Writing a Social Science Essay
Writing an essay means to argue a specific point about a topic. The goal of an essay is
to advance or defend a claim. Essays are not meant to include everything that a student
knows about the topic but instead should focus on examining a topic. In an essay “material
on the topic is collected and analyzed; the writer finds a means by which to prove their
argument and, in doing so, makes the evidence coherent and logical”.
When writing your essay, you should be clear and concise. Your style of writing
should be inviting to the reader, making your ideas as accessible as possible. You should
choose the most straightforward means of expression, while using a good vocabulary. Your
writing should be expressive of your ideas and thoughts. Avoid writing vaguely, instead be as
specific as possible.
Using APA (American Psychological Association) format means adhering to specific
requirements. These requirements include:
 Using white, 8 ½ x 11” paper
 Type your essay, using Times New Roman font, size 12
 Print on only one side of the paper
 Double space your entire essay including the main text, quotations, and References
 Margins must be 1” or 2.45cm on all sides
 Each paragraph must be indented tabbed from the left margin
 Write a Running head and page number on all pages
 Do not submit your essay in a folder. Staple your paper once at the top left hand
corner (put the rubric on the bottom)
 Write only in the 3rd person, past tense
 Do not write in the first person, use contractions, or slang
 Spell out numbers that can be written in one or two words (ex. One, three hundred,
nine million)
 Titles of references must be in italics each time they are used
 Use quotations:
o Short Quotations – quotations of four lines or fewer are incorporated into the
text of the essay and are enclosed in quotation marks
o Long Quotations – use these sparingly. When long quotations are necessary,
you must leave off from the paragraph and then indent each line of a long
quotation and double space throughout. Quotation marks are not used for
long quotations and are not used unless they appear within the text of the
quoted material. (see example below)
 You must include References (think Bibliography) as the final page of your essay. It
must be on a separate piece of paper. See the link to the Seneca APA format on your
teachers website.
PLANNING YOUR ESSAY
The first step in planning your essay is focusing on a central question in order to
develop your thesis. Your thesis is your answer to the question posed in one sentence. It
indicates what the essay will address and how your research will proceed. You need to
develop a thesis in order to begin your essay however; you may need to revise it in your final
draft to ensure that your thesis and body paragraphs are consistent.
INTRODUCTION
 This includes an overview of what your essay is about or the problem to be examined
in your paper
 The introduction has a dual purpose: it indicates your topic and your approach to it
 An introduction of an essay can be roughly divided into 2 parts:
o A thesis
o A plan of development
 An introduction can starts with a very general opening sentence relating to your topic
and gradually becomes more specific, outlining how your will prove your thesis
ending with your Thesis Statement
o OR
 The introduction can begin with your Thesis Statement becoming more specific,
outlining how you will prove your thesis
THESIS
 A thesis is the most important part of the introduction.
 It is your opinion boiled down into one arguable statement. A thesis is that which
you are going to prove in the body of your essay.
 To write the thesis, read the essay question carefully and clarify what it is you are
being asked to prove. Usually the thesis is inherent in the question.
 Your thesis has two parts:
1. The first part states the topic. E.g. Public Transportation
2. The second part states the point of the essay or your position. E.g. Can solve some of
our city’s most persistent and pressing problems
PLAN OF DEVELOPMENT
A plan of development consists of three sentences. Each sentence will briefly explain the
arguments/proofs you will use to prove your thesis. If you are using terms that you think
may be unfamiliar to your reader, they should be defined.
Steps for writing your “Plan of Development”:
1. Decide on and list the arguments that you will be using to support your thesis.
2. Condense these proofs into short phrases which give concise information.
“DO NOTS” IN CREATING A PLAN OF DEVELOPMENT
Do not explain too much. This is what the body paragraphs are for and if you give too
much information about your proofs in the introduction, you will run out of things to say in
the body and will ultimately become repetitious.
THE BODY PARAGRAPHS
 Within the body of your essay you will present your three arguments that prove
your thesis
 This is the portion of your essay that proves your position therefore; it must be
well-organized and persuasive
 In the body of your essay you will present your arguments and the evidence that
supports your thesis
 Each argument and or evidence that proves your arguments should be separated
into their own paragraphs, this does not mean that your essay will consist of only
three paragraphs. Some of your points may require the use of four or five
paragraphs. This is expected.
 You start a new paragraph when you start a new thought.
 The easiest approach is to make the topic sentence of a paragraph one of your
arguments or evidence that proves your argument.
TOPIC SENTENCE
 A topic sentence is the first sentence in each body paragraph
 It introduces what you will be discussing in that paragraph
 A topic sentence should not be too broad or too specific
EXPLANATION AND PROOF
 The sentences, paragraphs and/or quotations which follow the topic sentence are
called the explanations and proofs
 They prove that your thesis is true and correct
 Direct and indirect quotations may be used sparingly (remember back to the Note
Taking Handout)
 A sentence or two must lead into or introduce your quotation
 The quotation must be properly cited in APA format
SUMMARY STATEMENT
 A sentence or two which concludes the point you are making in the paragraph is the
final part of each body paragraph.
 Use a transitional device to smoothly move from one body paragraph to the next
“DO NOTS” In Creating Body Paragraphs:
1. Do not begin or end a paragraph with a quotation.
2. Do not use an excessive number of quotations.
3. Do not write a quotation introducing it with an explanatory sentence.
THE CONCLUSION
 Sometimes writing the conclusion is harder than writing the body!
 If you have convincingly developed your thesis throughout the paper, the reader is
aware of your intentions and will remember what you were arguing
 A conclusion often assesses what you have discussed in your body to prove your
thesis
 The conclusion also consists of 3 distinct parts:
o The thesis is creatively restated
o The proofs are summarized
o General closing statement
THESIS RESTATED
 One sentence, the first in the conclusion, imaginatively states again what your thesis
is.
ARGUMENTS/PROOFS SUMMARIZED
 Three sentences restate very briefly the proofs used in the body of the essay. A
general rule would be one sentence for each proof.
GENERAL STATEMENT
 The last part of the conclusion, made up of one or more statements related to the
topic, is called the general statement.
SUGGESTIONS ON HOW TO CREATE A CONCLUSION:
1. Do not use any quotations in a conclusion.
2. Do not repeat the explanation of your proofs- merely mention them.
3. Do not introduce new information or give your personal opinion in general closing
statements.
4. Do not use phrases such as, “This essay proves…” or “In the preceding paragraphs,
it was shown…”