This week, we will be moving from narrative writing to informative writing. Your assignment this week will consist of a freewrite and outline similar to those you did for W2; however, this freewrite and outline will help you brainstorm your “How-to” Informative Essay.

Some examples of recent how-to essays for this class include:

• How to prepare campfire coffee in an easy and affordable way
• How to prepare for a driver’s test
• How to make Kahlua rum-flavored buttercream
• How to build a weatherproof shooting house for hunters
• How to prepare yourself for going to a protest
• How a first-time buyer can negotiate with a car salesman
• How to make your own customized wig
• How to save money while living in a college dorm
• How to care for a person who has dementia

As you can see, the topics vary widely, yet each focuses on a specific task and targets a narrow audience. Likewise, your topic can be unusual and off-the-wall or it can be somewhat common. Either way, it must target an audience that does not know the information you possess but wants or needs to know it.

There are three parts to this assignment:

Part 1: Complete all of the following statements and questions:

The audience for my paper is ____________.

I want to teach them how to _____________.

What details will I need to accomplish this purpose?

What issues or obstacles might I encounter?

What is my working title?

Part 2: Freewrite

As before, your freewrite should reflect about 10 to 15 minutes of brainstorming about your topic. Write down everything you can think of. Don’t worry about grammar, spelling, or punctuation for this part of the assignment.

Part 3. Outline

The outline should be similar to the one you used in Week 2 and contain an introduction, body, and conclusion, as well as enough details to show how your essay might be structured. Again, outline in three to five parts, summarize, and use complete sentences (not fragments or phrases).

Your outline should be similar to the one used for Week 2. It will also contain an introduction, body, and conclusion, each with topic sentences and supporting points. Here is a link to the sample outline for Week 2.