Essay writing is taught in school from a very young age. It is an essential skill that should be honed in children, as it will prove to be valuable not only during school days, but later on in life as well. Essays for Grade 5 students are usually more narrative. These require students to use their imagination and write creatively.
What Does a Child Develop Through Essay Writing?
The transferable skills that a child acquires through essay writing are as listed below:
- Ability to read, understand, and make notes
- Capability to see the pros and cons of a situation/topic
- Ability to think critically and analyse concepts
- Skill to organise ideas and present these effectively
How to Develop the Skill of Essay Writing for Grade 5 Students
Does your child get nervous when his/her teacher assigns an essay to be written in school?
There are some children who find it difficult to collect their ideas and jot them down on paper; and others whose thought process freeze when writing creatively. However, essay writing should not be considered as an intimidating ordeal.
Here are some points you can pass on to your child so that he/she sheds the fear of essay writing:
1) Analyse the Type of Essay
Before you start writing an essay, you should figure out what type of content is required. Essays can be loosely classified into the following types:
- Narrative – These essays are simple to write and involve an element of creative thinking. These are formatted like a story that you narrate to the reader. Some examples are as listed below:
- Comparative – These essays require the writer to compare between two objects/situations and analyse the pros and cons of each.
- Literary – These essays describe a book that you have read recently or one that you like a lot. Here are some examples:
- Expository – Expository essays require the writer to analyse a topic and provide the details, as seen in the following write-ups:
- Persuasive – Persuasive essays are written to convince the reader to take a specific action. Some examples are as below:
2) Create the Outline of the Essay
An essay outline is like a guide that takes you through to the end of the write-up without missing out on any important points. When you write an essay after creating an outline, your thoughts will be more organised. So, it is advisable to create an outline before you start writing the essay.
- List all the points or subheadings you would want to include in the essay.
- Categorise these points into paragraphs or subheadings.
- You should not forget to list out some examples or statistics to strengthen your claims in the essay.
3) Write a Catchy Introduction
The first paragraph of your essay is crucial as it grabs the attention of the reader and makes them decide if they should continue reading. So, it is important to write an introduction with clarity.
*Here is a Secret Tip for Writing Introductions* See if it is possible to start your essay with a claim or a statistic – specifically something surprising. Put yourself in the reader’s place and think whether you would want to continue reading the essay after going through the introduction. |
4) Use Subheadings in the Body of the Essay
As far as possible, try to include subheadings in the body of your essay. This improves the readability of the write-up and also categorises the information in a logical pattern.
5) Write a Satisfactory Conclusion
Do not skip this step. It is important to wrap up an essay with a good conclusion. This will leave a lasting impression on the reader and may also get him/her thinking on the points you described in the essay.
Summary
Essay writing is an art, much like painting, playing a musical instrument, or any other skill that requires practice. So, if your child has not been able to write a satisfactory essay in the first few attempts, you should encourage him/her to keep writing. This will only help them organise their ideas better and improve their writing skills.
We have a vast collection of English essay topics for Grade 5 students, including short English essays and written speeches. You can go through these for ideas on writing your own essay.
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