Paragraph Unit
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Lesson
3-
Thesis Statements
Tennessee Standard - 6th
Grade
Assessed - 6.spi.2.13 - Select a thesis statement appropriate to the topic.
Thesis - an unproved
statement put forward as an idea in an argument 2: an essay stating a new point of view
resulting from research; usually a requirement for an advanced academic degree -
Thesis Statement - an explanation of the topic or purpose of a research paper
Thesis statements are short passages, usually only one sentence, that summarize an essay or report. A thesis statement tells the main idea plus it states your opinion on that topic.
Subject + Attitude = Thesis
 |
Thesis Don'ts
|
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A Good Thesis is Limited
Examples:
Good |
Needs To Be Limited |
|
| Good teachers make Mountain City Elementary a fantastic school. |
 |
The world is a magnificent place to live. |
| One reason to live in Mountain City is access to many wonderful places to fish. | Mountain City is a great place to live. |
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A Good Thesis is Concise
Examples:
Good |
Needs To Be Concise | |
| Mountain City Elementary needs several changes to its facility to make it a better school. | |
Some problems with Mountain City Elementary School is that it needs a larger playground, an air conditioned gym, an auditorium, restrooms connected to each classroom, running water in the classrooms, and a number of other physical changes to the building. |
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A Good Thesis is Specific
Examples:
Good |
Needs To Be Specific |
|
| Daily writing practice has led to improved writing skills for the students at Mountain City Elementary. | |
Mountain City Elementary is a good school. |
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A Good Thesis is Not a Subject
Examples:
Good |
Should Not be a Subject | |
| The cost of living in Mountain City is lower than in most other cities in the United States. | |
Cost of Living |
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A Good Thesis is Not a Title
Examples:
Good |
|
Should Not be a Title |
| Good teaching has led to an increase in TCAP scores at Mountain City Elementary. | Rising TCAP Scores at Mountain City Elementary |
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A Good Thesis is Not a Statement of Absolute Fact
Examples:
Good |
|
Should Not be an Absolute Fact |
| The climate in Mountain City is ideal for outdoor sports. | The average temperature for Mountain City in winter is 34 and in summer is 75 degrees. |
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Practice 1
Below you will see pairs of sentences. Each pair contains one sentence that would make a better thesis statement. Write T before the sentence in each pair that would make a good thesis statement. Write N before each sentence that needs improvement.
__________ Sachar illustrates that forming trustworthy friendships is beneficial to the characters in Holes.
__________ Rex and Alan's
nicknames are X-Ray and Squid.
__________ When Stanley asks Theodore where he can find water, Theodore grabs Stanley, throws him down, and says his name is Armpit.
__________ Brutality is all
around Camp Green Lake, and its harmful results are often shown.
__________ In Holes Camp Green Lake is dry, hard, and hot which symbolize Stanley's feelings of being trapped and sad while God's Thumb is green and fertile which symbolize Stanley's feelings of being free and happy.
__________ In Holes, the
physical environment is a symbol of Stanley's feelings.
__________ Onions signify a healing power in the novel.
__________ Onions - A Food Rich in
Sugar and Oil
__________ Over 3,000 species of lizards live throughout the world with the largest number living in warm climates.
__________ The Yellow Spotted Lizard in Holes represents death.
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Practice 2
Read the following report about bullying, then answer the multiple choice
questions that follow.
A bully is a person who is mean or hurtful to others. Bullies often use a combination of threats and shame to annoy others. Bullies may hurt others physically by hitting, kicking or pushing. They may also be mean by calling names, teasing, leaving a kid out of the group on purpose, or scaring others. Some bullies many even threaten people or try to make people do things they don't want to do.
Bullying is a problem that affects many kids. Bullies may cause a person to feel scared, worried, or embarrassed. The stress of being bullied may even make a person feel physically ill. Having a bully around may make a person afraid to go to the restroom, lunchroom, or playground. Worrying about a bully may affect a person's ability to concentrate on schoolwork.
People become bullies for a number of reasons. Some are looking for attention. They think that bullying is a way to be more popular. By being a bully a person is trying to make himself feel more powerful. Some bullies come from families in which name calling and pushing others around is a normal way to act. These bullies are just copying what they have learned from home.
Dealing with a bully may be difficult, but there are some things you can do. Sometimes you may turn a bully off just by acting brave. If you walk away, a bully will be less likely to give you trouble. You may also tell a bully to stop teasing or scaring someone else. Telling an adult is important. Teachers and parents can help. Go to recess, lunch, etc. with a buddy. Often bullies try to get a person alone before bullying. Finally don't bully back. Fighting back gives the bully what he is looking for.
In most incidences bullies get into trouble. If they continue to bully others, eventually they have few friends. The power they wish slips away. Bullies who wish popularity soon realize that they are labeled as troublemakers.
Which
sentence is the thesis statement for the first paragraph?
a) Characteristics of Bullies
b) A bully is a person who harasses a weaker peer physically, mentally, or
socially.
c) Researchers agree that bullying contains three elements: aggressive and
negative behavior, behavior is carried out repeatedly, one person has power
over another.
d) One form of bullying is spreading gossip.
Which
sentence is the thesis statement for the second paragraph?
a) Persistent bullying may have a
number of effects on an individual.
b) On March 21, 1993 Curtis Taylor committed suicide about being bullied for
three years.
c) In the 1990s, the United States
witnessed many school shootings which were connected to bullying.
d) Effects of bullying
Which
sentence is the thesis statement for the third paragraph?
a) Reasons for Bullying
b) It is often said that bullies bully because they have low self
esteem.
c) Eighty-five percent of the time another kid witnesses a bully acting out.
d) People become bullies to gain attention, to become more popular, to feel
power over others, and because they are copying behaviors of others.
Which
sentence is the thesis statement for the fourth paragraph?
a) Several victims have been suing bullies directly.
b)
Many schools have programs
designed to teach students cooperation.
c) Kids who are being bullied can turn
the situation around by trying several actions.
d) Dealing with Bullies
To gather
more information about about bullying, the most reliable source would be
a) an encyclopedia
b) a fictional story
c) a tabloid newspaper
d) an entertaining TV show
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Practice 3
Write a thesis statement for each set of words.
red nail polish symbolize
sympathize characters unacceptable by society
Trout Walker similarities Warden
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Source of Information:
Onions http://www.encyclopedia.com/html/o1/onion.asp
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