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Old 03-31-2008, 07:05 PM
graceofbass graceofbass is offline
Deku Scrub
Join Date: Mar 2008
Location: Rexburg, Idaho
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Re: [Global History 10] My Rough Draft for my essay...

Sorry, but I'm a bit of a grammar geek, so it's "chose" and not "choosed." Ok, now that's out of the way, your first sentence is a little tentative, meaning it doesn't make a definite statement. Instead of using words like "There may be," or "It could be," try using definite statements, such as "There are" or "It is."

To re-emphasize what Duo said, words that you might use in regular speech, such as, "like," can't be used in academic papers and essays. Also split up contractions, such as "it's, don't," etc. They look better on paper as "it is," and "do not."

I think a good general rule to consider is to write using more formal language. That doesn't mean to use big words, but to use words like "such as," and locator words like "next, following, after," etc. Also, in a paper it's hard to not emphasize words using captial letters or italics, but in general, I would say don't use them in high school papers. Your words should be able to get your point across by themselves.

Here's a paragraph structure you could try:
1. Introduction - Explain what you are going to talk about and what you are trying to prove (Thesis statement).
2. First paragraph - your first "argument" or explanation.
3. Second paragraph - you second "argument" or explanation. Don't forget to use transition sentences between body paragraphs.
4. Third paragraph - This might not be necessary, but you could use this to compare the two arguments and explain your thesis.
5. Conclusion - This is the hardest part for me because all you really need to do is restate your entire argument in a couple sentences. I always thought, 'why can't I just do this in the first place?' but that's the way it goes.

Good luck!
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