writing a thesis statement presentation

Developing a Thesis Statement

Many papers you write require developing a thesis statement. In this section you’ll learn what a thesis statement is and how to write one.

Keep in mind that not all papers require thesis statements . If in doubt, please consult your instructor for assistance.

What is a thesis statement?

A thesis statement . . .

• Makes an argumentative assertion about a topic; it states the conclusions that you have reached about your topic.
• Makes a promise to the reader about the scope, purpose, and direction of your paper.
• Is focused and specific enough to be “proven” within the boundaries of your paper.
• Is generally located near the end of the introduction ; sometimes, in a long paper, the thesis will be expressed in several sentences or in an entire paragraph.
• Identifies the relationships between the pieces of evidence that you are using to support your argument.

Not all papers require thesis statements! Ask your instructor if you’re in doubt whether you need one.

Identify a topic

Your topic is the subject about which you will write. Your assignment may suggest several ways of looking at a topic; or it may name a fairly general concept that you will explore or analyze in your paper.

Consider what your assignment asks you to do

Inform yourself about your topic, focus on one aspect of your topic, ask yourself whether your topic is worthy of your efforts, generate a topic from an assignment.

Below are some possible topics based on sample assignments.

Sample assignment 1

Analyze Spain’s neutrality in World War II.

Identified topic

Franco’s role in the diplomatic relationships between the Allies and the Axis

This topic avoids generalities such as “Spain” and “World War II,” addressing instead on Franco’s role (a specific aspect of “Spain”) and the diplomatic relations between the Allies and Axis (a specific aspect of World War II).

Sample assignment 2

Analyze one of Homer’s epic similes in the Iliad.

The relationship between the portrayal of warfare and the epic simile about Simoisius at 4.547-64.

This topic focuses on a single simile and relates it to a single aspect of the Iliad ( warfare being a major theme in that work).

Developing a Thesis Statement–Additional information

Your assignment may suggest several ways of looking at a topic, or it may name a fairly general concept that you will explore or analyze in your paper. You’ll want to read your assignment carefully, looking for key terms that you can use to focus your topic.

Sample assignment: Analyze Spain’s neutrality in World War II Key terms: analyze, Spain’s neutrality, World War II

After you’ve identified the key words in your topic, the next step is to read about them in several sources, or generate as much information as possible through an analysis of your topic. Obviously, the more material or knowledge you have, the more possibilities will be available for a strong argument. For the sample assignment above, you’ll want to look at books and articles on World War II in general, and Spain’s neutrality in particular.

As you consider your options, you must decide to focus on one aspect of your topic. This means that you cannot include everything you’ve learned about your topic, nor should you go off in several directions. If you end up covering too many different aspects of a topic, your paper will sprawl and be unconvincing in its argument, and it most likely will not fulfull the assignment requirements.

For the sample assignment above, both Spain’s neutrality and World War II are topics far too broad to explore in a paper. You may instead decide to focus on Franco’s role in the diplomatic relationships between the Allies and the Axis , which narrows down what aspects of Spain’s neutrality and World War II you want to discuss, as well as establishes a specific link between those two aspects.

Before you go too far, however, ask yourself whether your topic is worthy of your efforts. Try to avoid topics that already have too much written about them (i.e., “eating disorders and body image among adolescent women”) or that simply are not important (i.e. “why I like ice cream”). These topics may lead to a thesis that is either dry fact or a weird claim that cannot be supported. A good thesis falls somewhere between the two extremes. To arrive at this point, ask yourself what is new, interesting, contestable, or controversial about your topic.

As you work on your thesis, remember to keep the rest of your paper in mind at all times . Sometimes your thesis needs to evolve as you develop new insights, find new evidence, or take a different approach to your topic.

Derive a main point from topic

Once you have a topic, you will have to decide what the main point of your paper will be. This point, the “controlling idea,” becomes the core of your argument (thesis statement) and it is the unifying idea to which you will relate all your sub-theses. You can then turn this “controlling idea” into a purpose statement about what you intend to do in your paper.

Look for patterns in your evidence

Compose a purpose statement.

Consult the examples below for suggestions on how to look for patterns in your evidence and construct a purpose statement.

• Franco first tried to negotiate with the Axis
• Franco turned to the Allies when he couldn’t get some concessions that he wanted from the Axis

Possible conclusion:

Spain’s neutrality in WWII occurred for an entirely personal reason: Franco’s desire to preserve his own (and Spain’s) power.

Purpose statement

This paper will analyze Franco’s diplomacy during World War II to see how it contributed to Spain’s neutrality.

• The simile compares Simoisius to a tree, which is a peaceful, natural image.
• The tree in the simile is chopped down to make wheels for a chariot, which is an object used in warfare.

At first, the simile seems to take the reader away from the world of warfare, but we end up back in that world by the end.

This paper will analyze the way the simile about Simoisius at 4.547-64 moves in and out of the world of warfare.

Derive purpose statement from topic

To find out what your “controlling idea” is, you have to examine and evaluate your evidence . As you consider your evidence, you may notice patterns emerging, data repeated in more than one source, or facts that favor one view more than another. These patterns or data may then lead you to some conclusions about your topic and suggest that you can successfully argue for one idea better than another.

For instance, you might find out that Franco first tried to negotiate with the Axis, but when he couldn’t get some concessions that he wanted from them, he turned to the Allies. As you read more about Franco’s decisions, you may conclude that Spain’s neutrality in WWII occurred for an entirely personal reason: his desire to preserve his own (and Spain’s) power. Based on this conclusion, you can then write a trial thesis statement to help you decide what material belongs in your paper.

Sometimes you won’t be able to find a focus or identify your “spin” or specific argument immediately. Like some writers, you might begin with a purpose statement just to get yourself going. A purpose statement is one or more sentences that announce your topic and indicate the structure of the paper but do not state the conclusions you have drawn . Thus, you might begin with something like this:

• This paper will look at modern language to see if it reflects male dominance or female oppression.
• I plan to analyze anger and derision in offensive language to see if they represent a challenge of society’s authority.

At some point, you can turn a purpose statement into a thesis statement. As you think and write about your topic, you can restrict, clarify, and refine your argument, crafting your thesis statement to reflect your thinking.

As you work on your thesis, remember to keep the rest of your paper in mind at all times. Sometimes your thesis needs to evolve as you develop new insights, find new evidence, or take a different approach to your topic.

Compose a draft thesis statement

If you are writing a paper that will have an argumentative thesis and are having trouble getting started, the techniques in the table below may help you develop a temporary or “working” thesis statement.

Begin with a purpose statement that you will later turn into a thesis statement.

Assignment: Discuss the history of the Reform Party and explain its influence on the 1990 presidential and Congressional election.

Purpose Statement: This paper briefly sketches the history of the grassroots, conservative, Perot-led Reform Party and analyzes how it influenced the economic and social ideologies of the two mainstream parties.

Question-to-Assertion

If your assignment asks a specific question(s), turn the question(s) into an assertion and give reasons why it is true or reasons for your opinion.

Assignment : What do Aylmer and Rappaccini have to be proud of? Why aren’t they satisfied with these things? How does pride, as demonstrated in “The Birthmark” and “Rappaccini’s Daughter,” lead to unexpected problems?

Beginning thesis statement: Alymer and Rappaccinni are proud of their great knowledge; however, they are also very greedy and are driven to use their knowledge to alter some aspect of nature as a test of their ability. Evil results when they try to “play God.”

Write a sentence that summarizes the main idea of the essay you plan to write.

Main idea: The reason some toys succeed in the market is that they appeal to the consumers’ sense of the ridiculous and their basic desire to laugh at themselves.

Make a list of the ideas that you want to include; consider the ideas and try to group them.

• nature = peaceful
• war matériel = violent (competes with 1?)
• need for time and space to mourn the dead
• war is inescapable (competes with 3?)

Use a formula to arrive at a working thesis statement (you will revise this later).

• although most readers of _______ have argued that _______, closer examination shows that _______.
• _______ uses _______ and _____ to prove that ________.
• phenomenon x is a result of the combination of __________, __________, and _________.

What to keep in mind as you draft an initial thesis statement

Beginning statements obtained through the methods illustrated above can serve as a framework for planning or drafting your paper, but remember they’re not yet the specific, argumentative thesis you want for the final version of your paper. In fact, in its first stages, a thesis statement usually is ill-formed or rough and serves only as a planning tool.

As you write, you may discover evidence that does not fit your temporary or “working” thesis. Or you may reach deeper insights about your topic as you do more research, and you will find that your thesis statement has to be more complicated to match the evidence that you want to use.

You must be willing to reject or omit some evidence in order to keep your paper cohesive and your reader focused. Or you may have to revise your thesis to match the evidence and insights that you want to discuss. Read your draft carefully, noting the conclusions you have drawn and the major ideas which support or prove those conclusions. These will be the elements of your final thesis statement.

Sometimes you will not be able to identify these elements in your early drafts, but as you consider how your argument is developing and how your evidence supports your main idea, ask yourself, “ What is the main point that I want to prove/discuss? ” and “ How will I convince the reader that this is true? ” When you can answer these questions, then you can begin to refine the thesis statement.

Refine and polish the thesis statement

To get to your final thesis, you’ll need to refine your draft thesis so that it’s specific and arguable.

• Ask if your draft thesis addresses the assignment
• Question each part of your draft thesis
• Clarify vague phrases and assertions
• Investigate alternatives to your draft thesis

Consult the example below for suggestions on how to refine your draft thesis statement.

Sample Assignment

Choose an activity and define it as a symbol of American culture. Your essay should cause the reader to think critically about the society which produces and enjoys that activity.

• Ask The phenomenon of drive-in facilities is an interesting symbol of american culture, and these facilities demonstrate significant characteristics of our society.This statement does not fulfill the assignment because it does not require the reader to think critically about society.

Drive-ins are an interesting symbol of American culture because they represent Americans’ significant creativity and business ingenuity.

Among the types of drive-in facilities familiar during the twentieth century, drive-in movie theaters best represent American creativity, not merely because they were the forerunner of later drive-ins and drive-throughs, but because of their impact on our culture: they changed our relationship to the automobile, changed the way people experienced movies, and changed movie-going into a family activity.

While drive-in facilities such as those at fast-food establishments, banks, pharmacies, and dry cleaners symbolize America’s economic ingenuity, they also have affected our personal standards.

While drive-in facilities such as those at fast- food restaurants, banks, pharmacies, and dry cleaners symbolize (1) Americans’ business ingenuity, they also have contributed (2) to an increasing homogenization of our culture, (3) a willingness to depersonalize relationships with others, and (4) a tendency to sacrifice quality for convenience.

This statement is now specific and fulfills all parts of the assignment. This version, like any good thesis, is not self-evident; its points, 1-4, will have to be proven with evidence in the body of the paper. The numbers in this statement indicate the order in which the points will be presented. Depending on the length of the paper, there could be one paragraph for each numbered item or there could be blocks of paragraph for even pages for each one.

Complete the final thesis statement

The bottom line.

As you move through the process of crafting a thesis, you’ll need to remember four things:

• Context matters! Think about your course materials and lectures. Try to relate your thesis to the ideas your instructor is discussing.
• As you go through the process described in this section, always keep your assignment in mind . You will be more successful when your thesis (and paper) responds to the assignment than if it argues a semi-related idea.
• Your thesis statement should be precise, focused, and contestable ; it should predict the sub-theses or blocks of information that you will use to prove your argument.
• Make sure that you keep the rest of your paper in mind at all times. Change your thesis as your paper evolves, because you do not want your thesis to promise more than your paper actually delivers.

In the beginning, the thesis statement was a tool to help you sharpen your focus, limit material and establish the paper’s purpose. When your paper is finished, however, the thesis statement becomes a tool for your reader. It tells the reader what you have learned about your topic and what evidence led you to your conclusion. It keeps the reader on track–well able to understand and appreciate your argument.

Writing Process and Structure

This is an accordion element with a series of buttons that open and close related content panels.

Getting Started with Your Paper

Interpreting Writing Assignments from Your Courses

Generating Ideas for

Creating an Argument

Thesis vs. Purpose Statements

Architecture of Arguments

Working with Sources

Quoting and Paraphrasing Sources

Using Literary Quotations

Citing Sources in Your Paper

Drafting Your Paper

Generating Ideas for Your Paper

Introductions

Paragraphing

Developing Strategic Transitions

Conclusions

Revising Your Paper

Peer Reviews

Reverse Outlines

Revising an Argumentative Paper

Revision Strategies for Longer Projects

Finishing Your Paper

Twelve Common Errors: An Editing Checklist

How to Proofread your Paper

Writing Collaboratively

Collaborative and Group Writing

Reference management. Clean and simple.

How to write a thesis statement + examples

What is a thesis statement?

Is a thesis statement a question, how do you write a good thesis statement, how do i know if my thesis statement is good, examples of thesis statements, helpful resources on how to write a thesis statement, frequently asked questions about writing a thesis statement, related articles.

A thesis statement is the main argument of your paper or thesis.

The thesis statement is one of the most important elements of any piece of academic writing . It is a brief statement of your paper’s main argument. Essentially, you are stating what you will be writing about.

You can see your thesis statement as an answer to a question. While it also contains the question, it should really give an answer to the question with new information and not just restate or reiterate it.

Your thesis statement is part of your introduction. Learn more about how to write a good thesis introduction in our introduction guide .

A thesis statement is not a question. A statement must be arguable and provable through evidence and analysis. While your thesis might stem from a research question, it should be in the form of a statement.

Tip: A thesis statement is typically 1-2 sentences. For a longer project like a thesis, the statement may be several sentences or a paragraph.

A good thesis statement needs to do the following:

• Condense the main idea of your thesis into one or two sentences.
• Answer your project’s main research question.
• Clearly state your position in relation to the topic .
• Make an argument that requires support or evidence.

Once you have written down a thesis statement, check if it fulfills the following criteria:

• Your statement needs to be provable by evidence. As an argument, a thesis statement needs to be debatable.
• Your statement needs to be precise. Do not give away too much information in the thesis statement and do not load it with unnecessary information.
• Your statement cannot say that one solution is simply right or simply wrong as a matter of fact. You should draw upon verified facts to persuade the reader of your solution, but you cannot just declare something as right or wrong.

As previously mentioned, your thesis statement should answer a question.

If the question is:

What do you think the City of New York should do to reduce traffic congestion?

A good thesis statement restates the question and answers it:

In this paper, I will argue that the City of New York should focus on providing exclusive lanes for public transport and adaptive traffic signals to reduce traffic congestion by the year 2035.

Here is another example. If the question is:

How can we end poverty?

A good thesis statement should give more than one solution to the problem in question:

In this paper, I will argue that introducing universal basic income can help reduce poverty and positively impact the way we work.

• The Writing Center of the University of North Carolina has a list of questions to ask to see if your thesis is strong .

A thesis statement is part of the introduction of your paper. It is usually found in the first or second paragraph to let the reader know your research purpose from the beginning.

In general, a thesis statement should have one or two sentences. But the length really depends on the overall length of your project. Take a look at our guide about the length of thesis statements for more insight on this topic.

Here is a list of Thesis Statement Examples that will help you understand better how to write them.

Every good essay should include a thesis statement as part of its introduction, no matter the academic level. Of course, if you are a high school student you are not expected to have the same type of thesis as a PhD student.

Here is a great YouTube tutorial showing How To Write An Essay: Thesis Statements .

Thesis Statements

What this handout is about.

This handout describes what a thesis statement is, how thesis statements work in your writing, and how you can craft or refine one for your draft.

Introduction

Writing in college often takes the form of persuasion—convincing others that you have an interesting, logical point of view on the subject you are studying. Persuasion is a skill you practice regularly in your daily life. You persuade your roommate to clean up, your parents to let you borrow the car, your friend to vote for your favorite candidate or policy. In college, course assignments often ask you to make a persuasive case in writing. You are asked to convince your reader of your point of view. This form of persuasion, often called academic argument, follows a predictable pattern in writing. After a brief introduction of your topic, you state your point of view on the topic directly and often in one sentence. This sentence is the thesis statement, and it serves as a summary of the argument you’ll make in the rest of your paper.

What is a thesis statement?

A thesis statement:

• tells the reader how you will interpret the significance of the subject matter under discussion.
• is a road map for the paper; in other words, it tells the reader what to expect from the rest of the paper.
• directly answers the question asked of you. A thesis is an interpretation of a question or subject, not the subject itself. The subject, or topic, of an essay might be World War II or Moby Dick; a thesis must then offer a way to understand the war or the novel.
• makes a claim that others might dispute.
• is usually a single sentence near the beginning of your paper (most often, at the end of the first paragraph) that presents your argument to the reader. The rest of the paper, the body of the essay, gathers and organizes evidence that will persuade the reader of the logic of your interpretation.

If your assignment asks you to take a position or develop a claim about a subject, you may need to convey that position or claim in a thesis statement near the beginning of your draft. The assignment may not explicitly state that you need a thesis statement because your instructor may assume you will include one. When in doubt, ask your instructor if the assignment requires a thesis statement. When an assignment asks you to analyze, to interpret, to compare and contrast, to demonstrate cause and effect, or to take a stand on an issue, it is likely that you are being asked to develop a thesis and to support it persuasively. (Check out our handout on understanding assignments for more information.)

How do I create a thesis?

A thesis is the result of a lengthy thinking process. Formulating a thesis is not the first thing you do after reading an essay assignment. Before you develop an argument on any topic, you have to collect and organize evidence, look for possible relationships between known facts (such as surprising contrasts or similarities), and think about the significance of these relationships. Once you do this thinking, you will probably have a “working thesis” that presents a basic or main idea and an argument that you think you can support with evidence. Both the argument and your thesis are likely to need adjustment along the way.

Writers use all kinds of techniques to stimulate their thinking and to help them clarify relationships or comprehend the broader significance of a topic and arrive at a thesis statement. For more ideas on how to get started, see our handout on brainstorming .

How do I know if my thesis is strong?

If there’s time, run it by your instructor or make an appointment at the Writing Center to get some feedback. Even if you do not have time to get advice elsewhere, you can do some thesis evaluation of your own. When reviewing your first draft and its working thesis, ask yourself the following :

• Do I answer the question? Re-reading the question prompt after constructing a working thesis can help you fix an argument that misses the focus of the question. If the prompt isn’t phrased as a question, try to rephrase it. For example, “Discuss the effect of X on Y” can be rephrased as “What is the effect of X on Y?”
• Have I taken a position that others might challenge or oppose? If your thesis simply states facts that no one would, or even could, disagree with, it’s possible that you are simply providing a summary, rather than making an argument.
• Is my thesis statement specific enough? Thesis statements that are too vague often do not have a strong argument. If your thesis contains words like “good” or “successful,” see if you could be more specific: why is something “good”; what specifically makes something “successful”?
• Does my thesis pass the “So what?” test? If a reader’s first response is likely to  be “So what?” then you need to clarify, to forge a relationship, or to connect to a larger issue.
• Does my essay support my thesis specifically and without wandering? If your thesis and the body of your essay do not seem to go together, one of them has to change. It’s okay to change your working thesis to reflect things you have figured out in the course of writing your paper. Remember, always reassess and revise your writing as necessary.
• Does my thesis pass the “how and why?” test? If a reader’s first response is “how?” or “why?” your thesis may be too open-ended and lack guidance for the reader. See what you can add to give the reader a better take on your position right from the beginning.

Suppose you are taking a course on contemporary communication, and the instructor hands out the following essay assignment: “Discuss the impact of social media on public awareness.” Looking back at your notes, you might start with this working thesis:

Social media impacts public awareness in both positive and negative ways.

You can use the questions above to help you revise this general statement into a stronger thesis.

• Do I answer the question? You can analyze this if you rephrase “discuss the impact” as “what is the impact?” This way, you can see that you’ve answered the question only very generally with the vague “positive and negative ways.”
• Have I taken a position that others might challenge or oppose? Not likely. Only people who maintain that social media has a solely positive or solely negative impact could disagree.
• Is my thesis statement specific enough? No. What are the positive effects? What are the negative effects?
• Does my thesis pass the “how and why?” test? No. Why are they positive? How are they positive? What are their causes? Why are they negative? How are they negative? What are their causes?
• Does my thesis pass the “So what?” test? No. Why should anyone care about the positive and/or negative impact of social media?

After thinking about your answers to these questions, you decide to focus on the one impact you feel strongly about and have strong evidence for:

Because not every voice on social media is reliable, people have become much more critical consumers of information, and thus, more informed voters.

This version is a much stronger thesis! It answers the question, takes a specific position that others can challenge, and it gives a sense of why it matters.

Let’s try another. Suppose your literature professor hands out the following assignment in a class on the American novel: Write an analysis of some aspect of Mark Twain’s novel Huckleberry Finn. “This will be easy,” you think. “I loved Huckleberry Finn!” You grab a pad of paper and write:

Mark Twain’s Huckleberry Finn is a great American novel.

You begin to analyze your thesis:

• Do I answer the question? No. The prompt asks you to analyze some aspect of the novel. Your working thesis is a statement of general appreciation for the entire novel.

Think about aspects of the novel that are important to its structure or meaning—for example, the role of storytelling, the contrasting scenes between the shore and the river, or the relationships between adults and children. Now you write:

In Huckleberry Finn, Mark Twain develops a contrast between life on the river and life on the shore.

• Do I answer the question? Yes!
• Have I taken a position that others might challenge or oppose? Not really. This contrast is well-known and accepted.
• Is my thesis statement specific enough? It’s getting there–you have highlighted an important aspect of the novel for investigation. However, it’s still not clear what your analysis will reveal.
• Does my thesis pass the “how and why?” test? Not yet. Compare scenes from the book and see what you discover. Free write, make lists, jot down Huck’s actions and reactions and anything else that seems interesting.
• Does my thesis pass the “So what?” test? What’s the point of this contrast? What does it signify?”

After examining the evidence and considering your own insights, you write:

Through its contrasting river and shore scenes, Twain’s Huckleberry Finn suggests that to find the true expression of American democratic ideals, one must leave “civilized” society and go back to nature.

This final thesis statement presents an interpretation of a literary work based on an analysis of its content. Of course, for the essay itself to be successful, you must now present evidence from the novel that will convince the reader of your interpretation.

Works consulted

We consulted these works while writing this handout. This is not a comprehensive list of resources on the handout’s topic, and we encourage you to do your own research to find additional publications. Please do not use this list as a model for the format of your own reference list, as it may not match the citation style you are using. For guidance on formatting citations, please see the UNC Libraries citation tutorial . We revise these tips periodically and welcome feedback.

Anson, Chris M., and Robert A. Schwegler. 2010. The Longman Handbook for Writers and Readers , 6th ed. New York: Longman.

Lunsford, Andrea A. 2015. The St. Martin’s Handbook , 8th ed. Boston: Bedford/St Martin’s.

Ramage, John D., John C. Bean, and June Johnson. 2018. The Allyn & Bacon Guide to Writing , 8th ed. New York: Pearson.

Ruszkiewicz, John J., Christy Friend, Daniel Seward, and Maxine Hairston. 2010. The Scott, Foresman Handbook for Writers , 9th ed. Boston: Pearson Education.

You may reproduce it for non-commercial use if you use the entire handout and attribute the source: The Writing Center, University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill

Make a Gift

Home Blog Education Thesis Statement Examples

Thesis Statement Examples

The complexity and requirements of a thesis or dissertation can vary according to the university, program or even country you are studying in. Regardless of the these factors, a good thesis statement is essential to ensure that your thesis can stand its ground and enable you to actively pursue your academic endeavors without any hiccups.

Writing a Good Thesis Statement

Examples of thesis statements related to covid-19, example of thesis statements related to education, examples of thesis statements related to healthcare, examples of thesis statements related to employment, examples of thesis statements related to science, examples of thesis statements related to technology, examples of thesis statements related to environment, examples of thesis statements related to social issues, examples of thesis statements related to psychology, examples of thesis statements related to history, using a powerpoint presentation for thesis defense, final words.

What makes a good thesis statement? Simple answer, precision and enough evidence to support your statement. Writing a statement that appears too broad and is merely based on value judgment isn’t going to win you any points. You also need to determine whether your thesis statement is going to be persuasive/argumentative, expository or analytical. Bear in mind that your thesis statement should be easy enough for you to support your research. If you struggle to write your paper, it would most likely be due to a weak statement. Students can get carried away due to the pressure of writing a compelling thesis statement, only to realize they cannot support the statement they have picked with the required evidence to make the argument stick.

Let’s take a look at a few thesis statement examples, with some tips regarding how to go about writing a research paper based on the examples. The following is meant to provide readers with ideas regarding what type of statements can help them with their thesis and how they can back it up with evidence. You might also want to check out our post about how to write an essay to get ideas regarding how to go about writing a quality thesis to support your statement.

Thesis Statement: The rise of online shopping in the wake of COVID-19 might lead to the permanent closure of millions of brick-and-mortar outlets.

The above statement can be deemed analytical, with a need for evidence to support the statement. There have been several research reports, statistics and forecasts on the rise of online shopping retailers like Amazon amidst the crisis. Similarly, many outlets including Microsoft’s retail outlets have closed permanently during the pandemic. There has also been closure of virtually every type of business from across a wide array of industries due to COVID-19, especially the ones that have failed to digitize. You can also make your statement more specific by focusing on closure of retail outlets, eateries, etc.

Note that the above statement does not discuss the closure of businesses but the physical outlets. For example, Microsoft closed its retail outlets but the products can still be bought online or through various other vendors/stores.

Thesis Statement : Because many people might be unwilling to vaccinate in country x due to their reluctance towards a COVID-19 vaccine, the government must ensure that mass awareness campaigns regarding the need to vaccinate starts prior to the launch of the vaccine.

This statement makes a case for the use of vaccination by convincing people to vaccinate as soon as a new vaccine becomes available. This is a persuasive statement, which can be backed by evidence regarding how anti-vaccination drives and misconceptions have in the past led to the spread of disease. For example, misconceptions and resistance towards the polio vaccine has resulted in cases still being reported in countries like Afghanistan and Pakistan.

Thesis Statement : As physical libraries become obsolete due to digital devices, the government should fund digital libraries instead of physical ones to ease the economic burden of students required to buy expensive e-books.

The above statement would require the individual writing the paper to make a strong case regarding why physical libraries are more expensive and less efficient to manage as compared to virtual libraries that can help students acquire books without incurring heavy charges for renting or purchasing e-books. You can also make a case for open education resources to help students excel in their studies.

Thesis Statement:  The government should digitize libraries and provide increased resources to support digital devices, such as new computers, high-speed internet connectivity for remote devices and online access to books.

The example statement above is an alternative version of the statement which suggests increased digitization of libraries. The research paper can include arguments regarding the changing nature of how people now prefer e-books instead of paperback and how students require high-speed internet to connect to a number of remote devices and make the entire library available online. The thesis statement is referring to the government in your country. It is quite possible that your country does not yet offer one or more of the aforementioned services in government-run libraries and they might be becoming irrelevant.

Thesis Statement:  The cost of healthcare services for most people in country X is unbearable due to low average incomes, high prices of essential medicines and lack of government-funded hospitals.

This analytical statement singles out a country and mentions that the majority of people are unable to afford healthcare services due to low average incomes, expensive essential medicines and lack of government-funded hospitals. There are a number of developing countries which suffer from this phenomenon. Some low-income countries even have one hospital per five million people and not even a basic health unit in most parts of the country. Furthermore, medicine prices are heavily impacted by exchange rates and a weak currency is likely to drive up prices for poor countries relying on imported medicine. All the required information such as average income, data on government hospitals and medicine prices can be usually acquired for a country through official sources, as well as independent research. This can help provide enough evidence to back your statement.

Thesis Statement:  Increased taxation on cigarettes can help save the government on healthcare-related expenditure which can be used for improving healthcare services in the country.

There are three aspects to cover in this statement. One is the application of taxes and to prove that it will help people move towards smoking cessation or alternatives. This will have to be backed by similar results from other countries. For example, countries like the UK and New Zealand have over the years heavily taxed cigarettes and reduced smoking. The evidence related to this can be used for this statement. The second part deals with the government saving on healthcare expenditure which will require explaining the existing burden on healthcare due to e.g. increase in cigarette-induced cancer and other diseases such as tuberculosis, chronic obstructive pulmonary disease, heart diseases, etc. Lastly, a case can be made regarding the need for improving healthcare services and how the money from a reduced healthcare burden can help do that.

Thesis Statement: A diverse group of people working on projects related to human development can help improve the planning and efficiency of development programs designed for marginalized communities.

Development sector organizations, especially international non-government organizations often try to account for diversity, where people from different, ethnic, religious and educational backgrounds are hired for executing human development programs. Many times, some people are also hired from other countries to bring their experience to the table.

Thesis Statement:  Blue-collar workers whose jobs are vanishing in province X should be retrained for work in green energy to reduce unemployment, improve the environment and local economies.

In recent years, many blue-collar jobs have vanished in many countries due to slowing global demand, global recession, the rise of Chinese manufacturing firms and more recently, COVID-19. This statement can also be limited to a local economy to further narrow its scope. The statement can be backed by evidence related to vanishing of jobs for blue-collar workers, the need for improving the environment, e.g. due to deteriorating air quality, solid waste management challenges, rise of plastic pollution, etc.

The case for reducing unemployment and improvement in local economies can also be made by pointing towards data related to unemployment rates, closure of industries in province x and how green energy initiatives can help cope with environment and socio-economic problems. You can make a case for either using green energy for local consumption or to export electricity to neighboring countries with increasing electricity demands and low capacity.

Thesis Statement:  Wind turbines need to be replaced with alternative sources of green energy due to their hazardous effect on human health and wildlife.

The above statement makes a case against wind turbines. While they were hailed as an alternative source of renewable energy in the past, research has suggested that the noise and effects of wind turbines on humans and wildlife can be quite adverse. This includes not only birds dying due to collisions with the turbines but also the noise pollution caused by them. To back such a thesis statement, you will have to not only state facts and research related to the subject but also state viable alternatives and comparisons, proving why they are better than wind turbines.

Thesis Statement:  Governments should prioritize climate change adaptation since global warming cannot be reversed.

This is an example of a fairly ambitious thesis statement. It caters towards not only covering climate change but makes a bold statement that global warming cannot be stopped. This topic is subject to much debate, with claims that the carbon in the atmosphere can no longer be reduced. The topic has enough research and data available to make a case. Furthermore, climate change adaptation is a hot topic and many governments around the world are working on their adaptation strategies. However, such a topic can still be quite controversial and undertaking such a thesis can be ambitious, as the counter-arguments can be as strong as the narrative you might present.

Thesis Statement: The integration of blockchain technology in supply chain management can enhance transparency, traceability, and efficiency, reducing the risk of counterfeit products and ensuring product authenticity.

Thesis Statement: The development of artificial intelligence (AI) chatbots in customer service has the potential to revolutionize customer interactions, providing personalized assistance and improving overall customer satisfaction.

Thesis Statement: Implementing 5G technology can accelerate the Internet of Things (IoT) ecosystem, enabling seamless connectivity and driving innovation in various industries, such as healthcare, transportation, and smart cities.

Thesis Statement: The transition to renewable energy sources, such as solar and wind power, is essential for mitigating the impacts of climate change and reducing carbon emissions globally.

Thesis Statement: Sustainable waste management practices, including recycling and waste-to-energy technologies, can significantly reduce waste and create a circular economy.

Thesis Statement: Biodiversity conservation and protecting endangered species are critical for maintaining ecosystem balance and preserving the planet’s natural resources for future generations.

Thesis Statement: Implementing comprehensive gun control measures is necessary to reduce gun violence and enhance public safety in communities.

Thesis Statement: Addressing income inequality through progressive taxation and social welfare programs is crucial for promoting social equity and reducing poverty rates.

Thesis Statement: Promoting gender equality in the workplace, including equal pay and representation in leadership positions, is essential for achieving inclusive economic growth and sustainable development.

Thesis Statement: Mindfulness-based interventions can effectively reduce stress and anxiety levels in individuals, improving their overall mental well-being and resilience.

Thesis Statement: Early intervention and access to mental health services for children and adolescents can prevent the development of mental health disorders and improve long-term outcomes.

Thesis Statement: The study of cognitive biases and heuristics provides valuable insights into decision-making processes, leading to a better understanding of human behavior in various contexts.

Thesis Statement: Analyzing primary sources and historical documents can lead to a deeper understanding of historical events, shedding light on the perspectives and motivations of different actors.

Thesis Statement: The study of colonialism and its impact on indigenous cultures can provide insights into the historical roots of present-day social and cultural dynamics.

Thesis Statement: Examining the role of women in historical revolutions can reveal their contributions to social and political change, challenging traditional narratives of male-dominated history.

You might need to present a PowerPoint presentation to defend your thesis. In such a case there are a number of things you can do to make sure that you are able to concisely explain your argument while keeping your audience engaged. You can read all about our tips from this post about thesis presentation .

A good thesis statement is the foundation for your thesis. A weak statement is likely to lead to a roadblock in proving your statement. Your thesis statement should be flexible enough for adjustment, as sometimes a student might need to rewrite a thesis statement for a working thesis. In such a case you can save time and effort by leaving room for flexibility so you don’t have to start from scratch.

Frequently Asked Questions

What is a thesis statement examples.

A thesis statement is a concise declaration that encapsulates the main argument or focus of an academic paper or essay. It serves as a roadmap for readers, conveying the purpose and direction of the work. For instance, in an essay about climate change, a thesis statement could be: “The urgent need to mitigate climate change is evident through the alarming rise in global temperatures, the increased frequency of extreme weather events, and the rapid melting of polar ice caps.” This statement clearly outlines the essay’s key points, guiding the reader on what to expect and highlighting the author’s stance.

Are thesis statements used in fictional writing?

Thesis statements, including research papers and persuasive essays, are primarily used in nonfiction writing. In fictional writing, such as narrative essays, authors may use a thesis statement to emphasize the story’s significance or the intended lesson they want readers to take away from the narrative.

Can a thesis statement be two sentences long?

While a thesis statement can be two sentences long, it is often preferred to keep it concise and limit it to one sentence. A single-sentence thesis statement is easier for readers to identify, and placing it at the end of the introductory paragraph allows for a clear and focused presentation of the topic.

Can a thesis statement be too broad or too narrow?

Yes, a thesis statement can be problematic if it is too broad or too narrow. A good thesis statement should strike a balance and have a strong focus. If it is too broad, it becomes challenging to cover all aspects within the scope of the paper. Conversely, if it is too narrow, insufficient research or evidence may support the claims effectively. Aim for a thesis statement that clearly identifies the topic and presents your stance, providing readers with a clear understanding of what to expect in the paper.

Like this article? Please share

Dissertation, Essay, Examples, Thesis Filed under Education

Related Articles

Filed under Education • September 10th, 2023

How To Write An Essay? – Where to start?

Do you wonder How to write an essay ? Start with the essay structure. This post describes the standard essay structure with its content, and which essay types are popular. Develop your writing skills using the best practices of Essay Structure.

Filed under Presentation Ideas • July 24th, 2023

How To Do a Proper Thesis Defense Using the Right PowerPoint Presentation

It’s time to put all your hard effort into action with a powerful thesis defense presentation. Learn the insights for success in this topic with our guide.

Filed under Business • October 25th, 2022

Business Presentation: The Ultimate Guide to Making Powerful Presentations (+ Examples)

A business presentation is a purpose-led summary of key information about your company’s plans, products, or practices, designed for either internal or external audiences. This guide teaches you how to design and deliver excellent business presentations. Plus, breaks down some best practices from business presentation examples by popular companies.

Leave a Reply

• Slidesgo School
• Presentation Tips

How to Start a Thesis Defense Presentation

After months and years of hard work, the moment to wrap things all up is finally here—your thesis defense presentation.

Whether you’re pursuing a master’s degree or doctorate, it’s the final step to that much-deserved achievement. 

A thesis defense requires a lot of prior research and preparation. And as important as its content is, so is how you present it because a stunning design with clear data and text hierarchy plays an immense role in comprehension.

In this article, we’ll explore how you make your thesis defense .

The organization is the key to success. Establishing some previous steps before any project or work is essential for the result to be very positive. And the defense of a thesis could not be less. 

Below, we will develop all the necessary steps to make a thesis defense presentation and we will give you some tips on how to carry them out.

How to Make an Amazing Presentation

Defining the concept of your thesis presentation, structuring your thesis defense presentation, how do you welcome the audience, tell them why you did this thesis, go into the content by explaining your thesis part by part, how to end the defense of the thesis.

After a long time of research and study, the content of your thesis is ready. Now, you have to find the best way to reflect all that effort behind your work. The information comes across more clearly if you use a visual format, as it attracts the attention of the audience. To present your thesis information in a clear, concise, and ultimately amazing way, you can use one of our unique thesis defense templates , available at Slidesgo.

As an example, in this article, we are going to use the Ecology Thesis template . With it, we will show you what to include in your presentation and how to make an attractive design.

After choosing the Google Slides and PowerPoint template that best suits the needs and subject matter of your thesis, it is time to define an overarching concept.

This is the main theme on which your designs are based. It must be relevant to your thesis as its purpose is to guide your selection of colors, typography, images, style, etc. 

These must be portrayed in a way that supports the main message of your slides and should be aligned with your concept both visually and sociologically.

Once you have defined the concept, you will have to move on to the next step: structuring the content of your thesis. A good structure will show that there is a good organization behind the work, but most importantly: it will highlight your content.

In this article, we are going to show you a structure that could be a good example of how to structure a thesis, but you can adapt it to what your specific content requires.

Before you begin your thesis defense, you should welcome your audience. A good presentation will make you connect with your audience, which will result in more general interest in your work.

Use an appropriate language register (avoid informal language), but be approachable and natural.

"Welcome to the thesis defense on [the title of your thesis]". Next, introduce yourself with your name and give a short description of your background and occupation.

Don't forget to say “thank you for attending!”

To continue establishing that connection with your audience, explain the reasons that led you to do this thesis. Tell the professional reasons, and you can even say some personal ones, which will denote closeness, and your audience will appreciate it.

Now it's time to go into the content of the thesis ! After these preliminary steps, which are just as important as the thesis itself, it is time to explain part by part the structure (which you had previously established). We are going to propose a structure for your project, but the final decision is always yours!

First impressions are very important. Because your title page is the very first thing viewers see, it must be striking and impactful. It also sets the stage for the rest of your slides.

In one glance, the following should be established:

• Thesis defense topic
• Design style

For instance, the ecology thesis’s title page uses illustrations of a natural landscape to represent the topic of nature and a striking shade of blue to set the tone.

The sans serif font used depicts clean-cut typography and style and the thesis topic is written in large and bold typography, which draws attention to it immediately.

Right after your title page, include an introduction slide to provide more details about your topic. 

This means explaining what you hope to answer with your research, its importance to your field, and why you chose it.

Continue to incorporate design elements relevant to your concept. This example has done just that by using a different natural landscape and including animals. For coherence, stick to the same typography and style throughout your presentation.

The aim of the literature review slide is to illustrate your knowledge of your thesis topic and any relevant theories.

Walls of text kill a design. For clarity, we recommend presenting this with bullet points. Each one should be short and sweet and only touch on the basics; you can elaborate on them in your speech. 

Don’t forget to be consistent with your design. In our example, we’ve maintained the tone of blue chosen and added illustrations of leaves in the far corners of the slide. 

Also, address similar research that has been done. This is to showcase your topic’s originality and, if relevant, how it’s different and/or an improvement from previously done research. 

This is one of the most important parts of a thesis defense presentation.

It allows your viewers to assess the rationality and validity of your approach and consequently, the accuracy of your results.

A great methodology slide explains the what , how, and why :

• What method did you use for your research
• Why did you choose it
• How did you conduct it

Because this part of your thesis will be rather technical, the most effective way to aid understanding is by using graphics like charts and tables. 

Keep text to a minimum to avoid drawing attention away from the graphics. If there is a text that must absolutely be included, consider using bullet points and keep them short.

Don’t forget to maintain color, style, and typography coherence.

The results slides are easily the most quantitative part of a thesis defense. 

Here, your aim is to simply introduce your findings. Select the most impactful data and highlight them here.

Just as with methodology, use graphics like charts, tables, and graphs to portray the data in a clear way. And, once again, try not to write too much text. Let the visual content do the talking .

After you’ve introduced your data, the next step would be to help your audience make sense of it. That means understanding what it means in the context of your thesis research topic and your discipline. 

Simply put, you should answer the question: What do the numbers mean?

The best way to approach this would be to do it as if you were creating an infographic . 

Illustrations like icons are a quick and simple way to represent your message. It also reduces the amount of text on your slide, which makes the information much more digestible. 

For a balanced thesis presentation, you should also address any outliers and anomalies.

To quote bestselling author Robin Sharma, “Starting strong is good. Finishing strong is epic.”

That’s exactly what to aim for in your conclusion.

Provide an overview of your thesis topic and remind your audience what you set out to answer with your research. In our example, we’ve used three icons accompanied by a short title and text. 

Following that, reiterate the important points of your research results you want your audience to take away from your thesis defense presentation. 

You can do so by expanding the next slide to have more icons and points, for example.

Don’t forget to address any shortcomings and limitations in your approach and extra points for suggesting possible improvements for future research.

We are going to give you a little tip to make your thesis defense a success. You can combine your defense with good public speaking techniques. Take a look at our article "How to become a great speaker" .

We hope this article has been of great help, have you already seen our templates to make the presentation of your thesis ? Choose the one that best suits your needs, we are sure that one of them will go perfectly with your thesis presentation! 

Good luck from Slidesgo.

Do you find this article useful?

Related tutorials.

Entrepreneurship and Personal Development Hackathon: The magic of learning by doing

The new generations show us that the way of learning has completely changed. Now more than ever, it is key to encourage and support the development of social and entrepreneurial skills in children so that they can become more actively involved in their learning. Participating in creative projects and collaborative activities allows them to explore and learn on their own about topics that interest them, solve their problems with more autonomy, and work better in teams.This idea was the motivation behind the Junior Entrepreneurship and Personal Development Hackathon organized by Slidesgo in collaboration with Genyus School. At this event, more than 150 children had...

Work faster, teach better: boost your skills with Slidesgo Academy

We truly believe that every educator has what it takes to be a fantastic presenter, but we’re also aware of the time it takes to hone these skills. Enter Slidesgo with a great, fast solution: Slidesgo Academy.At this empowering and encouraging platform, we’ve partnered with veteran classroom educators to compile the best tips that will enable you to create engaging, eye-catching, and top-quality presentations for your students and fellow educators. You’ll surprise yourself with how quickly you can craft lessons that engage and excite. Join us as a student, and become the best teacher you can be!

7 tips to create a positive classroom culture

No matter if it's been ages since you last stepped into a classroom or just a long time ago―there’s probably a particular learning experience you often find yourself thinking about. Maybe it was a passionate teacher who kept the whole class engaged, or perhaps a classmate who lent you a hand with a tricky topic. Positive classroom experiences do leave a lasting mark on us, so it makes perfect sense that people leading a classroom aim to create the finest possible learning setting. In this article, we’ll share some tips to help you turn a regular classroom into a positive space.

How to create a word cloud in Google Slides

There are many ways to improve your Google Slides presentation. From choosing the right font to finding the right template, good presentations keep an audience engaged and convey a message in a clear way.Knowing how to visualize data in a slideshow is one of those actions that have a huge impact on the success of a presentation. At the end of the day, plain data fails to motivate decisions as effectively as clear insights do. This is when powerful visual tools like word clouds step in. Let us tell you all about them. 

Think of yourself as a member of a jury, listening to a lawyer who is presenting an opening argument. You'll want to know very soon whether the lawyer believes the accused to be guilty or not guilty, and how the lawyer plans to convince you. Readers of academic essays are like jury members: before they have read too far, they want to know what the essay argues as well as how the writer plans to make the argument. After reading your thesis statement, the reader should think, "This essay is going to try to convince me of something. I'm not convinced yet, but I'm interested to see how I might be."

An effective thesis cannot be answered with a simple "yes" or "no." A thesis is not a topic; nor is it a fact; nor is it an opinion. "Reasons for the fall of communism" is a topic. "Communism collapsed in Eastern Europe" is a fact known by educated people. "The fall of communism is the best thing that ever happened in Europe" is an opinion. (Superlatives like "the best" almost always lead to trouble. It's impossible to weigh every "thing" that ever happened in Europe. And what about the fall of Hitler? Couldn't that be "the best thing"?)

A good thesis has two parts. It should tell what you plan to argue, and it should "telegraph" how you plan to argue—that is, what particular support for your claim is going where in your essay.

Steps in Constructing a Thesis

First, analyze your primary sources.  Look for tension, interest, ambiguity, controversy, and/or complication. Does the author contradict himself or herself? Is a point made and later reversed? What are the deeper implications of the author's argument? Figuring out the why to one or more of these questions, or to related questions, will put you on the path to developing a working thesis. (Without the why, you probably have only come up with an observation—that there are, for instance, many different metaphors in such-and-such a poem—which is not a thesis.)

Once you have a working thesis, write it down.  There is nothing as frustrating as hitting on a great idea for a thesis, then forgetting it when you lose concentration. And by writing down your thesis you will be forced to think of it clearly, logically, and concisely. You probably will not be able to write out a final-draft version of your thesis the first time you try, but you'll get yourself on the right track by writing down what you have.

Keep your thesis prominent in your introduction.  A good, standard place for your thesis statement is at the end of an introductory paragraph, especially in shorter (5-15 page) essays. Readers are used to finding theses there, so they automatically pay more attention when they read the last sentence of your introduction. Although this is not required in all academic essays, it is a good rule of thumb.

Anticipate the counterarguments.  Once you have a working thesis, you should think about what might be said against it. This will help you to refine your thesis, and it will also make you think of the arguments that you'll need to refute later on in your essay. (Every argument has a counterargument. If yours doesn't, then it's not an argument—it may be a fact, or an opinion, but it is not an argument.)

This statement is on its way to being a thesis. However, it is too easy to imagine possible counterarguments. For example, a political observer might believe that Dukakis lost because he suffered from a "soft-on-crime" image. If you complicate your thesis by anticipating the counterargument, you'll strengthen your argument, as shown in the sentence below.

Some Caveats and Some Examples

A thesis is never a question.  Readers of academic essays expect to have questions discussed, explored, or even answered. A question ("Why did communism collapse in Eastern Europe?") is not an argument, and without an argument, a thesis is dead in the water.

A thesis is never a list.  "For political, economic, social and cultural reasons, communism collapsed in Eastern Europe" does a good job of "telegraphing" the reader what to expect in the essay—a section about political reasons, a section about economic reasons, a section about social reasons, and a section about cultural reasons. However, political, economic, social and cultural reasons are pretty much the only possible reasons why communism could collapse. This sentence lacks tension and doesn't advance an argument. Everyone knows that politics, economics, and culture are important.

A thesis should never be vague, combative or confrontational.  An ineffective thesis would be, "Communism collapsed in Eastern Europe because communism is evil." This is hard to argue (evil from whose perspective? what does evil mean?) and it is likely to mark you as moralistic and judgmental rather than rational and thorough. It also may spark a defensive reaction from readers sympathetic to communism. If readers strongly disagree with you right off the bat, they may stop reading.

An effective thesis has a definable, arguable claim.  "While cultural forces contributed to the collapse of communism in Eastern Europe, the disintegration of economies played the key role in driving its decline" is an effective thesis sentence that "telegraphs," so that the reader expects the essay to have a section about cultural forces and another about the disintegration of economies. This thesis makes a definite, arguable claim: that the disintegration of economies played a more important role than cultural forces in defeating communism in Eastern Europe. The reader would react to this statement by thinking, "Perhaps what the author says is true, but I am not convinced. I want to read further to see how the author argues this claim."

A thesis should be as clear and specific as possible.  Avoid overused, general terms and abstractions. For example, "Communism collapsed in Eastern Europe because of the ruling elite's inability to address the economic concerns of the people" is more powerful than "Communism collapsed due to societal discontent."

Copyright 1999, Maxine Rodburg and The Tutors of the Writing Center at Harvard University

• Walden University
• Faculty Portal

Writing a Paper: Thesis Statements

Basics of thesis statements.

The thesis statement is the brief articulation of your paper's central argument and purpose. You might hear it referred to as simply a "thesis." Every scholarly paper should have a thesis statement, and strong thesis statements are concise, specific, and arguable. Concise means the thesis is short: perhaps one or two sentences for a shorter paper. Specific means the thesis deals with a narrow and focused topic, appropriate to the paper's length. Arguable means that a scholar in your field could disagree (or perhaps already has!).

Strong thesis statements address specific intellectual questions, have clear positions, and use a structure that reflects the overall structure of the paper. Read on to learn more about constructing a strong thesis statement.

Being Specific

This thesis statement has no specific argument:

Needs Improvement: In this essay, I will examine two scholarly articles to find similarities and differences.

This statement is concise, but it is neither specific nor arguable—a reader might wonder, "Which scholarly articles? What is the topic of this paper? What field is the author writing in?" Additionally, the purpose of the paper—to "examine…to find similarities and differences" is not of a scholarly level. Identifying similarities and differences is a good first step, but strong academic argument goes further, analyzing what those similarities and differences might mean or imply.

Better: In this essay, I will argue that Bowler's (2003) autocratic management style, when coupled with Smith's (2007) theory of social cognition, can reduce the expenses associated with employee turnover.

The new revision here is still concise, as well as specific and arguable.  We can see that it is specific because the writer is mentioning (a) concrete ideas and (b) exact authors.  We can also gather the field (business) and the topic (management and employee turnover). The statement is arguable because the student goes beyond merely comparing; he or she draws conclusions from that comparison ("can reduce the expenses associated with employee turnover").

Making a Unique Argument

This thesis draft repeats the language of the writing prompt without making a unique argument:

Needs Improvement: The purpose of this essay is to monitor, assess, and evaluate an educational program for its strengths and weaknesses. Then, I will provide suggestions for improvement.

You can see here that the student has simply stated the paper's assignment, without articulating specifically how he or she will address it. The student can correct this error simply by phrasing the thesis statement as a specific answer to the assignment prompt.

Better: Through a series of student interviews, I found that Kennedy High School's antibullying program was ineffective. In order to address issues of conflict between students, I argue that Kennedy High School should embrace policies outlined by the California Department of Education (2010).

Words like "ineffective" and "argue" show here that the student has clearly thought through the assignment and analyzed the material; he or she is putting forth a specific and debatable position. The concrete information ("student interviews," "antibullying") further prepares the reader for the body of the paper and demonstrates how the student has addressed the assignment prompt without just restating that language.

Creating a Debate

This thesis statement includes only obvious fact or plot summary instead of argument:

Needs Improvement: Leadership is an important quality in nurse educators.

A good strategy to determine if your thesis statement is too broad (and therefore, not arguable) is to ask yourself, "Would a scholar in my field disagree with this point?" Here, we can see easily that no scholar is likely to argue that leadership is an unimportant quality in nurse educators.  The student needs to come up with a more arguable claim, and probably a narrower one; remember that a short paper needs a more focused topic than a dissertation.

Better: Roderick's (2009) theory of participatory leadership  is particularly appropriate to nurse educators working within the emergency medicine field, where students benefit most from collegial and kinesthetic learning.

Here, the student has identified a particular type of leadership ("participatory leadership"), narrowing the topic, and has made an arguable claim (this type of leadership is "appropriate" to a specific type of nurse educator). Conceivably, a scholar in the nursing field might disagree with this approach. The student's paper can now proceed, providing specific pieces of evidence to support the arguable central claim.

Choosing the Right Words

This thesis statement uses large or scholarly-sounding words that have no real substance:

Needs Improvement: Scholars should work to seize metacognitive outcomes by harnessing discipline-based networks to empower collaborative infrastructures.

There are many words in this sentence that may be buzzwords in the student's field or key terms taken from other texts, but together they do not communicate a clear, specific meaning. Sometimes students think scholarly writing means constructing complex sentences using special language, but actually it's usually a stronger choice to write clear, simple sentences. When in doubt, remember that your ideas should be complex, not your sentence structure.

Better: Ecologists should work to educate the U.S. public on conservation methods by making use of local and national green organizations to create a widespread communication plan.

Notice in the revision that the field is now clear (ecology), and the language has been made much more field-specific ("conservation methods," "green organizations"), so the reader is able to see concretely the ideas the student is communicating.

Leaving Room for Discussion

This thesis statement is not capable of development or advancement in the paper:

Needs Improvement: There are always alternatives to illegal drug use.

This sample thesis statement makes a claim, but it is not a claim that will sustain extended discussion. This claim is the type of claim that might be appropriate for the conclusion of a paper, but in the beginning of the paper, the student is left with nowhere to go. What further points can be made? If there are "always alternatives" to the problem the student is identifying, then why bother developing a paper around that claim? Ideally, a thesis statement should be complex enough to explore over the length of the entire paper.

Better: The most effective treatment plan for methamphetamine addiction may be a combination of pharmacological and cognitive therapy, as argued by Baker (2008), Smith (2009), and Xavier (2011).

In the revised thesis, you can see the student make a specific, debatable claim that has the potential to generate several pages' worth of discussion. When drafting a thesis statement, think about the questions your thesis statement will generate: What follow-up inquiries might a reader have? In the first example, there are almost no additional questions implied, but the revised example allows for a good deal more exploration.

Thesis Mad Libs

If you are having trouble getting started, try using the models below to generate a rough model of a thesis statement! These models are intended for drafting purposes only and should not appear in your final work.

• In this essay, I argue ____, using ______ to assert _____.
• While scholars have often argued ______, I argue______, because_______.
• Through an analysis of ______, I argue ______, which is important because_______.

Words to Avoid and to Embrace

When drafting your thesis statement, avoid words like explore, investigate, learn, compile, summarize , and explain to describe the main purpose of your paper. These words imply a paper that summarizes or "reports," rather than synthesizing and analyzing.

Instead of the terms above, try words like argue, critique, question , and interrogate . These more analytical words may help you begin strongly, by articulating a specific, critical, scholarly position.

Read Kayla's blog post for tips on taking a stand in a well-crafted thesis statement.

Related Resources

Didn't find what you need? Email us at [email protected] .

• Previous Page: Introductions
• Next Page: Conclusions
• Office of Student Disability Services

Walden Resources

Departments.

• Academic Residencies
• Academic Skills
• Career Planning and Development
• Customer Care Team
• Field Experience
• Military Services
• Student Success Advising
• Writing Skills

Centers and Offices

• Center for Social Change
• Office of Academic Support and Instructional Services
• Office of Degree Acceleration
• Office of Research and Doctoral Services
• Office of Student Affairs

Student Resources

• Doctoral Writing Assessment
• Form & Style Review
• Quick Answers
• ScholarWorks
• SKIL Courses and Workshops
• Walden Bookstore
• Walden Catalog & Student Handbook
• Student Safety/Title IX
• Legal & Consumer Information
• Website Terms and Conditions
• Cookie Policy
• Accessibility
• Accreditation
• State Authorization
• Net Price Calculator
• Contact Walden

Walden University is a member of Adtalem Global Education, Inc. www.adtalem.com Walden University is certified to operate by SCHEV © 2024 Walden University LLC. All rights reserved.

Creating a Thesis

Let’s Get This Paper Rolling!

Introduction


Thesis Statements


After you have brainstormed and you have some main ideas of what you would like to write in your essay, you can begin thinking about writing a thesis statement.

What is a thesis statement?

A thesis statement is a complete sentence that contains one main idea. It is often a point , or idea, you want to argue or support in an essay. A thesis statement that contains subpoints also helps a reader know how the essay will be organized.

The thesis statement explains to a reader the main idea of the essay, and the writer’s opinion on that idea.

The thesis statement comes at the end of the introductory paragraph. This sentence tells the reader that he/she can expect to read in the rest of the essay.

Basics of the Thesis Statement

• A thesis statement is usually one sentence.
• It is placed in the introductory paragraph of an essay- the last sentence.
• A thesis statement is a claim/fact that could be argued.
• The essay will contain evidence and opinions that support the argument.
• It contains sub-points or sub-topics (reasons)

avoid using the first person (I believe, In my opinion, etc.)

• has your opinion

Do Not State the Obvious

In thesis statements, you should avoid using statements like, “This essay will discuss…” or “I am going to write about…”. Try to write a thesis statement that captures your reader’s attention without announcing your main topic and stating the obvious. Look at the example below.

In this essay, I am going to discuss the effects of long-term drug abuse.

Long-term drug use can have disastrous effects on one’s marriage, career, and health.

Subtopics or Subpoints

The large influx of people to California has had major effects on the state.

No subtopics are named in this thesis statement.

The large influx of people to California has had major effects on the ability of the state to provide housing, electricity, and jobs for all residents.

Subtopic #1

Subtopic #2

Subtopic #3

A Thesis Statement States an Opinion or Attitude

Good thesis statements often express a writer’s opinion or attitude on a particular topic. This makes the thesis statement more specific and requires the writer to explain or prove his/her opinion in the essay. Look at the examples below.

Cancun is a popular vacation spot in Mexico.

Cancun is one of the best vacation spots in Mexico because of its comfortable climate, beautiful beaches, and proximity to some well-known archeological sites.

This would not be considered a good thesis statement, because it is only expressing a fact. It does not reflect the writer’s opinion or attitude on Cancun. This thesis statement does not give the writer very much to explain or prove in his/her essay.

This thesis statement is much better because it expresses how the writer feels about Cancun. This thesis statement requires the writer to explain how and why going to Cancun is a good choice for visitors.

Really it is the Main Idea in a Complete Sentence

Since the thesis statement is the main statement for the entire essay, it should express a complete thought and be a complete sentence. The thesis statement is asserting an opinion or idea, so it should not be a question. Look at the examples below to see how they can be made into thesis statements.

The sport of cross-country running.

This is not a complete sentence.

The sport of cross-country running has allowed me to get in better shape, be disciplined, and meet some interesting people.

Thesis Statement

Test Your Thesis Statement- Antithesis

Generating a Antithesis statement will help you:

1) test how “debatable” your working thesis actually is.

2) consider ways of addressing the anticipated objections to your thesis.

3) revise your working thesis into a stronger position.

Working thesis statement:

School uniforms should not be required.

Antithesis statement (or the opposite):

School uniforms should be required.

** Ask yourself why your topic should and should not occur. This will demand more of an explanation from you, making your writing stronger!

• America is well known across the globe for its diversity. People from all over the world migrate to the United States just to be a part of this international society. It is common knowledge that equality and individualism are a part of America’s famous history. This fact is something that most Americans take pride in; however, the individuality of a future America may be at risk due to the education system. A rule that would require students to wear uniforms to school is threatening student individuality. School uniforms should not be required because they discourage individuality, they do not teach students to make responsible decisions , and uniforms teach children that in order to get along everyone must conform to the same standards .

Subpoints in the thesis or nearby help the reader know how the essay will be organized

The thesis statement contains the main idea that controls the content of the essay.

• states the main idea of the essay in a complete sentence, not in a question.
• it is at the end of an introduction.
• states an opinion or attitude on a topic.
• does not just state the topic, by itself.
• lists subtopics/subpoints.

Directions:

1) Find the opinion words in the statement. If there are no opinion words, it is not a thesis statement.

2) Tell if the statement is a good thesis statement.

Although most people believe otherwise, bats are harmless and highly beneficial.

Hate speech should be eliminated for many reasons.

In each of the following slides tell whether the sentence is well written or not well written thesis statement.

• Rap music is the best music ever.
• Although many people find rap music offensive, it has had a positive impact on today’s youth.
• Community service projects include building shelter for the homeless, serving meals to the hungry, providing transportation for the sick, distributing clothes, and a large number of other helpful activities.
• Students should help others who are less fortunate.

Purdue Online Writing Lab Purdue OWL® College of Liberal Arts

Developing Strong Thesis Statements

Welcome to the Purdue OWL

This page is brought to you by the OWL at Purdue University. When printing this page, you must include the entire legal notice.

Copyright ©1995-2018 by The Writing Lab & The OWL at Purdue and Purdue University. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, reproduced, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed without permission. Use of this site constitutes acceptance of our terms and conditions of fair use.

The thesis statement or main claim must be debatable

An argumentative or persuasive piece of writing must begin with a debatable thesis or claim. In other words, the thesis must be something that people could reasonably have differing opinions on. If your thesis is something that is generally agreed upon or accepted as fact then there is no reason to try to persuade people.

Example of a non-debatable thesis statement:

This thesis statement is not debatable. First, the word pollution implies that something is bad or negative in some way. Furthermore, all studies agree that pollution is a problem; they simply disagree on the impact it will have or the scope of the problem. No one could reasonably argue that pollution is unambiguously good.

Example of a debatable thesis statement:

This is an example of a debatable thesis because reasonable people could disagree with it. Some people might think that this is how we should spend the nation's money. Others might feel that we should be spending more money on education. Still others could argue that corporations, not the government, should be paying to limit pollution.

Another example of a debatable thesis statement:

In this example there is also room for disagreement between rational individuals. Some citizens might think focusing on recycling programs rather than private automobiles is the most effective strategy.

The thesis needs to be narrow

Although the scope of your paper might seem overwhelming at the start, generally the narrower the thesis the more effective your argument will be. Your thesis or claim must be supported by evidence. The broader your claim is, the more evidence you will need to convince readers that your position is right.

Example of a thesis that is too broad:

There are several reasons this statement is too broad to argue. First, what is included in the category "drugs"? Is the author talking about illegal drug use, recreational drug use (which might include alcohol and cigarettes), or all uses of medication in general? Second, in what ways are drugs detrimental? Is drug use causing deaths (and is the author equating deaths from overdoses and deaths from drug related violence)? Is drug use changing the moral climate or causing the economy to decline? Finally, what does the author mean by "society"? Is the author referring only to America or to the global population? Does the author make any distinction between the effects on children and adults? There are just too many questions that the claim leaves open. The author could not cover all of the topics listed above, yet the generality of the claim leaves all of these possibilities open to debate.

Example of a narrow or focused thesis:

In this example the topic of drugs has been narrowed down to illegal drugs and the detriment has been narrowed down to gang violence. This is a much more manageable topic.

We could narrow each debatable thesis from the previous examples in the following way:

Narrowed debatable thesis 1:

This thesis narrows the scope of the argument by specifying not just the amount of money used but also how the money could actually help to control pollution.

Narrowed debatable thesis 2:

This thesis narrows the scope of the argument by specifying not just what the focus of a national anti-pollution campaign should be but also why this is the appropriate focus.

Qualifiers such as " typically ," " generally ," " usually ," or " on average " also help to limit the scope of your claim by allowing for the almost inevitable exception to the rule.

Types of claims

Claims typically fall into one of four categories. Thinking about how you want to approach your topic, or, in other words, what type of claim you want to make, is one way to focus your thesis on one particular aspect of your broader topic.

Claims of fact or definition: These claims argue about what the definition of something is or whether something is a settled fact. Example:

Claims of cause and effect: These claims argue that one person, thing, or event caused another thing or event to occur. Example:

Claims about value: These are claims made of what something is worth, whether we value it or not, how we would rate or categorize something. Example:

Claims about solutions or policies: These are claims that argue for or against a certain solution or policy approach to a problem. Example:

Which type of claim is right for your argument? Which type of thesis or claim you use for your argument will depend on your position and knowledge of the topic, your audience, and the context of your paper. You might want to think about where you imagine your audience to be on this topic and pinpoint where you think the biggest difference in viewpoints might be. Even if you start with one type of claim you probably will be using several within the paper. Regardless of the type of claim you choose to utilize it is key to identify the controversy or debate you are addressing and to define your position early on in the paper.

how write a thesis statement powerpoint

All Formats

Resource types, all resource types.

• Rating Count
• Price (Ascending)
• Price (Descending)
• Most Recent

How write a thesis statement powerpoint

How to Write a Thesis Statement Assignment- PowerPoint included!

How to Write a Thesis Statement PowerPoint

How to Write a Thesis Statement Google Slides ™ Lesson (6th, 7th, and 8th Grade)

• Google Slides™

How to Write A Thesis Statement Google Slides with Generic Examples & Prompts

How to Write a Thesis Statement PPT Grades 9-12

How to Write A Thesis Statement Google Slides with Pride and Prejudice Examples

How to write a THESIS STATEMENT PowerPoint presentation

How to Write a Thesis Statement in Four Easy Steps ppt

How to write a thesis statement - Microsoft Powerpoint

Writing an Essay Introduction PPT & Activities - Hook, Bridge & Thesis Statement

How to Write a Thesis Statement Mini Lesson and Activities

How to Write an Essay - PowerPoint Presentation & Lesson

Writing a Thesis Statement - PPT & Activities on How to Write a Thesis

• Google Apps™

Teach How to Write a Research Question and Thesis Statement

• Google Drive™ folder

How To Write A Thesis Statement Practice Activities Worksheets Mini Lesson

How to Write a Thesis Statement Google Classroom

Text Dependent Analysis (TDA) - Introductory Guide for Google Slides

Writing an Essay: Brainstorming, Outlining, & Thesis in a PowerPoint

Thesis Statement Writing and Topic Sentence Writing for Argumentative Essays

How to Write a Thesis Statement / Guidelines for a Thesis Challenged

AVID Argumentative Writing - Thesis Statement Teaching Slides and Activity

Baby Literary Essay Unit - PPT Lesson - Bend 2 - Session 7-13

" How to Write a Thesis Statement " Presentation & Activity

How to Write an Effective Thesis Statement ? A Practical Guide for Students

• We're hiring
• Help & FAQ
• Privacy policy
• Student privacy
• Terms of service
• Tell us what you think

• Translators
• Graphic Designers

Please enter the email address you used for your account. Your sign in information will be sent to your email address after it has been verified.

25 Thesis Statement Examples That Will Make Writing a Breeze

Understanding what makes a good thesis statement is one of the major keys to writing a great research paper or argumentative essay. The thesis statement is where you make a claim that will guide you through your entire paper. If you find yourself struggling to make sense of your paper or your topic, then it's likely due to a weak thesis statement.

Let's take a minute to first understand what makes a solid thesis statement, and what key components you need to write one of your own.

A thesis statement always goes at the beginning of the paper. It will typically be in the first couple of paragraphs of the paper so that it can introduce the body paragraphs, which are the supporting evidence for your thesis statement.

Your thesis statement should clearly identify an argument. You need to have a statement that is not only easy to understand, but one that is debatable. What that means is that you can't just put any statement of fact and have it be your thesis. For example, everyone knows that puppies are cute . An ineffective thesis statement would be, "Puppies are adorable and everyone knows it." This isn't really something that's a debatable topic.

Something that would be more debatable would be, "A puppy's cuteness is derived from its floppy ears, small body, and playfulness." These are three things that can be debated on. Some people might think that the cutest thing about puppies is the fact that they follow you around or that they're really soft and fuzzy.

All cuteness aside, you want to make sure that your thesis statement is not only debatable, but that it also actually thoroughly answers the research question that was posed. You always want to make sure that your evidence is supporting a claim that you made (and not the other way around). This is why it's crucial to read and research about a topic first and come to a conclusion later. If you try to get your research to fit your thesis statement, then it may not work out as neatly as you think. As you learn more, you discover more (and the outcome may not be what you originally thought).

Additionally, your thesis statement shouldn't be too big or too grand. It'll be hard to cover everything in a thesis statement like, "The federal government should act now on climate change." The topic is just too large to actually say something new and meaningful. Instead, a more effective thesis statement might be, "Local governments can combat climate change by providing citizens with larger recycling bins and offering local classes about composting and conservation." This is easier to work with because it's a smaller idea, but you can also discuss the overall topic that you might be interested in, which is climate change.

So, now that we know what makes a good, solid thesis statement, you can start to write your own. If you find that you're getting stuck or you are the type of person who needs to look at examples before you start something, then check out our list of thesis statement examples below.

Thesis statement examples

A quick note that these thesis statements have not been fully researched. These are merely examples to show you what a thesis statement might look like and how you can implement your own ideas into one that you think of independently. As such, you should not use these thesis statements for your own research paper purposes. They are meant to be used as examples only.

• Vaccinations Because many children are unable to vaccinate due to illness, we must require that all healthy and able children be vaccinated in order to have herd immunity.
• Educational Resources for Low-Income Students Schools should provide educational resources for low-income students during the summers so that they don't forget what they've learned throughout the school year.
• School Uniforms School uniforms may be an upfront cost for families, but they eradicate the visual differences in income between students and provide a more egalitarian atmosphere at school.
• Populism The rise in populism on the 2016 political stage was in reaction to increasing globalization, the decline of manufacturing jobs, and the Syrian refugee crisis.
• Public Libraries Libraries are essential resources for communities and should be funded more heavily by local municipalities.
• Cyber Bullying With more and more teens using smartphones and social media, cyber bullying is on the rise. Cyber bullying puts a lot of stress on many teens, and can cause depression, anxiety, and even suicidal thoughts. Parents should limit the usage of smart phones, monitor their children's online activity, and report any cyber bullying to school officials in order to combat this problem.
• Medical Marijuana for Veterans Studies have shown that the use of medicinal marijuana has been helpful to veterans who suffer from Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD). Medicinal marijuana prescriptions should be legal in all states and provided to these veterans. Additional medical or therapy services should also be researched and implemented in order to help them re-integrate back into civilian life.
• Work-Life Balance Corporations should provide more work from home opportunities and six-hour workdays so that office workers have a better work-life balance and are more likely to be productive when they are in the office.
• Teaching Youths about Consensual Sex Although sex education that includes a discussion of consensual sex would likely lead to less sexual assault, parents need to teach their children the meaning of consent from a young age with age appropriate lessons.
• Whether or Not to Attend University A degree from a university provides invaluable lessons on life and a future career, but not every high school student should be encouraged to attend a university directly after graduation. Some students may benefit from a trade school or a "gap year" where they can think more intensely about what it is they want to do for a career and how they can accomplish this.
• Studying Abroad Studying abroad is one of the most culturally valuable experiences you can have in college. It is the only way to get completely immersed in another language and learn how other cultures and countries are different from your own.
• Women's Body Image Magazines have done a lot in the last five years to include a more diverse group of models, but there is still a long way to go to promote a healthy woman's body image collectively as a culture.
• Cigarette Tax Heavily taxing and increasing the price of cigarettes is essentially a tax on the poorest Americans, and it doesn't deter them from purchasing. Instead, the state and federal governments should target those economically disenfranchised with early education about the dangers of smoking.
• Veganism A vegan diet, while a healthy and ethical way to consume food, indicates a position of privilege. It also limits you to other cultural food experiences if you travel around the world.
• University Athletes Should be Compensated University athletes should be compensated for their service to the university, as it is difficult for these students to procure and hold a job with busy academic and athletic schedules. Many student athletes on scholarship also come from low-income neighborhoods and it is a struggle to make ends meet when they are participating in athletics.
• Women in the Workforce Sheryl Sandberg makes a lot of interesting points in her best-selling book, Lean In , but she only addressed the very privileged working woman and failed to speak to those in lower-skilled, lower-wage jobs.
• Assisted Suicide Assisted suicide should be legal and doctors should have the ability to make sure their patients have the end-of-life care that they want to receive.
• Celebrity and Political Activism Although Taylor Swift's lyrics are indicative of a feminist perspective, she should be more politically active and vocal to use her position of power for the betterment of society.
• The Civil War The insistence from many Southerners that the South seceded from the Union for states' rights versus the fact that they seceded for the purposes of continuing slavery is a harmful myth that still affects race relations today.
• Blue Collar Workers Coal miners and other blue-collar workers whose jobs are slowly disappearing from the workforce should be re-trained in jobs in the technology sector or in renewable energy. A program to re-train these workers would not only improve local economies where jobs have been displaced, but would also lead to lower unemployment nationally.
• Diversity in the Workforce Having a diverse group of people in an office setting leads to richer ideas, more cooperation, and more empathy between people with different skin colors or backgrounds.
• Re-Imagining the Nuclear Family The nuclear family was traditionally defined as one mother, one father, and 2.5 children. This outdated depiction of family life doesn't quite fit with modern society. The definition of normal family life shouldn't be limited to two-parent households.
• Digital Literacy Skills With more information readily available than ever before, it's crucial that students are prepared to examine the material they're reading and determine whether or not it's a good source or if it has misleading information. Teaching students digital literacy and helping them to understand the difference between opinion or propaganda from legitimate, real information is integral.
• Beauty Pageants Beauty pageants are presented with the angle that they empower women. However, putting women in a swimsuit on a stage while simultaneously judging them on how well they answer an impossible question in a short period of time is cruel and purely for the amusement of men. Therefore, we should stop televising beauty pageants.
• Supporting More Women to Run for a Political Position In order to get more women into political positions, more women must run for office. There must be a grassroots effort to educate women on how to run for office, who among them should run, and support for a future candidate for getting started on a political career.

Still stuck? Need some help with your thesis statement?

If you are still uncertain about how to write a thesis statement or what a good thesis statement is, be sure to consult with your teacher or professor to make sure you're on the right track. It's always a good idea to check in and make sure that your thesis statement is making a solid argument and that it can be supported by your research.

After you're done writing, it's important to have someone take a second look at your paper so that you can ensure there are no mistakes or errors. It's difficult to spot your own mistakes, which is why it's always recommended to have someone help you with the revision process, whether that's a teacher, the writing center at school, or a professional editor such as one from ServiceScape .

Related Posts

Top 10 Ways ESL Students Can Improve Their Academic Writing

Here's How to Make Sure Your Social Media Essay Shines (With a Sample Essay)

• Academic Writing Advice
• All Blog Posts
• Writing Advice
• Admissions Writing Advice
• Book Writing Advice
• Short Story Advice
• Employment Writing Advice
• Business Writing Advice
• Web Content Advice
• Article Writing Advice
• Magazine Writing Advice
• Grammar Advice
• Dialect Advice
• Editing Advice
• Freelance Advice
• Legal Writing Advice
• Poetry Advice
• Graphic Design Advice
• Logo Design Advice
• Translation Advice
• Blog Reviews
• Short Story Award Winners
• Scholarship Winners

Need an academic editor before submitting your work?

Writing a Thesis Statement

Jul 17, 2014

630 likes | 2.23k Views

Writing a Thesis Statement. Writing A Thesis Statement 1. A thesis statement is a road map for your essay; it tells the reader what you will be writing about without saying "I will be writing about..." 

Share Presentation

• as necessary
• introductory paragraph
• thesis statement
• body paragraph
• your thesis statement
• single sentence

Presentation Transcript

Writing a Thesis Statement Writing A Thesis Statement 1. A thesis statement is a road map for your essay; it tells the reader what you will be writing about without saying "I will be writing about..."  2. Your thesis statement should be specific—it should cover only what you will discuss in your paper and should be supported with specific evidence.

Writing a Thesis Statement 3. A thesis statement should offer a way of understanding the topic. (For example, in the essay about Cinderella, the topic was Cinderella and the thesis statement told the reader that one way of understanding the story is the idea that Cinderella’s inner beauty makes her more beautiful than those who just have outer beauty.)

Writing a Thesis Statement 4. A thesis statement is usually a single sentence in your introductory paragraph that presents your argument or position or interpretation to the reader. The thesis statement usually appears at the end of the first paragraph of your paper. The rest of the paper, the body of the essay, gathers and organizes evidence that will persuade the reader that your argument or position or interpretation makes sense.

Writing a Thesis Statement 5. A thesis statement should contain one specific reason or piece of evidence for each body paragraph in your essay. 6. If your thesis statement and the body of your essay do not seem to go together, one of them has to change. It's ok to change your thesis statement to reflect things you have figured out in the course of writing your paper. Remember, always revise your writing as necessary.

Writing a Thesis Statement • Before I write my thesis statement, I have to decide the direction I want my essay to take. • What do I want to focus on? I can't talk about everything in my life in a five-paragraph essay. Remember, in a five-paragraph essay, I can talk about ____ specific things (reasons or pieces of evidence) and those things must be mentioned in my thesis statement.

Writing a Thesis Statement • Also, since my thesis statement comes at the end of my introduction, it must relate to my introduction or it won't make sense. • Writing an essay is about thinking and putting the pieces together like a puzzle or a car. In my five-paragraph essay, I could talk about: • how my life changed when my dad came home or • what we did as a family after my dad came home or • about what it was like growing up in the '50's and '60's.

Writing a Thesis Statement • A five-paragraph essay is too short to talk about all of these. I just need to decide on a direction and come up with a thesis statement that contains ____ reasons or pieces of evidence. • Examples: • If I wanted to write about how my life changed when my father came home, my thesis statement could say something like: "When my dad finally came home, my life changed because I was daddy's little girl, my dad was very moody, and my dad was able to take me more places. Notice that my thesis statement has _____ reasons or ______ pieces of evidence as to how my life changed.

Writing a Thesis Statement • If I wanted to write about what we did as a family after my dad came home, my thesis statement could say something like: "After my father came home, our family went on more trips to visit relatives, took more vacations, and welcomed a new little sister." • If I wanted to write about growing up in the '50's and '60's, my thesis statement could be something like: "Just like today, a lot of parents were returning from the military in the '50's and '60's, and this resulted in more babies being born, more cars on the road, and more TVs being sold.

Writing a Thesis Statement • I decide to take my essay in the direction of the first choice. It seems more personal to me and seems to fit better with the introduction. I add my thesis statement to the end of my introductory paragraph: • This is what my completed introductory paragraph, ending with my thesis statement, looks like:

Writing a Thesis Statement My father was in the Army when I was born. He didn’t get to see me until I was a little over one year old. My mother told me that my father was “overseas,” protecting our country, but I didn’t understand. My mother showed me pictures of my dad in his Army uniform. When I went to the park with my mother, I would point to any man in a uniform and cry “daddy!” I don’t remember this, but my mother told me when I was older. When my father finally came home, my life changed because I was daddy's little girl, my dad was very moody, and my dad was able to take me more places.

• More by User

Writing a Strong Thesis Statement

Writing a Strong Thesis Statement. The Three “P’s”. A good thesis statement includes three “P’s.” It is a… Three- P ronged P arallel P review …of your essay. Example of a Thesis with the Three “P’s”.

424 views • 8 slides

Writing a Thesis Statement. What is a thesis statement?. The thesis is NOT a topic, but rather it’s what you want to say about your topic. The thesis is the main idea or the position you are taking.

312 views • 14 slides

Writing a Thesis Statement. What is a Thesis Statement?. A sentence that presents your thoughts or opinions on a subject The basis for any essay A sentence containing a subject + an opinion An answer to a topic question

491 views • 16 slides

English 2. Writing a Thesis Statement. Purpose of a thesis statement. The thesis of a paper is considered to be the most important part of the pre-writing process for the following reasons: It provides the focus for the paper It restricts or narrows the topic

343 views • 13 slides

Writing a Thesis Statement. Subject + opinion= thesis. What is a thesis statement?. Tells the reader how you will interpret the subject in discussion A road map for the paper; tells the reader what to expect from the rest of the paper

205 views • 7 slides

Writing a Thesis Statement. A crash-course in writing thesis statements. . Warm Up . On a sheet of notebook paper, use a Circle Map to define the American Dream. Your frames of reference are: The Declaration of Independence “I Have a Dream” speech Modern Concepts of the American Dream

224 views • 10 slides

Writing a thesis statement

Writing a thesis statement. What Are You Trying to Prove in Your Paper?. What is a Thesis Statement?. The thesis statement is “the main idea” of your paper. It is one sentence that tells the reader what you want them to get from your paper. Thesis Continued.

272 views • 12 slides

Writing a Thesis Statement. A Thesis Statement…. States exactly what you plan to write and research Declares what you believe and what you intend to prove . It is an interpretation or argument explaining the significance of this information.

204 views • 6 slides

WRITING A THESIS STATEMENT

WRITING A THESIS STATEMENT. Research paper. What is a thesis statement?. A one-sentence statement identifying the main idea , topic and purpose of your research paper. Tells the readers what they will encounter in your paper. It is the last sentence in your introductory paragraph.

211 views • 8 slides

Writing a Strong Thesis statement

Writing a Strong Thesis statement. Remember : Your thesis needs to take a stand on something and argue a certain point. Example : You are asked to write a paper about Cancun, Mexico as a vacation spot. 1. Cancun is a popular vacation spot in Mexico.

231 views • 7 slides

Writing a Thesis Statement. A thesis is…. The main idea of your essay Arguable, defendable, supportable The sum of your claims A map of your essay The last sentence of your introductory paragraph (or the entire introductory paragraph for a timed essay). Examples:.

160 views • 3 slides

Writing a Strong Thesis Statement. What is a strong thesis?. Requirement #1 on AP rubric Early in the essay (1 st paragraph) The central idea around which your paper is built One- to two-sentence answer to the question asked

170 views • 5 slides

Writing a Good Thesis Statement

Writing a Good Thesis Statement. STEP 1 Begin with a Point or Thesis. Understanding Thesis Statements. A good thesis statement does two things in an essay: It tells the reader the essay’s topic. It presents the writer’s ATTITUDE, OPINION, IDEA, OR POINT about that topic. Examples :

285 views • 6 slides

Writing a Thesis Statement. Carwile Fall 2010 9 th Grade Research: An Author’s Life and Motivation for Writing. What a thesis is…. A thesis statement is a sentence that tells the reader of an essay what the writing will be about. It typically answers a given prompt.

466 views • 10 slides

Writing a thesis statement. History and Language Arts Informational Essay. What it is and Why You Need it. A Thesis Statement is…. A Thesis Statement is needed because….

285 views • 13 slides

Writing a Thesis Statement. What is it?. For most student work, it's a one- or two- sentence statement that explicitly outlines the purpose or point of your paper. It is generally a complex, compound sentence. What does it do?.

253 views • 17 slides

Writing a Thesis Statement. A thesis statement in an essay is … a sentence that clearly identifies the purpose of the paper and previews its main ideas.

243 views • 23 slides

Writing a Thesis Statement. Subject + Opinion = Thesis statement. “Subject”. Character from The Crucible. “OPINIONS”. your thoughts about that character’s personality traits. Putting it Together.

87 views • 8 slides

105 views • 6 slides

Writing a Thesis Statement. What to Do Before Writing. Before writing a thesis statement, the writer must be aware of his or her audience and purpose . You must begin with a topic question. You must form an opinion and state it clearly. Do not be wishy-washy.

786 views • 24 slides

Writing a thesis statement Tips on Writing Your Thesis Statement

Writing a thesis statement Tips on Writing Your Thesis Statement. What is a Thesis. A thesis statement is your answer to a question.

108 views • 7 slides