托福作文的整体结构

无老师网站无老师网站无老师网站无老师网站 http://http://http://http://www.ibtsat.comwww.ibtsat.comwww.ibtsat.comwww.ibtsat.com 《托福作文的整体结构》《托福作文的整体结构》《托福作文的整体结构》《托福作文的整体结构》 无老师新浪微博无老师新浪微博无老师新浪微博无老师新浪微博：：：：http://weibo.com/noteacherwxlhttp://weibo.com/noteacherwxlhttp://weibo.com/noteacherwxlhttp://weibo.com/noteacherwxl LearningLearningLearningLearning thethethethe CorrectCorrectCorrectCorrect TOEFLTOEFLTOEFLTOEFL EssayEssayEssayEssay StructureStructureStructureStructure LearningLearningLearningLearning howhowhowhow totototo useuseuseuse thethethethe correctcorrectcorrectcorrect essayessayessayessay structurestructurestructurestructure isisisis thethethethe firstfirstfirstfirst stepstepstepstep inininin increasingincreasingincreasingincreasing youryouryouryour TOEFLTOEFLTOEFLTOEFL writingwritingwritingwriting score.score.score.score. The TOEFL essay is usually four paragraphs long and has three parts: the introduction, the body, and the conclusion. Each part of the essay has a different function, and readers expect certain information in each of these parts. LearningLearningLearningLearning thethethethe CorrectCorrectCorrectCorrect TOEFLTOEFLTOEFLTOEFL EssayEssayEssayEssay StructureStructureStructureStructure PAGEPAGEPAGEPAGE 2222OFOFOFOF 3333 Here's a brief explanation of the three main parts found in the TOEFL essay structure: IntroductionIntroductionIntroductionIntroduction The introduction is the first paragraph of your essay. The first few sentences of this paragraph simply introduce the the reader to the topic. The last sentence is called the thesis statement and clearly states your opinion. This is the most important sentence in the essay. BodyBodyBodyBody The body of the essay is usually two paragraphs long. Each paragraph begins with a topic sentence that tells the reader what the rest of the paragraph is going to be about. The remaining sentences are called supporting ideas because their main function is to "support" the topic sentence. ConclusionConclusionConclusionConclusion The conclusion is the last paragraph of the essay. It restates the thesis and gives the reader a brief summary of the essay's main points. This paragraph is usually about 3 sentences long. LearningLearningLearningLearning thethethethe CorrectCorrectCorrectCorrect TOEFLTOEFLTOEFLTOEFL EssayEssayEssayEssay StructureStructureStructureStructure PAGEPAGEPAGEPAGE 3333OFOFOFOF 3333 ImportanceImportanceImportanceImportance ofofofof thethethethe TOEFLTOEFLTOEFLTOEFL essayessayessayessay structurestructurestructurestructure 无老师网站无老师网站无老师网站无老师网站 http://http://http://http://www.ibtsat.comwww.ibtsat.comwww.ibtsat.comwww.ibtsat.com 《托福作文的整体结构》《托福作文的整体结构》《托福作文的整体结构》《托福作文的整体结构》 无老师新浪微博无老师新浪微博无老师新浪微博无老师新浪微博：：：：http://weibo.com/noteacherwxlhttp://weibo.com/noteacherwxlhttp://weibo.com/noteacherwxlhttp://weibo.com/noteacherwxl Do not underestimate the importance of the essay structure. In fact, not using this structure is one of the biggest mistakes that you can make. When you use this structure in your essay, your ideas will be presented in a clear and logical way. Your essay will really begin to flow, and this makes it much easier for the reader to understand. Even with mistakes in spelling and grammar, an essay written in this structure is better than one with perfect grammar that is not. Formore TOEFL essay writing help, read our advice about how to write a good introduction, body, and conclusion. HowHowHowHow totototo WriteWriteWriteWrite aaaa TOEFLTOEFLTOEFLTOEFL EssayEssayEssayEssay ThesisThesisThesisThesis StatementStatementStatementStatement TheTheTheThe thesisthesisthesisthesis statementstatementstatementstatement isisisis thethethethe mostmostmostmost importantimportantimportantimportant sentencesentencesentencesentence inininin youryouryouryour TOEFLTOEFLTOEFLTOEFL essay.essay.essay.essay. After you have introduced the reader to the subject of the essay, you write a thesis statement. This is the last sentence of the first paragraph, and it should do two things: • Directly answer the essay question • Tell the reader what your opinion is The thesis statement is the most important sentence in the essay. It does not include specific details that appear later in your essay, but it should answer the essay question clearly and directly. If somebody reads your thesis sentence, they should be able to answer these two questions: • What is the essay about? • What is your opinion? StepStepStepStep one:one:one:one: getgetgetget anananan opinionopinionopinionopinion If you do not have an opinion on the topic, it is not possible to write a thesis statement. The thesis statement must give an opinion--it tells the reader exactly what you think. On the next page we will take a look at some examples of good and bad thesis statements. ExamplesExamplesExamplesExamples ofofofof goodgoodgoodgood thesisthesisthesisthesis statementsstatementsstatementsstatements As soon as you have decided what your opinion is, you can write your thesis statement. Let's say you get this essay question: DoDoDoDo youyouyouyou agreeagreeagreeagree orororor disagreedisagreedisagreedisagree withwithwithwith thethethethe followingfollowingfollowingfollowing statement?statement?statement?statement? PolicePolicePolicePolice officersofficersofficersofficers shouldshouldshouldshould carrycarrycarrycarry guns.guns.guns.guns. UseUseUseUse specificspecificspecificspecific reasonsreasonsreasonsreasons andandandand examplesexamplesexamplesexamples totototo supportsupportsupportsupport youryouryouryour answer.answer.answer.answer. If you agree with the statement, your thesis could be as simple as this: 无老师网站无老师网站无老师网站无老师网站 http://http://http://http://www.ibtsat.comwww.ibtsat.comwww.ibtsat.comwww.ibtsat.com 《托福作文的整体结构》《托福作文的整体结构》《托福作文的整体结构》《托福作文的整体结构》 无老师新浪微博无老师新浪微博无老师新浪微博无老师新浪微博：：：：http://weibo.com/noteacherwxlhttp://weibo.com/noteacherwxlhttp://weibo.com/noteacherwxlhttp://weibo.com/noteacherwxl PolicePolicePolicePolice officersofficersofficersofficers shouldshouldshouldshould carrycarrycarrycarry guns.guns.guns.guns. On the other hand, maybe you would like to disagree. In that case, your thesis could be just as simple: PolicePolicePolicePolice officersofficersofficersofficers shouldshouldshouldshould notnotnotnot carrycarrycarrycarry guns.guns.guns.guns. These are both acceptable thesis statements. They are simple and direct, telling the reader what your opinion is and what the essay is going to be about. It is good idea to write your thesis statement using key words or phrases from the original essay question. In one of our examples above, we simply copied the essay question directly! We'll talk more about this later, but first let's take a look at a few thesis statements that are unacceptable. HowHowHowHow totototo WriteWriteWriteWrite aaaa TOEFLTOEFLTOEFLTOEFL EssayEssayEssayEssay ThesisThesisThesisThesis StatementStatementStatementStatement PAGEPAGEPAGEPAGE 3333OFOFOFOF 5555 ExamplesExamplesExamplesExamples ofofofof badbadbadbad thesisthesisthesisthesis statementsstatementsstatementsstatements Before we look at examples of unacceptable thesis statements, let's have another look at our sample essay question: DoDoDoDo youyouyouyou agreeagreeagreeagree orororor disagreedisagreedisagreedisagree withwithwithwith thethethethe followingfollowingfollowingfollowing statement?statement?statement?statement? PolicePolicePolicePolice officersofficersofficersofficers shouldshouldshouldshould notnotnotnot carrycarrycarrycarry guns.guns.guns.guns. UseUseUseUse specificspecificspecificspecific reasonsreasonsreasonsreasons andandandand examplesexamplesexamplesexamples totototo supportsupportsupportsupport youryouryouryour answer.answer.answer.answer. Now take a look at an unacceptable thesis statement: PolicePolicePolicePolice officersofficersofficersofficers workworkworkwork hard.hard.hard.hard. This thesis statement doesn't give us an opinion. It also doesn't tell us what the essay is about. In fact, it's not related to the essay topic at all. Here's another one that's not so good: GunsGunsGunsGuns helphelphelphelp totototo protectprotectprotectprotect policepolicepolicepolice officers.officers.officers.officers. Unacceptable. It may be true that "guns help to protect police officers," but we still don't know what the writer's opinion is. And here's a third example: PolicePolicePolicePolice officersofficersofficersofficers don'tdon'tdon'tdon't needneedneedneedguns.guns.guns.guns. Again, it may be true that "police officers don't need guns," but what is the writer's opinion? Should police officers carry guns? HowHowHowHow totototo WriteWriteWriteWrite aaaa TOEFLTOEFLTOEFLTOEFL EssayEssayEssayEssay ThesisThesisThesisThesis StatementStatementStatementStatement PAGEPAGEPAGEPAGE 4444OFOFOFOF 5555 StrongStrongStrongStrong thesisthesisthesisthesis statementsstatementsstatementsstatements Now that we've seen a few examples of both good thesis statements and bad thesis statements, the next question is this: how can we write a great thesis statement? Let's start with a thesis statement that we already know is good: PolicePolicePolicePolice officersofficersofficersofficers shouldshouldshouldshould notnotnotnot carrycarrycarrycarry guns.guns.guns.guns. This is a good thesis statement, but it's not a great one. We can improve it by making the language stronger. Do this by using stronger language, words such as no or never. Here's what it looks like when we've made our improvements: PolicePolicePolicePolice officersofficersofficersofficers shouldshouldshouldshould nevernevernevernevercarrycarrycarrycarry guns.guns.guns.guns. We could also say something like this: NoNoNoNo policepolicepolicepolice officerofficerofficerofficer shouldshouldshouldshould everevereverever carrycarrycarrycarry aaaa gun.gun.gun.gun. 无老师网站无老师网站无老师网站无老师网站 http://http://http://http://www.ibtsat.comwww.ibtsat.comwww.ibtsat.comwww.ibtsat.com 《托福作文的整体结构》《托福作文的整体结构》《托福作文的整体结构》《托福作文的整体结构》 无老师新浪微博无老师新浪微博无老师新浪微博无老师新浪微博：：：：http://weibo.com/noteacherwxlhttp://weibo.com/noteacherwxlhttp://weibo.com/noteacherwxlhttp://weibo.com/noteacherwxl If our thesis statement is a positive sentence, we can strengthen the language with a word like always. Here's an example: PolicePolicePolicePolice officersofficersofficersofficers shouldshouldshouldshould alwaysalwaysalwaysalways carrycarrycarrycarry guns.guns.guns.guns. Next we'll look at other ways of strengthening our the thesis statement. VeryVeryVeryVery strongstrongstrongstrong thesisthesisthesisthesis statementsstatementsstatementsstatements Okay, we have written our thesis statement. Here it is: PolicePolicePolicePolice officersofficersofficersofficers shouldshouldshouldshould nevernevernevernevercarrycarrycarrycarry guns.guns.guns.guns. It's already good, but we can make it even stronger by using a few phrases to emphasize our point. Here are some that we can use: regardless of, under no circumstances, at no time, without exception. This is what our final thesis statement will look like: RegardlessRegardlessRegardlessRegardless ofofofof thethethethe situation,situation,situation,situation, policepolicepolicepolice officersofficersofficersofficers shouldshouldshouldshould nevernevernevernevercarrycarrycarrycarry guns.guns.guns.guns. Or it could look like this: AtAtAtAt nononono timetimetimetime shouldshouldshouldshould aaaa policepolicepolicepolice officerofficerofficerofficer everevereverevercarrycarrycarrycarry aaaa gun.gun.gun.gun. We can also use these same phrases to give the opposite opinion in our thesis statement, as in this example: RegardlessRegardlessRegardlessRegardless ofofofof thethethethe situation,situation,situation,situation, policepolicepolicepolice officersofficersofficersofficers shouldshouldshouldshould alwaysalwaysalwaysalways carrycarrycarrycarry guns.guns.guns.guns. Continue to practice writing thesis statements--it really is the most important sentence in the essay, and your hard work will be rewarded by a higher TOEFL score! HowHowHowHow totototo WriteWriteWriteWrite aaaa TOEFLTOEFLTOEFLTOEFL EssayEssayEssayEssay IntroductionIntroductionIntroductionIntroduction TheTheTheThe introductionintroductionintroductionintroduction isisisis thethethethemostmostmostmost importantimportantimportantimportant paragraphparagraphparagraphparagraph ofofofof youryouryouryour TOEFLTOEFLTOEFLTOEFL essay.essay.essay.essay. The introduction is the first paragraph of your essay, and it is important to make a good impression here. If you don't start out well, it will be difficult to convince your readers (or the TOEFL assessor!) to take your writing seriously. Here's what you should know about the introduction: • First paragraph of the essay • Usually 3 to 5 sentences long • Introduces the essay topic • Clearly gives your opinion • Has a strong thesis statement 无老师网站无老师网站无老师网站无老师网站 http://http://http://http://www.ibtsat.comwww.ibtsat.comwww.ibtsat.comwww.ibtsat.com 《托福作文的整体结构》《托福作文的整体结构》《托福作文的整体结构》《托福作文的整体结构》 无老师新浪微博无老师新浪微博无老师新浪微博无老师新浪微博：：：：http://weibo.com/noteacherwxlhttp://weibo.com/noteacherwxlhttp://weibo.com/noteacherwxlhttp://weibo.com/noteacherwxl All introductions must meet these five conditions. If it is missing one or two of them, then it is a weak introduction. BeginningBeginningBeginningBeginning thethethethe introductionintroductionintroductionintroduction The best way to begin the introduction is with a general statement about the essay topic. This explains what the essay is going to be about and mentally prepares the reader for the arguments that will follow. Do not give your opinion in this sentence--this is only a general statement about the topic. HowHowHowHow totototo WriteWriteWriteWrite aaaa TOEFLTOEFLTOEFLTOEFL EssayEssayEssayEssay IntroductionIntroductionIntroductionIntroduction PAGEPAGEPAGEPAGE 2222OFOFOFOF 4444 Here's an example of what a typical first sentence looks like: ManyManyManyMany communitiescommunitiescommunitiescommunities havehavehavehave beenbeenbeenbeendebatingdebatingdebatingdebating whetherwhetherwhetherwhether orororor notnotnotnot policepolicepolicepolice officersofficersofficersofficers shouldshouldshouldshould carrycarrycarrycarry guns.guns.guns.guns. You can see that there is no opinion in this sentence; it is only a general statement about the essay topic. DevelopingDevelopingDevelopingDeveloping thethethethe introductionintroductionintroductionintroduction After we have written our first sentence, it is time to develop the introduction. We do this by adding a fewmore general statements about the topic. One strategy you can use is to explain both sides of the argument. Here's an example: InInInIn somesomesomesome situations,situations,situations,situations, gunsgunsgunsguns protectprotectprotectprotect thethethethe policepolicepolicepolice officerofficerofficerofficer asasasas wellwellwellwell asasasas thethethethe public.public.public.public. However,However,However,However, gunsgunsgunsguns oftenoftenoftenoften resultresultresultresult inininin injuriesinjuriesinjuriesinjuries andandandand death.death.death.death. By explaining both sides of the argument (this is called contrasting), you show the reader that you have thought carefully about the issue. You should also know that when you contrast both sides of the argument, it is better to begin with the side of the argument that you do not agree with. This is more natural in English, and your essay introduction will develop logically toward the thesis statement. HowHowHowHow totototo WriteWriteWriteWrite aaaa TOEFLTOEFLTOEFLTOEFL EssayEssayEssayEssay IntroductionIntroductionIntroductionIntroduction PAGEPAGEPAGEPAGE 3333OFOFOFOF 4444 WritingWritingWritingWriting thethethethe thesisthesisthesisthesis statementstatementstatementstatement Now it is time to write our thesis statement. This is the last sentenceof the first paragraph. It is also the most important sentence in the essay. The thesis statement does two things: • It directly answers the essay question. • It tells the reader what your opinion is. For our introduction, here's what the thesis statement could look like: NoNoNoNo policepolicepolicepolice officerofficerofficerofficer shouldshouldshouldshould everevereverever carrycarrycarrycarry aaaa gun.gun.gun.gun. In this example, we have a strong thesis statement. It is simple and direct: it answers the essay question and tells the reader exactly what our opinion is. It is not an exaggeration to say that the thesis statement is the most important sentence in the essay. In fact, if the reader has difficulty understanding the essay, he will often return to the thesis statement to be reminded what the essay is about. A bad thesis statement results in a bad essay. 无老师网站无老师网站无老师网站无老师网站 http://http://http://http://www.ibtsat.comwww.ibtsat.comwww.ibtsat.comwww.ibtsat.com 《托福作文的整体结构》《托福作文的整体结构》《托福作文的整体结构》《托福作文的整体结构》 无老师新浪微博无老师新浪微博无老师新浪微博无老师新浪微博：：：：http://weibo.com/noteacherwxlhttp://weibo.com/noteacherwxlhttp://weibo.com/noteacherwxlhttp://weibo.com/noteacherwxl If this is something new to you, we strongly recommended that that you learn more about how to write a good thesis statement by visiting the tutorial on this website. HowHowHowHow totototo WriteWriteWriteWrite aaaa TOEFLTOEFLTOEFLTOEFL EssayEssayEssayEssay IntroductionIntroductionIntroductionIntroduction PAGEPAGEPAGEPAGE 4444OFOFOFOF 4444 PuttingPuttingPuttingPutting itititit allallallall togethertogethertogethertogether We've finally completed our essay. Here it is: ManyManyManyMany communitiescommunitiescommunitiescommunities havehavehavehave beenbeenbeenbeendebatingdebatingdebatingdebating whetherwhetherwhetherwhether orororor notnotnotnot policepolicepolicepolice officersofficersofficersofficers shouldshouldshouldshould carrycarrycarrycarry guns.guns.guns.guns. InInInIn somesomesomesome situations,situations,situations,situations, gunsgunsgunsguns protectprotectprotectprotect thethethethe policepolicepolicepolice officerofficerofficerofficer asasasaswellwellwellwell asasasas thethethethe public.public.public.public. However,However,However,However, gunsgunsgunsguns oftenoftenoftenoften resultresultresultresult inininin injuriesinjuriesinjuriesinjuries andandandand death.death.death.death. NoNoNoNo policepolicepolicepolice officerofficerofficerofficer shouldshouldshouldshould everevereverever carrycarrycarrycarry aaaa gun.gun.gun.gun. In the first sentence we began the introduction with a general statement about the essay topic. Then, in the second and third sentences, we contrasted both sides of the argument. Our last sentence was the thesis statement: this is where we answered the essay question and gave our opinion. HowHowHowHow totototo WriteWriteWriteWrite aaaa TOEFLTOEFLTOEFLTOEFL EssayEssayEssayEssay BodyBodyBodyBody TheTheTheThe bodybodybodybody isisisis thethethethe meatmeatmeatmeat andandandand bonesbonesbonesbones ofofofof youryouryouryour TOEFLTOEFLTOEFLTOEFL essay.essay.essay.essay. The body of the essay is everything that comes between your introduction and the conclusion. Here's what you need to know: • It's usually 2 paragraphs long. • Each paragraph has 1 topic sentence. • Each paragraph has 3 to 5 supporting ideas. • Its goal is to support thesis statement. ParagraphsParagraphsParagraphsParagraphs inininin thethethethe BodyBodyBodyBody Each paragraph of the body supports the thesis statement. And each paragraph has the same structure--1 topic sentence followed by 3 to 5 supporting ideas. Like this: TopicTopicTopicTopic SentenceSentenceSentenceSentence (first(first(first(first sentence)sentence)sentence)sentence) • supporting idea #1 • supporting idea #2 • supporting idea #3 • supporting idea #4 It's okay if you don't understand topic sentences or supporting ideas. That's what we'll look at on the next page. Read on. TheTheTheThe topictopictopictopic sentencesentencesentencesentence The topic sentence is the first sentence of the paragraph. This