outline for English 102

English 101/102

Outline Format

Thesis – It should be a complete sentence that states your topic (influencer of your values) and a controlling idea that presents how they ‘impacted you’. Keep in mind the thesis is the last sentence of the intro.

1. Major Sub Point 1 (P) - These points should be presented in sentence form and they will become the topic sentences to your three body paragraphs

· Supporting Details - These don’t have to be complete sentences

· But there needs to be a clear understanding to say

· Keep in mind PIES – (P) present point in Topic Sentence, (I) Immediately follow up and analyze/develop, (E) example, (S) summarize and return to main point.

2. Major Sub Point 2 (P)– Again a complete sentence that states the main point of the paragraph.

· (I)

· (E)

· (S)

3. Major Sub Point 3 (P) –

· (I)

· (E)

· (S)

The more detailed your outline, the better prepared you will be for your draft. In the end, the time spent on the outline will save you time during the drafting process.

Student Example

English 102

Outline Format

Thesis – My mother has taught me many key values and morals that have helped me successfully achieve my goals and find happiness in life.

4. (P) My mother was always present to motivate and make sure that I put for the necessary hard work to succeed in my academics.

· (I) Working hard is important to achieving what you most want in life

· (E) Elementary- wanting to give up because I didn’t feel like doing homework, mom stood next to me at the desk until I finally just sat down and did the work

· (S) Mom encouraged me to work even when I didn’t want to/the work was boring, lead to strong work ethic I have today

5. (P) Kindness – (TS not well done in that it only gives a ‘topic’ for the paragraph…)

· (I) Mother is one of kindest people I know, passed that trait/value onto me, try to be as caring as she is

· (E) Annoying kids when she volunteers at school, she is patient with them and takes time to listen and tries her best to understand what they’re saying

· (S) Mom has taught me kindness even in times when people are difficult to deal with

6. Being true to yourself is one the most important values I’ve gained from my mother.

· (I) This means standing up for yourself when people pick on something you believe in/something about you that you like about yourself

· (E) In second grade when I wore light-up Spiderman shoes to school and was criticized by my female classmates, came home and told my mom about it and she told me not to listen to them and wear the shoes if I wanted to… I did and now my love for superheroes has evolved to part of my personality

· (S) You never know which moments will define you until you look back on your life, if you let someone else influence your choices without really considering them yourself, you will never really be your own person