How to write an essay

An essay is a short piece of writing on one topic, in your own words. Every school essay, from class 3 to class 10, has the same three parts: a beginning, a middle and an end. If you plan before you write, the essay almost writes itself.

Step 1: Understand the topic

Read the topic twice. "My Hobby" asks about you. "Importance of Trees" asks for reasons. "Mobile Phone: Uses and Misuses" asks for two sides. Many students lose marks because they write everything they know instead of what was asked.

Step 2: Plan for five minutes

On rough paper, write down every point that comes to your mind. Then choose the best four or five and number them in a sensible order. This small plan is your map. Each numbered point becomes one paragraph.

A quick way to find points is to ask: What? Why? How? Who? When? Where? What should be done?

Step 3: Write the introduction

The first paragraph tells the reader what the essay is about and makes them want to read on. Keep it to three or four sentences. You can begin with:

• a simple meaning: "Discipline means following rules."
• a saying: "Health is wealth."
• a small scene: "The first shower of the monsoon fills the air with the smell of wet earth."
• a question: "Is science a boon or a curse?"

Step 4: Write the body

The body is the main part. Follow your plan: one point, one paragraph. Start each paragraph with a sentence that states the point, then explain it and give an example. Use linking words so that the essay flows: first, also, however, because, for example, as a result, finally.

Examples from your own life are the best. "My grandfather waters the plants at six every morning" is more interesting than "people should water plants".

Step 5: Write the conclusion

The last paragraph gathers the essay in two or three sentences and leaves a thought with the reader: a lesson, a hope or a promise. Do not add a new point here, and do not simply repeat the introduction.

Step 6: Check

Keep two minutes to read what you wrote. Look for missing full stops, spelling mistakes, repeated words and sentences that are too long. Cut neatly with a single line; do not scribble.

How long should an essay be?

These are common ranges. Always follow the word limit printed in your question paper or given by your teacher.

Eight common mistakes

1. Starting to write without a plan.
2. One long paragraph with no breaks.
3. Going off the topic.
4. Repeating the same idea in different words to fill space.
5. Using big words without knowing their meaning. Simple words used correctly score more.
6. Wrong facts and dates. If you are not sure, leave it out.
7. Mixing tenses: starting in the past and sliding into the present.
8. No conclusion, because time ran out. Watch the clock.

Should I learn essays by heart?

Reading good essays helps: you pick up ideas, words and the order of points. But do not memorise them word for word. In the examination the topic may be slightly different, and a memorised essay will not fit. Learn the points, then write them in your own sentences. The essays on this site come with a list of points for exactly this purpose.

A small practice plan

• Read one essay a day, aloud.
• Close the page and write its five main points from memory.
• Once a week, write a full essay from the points in twenty minutes.
• Ask a parent or teacher to mark only three things: order, spelling and handwriting. Improve one at a time.

See all essay topics