Create an Outline
An outline helps organize information
In the last lesson, you learned about brainstorming to gather many ideas quickly. An outline will help you organize, structure, and rank information in a logical way.
Different type of outlines group information in different ways. Choose the best outline for your writing project; you may want to use more than one or all three.
This simple outline looks similar to the list type of brainstorming. Use it when there are only a few points to organize.
Main point
- related idea
- related idea
- related idea
Main point
- related idea
- related idea
- related idea
This outline is much more structured and contains specific information. You may need a rough draft before writing this detailed outline.
I. First paragraph main idea
- A., B., C. major developed detail(s) about I.
- 1., 2., 3. minor developed detail(s)
- a., b., c. sub-points about 1., 2., 3.
- i. ii. iii, minor details about 1a., 2b. 3c.
- a., b., c. sub-points about 1., 2., 3.
- 1., 2., 3. minor developed detail(s)
II. Second paragraph main idea
This is the most developed of the three outlines. In the example, all of the topics under each subtopic follows the specific developmental pattern of a persuasive essay but can be modified to fit any writing objective.
Thesis statement: School uniforms provide many benefits to students, parents, and educators.
I. (pro argument) School uniforms benefit students by:
- A. increasing discipline
- 1. creates more through group identity
- a. no social identity markers
- 2. lowering peer pressure
- a. less likely to feel pressure to wear specific clothing
- 3. limiting bullying
- a. reduced reason to isolate others
- i. helps students adjust
- a. reduced reason to isolate others
- 1. creates more through group identity
II. (pro argument) School uniforms benefit students by:
- A. helping parents’ economically
- 1. no need to spend money on expensive clothing
- a. set cost for uniforms
- 1. no need to spend money on expensive clothing
III. (pro argument)
IV. (concession/refutation)
V. Conclusion
Remember: a thesis statement defines the main point and range of ideas of an essay. A topic sentence focuses the main idea and purpose of a paragraph.