SAT ESSAY TEMPLATE

What 5 Things Does Your SAT Essay Need? 

To build a great SAT essay template, you need to know what it needs to include.
Here are the five most important elements of any SAT essay:

#1: An Introduction

The first impression the grader will have of your writing is your essay introduction.
Don't just jump right into discussing argumentative techniques — introduce your
analysis with a statement of what the author is arguing in the prompt. You
should then briefly mention the specific persuasive techniques the author used that
you'll be discussing in your essay.

#2: A Clear Thesis Statement

I've separated this out as its own point because it’s so important. You must express
a precise claim about what the author's point is and what techniques she uses
to argue her point; otherwise, you're not answering the essay question correctly.

This cannot be emphasized enough: SAT essay graders do not care what your
stance is on the issue. They care that you understand and explain how the author
argues her point.

The SAT essay task is designed for you to demonstrate that you can analyze the
structure of an argument and its affect on the reader with clear and coherent
reasoning. Take this example prompt, for instance:

Write an essay in which you explain how Eric Klinenberg builds an argument to
persuade his audience that Americans need to greatly reduce their reliance on
air-conditioning. In your essay, analyze how Klinenberg uses one or more of the
features listed in the box above (or features of your own choice) to strengthen the
logic and persuasiveness of his argument. Be sure that your analysis focuses on
the most relevant features of the passage.
A bad thesis leaves you unclear on what features of the author's arguments you'll be
analyzing in the essay:

The author tries to enforce to his audience by telling that air conditioning has
negative effects.
This thesis doesn’t specify what features of the argument you'll be discussing, or
even what Klinenberg's specific views are. It's just a (grammatically flawed) sentence
that hints at Klinenberg's argument. Compare to a good thesis for the same prompt:
 Through consideration of quantitative data, exploring possible counterarguments
to his position, and judicious use of striking phrasings and words, Klinenberg
strengthens both the logic and persuasiveness of his argument that Americans
need to greatly reduce their reliance on air conditioning.
The above thesis clearly specifies both what the author's argument is and what
aspects of the argument will be analyzed in the essay. If you want more practice
writing strong thesis statements, use our complete list of SAT essay prompts as
inspiration.

#3: Specific Examples That Support Your Point

To support your thesis, you'll need to draw on specific examples from the passage
of the techniques you claim the author uses. Make sure to provide enough
information for each example to make it clear how it is relevant to your thesis - and
stop there. No need to paraphrase the entire passage, or explain why you agree or
disagree with the author's argument - write enough that the reader can understand
what your example is and be done.

#4: Explanations of the Examples That Support Your Point

It isn't enough to just summarize or paraphrase specific excerpts taken from the
passage and call it a day. In each example paragraph, you must not only include
details about a example, but also include an explanation of how each example
demonstrates an argument technique and why it is persuasive. For instance,
let's say you were planning on discussing how the author uses vivid language to
persuade the reader to agree with him. Yes, you'd need to start by quoting parts of
the passage where the author uses vivid language, but you then also need to explain
why that example demonstrates vivid language and why it would be persuasive to
the reader.

#5: A Conclusion

Your conclusion should restate your thesis and briefly mention the examples

you wrote about in your essay (and how they supported your thesis). If you
haven't done it already in your essay, this is NOT the place to write about a broader
context, or to contradict yourself, or to add further examples you didn't discuss. End
on a strong note.

TEMPLATE 1
Paragraph 1: Introduction
Paraphrase the author’s claim in a “roadmap” sentence that lists three features the author uses
to convince the reader of his or her argument. You will then discuss each feature in a separate
body paragraph.
Student Example 1: “Adam Summers conveys this through citing statistics, appealing to the
audience’s emotions and sense of self-interests, and utilizing sarcastic diction.”
Student Example 2: “Summers, like any good writer, employs tactical reasoning and persuasive
devices to plead with the audience to take his side. In this article, he demonstrates many such
devices.”

Paragraph 2: Discuss feature #1.  Example: Irony

Consider the following six questions.
6 Questions to memorize:
-Where does the author use this feature? What example(s) of this feature can you quote
from the passage or paraphrase?
-How does the example relate to the author’s central claim? Does this feature make the
author’s claim more compelling? If not, why? What is the function of this feature in the
overall text?
As you read the passage, underline and take margin notes on examples of the following
elements for features.
A feature can include:  
1 – Evidence to support a claim (i.e. facts, statistics, quotes from experts, examples, etc). Is
the author’s evidence strong, unrelated, or unsubstantiated? What evidence is provided to
support claims?
2 – Reasoning to develop central ideas  (i.e. the author may explain his logic for using a
specific piece of evidence to support his claim) Ask yourself, “Are there any unstated
assumptions that the author makes?
Does the author use any errors of fact or interpretation? Does the author use faulty logic? (i.e.
nothing is quantified; possible alternate cause; correlation doesn’t equal causation; too small a
sample or the sample is not representative). Each time you mention a flaw, state how to fix it.
3 – Stylistic or persuasive elements the author uses to stake his claim
(i.e. irony, simile, metaphor and other elements that appeal to emotions)

Paragraph 3: Discuss feature #2.  Example:

Historical Evidence
Consider the above “6 questions to memorize.”

Paragraph 4: Discuss feature #3.  Example:

Juxtaposition
Consider the above “6 questions to memorize.”
Paragraph 5: Conclusion
Think of your conclusion as a mirror of the your introduction. If you’re struggling with the
conclusion, re-read your introduction and paraphrase it in the final paragraph. Summarize the
author’s central claim and remind the reader of which stylistic and rhetorical devices that the
author used in the body paragraphs (i.e. the 3 features in your body paragraphs).  
For example:
“Goodman’s use of up-to-date references as well as connections to social media, use of
statistics, and diction establish his argument of the need for more foreign reporters and persuade
his audience of the need to do so.”

The “So What?” Strategy

Consider the so what strategy. What are the implications of the author’s argument beyond his
main point? This strategy allows you to leave readers with an understanding of why the argument
is important in a broader context. Ask yourself, “How does this issue affect the world at large?

The Twist
Interesting conclusions have a twist. The twist is a surprise ending, something new that you
haven’t shown the reader before. It could be a judgment or interpretation about what was the
most important point the writer made, the most convincing source he used, or the weakest point
he made. Or it could tie the author’s main point to a broader context, as shown here:

For example:
Introduction: “Overall, this essay focuses on the importance of the principles of Authority and
Responsibility, Unity of Direction, Division of Work and Esprit de Corps.”
Conclusion: “Other modern businesses may have thrived by strenuously applying different
principles than the four mentioned, but it appears, as Pumpkin Patch shows, behind any great
business, past or present, you will find the application of one or more of Fayol’s 14 General
Principles of Management.”