Ms. Kincaid

January 2015

Honors English 6

Expository Essay

Research Report

Your assignment is to write a 5-paragraphResearchReport on the life, development, and influence of an important person. You may write about someone living or dead that you admire. Your subject may be a politician, artist, athlete, scientist, inventor, religious leader, etc. No matter who it is, your subject must have an academic biography published in book form that explores his or her life.

—Your essay must begin with an introductory paragraph that includes a focusedassertion/thesis. Overall, you will be writing about how your subject became such an important, influential, and inspiring person.

—Your three body paragraphs must all begin with a relevant topic sentence that expands on and presents specific evidence for your assertion/thesis. Each paragraph will discuss only one aspect of your subject. Each paragraph should highlight an essential characteristic or trait of your subject and the evidence of this trait though the actions and choices your subject has made in his or her life.

—In each body paragraph, the topic sentence is followed by specific evidence that consists of quotations or paraphrases from your research. This evidence is properly cited. Your evidence is then followed by your own explanation on exactly how the evidence supports your assertion/thesis.

—Your concluding paragraph must summarize the points you have made and restate your assertion/thesis in new words. It should also explain why you choose this person and why you are inspired by him or her.

—Your essay must include a Works Cited page with properly formatted citations. Parenthetical citations must also be included within the text of your essay.

Your essay will be graded on how well you follow the above criteria. Therefore, use this assignment sheet as a checklist to ensure you have included all the necessary elements.

Over the Thanksgiving holiday, you should begin to choose the person you want to research and write about, as well as look for relevant books about your subject’s life. Between now and the Winter Break, you should have selected at least one book on your subject. Over Winter Break, you should begin to read your book and take notes on character traits and evidence. When we return in January, we will all read about and write a 5 par. essay on Lincoln together, which will serve as the template for your own Research Report.