Why the Five-Paragraph Theme is the Foundation of All Writing

How do you make your writing compelling?

Many, many years ago, a former high school classmate and I were discussing what we learned during those four years together. He asked me, “Has the five-paragraph theme helped you at all during your career?”

Remember the five-paragraph theme? You were taught it at some point during high school English depending on your track. The five-paragraph theme stated an argument in the opening paragraph, used three paragraphs to support it, and then had a closing paragraph. I hadn’t really given it that much thought since I had graduated from high school and then college, so I didn’t have the best answer at the time. However, I can say years later that learning the five-paragraph model laid the foundation for all of my future writing.

From essays to emails to executive summaries—it all starts with this one structure. Don’t miss the full insight. Subscribe to get the complete blog.