VDOE 8th Grade Writing SOL Thesis TS Tone Vocabulary Purpose

What is a Thesis?

• The main idea of the essay

• The main idea of a paragraph

• The first sentence in an essay

• The first sentence in a paragraph.

What is a topic sentence?

• The sentence that gets your reader to want to read your essay

• It's the same thing as an example or description in your body paragraphs

• It's one of your main reasons that connects with one of the ideas in the thesis.

Which of these is NOT a requirement of a thesis?

• Contains all the topics, categories, or opinions you will write about

• Contains a transition word or phrase

• Contains and relates the main idea of your essay

• Guides your essay like a roadmap

Which of the following would be a good thesis for an essay about whales?

• Whales are the largest animals in the world.

• Dolphins and porpoises are also whales.

• Whales are large ocean-dwelling mammals that have hair, are warm blooded, and give birth to live young.

• Whales are mammals, eat krill, plankton, and fish, and live in complex social groups known as pods.

Which of the following is NOT a requirement of topics sentences?

• Provides an example to your readers that illustrates your ideas

• Contains a transitional word or phrase

• Explains the reason or main idea of the body paragraph that it is in

• Is directly related to the ideas in your thesis

Which of the following would NOT be a good topic sentence to include in an essay about whales with the thesis: Whales are the largest mammals, eat krill, plankton, and fish, and live in complex social groups known as pods.

• To begin, whales are the largest mammals, give birth to live young, are covered in hair, and produce milk.

• Next, each kind of whale has a unique diet that might include krill, plankton, small fish, crabs, and tiny crustaceans.

• Additionally, whales are able to communicate though a series of chirps, whistles, and reverberations often called "songs."

• Finally, whales live in complex social families known a pods with designated leaders which protect the rest of the group.

Which would be the best thesis statement for a report on the work of the famous painter Vincent van Gogh?

• When Vincent van Gogh lived in Paris, he worked among many other modern painters of the time.

• The sunlight and the landscape were two of painter Vincent van Gogh’s biggest inspirations in his early works.

• Vincent van Gogh, one of the most famous painters of modern art, was born in Groot-Zundert, the Netherlands, in 1853.

• Vincent van Gogh’s painting The Starry Night is one of his most famous and is a popular image on calendars and gift cards.

Read this: Carnegie retired as the world’s richest man. He wanted to become a philanthropist so he founded the Carnegie Institution to fund scientific research, established a pension fund for teachers with a $10 million donation, and established the Carnegie Endowment for International Peace.

Based on the thesis, what kind of paper is Luke planning to write?

• an editorial telling readers the importance of the Carnegie Institution

• a persuasive essay convincing readers to donate money to important causes just as Carnegie did

• a report informing readers about the generosity of Andrew Carnegie

• an article providing readers with a description of famous philanthropists of the 1900s

Which of these would be the best thesis statement for a report on President George Washington?

• George Washington, the first president of the United States, is often referred to in history books as the “Father of Our Country.”

• Most Americans of his time loved George Washington, and ever since the Revolutionary War, our country has celebrated his birthday.

• At the Constitutional Convention of 1787, George Washington is quoted as saying, “Liberty, when it begins to take root, is a plant of rapid growth.”

• George Washington helped shape our country as an army commander, as president of the Constitutional Convention, and as the first president of the United States.

Which of these would be the best thesis statement for a report on Sacagawea?

• Sacagawea joined the Lewis and Clark expedition along with her husband Toussaint Charbonneau in the winter months of 1804.

• Sacagawea was one of the few females on the Lewis and Clark expedition.

• Sacagawea was a Native American Shoshone woman who joined explorers Lewis and Clark on their expedition west during the years 1805 and 1806.

• Sacagawea helped make the Lewis and Clark expedition a success by helping the men navigate, hunt, and cross the dangerous Rocky Mountains.