Why an essay needs a conclusion

Lekce angličtiny ve virtuálním prostředí Languagelab

Writing lesson:  Why an essay needs a conclusion

Učitel: Izabel Kophee - USA

Students: Martin Hurricane, Anatoly, Megi, (Evropa, Asie)"

A five-paragraph essay consists of three parts—the introduction, the body, and the conclusion—and each part plays a role that is vital to the structure and presentation of the essay. We were talking about the conclusion of the essay. The conclusion is a part of the essay, the last paragraph, where the writer summarizes the main thought of the essay…the outcome. 

 [13:16] Izabel Kophee: main idea from the essay - answering why we chose the topic

As Izabel said, it actually answers why we are writing the essay. The key words from the essay can be repeated and even the key concepts but everything shall be used in moderation. 

After we made sure that everyone knows how the conclusion should be written, we received a notecard with two introductory paragraphs. We could choose one and write our conclusion:

1st introductory paragraph

(1)     Knowing how to write a five-paragraph essay is essential for developing good composition skills. It gives the author an easy format for clear organization and explanation of a topic. Many literature and composition classes require five-paragraph essays because of the simplicity and clarity they bring to a specific topic and that is why understanding the five-paragraph essay is important. A five-paragraph essay consists of three parts—the introduction, the body, and the conclusion—and each part play a role that is vital to the structure and presentation of the essay.

Here is an example of a conclusion written for this introductory paragraph.

So, to summarize a good essay, the introduction should be short and simple and needs to depict what the essay is going to be about in a short descriptive way. You could elaborate on the topic in the body of the essay and last but not least the conclusion should express the outcome of the essay.

2nd introductory paragraph

(2) "A dog is man's best friend." That common saying may contain some truth, but dogs are not the only animal friend whose companionship people enjoy. For many people, a cat is their best friend. Despite what dog lovers may believe, cats make excellent house pets as they are good companions, they are civilized members of the household, and they are easy to care for.

 [13:38] Izabel Kophee: they are good companions

[13:38] Izabel Kophee: they are civilized members of the household

[13:38] Izabel Kophee: they are easy to care for.

Above you can see 3 main points that should be mentioned in the conclusion. So now it’s your turn to try to write one….))