Synthesis Essay Timing Tips

Tania has found students do best when they allot these time segments.

Read the prompt, underlining key words. Read it again. Write your thesis, making sure it responds to the prompt.

Glean the sources and evidence that support or undercut your message.

Make sure you note the source for each piece of evidence.

Sub-claim 1:

Evidence:

Sub-claim 2:

Evidence:

Sub-claim 3:

Evidence:

Counter-claim:

Evidence:

Rebuttal:

Now examine these elements for stronger and weaker arguments. Remove the sub-claims you don’t need.

Next, arrange your claims and evidence, along with your thesis, in an outline.

Hint: You might want to steal 5 minutes from the argument essay, giving you 20 minutes to write the synthesis essay.