.

The first thing to consider is how you will organize your essay. Chronological order — where points follow the passage of time — is best for explaining how to undertake something. Spatial order — where points follow movement through space — is best for descriptive, sensory writing. And order of importance — where you decide the order based on significance — is good for persuasive writing. Which type of structure makes the most sense for your essay?

Following the model above, take a first run at outlining your essay. We will have lots of time to revise this work over the next few exercises, so just do your best to be clear and logical in the development of your ideas.

Checklist 5.2: Writing an Effective Topic Outline

This checklist can help you write an effective topic outline for your assignment. It will also help you discover where you may need to do additional reading or prewriting.

H5P: Outlining Checklist

• Do I have a controlling idea that guides the development of the entire piece of writing?
• Do I have three or more main points that I want to make in this piece of writing? Does each main point connect to my controlling idea?
• Is my outline in the best order—chronological order, spatial order, or order of importance—for me to present my main points? Will this order help me get my main point across?
• Do I have supporting details that will help me inform, explain, or prove my main points?
• Do I need to add more support? If so, where?
• Do I need to make any adjustments in my working thesis statement before I consider it the final version?

Self-Practice Exercise 5.9

H5P: Supporting Details

Review your outline and decide what your three strongest points are. They should be specific and directly, clearly related to the thesis statement. Make note of those points below.

These points will become topic sentences for the body paragraphs of your essay. Take a run at writing those topic sentences now. Remember that nothing is set in stone, and you will be able to revise your work again in the next exercise.

Constructing Formal or Sentence Outlines

A sentence outline is the same as a topic outline except you use complete sentences instead of words or phrases. Complete sentences create clarity and can advance you one step closer to a draft in the writing process.

Here is the formal sentence outline that Mariah constructed for the essay she is developing.

• Books can be downloaded electronically.
• Devices can store hundreds of books in memory.
• Booksellers sell their own e-book readers.
• Electronics and computer companies also sell e-book readers.
• The devices are owned by different brands and may not be compatible.
• Few programs have been made to fit the other way Americans read: by borrowing books from libraries.
• Compactible digital cameras are light by have fewer megapixels.
• Single lens reflex cameras, or SLRs, may be large and heavy but can be sued for many functions.
• Some cameras combine the best features of compacts an SLRs.
• Choosing the camera type involves the confusing “megapixel wars.”
• The zoom lens battle also determines the camera you will buy.
• In the resolution wars, what are the benefits of 1080p and 768p?
• In the screen-size war, what do plasma screens and LCD screens offer?
• Does every home really need a media centre?
• The solution for many people should be to avoid buying on impulse. Consumers should think about what they really need, not what is advertised.

PowerPoint presentations, used both in schools and in the workplace, are organized in a way very similar to formal outlines. PowerPoint presentations often contain information in the form of talking points that the presenter develops with more details and examples than are contained on the PowerPoint slide.

Self-Practice Exercise 5.10

H5P:  Creating a Sentence Outline

Continuing with practicing skills you may need in other classes, we will now flesh out your Topic Outline to become a Sentence Outline.

Once again, it’s a good idea to take a moment to review the structure outlined in Mariah’s outline so that you can understand the structure that is expected. Feel free to use her outline as a model for your own work.

Using your Topic Outline as a basis, work to flesh out that outline to create the more formal Sentence Outline. Students sometimes feel that this step is busy work, but if you take your time with it, you will be most of the way to your formal essay draft.

Key Takeaways

• Writers must put their ideas in order so the assignment makes sense. The most common orders are chronological order, spatial order, and order of importance.
• After gathering and evaluating the information you found for your essay, the next step is to write a working, or preliminary, thesis statement.
• The working thesis statement expresses the main idea you want to develop in the entire piece of writing. It can be modified as you continue the writing process.
• Effective writers prepare a formal outline to organize their main ideas and supporting details in the order they will be presented.
• A topic outline uses words and phrases to express the ideas.
• A sentence outline uses complete sentences to express the ideas.
• The writer’s thesis statement begins the outline, and the outline ends with suggestions for the concluding paragraph.

Writing for Success - 1st Canadian H5P Edition Copyright © 2021 by Tara Horkoff is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-ShareAlike 4.0 International License , except where otherwise noted.

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Types of Outlines and Samples

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Alphanumeric Outlines

This is the most common type of outline and usually instantly recognizable to most people. The formatting follows these characters, in this order:

• Roman Numerals
• Capitalized Letters
• Arabic Numerals
• Lowercase Letters

If the outline needs to subdivide beyond these divisions, use Arabic numerals inside parentheses and then lowercase letters inside parentheses. Select the "Sample Outlines" PDF in the Media Box above to download the sample of this outline.

The sample PDF in the Media Box above is an example of an outline that a student might create before writing an essay. In order to organize her thoughts and make sure that she has not forgotten any key points that she wants to address, she creates the outline as a framework for her essay.

What is the assignment?

Your instructor asks the class to write an expository (explanatory) essay on the typical steps a high school student would follow in order to apply to college.

What is the purpose of this essay?

To explain the process for applying to college

Who is the intended audience for this essay?

High school students intending to apply to college and their parents

What is the essay's thesis statement?

When applying to college, a student follows a certain process which includes choosing the right schools and preparing the application materials.

Full Sentence Outlines

The full sentence outline format is essentially the same as the Alphanumeric outline. The main difference (as the title suggests) is that full sentences are required at each level of the outline. This outline is most often used when preparing a traditional essay. Select the "Sample Outlines" PDF in the Media Box above to download the sample of this outline.

Decimal Outlines

The decimal outline is similar in format to the alphanumeric outline. The added benefit is a system of decimal notation that clearly shows how every level of the outline relates to the larger whole. Select the "Sample Outlines" PDF in the Media Box above to download the sample of this outline.

Writing an Informative Essay

Informative essays engage readers with new, interesting, and often surprising facts and details about a subject. Informative essays are educational; readers expect to learn something new from them. In fact, much of the reading and writing done in college and the workplace is informative. From textbooks to reports to tutorials like this one, informative writing imparts important and useful information about a topic.

This tutorial refers to the sample informative outline and final essay written by fictional student Paige Turner.

Reasons to Write Informatively

Your purpose for writing and the audience for whom you are writing will impact the depth and breadth of information you provide, but all informative writing aims to present a subject without opinions or bias. Some common reasons to write informatively are to

• report findings that an audience would find interesting,
• present facts that an audience would find useful, and
• communicate information about a person, place, event, issue, or change that would improve an audience’s understanding.

Characteristics of Informative Essays

Informative essays present factual information and do not attempt to sway readers’ opinions about it. Other types of academic and workplace writing do try to influence readers’ opinions:

• Expository essays aim to expose a truth about an issue in order to influence how readers view the issue.
• Persuasive essays aim to influence readers’ opinions, so they will adopt a particular position or take a certain course of action.

Expository and persuasive essays make “arguments.” The only argument an informative essay makes is that something exists, did exist, is happening, or has happened, and the point of the essay is not to convince readers of this but to tell them about it.

• Informative essays seek to enlighten and educate readers, so they can make their own educated opinions and decisions about what to think and how to act.

Strategies for Writing Informatively

Informative essays provide useful information such as facts, examples, and evidence from research in order to help readers understand a topic or see it more clearly. While informative writing does not aim to appeal emotionally to readers in order to change their opinions or behaviors, informative writing should still be engaging to read. Factual information is not necessarily dry or boring. Sometimes facts can be more alarming than fiction!

Writers use various strategies to engage and educate readers. Some strategies include

• introducing the topic with an alarming fact or arresting image;
• asserting what is true or so about the subject in a clear thesis statement;
• organizing the paragraphs logically by grouping related information;
• unifying each paragraph with a topic sentence and controlling idea;
• developing cohesive paragraphs with transition sentences;
• using precise language and terminology appropriate for the topic, purpose, and audience; and
• concluding with a final idea or example that captures the essay’s purpose and leaves a lasting impression.

Five Steps for Getting Started

1. Brainstorm and choose a topic.

• Sample topic : The opioid epidemic in the United States.
• The opiod epidemic or even opiod addiction would would be considered too broad for a single essay, so the next steps aim to narrow this topic down.

2. Next, write a question about the topic that you would like to answer through research.

• Sample question : What major events caused the opioid crisis in the United States?
• This question aims to narrow the topic down to causes of the epidemic in the US.

3. Now go to the Purdue Global Library to find the answers to your research question.

As you begin reading and collecting sources, write down the themes that emerge as common answers. Later, in step four, use the most common answers (or the ones you are most interested in writing and discussing) to construct a thesis statement.

• Sample answers: aggressive marketing, loopholes in prescription drug provider programs, and economic downturn.

4. Next, provide purpose to your paper by creating a thesis statement.

The thesis attempts to frame your research question. The sample thesis below incorporates three of the more common answers for the research question from step two: What caused the opioid crisis in the United States?

• Thesis Statement : Aggressive marketing, loopholes in prescription drug provider programs, and economic downturn contributed to the current opioid crisis in the United States.
• Writing Tip : For additional help with thesis statements, please visit our Writing a Thesis Statement article. For help with writing in 3rd person, see our article on Formal Vs. Informal Writing .

5. Now follow each numbered step in the “Suggested Outline Format and Sample” below.

Sample answers have been provided for “I. Introduction” and “II. First Cause.” A complete sample outline can be seen here. A complete sample informative essay can be seen here.

Suggested Outline Format and Sample

I. INTRODUCTION

A. First provide a topic sentence that introduces the main topic: Sample topic sentence : There is a current prescription pain medication addiction and abuse epidemic possibly caused by an excessive over prescription of these medications.

B. Now provide a couple sentences with evidence to support the main topic: Sample sentence one with evidence to support the main topic : According to Dr. Nora Volkow, Director of National Institute on Drug Abuse (NIDA), in testimony before the 115th Congress, “In 2016, over 11 million Americans misused prescription opioids … and 2.1 million had an opioid use disorder due to prescription opioids” (Federal Efforts to Combat the Opioid Crisis, 2017, p. 2).

C. Sample sentence two with evidence to support the main topic : Volkow indicated “more than 300,000 Americans have died of an opioid overdose” since 2013 (Federal Efforts to Combat the Opioid Crisis, 2017, p.2).

D. Sample sentence three with evidence to support the main topic : According to Perez-Pena (2017), the Center for Disease Control and Prevention reported more than 25,000 people in the United States died in 2015 from overdosing on opioids Fentanyl, Oxycodone, and Hydrocodone.

E. Toward the end of the introduction, include your thesis statement written in the 3rd-person point-of-view: Sample thesis statement : Potential solutions to the growing opioid epidemic may be illuminated by examining how opioid addiction is triggered through aggressive pharmaceutical marketing, how opioid addiction manifests among prescribed patients, and how economic downturns play a role in the increase of opioid addiction.

F. Write down the library sources you can use in this introductory paragraph to help support the main topic.

• Federal Efforts to Combat the Opioid Crisis, 2017
• Perez-Pena, 2017
• Writing Tip : For more help writing an introduction, please refer to this article on introductions and conclusions .

II. FIRST CAUSE

A. First provide a topic sentence that introduces the first cause of the opioid epidemic: Sample topic sentence that introduces the first cause : One issue that helped contribute to the opioid epidemic is aggressive marketing by pharmaceutical manufacturers.

B. Now provide sentences with evidence to support the first cause: Sample sentence one with evidence that supports the first cause : Perez-Pena (2017) concluded that while the healthcare industry was attempting to effectively and efficiently treat patients with chronic pain, pharmaceutical companies were providing funding to prominent doctors, medical societies, and patient advocacy groups in order to win support for a particular drug’s adoption and usage.

C. Sample sentence two with evidence to support the first cause : In fact, pharmaceutical companies continue to spend millions on promotional activities and materials that deny or trivialize any risks of opioid use while at the same time overstating each drug’s benefit (Perez-Pina, 2017).

D. Next, add more information or provide concluding or transitional sentences that foreshadows the upcoming second cause: Sample concluding and transitional sentence that foreshadow the second cause : Although aggressive marketing by pharmaceutical companies played a large role in opioid addiction, patients are to blame too, as many take advantage of holes in the healthcare provider system in order to remedy their addiction.

E. Write down the library sources you can use in this body paragraph to help support the first cause:

• Writing Tip : For more assistance working with sources, please visit the Using Sources page here.

III. SECOND CAUSE

A. First provide a topic sentence that introduces the second cause.

B. Now provide sentences with evidence to support the second cause.

C. Next, add more information or provide concluding or transitional sentences that foreshadows the upcoming third cause.

D. Write down the library sources you can use in this body paragraph to help support the second cause:

• Writing Tip : Listen to Writing Powerful Sentences for information and features of effective writing.

IV. THIRD CAUSE

A. First provide a topic sentence that introduces the third cause.

B. Now provide sentences with evidence to support the third cause.

C. Next, add more information or provide a concluding sentence or two.

D. Write down the library sources you can use in this body paragraph to help support the third cause:

V. CONCLUSION: Summary of key points and evidence discussed.

• Writing Tip : For more help writing a conclusion, refer to this podcast on endings .
• Writing Tip : Have a question? Leave a comment below or Purdue Global students, click here to access the Purdue Global Writing Center tutoring platform and available staff.
• Writing Tip : Ready to have someone look at your paper? Purdue Global students, click here to submit your assignment for feedback through our video paper review service.

See a Sample Informative Essay Outline here .

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dang bro i got an A

Having faith with all this mentioned, that i will pass my english class at a college. Thank you for posting.

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4a. Outlining

Outlining is a focused prewriting and visualization technique that helps writers organize their ideas for an essay to meet a word count requirement, to decide which evidence and appeals will best suit their purpose and audience, and keep arguments and counterarguments focused on the main idea. Drafting is the step in the writing process at which you compose a complete first version of an academic essay or other piece of writing. Organizing your ideas for an essay into a formal or informal outline will help you translate your raw insights and research into a form that will communicate meaning to a reader. It will also provide you with a guide to follow in that moment when you reach the end of a paragraph and need to transition to a new one. Used in combination, outlining and drafting are powerful tools that can writers use to organize their ideas, previsualize their finished piece of writing, and manage their time effectively as the clock ticks down toward your deadlines.

Planning Ahead

When tasked with composing an essay, giving a presentation, or writing an application letter, you need to develop your ideas in an order that makes sense to your audience and suits the purpose of the task. Order refers to your choice of what to present first, second, third, and so on in your writing – from the order of individual words in a sentence to the order of sentences in paragraphs and paragraphs in an essay. Outlining provides writers the ability to play around with the order of ideas, evidence, paragraphs, and other elements of an essay before committing them to the page. A formal outline is a detailed guide that shows how all of your supporting ideas relate to each other and to your thesis. It helps you distinguish between ideas and details that are of relatively equal importance from ones of lesser or supporting importance. An outline is a useful framework for crafting your first draft.

Cognitively, outlining also stimulates the brain to begin previsualizing a finished composition. With practice, a writer can use an outline (or even a detailed task analysis, freewrite, or idea map) to think spatially and temporally about the writing process. Thinking spatially involves a writer’s ability to picture how the essay will take physical shape on the page as their thoughts flow from their fingertips through the pen or keyboard and become words, sentences, paragraphs, and even chapters. Temporal thinking involves a writer’s ability to conceptualize and schedule the hours, days, or even months that will be required to draft, revise, and edit any essay or writing task. While writers are always making spatial and temporal decisions internally while planning and drafting an essay, an outline can provide you a concrete representation of your planning and a guide to follow while writing your first draft.

As writers consider the purpose and goals for a writing task, they often begin by prewriting to reflect on the best way to order their ideas, appeals, and evidence. Poets, journalists, and essayists and other writers typically balance order and purpose in their writing by considering three ways of organizing:

• Order of Importance
• Chronological Order
• Spatial Order

Academic essays typically deploy Order of Importance strategies. Once you have written out our working thesis, you are ready to develop a formal outline for an academic essay. There are many strategies and methods for outlining an essay. Typically, a formal outline uses numbers and letters or bullet points to format the page.

A formal outline for an academic essay will typically look something like the following example. An outline like this one can help you make sure that your essays develop your own voice as a writer and use your sources for support, rather than letting your sources dominate the essay.  Distinguished Professor of Writing Lisa Ede once said, “let your writing tell you what to read.” Creating even a skeletal outline for an essay or writing project allows you to follow that advice and confidently develop your voice while reading, researching, and drafting.

Introduction

• Question at issue
• Preview of main ideas (useful for essays that are longer than five paragraphs)

Background and Context

• Depending on the length and content requirements of an essay assignment, it may be useful to include a background and context paragraph to define keywords, provide background information or historical context, or situate your approach to a topic in relation to a particular audience or discourse community.

Supporting Arguments

As many as needed to develop your thesis and meet your word count.

• Topic Sentence
• Signal Phrase
• Quotation or Paraphrase
• Explanation

Alternative/Opposing Arguments

As needed to develop your thesis

• Topic Sentence: Assertion about your thesis from an alternative perspective
• Analysis and refutation (if needed) of the alternative reasoning
• Synthesis paragraphs reflect on the relationship between the supporting and alternative arguments and consider the possibilities for reaching common ground on the issue
• Reiterate your main idea and summarize how you arrived at your thesis
• Consider the broader implication and/or limitations of your reasoning and evidence
• Circle the reader back to your opening sentences to bring them full circle
• Citation styles vary by academic discipline and instructor preference. Humanities scholars generally use MLA, social science and science scholars generally use APA, and styles like Chicago and Harvard are used in a variety of academic disciplines

Writing as Inquiry Copyright © 2021 by Kara Clevinger and Stephen Rust is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-ShareAlike 4.0 International License , except where otherwise noted.

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How to Write an Informal Essay With a Perfect Plan

Today, we are going to talk about the type of essay that differs greatly from other types of papers. It may be a surprise for you, but an informal essay is written usually for enjoyment. This doesn’t mean that this type of essay cannot be informative or persuasive, but it is less formal than a relaxed expression of the opinion, observation, or research. A good informal essay may have a relaxed style, but it has a strong structure, though this structure can be less strict than a formal essay has. An informal essay has a tendency to be more personal than a formal one, though both can express subjective opinions. In a formal essay, a writer is silently presenting his or her thoughts behind the words; at the same time, in an informal essay, the author is connected with the reader in a conversational style.

How to Write an Informal Essay to Interest Readers

Before we are talking about how to write this type of paper, we should understand what is informal writing. Don’t worry if you are not sure what is an informal essay, as many students try to find the answer to this question. Informal writing is writing where you should reveal your ability to write informally and express your own point of view on an issue. If you write informally, try to express your own personality in the essay. Don’t worry about writing in academic style, but avoid sloppiness. Find an example of informal essay below and look through it to get a more detailed understanding of the requirements this assignment has. Our experienced team of writers is ready to assist you with academic tasks – just say, “ write my college essays “, and we’ll deliver exceptional results.

Many students may ask, “what is the difference between formal and informal essay?” The difference is in the style of writing or in how we use words to say what we want to say. Different situations require different ways of using words. The way we write in the academic or scientific purposes differs a lot from the way we write to a friend or a close person. Proper writing of the informal essay is to understand the features of the genre. Observance of the basic principles and recommendations on writing will create an interesting essay.

Get to know how to start an informal essay and what are the main stages of writing.

Steps for Writing an Informal Essay

• Select the topic. You have a great opportunity to select any topic for your paper. An informal way of writing provides a great chance to write about whatever you want. Choose a topic that will be really interesting to you. The presence of a certain narrow topic that contains the problem and prompts the reader to thinking is a great choice. If there is no list of informal writing topics among which you can choose one, and only a general direction is given, then you need to take into account which audience the essay is written for. Variants can be different: your classmates and a teacher, the commission, the literary community, the employer. If the essay is written for handing in to the teacher, then it is necessary to consider what qualities will be evaluated. Proceeding from this, the topic should be chosen in such a way that it would be possible to show those abilities that the examiner is waiting for from the author: originality, the ability to logically construct sentences, literacy, professional qualities, etc. When choosing the topic for writing an essay from the proposed list, you should choose one which you have particular knowledge in.
• Write an informal outline for essay. This part of a paper is important, because with an informal essay outline, your writing will be much easier. An outline is like a plan with which you will not forget to include all main points in your paper. It often happens that a person who has enough eloquence and the ability to express his/her thoughts on paper, has difficulty in starting the essay. Thinking about the introduction can take quite a long time, which greatly darkens the process of creative work. If you don’t know how to start an informal essay, ensure that you know what idea you want to communicate. Before you start writing an introduction, you need to formulate an idea, define a goal, and find sources of information for the work. It is important not to focus on the introductory part too long. Write an introduction including a thesis statement. Remember that the essay is distinguished precisely by the presence of the author’s view of the existing problem, his or her relation to the world, speech , and thinking.
• Write the main body of your essay using cliches, colloquialisms, and even jargon, as the format of this paper allows you to write in this way. It is necessary to avoid complicated formulations or too long sentences. It is important to follow a laid-back style to establish contact with the reader. It is important not to overdo it, however, turning the essay into a substandard text full of slang. The correct emotional color of the text will be given by short, simple, understandable sentences, and the use of different intonations in sentences. Include a detailed analysis of the problem. Your own point of view needs to be argued on the basis of factual material.
• Write a conclusion. Summarize everything that you have said before in your paper.
• Remember relative brevity of writing. There are no restrictions on the number of pages, but the informal essay is usually small in volume. An informal paper has a free construction. The informal essay has a way of presentation that does not fit into any definite framework. The construction obeys its own logic, which the author adheres to, trying to consider the problem from different angles.
• Proofread and edit your paper. Ask your friend to do it in order to find and correct more mistakes.

Informal Essay Sample

The following example of informal essay writing was created by dissertation writing services to help you handle your own paper. As this type of paper is not formal, you can find personal observations, opinions, or points of view. Use this informal essay sample as a collection of guidelines. The main thing is that this example is written in a relaxed manner, but it adheres to a particular structure. Short informal essay examples usually include the personal contact, and not the academic writing flow. You can find a subjective opinion in this type of paper, so you should write in this way as well. Our example of informal essay will help you understand how to write your own informal paper in order to get a high grade.

Click the images to see their full size.

Useful Tips for Informal Essay Writing

• Keep in mind that informal essays can be written in the first person, so using “I think that…” “In my opinion…” and “I believe…” are welcome.
• Sentences of your essay should not be too long, especially in the case of run-on sentences. At the same time – they should not be too short. Varying your sentence lengths is a good practice.
• Reread your essay at the end of your writing process. Ask yourself whether the tone is too formal or too informal. Make all necessary changes if needed.
• Add personality to your essay! Don’t know what it means? Well, an informal essay gives you a chance to personalize your writing, using words and phrases which are used only by you. In this way, you will have a unique piece of writing on a particular topic. Be creative!
• All statements that you include in your paper should be clear and realistic.
• Despite the free composition, the informal essay must have internal unity, with consistency of the author’s statements expressing his or her opinion.
• The author does not insist on his/her point of view, but uses a method as if inviting the reader to think about and discuss it.

Typical Mistakes for Writing an Informal Essay

• The absence of links between the substantive parts of the essay: introduction and conclusion, and the main part of the essay with the conclusion.
• Having proportionality of parts of the essay which should not be equal in length. The introduction and conclusion in the aggregate should be no more than one-third of the entire work. The main part is two-thirds.
• Inability to strictly follow the theme of writing in the course of reasoning.
• Inability to compositionally structure an essay in accordance with the theme and the main idea.
• Vast amounts of unnecessary information in the introduction and conclusion. However, too short and too unreasonable a conclusion is also inappropriate. It must really summarize and sum up all the work. The absence of a conclusion is a serious logical mistake. The conclusion must be meaningful in accordance with the introduction, topic, and main body of the essay.
• Absence of a problem in the introduction (this is the topic itself) and the formulation of a key thesis, which will be proved there.
• Indistinct formulation of theses, making it difficult to integrate them into the logical structure of the work. If there are several theses, then there should not be a contradiction between the theses formulated in different parts of the paper.
• Weak arguments. They are such if they do not prove or confirm, unconvincingly or superficially, the thesis.
• Unreasonable repetitions of the same thoughts.
• Errors in the division of the text into paragraphs and even the complete absence of paragraphs.
• Inability to operate with abstract concepts.
• The non-distinction between the concepts “example” and “argument,” and inability to formulate a micro-output, on the basis of an example, correlated with the thesis put forward.

Now you know what is an informative essay and how to write it correctly. You may also be interested in our guide about gender-sensitive language or informal report topics to complete your perfect paper.

You will also find more informative essay samples below.

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Mar 20, 2023

How to Write an Informative Essay | Outlines and Examples

Discover the Art of Informative Essays: Engage, Learn, and Be Inspired by These Compelling Examples – Read on to Elevate Your Writing Skills!

An informative essay is written to disseminate knowledge about a specific subject. These writings will typically address one of the five W's (who, what, where, when, and why) in a given topic. Naturally, they can also respond with "how," suggesting a method.

Opinions and attempts to persuade readers to adopt your point of view have no place in informative writing. Only argumentative writing is allowed to play that part. If your instructive essay is particularly engaging, it may inspire your readers to pursue further research on the topic; however, they will have to make that decision independently.

To get you started, we've provided some informative essay samples as well as resources to help you select a subject and craft your paper.

What Is an Informative Essay?

An informative essay is a type of academic writing that explains about a particular topic or subject. The primary goal of an informative essay is to provide information on a topic, idea, or concept in a clear, concise, and organized manner. The purpose of the essay is to increase the reader's knowledge and understanding of the subject matter.

An informative essay is different from other types of essays, such as persuasive or argumentative essays. While persuasive essays aim to convince the audience to take a particular viewpoint or to take action, informative essays are written solely to provide information. This means that the essay should be unbiased, objective, and free from personal opinions or biases.

When writing an informative essay, it is essential to choose a topic that is interesting and relevant to the audience. It is also essential to conduct thorough research on the topic and to use credible sources, such as academic journals, books, and reputable websites. It is also essential to use a formal tone, clear language, and appropriate grammar and punctuation.

An informative essay is a type of academic writing that aims to provide information on a particular topic or subject in a clear, concise, and organized manner. The essay should be unbiased, objective, and free from personal opinions or biases.

The structure of an informative essay typically follows a basic format, including an introduction that provides background details and a distinct thesis statement, body paragraphs that outlines key arguments along with supporting proof, and a conclusion that offers a synopsis of the information presented. When writing an informative essay, it is essential to choose a topic that is interesting and relevant to the audience and to use credible sources and a formal tone.

How to Create an Informative Essay Outline?

Writing an informative essay outline is an essential step in the essay writing process. An outline provides a structure and a framework for the essay, allowing the writer to organize their thoughts and ideas before beginning to write. A good outline will help to ensure that the essay is clear, concise, and well-structured.

The outline for an informative essay typically includes the following sections: introduction, body paragraphs, and conclusion. Each section has a specific purpose and should be structured in a particular way.

I. Introduction

The introduction of an informative essay should provide background information on the topic and introduce the thesis statement, which is the main idea of the essay. The introduction should also capture the reader's attention and motivate them to continue reading.

A. Hook: The hook is the opening sentence or two of the essay. It should be attention-grabbing and relevant to the topic.

B. Background information: The background information provides context for the topic and helps the reader understand why the topic is important.

C. Thesis statement: The thesis statement is the main idea of the essay. It should be clear, concise, and specific.

II. Body Paragraphs

The body paragraphs of an informative essay provide detailed information on the topic. Each paragraph should focus on a particular aspect of the topic and be organized in a logical and coherent manner.

A. Topic sentence: The topic sentence is the first sentence of each body paragraph. It should clearly state the main point of the paragraph.

B. Supporting details: The supporting details provide evidence and examples to support the topic sentence.

C. Transitions: Transitions help to connect the paragraphs and make the essay flow smoothly.

III. Conclusion

The conclusion of an informative essay summarizes the main points of the essay and restates the thesis statement in a new way. The conclusion should also leave a lasting impression on the reader.

A. Restate thesis statement: The thesis statement should be restated in a new way to remind the reader of the main idea of the essay.

B. Summarize main points: The main points of the essay should be summarized in a concise and clear manner.

C. Final thoughts: The conclusion should end with final thoughts that leave a lasting impression on the reader.

Crafting an outline for an informative essay is a crucial stage in the process of essay writing. The purpose of creating an outline for an informative essay is to establish the topics you aim to address and to structure ideas accordingly.

The outline should include an introduction, body paragraphs, and a conclusion, each with a specific purpose and structure. By following these guidelines, writers can create an informative essay that is clear, concise, and well-structured.

A Step-by-Step Guide to Writing an Informative Essay Format

Despite the fact that all essays have a similar structure, each type has its own distinctive features and peculiarities. It is a must to be aware of them in order to create a well-structured informative research paper outline. Structuring an informative essay outline can help you organize your thoughts and ideas and ensure that you cover all the necessary information.

Here are 7 steps to help you create a well-structured informative essay outline:

Choose a Topic

Select a topic that you are familiar with and that you find interesting. Ensure that the topic is suitable for an informative essay and that there is enough information available for you to research.

Conduct Research

Research your topic thoroughly using reputable sources such as academic journals, books, and websites. Gather information that will help you to support your arguments and make your essay more persuasive.

Create a Thesis Statement

Write a clear thesis statement that summarizes the main argument or purpose of your essay. Your thesis statement should be concise and focused, and it should provide a clear direction for your essay.

Create an Introduction

Begin your essay with an introduction that provides background information on your topic and introduces your thesis statement. Your introduction should be engaging and informative, and it should capture the reader's attention.

Create Body Paragraphs

The body of your essay should consist of several paragraphs, each of which should focus on a specific point or argument. Use clear and concise language to convey your ideas, and support your arguments with evidence such as examples, statistics, and other forms of evidence.

Create a Conclusion

Conclude your essay with a summary of your main points and a restatement of your thesis statement. Your conclusion should provide closure to your essay and leave a lasting impression on your reader.

Proofread and Edit

Edit and proofread your essay for grammar, spelling, and punctuation errors. Ensure that your essay is well-structured, easy to read, and well-supported with evidence.

Overall, following these seven steps will help you create a well-structured informative essay outline that will guide you in writing an effective and persuasive essay.

Comprehensive Analysis of All of the Outline's Subsections

Outlines for informative papers typically consist of the same five or six parts as those for other kinds of essays. This type of writing task usually requires a specific structure. Begin with a one-paragraph opening, then move on to the body—which should be at least three paragraphs long—and end with a closing. It's likely that this will appear recognizable to you.

Let's read more carefully through the parts of the research report. See to it that you have painted a distinct image of the content that each paragraph will address.

Introduction:

In the introduction of your informative essay structure, you should define your subject in simple terms. Rather than relying on your own assumptions, check that you are using the actual definitions provided by reputable sources. The so-called "prehistory" of the subject can be included, as it often contains fascinating tidbits that aren't common knowledge.

To back up the thesis assertion made at the outset of the paper, you should provide arguments in the body of your work. It is suggested to devote each paragraph to a single subject idea, so the number of body paragraphs will be determined by the number of arguments.

Controversial Arguments: 

Before responding to an opponent's claims, make sure you've done your homework and collected all the information you'll need to present a well-reasoned response. There will be more than one way to look at the heart of any given subject. It is for this reason that you must exercise caution when gathering evidence and showing your opponent's arguments.

Each line needs to not only make a case but also provide proof to back up that case. Include the identities of the scientists and scholars who created the relevant references in your citation. Paint a vivid image of the subject at hand. That's why it's up to you to clarify everything that's crucial.

The Conclusion: 

Many students make the mistake of thinking that the conclusion section of a summary must be a direct reiteration of the thesis statement. In the final section, you should restate the processed data and direct the reader's attention to the most important parts of the study.

The most important guideline to follow is to explain in the conclusion how the reader can profit from the study findings.

2 Informative Essay Examples

The Key Causes Resulting in Water Pollution

Water pollution is a serious environmental issue that poses a significant threat to human health and the ecosystem. It occurs when harmful substances are introduced into water bodies such as rivers, lakes, oceans, and groundwater, making them unsuitable for human consumption and other uses.

The causes of water pollution are diverse, ranging from industrial and agricultural practices to household activities. This essay examines the key causes of water pollution and their impacts on the environment and human health.

Industrial activities:

Industrial activities are a significant cause of water pollution, especially in developed countries. Industries such as mining, manufacturing, and oil drilling often release harmful chemicals and waste into water bodies, contaminating them with toxic substances.

For instance, the discharge of untreated wastewater from factories and refineries leads to high levels of pollutants in water bodies. These pollutants can cause waterborne diseases, kill aquatic plants and animals, and render water unsafe for human consumption.

Agricultural practices:

Agricultural activities are another significant cause of water pollution. The use of fertilizers, pesticides, and herbicides in farming has led to the contamination of water bodies. When these chemicals are washed away by rain or irrigation, they end up in rivers and lakes, causing water pollution. Excessive use of fertilizers, in particular, has been linked to the eutrophication of water bodies.

Eutrophication is a process in which excessive nutrients in water promote the growth of algae, which reduces the amount of oxygen available for other aquatic organisms, leading to the death of fish and other aquatic life.

Household activities:

Household activities are also responsible for water pollution. These activities include the disposal of household waste, cooking oils, and detergents into water bodies. Septic systems and faulty sewer lines also contribute to water pollution. When households dispose of their waste improperly, it ends up in water bodies, contaminating them with harmful substances.

Detergents contain phosphates, which can cause eutrophication when they enter water bodies. Moreover, septic systems and faulty sewer lines can cause water contamination when they leak or overflow.

Mining activities:

Mining activities, particularly those involving open-pit mines, can cause significant water pollution. Open-pit mines generate large amounts of waste, which is often dumped into nearby water bodies. This waste contains toxic substances such as heavy metals, which can contaminate water and cause severe health problems.

The use of chemicals such as cyanide and mercury in mining operations also contributes to water pollution. These chemicals are used to extract gold and other minerals from ores, but they can contaminate water bodies if not handled properly.

Oil spills:

Oil spills are one of the most devastating causes of water pollution. When oil spills occur, they can have catastrophic effects on the environment and the economy. Oil spills can result from accidents involving oil tankers, pipeline leaks, and offshore drilling.

The spilt oil can spread over large areas, contaminating water bodies and killing aquatic plants and animals. The toxic substances in the oil can also pose a significant health risk to humans who come into contact with them.

Impacts of water pollution:

Water pollution has severe impacts on the environment and human health. For instance, water pollution can lead to the death of fish and other aquatic organisms, reducing biodiversity. Water pollution can also make water unsafe for human consumption, leading to waterborne diseases such as cholera and typhoid fever.

Furthermore, water pollution can lead to the destruction of ecosystems, reducing the ability of natural systems to provide essential services such as water purification, flood control, and erosion prevention.

In conclusion, water pollution is a significant environmental problem that can have severe consequences for aquatic life and humans. The causes of water pollution are diverse and can come from industrial and agricultural practices, household activities, mining activities, and oil spills.

To prevent water pollution, it is crucial to implement measures that reduce the release of pollutants into water bodies, such as improved industrial processes, sustainable agriculture practices, proper disposal of household hazardous waste, responsible mining practices, and oil spill prevention measures.

By working together to address water pollution, we can protect our water resources and ensure a healthier future for ourselves and the environment.

The Importance of Education in the 21st Century

Education is a fundamental pillar of society, and it plays a crucial role in the development of individuals and nations. In the 21st century, education has become more critical than ever before, given the rapid pace of technological advancements and globalization. This essay discusses the importance of education in the 21st century and how it impacts individuals and society as a whole.

Globalisation and Technological Advancements:

The 21st century is marked by a new era of globalization, characterized by the integration of economies, cultures, and societies across the world. Technological advancements, such as the internet and social media, have made it easier for people to communicate and access information, breaking down traditional barriers and boundaries.

In this context, education is essential for individuals to acquire the knowledge and skills necessary to navigate this new world successfully. Education enables individuals to communicate, think critically, and adapt to changes in the environment, including technological advancements.

Employability:

In the 21st century, the job market is highly competitive, and employers demand a skilled and knowledgeable workforce. Education plays a crucial role in ensuring that individuals are equipped with the necessary skills and knowledge to meet the demands of the job market.

Education enables individuals to acquire specialized knowledge and skills in their fields of interest, making them more competitive in the job market. Additionally, education fosters the development of soft skills, such as communication, teamwork, and problem-solving, which are highly valued by employers.

Personal Development:

Education is not just about acquiring knowledge and skills; it is also about personal development. Education enables individuals to develop a sense of identity, values, and beliefs, shaping their character and worldview. Education also promotes personal growth by exposing individuals to new ideas, perspectives, and cultures, broadening their horizons and promoting tolerance and diversity.

Social Development:

Education is critical for social development, promoting social mobility and reducing inequalities. Education enables individuals from different backgrounds and social classes to access the same opportunities and pursue their dreams, irrespective of their socioeconomic status.

Education also promotes social cohesion and community building by fostering a sense of civic responsibility and promoting active participation in society.

Environmental Sustainability:

In the 21st century, environmental sustainability is a crucial global issue that requires urgent action. Education plays a crucial role in promoting environmental awareness and sustainability. Education enables individuals to understand the impact of human activities on the environment and develop strategies to mitigate these impacts.

Education also promotes a culture of environmental stewardship, encouraging individuals to take responsibility for their actions and work towards a sustainable future.

Innovation and Creativity:

Innovation and creativity are critical drivers of economic growth and social progress in the 21st century. Education plays a crucial role in promoting innovation and creativity by fostering a culture of experimentation and risk-taking. Education enables individuals to develop critical thinking skills, think outside the box, and come up with creative solutions to complex problems.

Conclusion:

In conclusion, education is critical for the development of individuals and society in the 21st century. It enables individuals to acquire the knowledge and skills necessary to navigate a rapidly changing world, compete in the job market, and pursue personal and social goals. Education also promotes environmental sustainability, innovation, and creativity, promoting economic growth and social progress.

As such, investing in education is essential for building a better future for individuals and society as a whole.

In conclusion, writing an informative essay can be a rewarding experience, as it allows you to share your knowledge on a particular topic with others. By following the steps outlined in this article and utilizing the examples provided, you can create a well-structured and informative essay that will captivate your audience. Remember to thoroughly research your topic, organize your ideas, and use clear and concise language to convey your message. If you're looking for additional support in creating high-quality essays, sign up for jenni.ai ! Our AI-powered writing assistant can help you generate ideas, structure your essay, and even provide autocompletion suggestions to help you write faster. With jenni.ai, you can create engaging and informative essays with ease. Don't hesitate, click the button below to sign up for jenni.ai today and start writing your best essays yet!

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Informative Essay Guide

Informative Essay Outline

Last updated on: Jun 20, 2023

Learn How to Create an Informative Essay Outline

By: Jared P.

Reviewed By: Melisa C.

Published on: Jun 1, 2021

An informative essay is written to educate readers on a particular topic. This type of essay can be written for several purposes, such as defining a term or comparing and contrasting something. This type of essay doesn’t require your opinion on the topic.

The purpose of writing an informative essay is to educate others on a certain topic. You should not express your opinion and do not try to persuade others to take a certain action.

If you are writing an informative essay for the first time, better create an outline first. The informative essay outline will help you structure your essay in the best way possible.

In this blog, you will learn about the basic rules for creating an informative essay outline. These guidelines and a sample outline are designed to help students get started with their projects successfully.

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What is an Informative Essay Outline?

An informative essay outline is like a checklist or action plan that you need to complete. The outline helps the writer not to lose focus while working on the essay. Creating an outline is not necessary, but expert writers recommend it. An outline is the only way not to get lost in the middle of the writing process.

The purpose of an outline for an informative essay is to highlight ideas that you want to include in your essay.

Writing an outline is important because of the basic structure that it provides. In addition, the outline should contain some specific details regarding the layout of the essay. Creating an outline prior to the essay writing process is the key to writing a successful essay.

Outline Your Way to Writing Excellence!

How to Write an Informative Essay Outline?

The layout of an informative essay is similar to other types of academic essays. These include argumentative essays, persuasive essays, narrative essays, etc.

The outline for an informative essay should include an introduction, body paragraphs, and a conclusion. Understanding what to include in each part of the informative essay is very important for a successful informative essay.

Informative Essay Introduction

Any idea how to start an informative essay?

Remember this is the section where you need to introduce your topic and provide a thesis statement. In a few lines, introduce the topic you are writing your essay on and provide some background information.

The introduction should end with a strong thesis statement. This statement should tell the audience what direction your essay is going to take. Therefore, make sure the thesis statement is brief, clear, and concise.

Tips for Writing an Effective Introduction:

• Make sure to narrow down the scope of your essay.
• There must be a connection between your introduction and thesis statement.
• Hook your readers at the start of your introductory paragraph.

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Informative Essay Body Paragraphs

The main body of an informative essay is usually composed of three paragraphs. There are two things that you should consider while composing the body paragraphs of an informative essay. One is the target point, and the second is supporting facts.

Each body paragraph of an informative essay should begin with an idea (topic sentence). This is one sentence statement on which the whole paragraph will be based on. This statement must be in cohesion with the thesis statement written in the introductory paragraph.

After that, provide supporting evidence from the most credible sources. The evidence you provide must relate to your main target point. Don’t forget to quote sources and properly cite information to avoid plagiarism.

At the end of each body paragraph, summarize your points and explain their relevance to the thesis statement. Effective body paragraphs for an informative essay depend on the following points.

• Making a claim
• Evidence in support of the claim
• Provide an explanation in the last

The informative essay can have more than three body paragraphs depending upon the chosen topic.

Tips for Effective Body Paragraphs:

• Do not provide your opinion or point of view on the topic.
• Completely rely on facts and research.
• Discuss the strongest point in the first body paragraph.
• Don’t forget to use transition words for a smooth flow of information in your body paragraphs.

Informative Essay Conclusion

This is the last part where you need to wrap up your information. Begin the conclusion by restating the thesis statement. After that, write about your major arguments and their purpose. The goal of the conclusion is to provide the reason for your informative essay and its importance in the real world.

The conclusion should describe the purpose of your informative essay and what it means for your readers. You should summarize your key arguments and provide a strong closing statement to summarize all your key points.

Tips for a Strong Conclusion:

• Highlight the key points of your argument.
• Do not introduce any new ideas in the conclusion.
• Restate the thesis in other similar words and terms.

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Informative Essay Outline Template Free

Most of the essay outline contain the same elements. But each essay outline has particular points that you need to focus on. It is important to be well-aware of the distinctive features to come up with a good informative paper.

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Informative Essay Outline Example

Wondering where you can get free informative essay outline examples? Having a well-written example in hand will help you in coming up with successful work. You can easily find many informative essay examples online for your help.

5 PARAGRAPH INFORMATIVE ESSAY OUTLINE

Sample Informative Essay Outline

Hopefully, the above guidelines and examples help you in writing a great informative essay. However, informative writing is sometimes not easy, especially when you are working on an unfamiliar topic.

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Masters Essay, Literature

Jared P. is a renowned author and writing service provider with over fifteen years of experience in the publishing industry. He has a Ph.D. degree in English Literature and has spent his entire career helping students achieve their academic goals by providing expert writing assistance.

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Outline Templates

5+ informal outline templates – pdf, word.

If you are a student or a writer, chances are writing about different topics would be your daily grind. It would be nice if the presented topics are of those things you already know, but the world just isn’t that nice. Topics we don’t know about always outnumber those we know. This is why outlining is a thing.

Opinion Paragraph Informal Outline Sample

Outlines Informal Outline Sample

Why Outline?

• To ease planning – When just starting out on your work you know nothing about, you might want to list the things that you would like to know about. Outlines are great tools for keeping up with the things you want to know about the topic. This could help avoid wasting time and effort for the non-essential parts of the topic.
• To track structure – Structuring your paper might be what makes or breaks its readability. You might find out that you want to rearrange your how your ideas are presented. In this case, you can consider your topics as blocks that build to a cohesive unit. You might want to put the “why” of a topic before its “what” but decide that putting the former after the latter would read better. With an outline, you can reorganize these blocks for a better structure that is easier to consume and digest. You can just simply bring the first topic and move it along with its subtopics, to follow where you want it to go. You can even follow a topics evolution from beginning to end.
• To maintain consistency – You might approach your paper from top to bottom, or from a wider view to a narrower one. With an outline, it is easier to keep track of the development on your topic. It easier to pinpoint which parts jump out and remedy them as soon as possible. It also helps keep the tone uniform and not meander off to tangents. A good paper is a wonderful tour guide that keeps its reader. As much as possible, it must keep the reader engaged and it should also be easy to understand.
• To avoid redundancy – Without an outline, you might find yourself repeating ideas that you have written. You might find out that you have been talking about the same topic for multiple pages already, halting your progress. In an outlined paper, you can easily detect which parts are talking about basically the same thing and remove them for a leaner work.

Word Informal Outline Template

Notes Informal Outline Sample

How to Outline

• Identify the topic – As old G.I. Joe cartoons would end, “Knowing is half the battle.” You can’t go anywhere without a topic so go get it. It is preferable that you select a topic you are interested in or have a smidgen of idea you know about.
• Gather information – After locking on a topic, decide what you want to talk about in it. You can elaborate on ideas you already know about if you already know what the topic is all about. Otherwise, if you utterly know nothing about the given topic, you can list questions about the topic that you would want answers to and proceed to research about them. Anyhow, you already have a starting point for your topic the main thing now is to present them.
• Decide on a goal – There usually is a purpose when you are writing papers. If the topic is about the Second World War, you might decide if you want to talk about the countries involved in the said war or its long-lasting effects. The thing is, there are many questions and ideas pertaining to your topic. These are what we consider the main idea or main question. The is the goal of your topic. This will serve as the anchor point of your work to help maintain its consistency. Furthermore, this will set the tone of your approach.
• Support your goal – The main idea could not stand on its own as it is also a topic on itself. This means that the support can be more questions that can lead you to answer the question decided on your goal. This could also be a way for you to expand on the main topic. Figure out the nooks and crannies or the in-and-out of your topic. If the main idea sets the tone of the approach, the supports should build towards it.
• Decide on a format – Outlines have different forms and format. You may use bulleted outlines or numbered outlines. For numbered outlines make sure you separate subtopics with the use of different number systems. You can use a capitalized Roman numeral on the main topics on your outline then move to uncapitalized one or to Hindu-Arabic numerals. Take note though that for informal outlines, the format may not matter much as the goal is to quickly create an outline in a limited time.
• Decide on the structure- You should decide on how you tell your topic here. As your outline is the plan for writing your topic, you should structure it so to maximize your impact. You can write it from a general view towards a more specific one or vice versa. No matter how you write, always remember that your structure should be consistent. It would be very confusing if you see a character die in one scene of a film and then come back to another scene interacting with other characters without any explanation. It is the same in writing. Mentioning a concept before explaining it could lead to a very jarring read and a very lost reader. So structure your outline in a manner that is logical, consistent and easy to follow so that when writing time comes, you would not get lost on your topic. Other ways to structure an outline would be chronological, sequential, to compare and contrast, to highlight the pros and cons, or to emphasize cause and effect.
• Write your outline – The places have been set for you to finish your outline. Do just that but keep in mind that an outline is just a guide for the final product. You may change it from time to time if you need or want to. Some outlines may seem perfect at first but could shine brighter with a little adjustment. , You may remove parts of your outline if you think that some ideas just don’t work.

IVF Informal Outline Template

Workshop Informal Outline Template

Pointers on Informal Outline

• Informal outlines are perfect for when you need to make a quick outline.
• Informal outlines are a good tool for brainstorming early drafts of your thesis and research papers.
• Informal outlines can organize the writer’s jumbled thoughts to quickly give them coherence.
• The informal or scratch outline is just that, a scratch. There is no need to be overkeen on the format of your outline.
• The informal outline does not need to be consistent with its type. You can mix and match sentence subtopics and word subtopics when making the outline. Do remember to be consistent when it is time to formalize it though.
• Do not limit your self to text when doing informal outlines. Use graphs and diagrams if you have to. What matters is that you are able to jot down the important stuff and understand them for a quick recall
• Though the formatting can be inconsistent, you should still maintain a good structure and one that is logical. Chances are you might forget to restructure your sentence and end up with a jumbled mess.
• Remember that an informal outline is a rougher draft of the rough draft and it needs so you can still sharpen it.

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How to Write an Informative Essay: Basics Information and Effective Tips

A professional writer with ten years of experience and a Ph.D. in Modern History, Catharine Tawil writes engaging and insightful papers for academic exchange. With deep insight into the impact of historical events on the present, she provides a unique perspective in giving students a feel for the past. Her writing educates and stimulates critical thinking, making her a treasure to those wading through the complexities of history.

An informational essay is one of the academic writing projects college students have to deal with. Excellent writing skills, deep understanding of the topic, attention to detail, awareness of the essay formatting styles, and maximum inspiration are indispensable for the achievement of the desired results. 

Unfortunately, when it comes to academic writing projects, a lot of students have hard time dealing with them. The absence of necessary analytical skills, lack of logical thinking and zero motivation are the most common reasons of the failure. Are such learners destined to fail? Some of them choose to entrust their success to professional writers, while others start working harder to add to their writing skills. 

If you are one of those ambitious and hard-working learners who strives to create influential, interesting, and appealing papers, this article is for you. Keep reading to find catchy and inspiring informative essay topics, helpful tips, and recommendations that will guide you through the writing process and will advance your chances to come up with a relevant paper. Start with the definition and basic peculiarities of the paper before you dive into the specific aspects and unique characteristics of the paper. Follow the examples to practice your skills and thrive with college writing assignments. 

What Is an Informative Essay?

Working on the academic writing project can be either an exciting or an overwhelming experience, which depends mainly on your knowledge and expertise. Students who know nothing about the essay and its peculiarities are likely to struggle to meet all the requirements and create an impressive paper. At the same time, learners, who focus on the effective tips and writing guidelines have higher chances to succeed. 

What do you start your writing journey with? The definition is the first thing to pay attention to. What is an informative essay? It is a piece of academic writing that aimed to present relevant and unbiased information on a specific topic. The main idea of the paper is to enlighten and educate target audience, encouraging readers to make their own conclusions about the discussed matters. 

The absence of personal opinion and biased information is one of the most prominent characteristics of the essay. At the same time, the writer can present certain information that supports or denies an idea. The key peculiarities of the essay are:

How to Start an Informative Essay?

If you know the basics of academic writing, you should be aware of the ultimate importance of the introductory passage. It is undeniably one of the most prominent parts of the paper, as it predetermines the further interest of the readers towards the whole piece. Thus, the main goal of the writer here is to impress, intrigue, and allure the audience. 

Browsing the web, you will come across a multitude of effective and appealing tips and tricks on how to keep the informative essay introduction thrilling and relevant. Focus on the most effective recommendations so that you know how to present your main ideas. 

At this point, it is also indispensable to mention that working on the informative text, the introduction will be the last part to deal with. Why? Because it will be much simpler to create a persuasive and appealing hook and thesis when you know the details of the discussed topic. Make sure the informative essay thesis statement is up-to-date and not widely discussed among writers. Even if the topic is not new and quite popular, you can always view the matter from a different perspective. Focus on the extraordinary aspects that will make readers analyze the same concept but from another angle. 

Informative Essay Introduction: The Importance of the Passage

The main purpose of the informative text is to explain, inform, and teach the readers. Relevant facts, meaningful information taken from credible data sources, ultimate attention to extraordinary ideas on trivial topics, and appealing facts are indispensable for writing a stunning and highly valued paper. 

Like most academic projects, informative essay starts with the introduction that plays critical role in the whole text. This is a comparatively short passage that takes 10-15% of the word count and aims at grabbing the reader’s attention, introducing the topic, and providing a thesis statement. Some background information, interesting facts, statistics, and little details can contribute to the relevance of the passage. Additionally, a brief summary of key ideas explained in the essay may be helpful. 

Keep in mind that too much information presented in the introduction may affect the reader’s desire to view the rest of the paper. Therefore, include only the most significant and interesting facts.

Informative Essay Thesis Statement: An Important Element to Include 

Even though the introductory passage is comparatively short and concise, it should also be divided into a few critical parts. The opening sentence is a hook that should attract the reader’s attention and keep them excited about the essay. Then comes background information that introduces a little bit more data about the analyzed topic. Finally, the last sentence of the introductory part is a thesis statement of the informative essay. 

In a nutshell, a thesis statement is a central idea of the whole text. It not only emphasizes the theme of the paper but also highlights the most critical aspects that will be enlightened and discussed in the paper. The formulation of the most critical sentence may take some time, but it is completely worth it. A quality pre-writing stage may help to create a consistent, informative essay outline and single out the thesis statement, which will hardly leave the readers indifferent. 

Keep reading for more writing tips and recommendations that will help you advance your academic skills, expand vision, and get helpful instruments that will aid your studying process. Focus on the most critical elements that seem easy to implement and effective. 

Informative Essay Conclusion: Effective Tips to Keep It Meaningful 

A flawless structure is one of the critical aspects of college writing, no matter what type of form of the paper you are working on. College students, expert writers, and a lot of other people are convinced that the introduction and conclusion are the central parts of any text. These are short and informative passages that help to get a brief summary of the ideas and thoughts mentioned in the body part. 

Consequently, it is critical to keep these elements concise, appealing, and relevant. When it comes to the concluding part of the informational essay, it should not be a bare overview of the essay content. Instead, it should be a comprehensive piece of writing that sums up the main ideas and encourages readers to meditate on the presented facts. Here are a few of the most prominent elements to be included in the passage:

• Brief summary of the main ideas
• Reiteration of the thesis statement
• Meaningful conclusions
• Interesting ideas for further research

According to the experts of Purdue Global University, informative writing is not about presenting facts, it is about making readers analyze complex ideas and single out critical conclusions. Readers do not have to agree with all the arguments presented in the paper but should analyze them instead and choose the points of view they agree and disagree with.

How to Write an Informative Essay: Dos and Don'ts 

Similar to other types of scholarly projects, informative texts require ultimate precision and accuracy. Only the most relevant facts and appealing details should be included in the papers. Additionally, it is fundamental to remember that all the requirements of academic writing should be met. Check out the lists of dos and don’ts in informative essay creation that might help you succeed with the project. 

• Use credible data sources. With the development of technology, students forget about libraries and books. Instead, they prefer to search for the necessary information online, which increases the risk of using fake sources. Be cautious and selective, taking advantage of acceptable, relevant, and appropriate websites and services only. 
• Be precise and clear. Working on academic projects, fact-checking is a must. Do not include contradictory information and other elements that can affect the quality of your paper. Make sure you also write clearly so that the text is easy to read and understand. An informative essay outline is one of the most effective tools that can be used for the achievement of the desired results. 
• Use evidence to support your arguments. As the writer’s task is to be unbiased and objective, every statement should be backed by factual and logical information. Avoid any appeal to emotions or feelings, but rather focus on impersonal data. Profound reserach and analysis of the available information are the steps that should be taken for the achievement of the necessary results. 
• Use diverse sentence structure. Academic writing should be interesting and appealing. Therefore, you should make maximum effort to keep your text corresponding. Varying sentence structure is one of the most effective tips for achieving the goal. 
• Do not make generalizations. Stay specific as you present information, avoiding any generalizations and exaggerations. These are the things that can make people agree to contradictory and questionable ideas. 
• Do not address the reader directly. The main idea of informative paper writing is to present relevant data rather than persuade the audience. Avoid addressing the readers and use personal pronouns in cases they cannot be eliminated. 
• Do not use slang or colloquial language. Formal style, proper citing, and compliance with other academic requirements are indispensable for creation of an influential, and impressive paper. 

Informative Essay Outline

The definition, basic requirements, and peculiarities of the paper may help to succeed with its writing. However, there are a few other pre-writing stages of work that should be taken into account while working on the project. 

Outline creation is a significant step that draws writers much closer to flawless paper writing. Nonetheless, it is indispensable to mention that striving to succeed with the undertaking, learners have to take a few other steps. 

• Choose the topic of the paper. There is no way you start working on the paper unless you know the exact aspect or concept you want to analyze. Take your time to browse the web and find the most inspirational ideas. Single out the most appealing ones and work focus on the question you are interested in. Avoid trivial topics that are widely discussed online. 
• Brainstorm the theme. Surf the web for information on the topic. Pay attention to credible and reliable sources only so that you can find appealing facts that will make your paper influential and appealing. 
• Analyze available information. Read as much information on the topic as possible, make notes, and write down the most critical features you want to emphasize in your paper. 
• Create an informative essay outline. Following the notes, come up with a comprehensive plan for your paper. Do not include a lot of details, but rather include a few sentences that will guide you during the writing process. 

When you succeed with these stages of work, your paper is half-ready. Keep reading for more information about the critical elements that should be included in the outline. 

Informative Essay Introduction

First of all, the outline should start with the introductory passage. Present the topic of your informative essay in the most appealing and intriguing way. Add some background information, and finalize the passage with a thesis statement. 

Informative Essay Body

The body part is the biggest and the most informative one. Nonetheless, working on the outline, you need to skip all the details and focus on the basics. Divide the main body into a few paragraphs, each introducing a different argument and evidence that supports it. Do not forget to add some linking words and transition sentences to keep your informational essay concise. 

Informative Essay Conclusion 

The final part of the essay outline is a conclusion. Similar to the introduction, it should be comparatively short. The reiteration of the thesis statement, a brief summary of the most critical aspects, and a reflection on the further topic analysis should be included in the passage. 

Find a sample informative essay outline if you still doubt your ability to create a well-structured and coherent piece. Additionally, keep in mind that there is always an opportunity to get qualified help with your academic projects. No matter if you struggle with the outline creation or you want your informative paper to be written from scratch, you can pay for essay and let professionals do their job. 

Writepaperfor.me is one of the most time-tested and reputable custom essay writing platforms that guarantees qualified assistance, excellence in details, anonymity of the experience, individual approach to every customer, and timely submission of assignments appreciated by learners. Talk to the support team to find the answers to the questions that bother you, and take your chance to succeed. 

How to Write an Informative Essay: Structure to Follow

At this point you are aware of the basic requirements to the academic writing projects. However, there are a few other little details that can help you create the paper that will impress the readers right from the very first sentence. Check out some of the effective tips to make an informational essay writing a no-brainer. 

How to Write an Informative Essay Introduction?

The pre-writing stage of work is critical. Make sure you have enough information, examples, facts, and evidence so that your introduction is appealing and interesting. Start the passage with an enticing hook that gives a hint of the topic. Do not reveal many details about the informative essay so that the readers anticipate the rest of the text. Other elements to be included in the introduction are:

• Background information
• Thesis statement

How to Write an Informative Essay Body?

The body part should present an in-depth analysis of the topic. Divide the passage into paragraphs, each introducing a different aspect of the same question. Start each paragraph with the topical sentence, but make sure the passages are properly linked. The logical flow of the ideas is important, as it helps to keep the informational essay coherent and concise. 

How to Write an Informative Essay Conclusion?

The conclusion is aimed at summing up the core ideas of the discussion. Do not present any new information, but rather focus on the points, analyzed in the body part. Reiteration of the thesis statement, and encouragement for further analysis of the topic are the extra elements to be included in the informative essay conclusion. 

Once you are done with the first draft of your paper, make sure you proofread and edit the text. These are the elements that will add to the quality of your writing and will eliminate punctuation, grammar, or formatting mistakes. Besides, it is an extra chance to check if the paper complies with all the requirements. 

Informative Essay Topics: Top 10 Inspirational Ideas 

The choice of the essay topic is the first and the most prominent thing to focus on as you start working on the assignment. Make sure the topic you opt for is appealing and interesting for you. This way, it will be easier for you to complete the assignment. Additionally, focus on the themes that are relevant, up-to-date, unique, and rarely discussed. Check out a few informative essay topics that will inspire you and guide you to the necessary choice. 

• American Civil War: the history behind the event
• Advantages of genetically modified foods
• Effects and causes of global warming
• The way technology affects education
• Nuclear energy and its impact on human lives
• Advancement of AI technology 
• Agriculture and its impact on the social life of human
• Regular exercise and its advantages for the quality of human lives
• Gender equality and the challenges related to it
• Mental health issues and their treatments

How to Write an Informative Essay: Tips and Recommendations 

The final stage of the project is proofreading and editing the text. This is the way to eliminate any inaccuracies and mistakes that can affect the quality of the project. Check out the checklist to make sure your paper complies with the requirements. 

• Start with the captivating topic
• Take your time to research the theme
• Create a well-structured informative essay outline
• Come up with a strong thesis 
• Focus on the appealing introduction 
• Provide reasonable evidence in every passage
• Add examples to confirm the arguments
• Proofread and edit the paper 
• Focus on conciseness and clarify 
• Keep the paper objective and unbiased
• Search for interesting, informative essay ideas 

Stick to the recommendations so that you create an appealing and well-structured paper that meets all the requirements. 

Informative Essay Examples

Writing academic papers is a challenging and time-consuming undertaking that requires attention to detail, and excellence in every single aspect. In the vast majority of instances, students struggle to create an influential and appealing text worth appreciation. Is there an effective way to improve the situation? 

Reading and analyzing informative essay examples is a great step that will inspire you, guide you, and draw you closer to the achievement of the desired results. Surfing the web, learners can come across a multitude of consistent papers that can serve as a source of inspiration and helpful writing tools. Check out the write my paper page, which contains a comprehensive collection of papers that can provide you with the necessary information and writing tips. Apart from the custom writing assistance the team of professionals offers, they can also help with separate elements of the informative paper you struggle with. 

How to Write an Informative Essay: FAQs

What are the key elements to include in the informative essay .

Like any other type of a college writing project, an impeccable structure is a must for similar assignments. Some elements of the text are optional, but the informative essay introduction, main body, and conclusion should never be skipped. Keep this parts of the essay informative and concise to contribute to the quality of the writing piece. Proper transition and logical presentation of information are also important. 

Are there any formatting requirements to meet? 

Irrespective of certain flexibility, an informative essay should be well-structured and formatted in compliance with regulations. There is no universal citation style for this type of project, but learners have to follow the APA, MLA, Harvard, or any other formatting style they have chosen. 

How long should an informative essay be? 

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