Girls Guide to Pinpointing an Essay Topic Guaranteed to Reel in an a ...
By Holly • 2 Comments
By Holly • 2 Comments
When your teacher gives you the freedom to pick an essay topic of your own, it can be stressful. After all, there are dozens of different themes you could choose to explore, and you want to make the right choice. Even if your writing sounds flawless, writing about the wrong thing can be the difference between passing and failing. In order to pick a topic that won't disappoint your professor, here are a few tips for picking an essay topic that'll earn you an A:
This is the most obvious step, but it's also the most important. If your teacher gives you any sort of guidelines for your essay, make sure that you read through all of them thoroughly. You should also remember to keep the title of your class in mind. If you're in a Medieval History class, then your professor probably wants you to focus more on the historical aspects of the book that you read than on the character's emotions.
Maybe everything about the class bores you. Even if that's the case, you need to pick a topic that bores you the least. If you're at least somewhat interested in the topic that you've chosen, then you won't be as reluctant to spend a lot of time writing your essay and doing research for it. That means you're bound to end up with a better grade.
If your essay requires sources, make sure you look online for viable sources before you get your heart set on your topic. If you can't find any information that will support or even deny your claims, then you're going to have a hard time creating the type of essay your teacher wants to read.
It's perfectly fine to pick a topic that was brought up in class before. However, you shouldn't jot down the words that your teachers and other students have said in order to include them in your essay. Your writing should be your work, not theirs.
If you can, choose a topic that you already know a few things about. That way, you won't have to stop writing every five minutes in order to look things up. You'll already have the information you need in your head.
You need to make sure that your topic idea is long enough to fill up all of the pages of your paper. However, you don't want that topic to be so broad that you can't even begin to get down everything that you want to say. Try to find a place in the middle.
Even if your teacher seems rude during class, most professors tend to be nicer during office hours. So if you're unsure if your topic is a good one, stop by their office after class or shoot them an email. That way, they can give you their opinion long before they start grading your work.
As long as you follow these tips, you should end up acing your essay. Do you have any other tips for picking an essay topic?