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Passing this along.......

The Easy Essay



http://www.theeasyessay.com

Age Range: 8-80 (elementary to post graduate and beyond)

This website offers a FREE automated expository essay program that "can
teach almost anyone how to organize an essay in 5 minutes" and is ideal for
helping students learn to write essays and prepare for essay exams. It's an
ingenious way to help organize your thoughts so that you can write a decent
essay.

As the website explains, "Our concept is based on our belief that in most
conversations, the majority of the conversation deals with one person
telling the other person why something is true; that is, giving reasons for
its validity. That is all that we ask you to do on this site, except in
writing. We use the essay form because it is the most efficient form of
organization available and we automate the organization so that you limit
your statements to proving only the things that you have already stated were
true."

When you get to the site you can try a free demo. Once you're hooked and
want to continue, you must register to use the site. Registration is FREE
and allows you to work at your own pace, saving and editing the essays that
you create. When your "Easy Essay" is complete, you can print it or save it
to your own computer.

If you want to write a longer paper, the program can automatically expand
into a 17 paragraph thesis. This program is also usable in any language.

(Note: With regard to Registration, there is a privacy policy, but it's a
little vague. Proceed at your own risk.)

I enjoyed test-driving this program, and think many of you will too. Plus,
you gotta love their philosophy:

"We are aware of how hard teachers have tried to teach students to write
essays. We applaud their efforts; however we are also aware of the dismal
results. So, we are offering this as a free service so that everyone can
take advantage of its simplicity and go on and put their time and energy to
a greater and better good."

Donations to Unicef and Red Cross are encouraged at the site.

Diane Flynn Keith
for ClickSchooling
Copyright 2008, All Rights Reserved
http://www.Homefires.com
http://www.Carschooling.com

Just be aware that this is teaching the basic (and VERY boring!) 5-paragraph essay. That's fine, so far as it goes. But it is not college-level writing. It would probably be great for an 8-12yo.

The program doesn't deal with handling opposing viewpoints, refuting alternative solutions to the same problem, or any sort of analysis that is remotely complex. The reason you can have a computer program generate an essay like this so easily is because it's a formula.

The 5-paragraph theme does seem to get past many a high school teacher with nary a look askance, however.

I posted it for beginners. The age listed is 8-80. For our kids 4-6! LOL

LOL!

Sorry. It was indeed that "to 80" part that tripped me up.

I'm afraid I have something of an allergy to the 5-paragraph formula, having read WAAAAAAAAY too many of them from college kids who could do much more, but who had been led to believe somehow that the 5-paragraph theme was somehow the pinnacle of argumentative writing.

Oh, the (oral) arguments I got when they didn't get As! The whining! The pouts!

<shudder>

So, yeah, I'm not a big fan...

I had never heard of the 5-paragraph essay until I started reading about teaching writing. I don't think I was ever taught that.

Dazey

It's fine for basic, beginning "here's how to organize an argument" learning. But I was/am amazed at how many people stop there and think they're expert writers. I just find it sad!

I worked with one kid who had a lovely, complex argument that centered upon two very persuasive points, and she was shortchanging them just horribly in her draft for no reason that I could fathom (at first...). Her paper looked nothing like what she had talked with me about. When I got to the 4th paragraph--a tacked-on reason she didn't even believe!--I realized that she was trying to shoehorn her lovely, complex argument into the 5-paragraph theme format.

Argh!

I told her to dump the formula and JUST WRITE what she wanted to say!

I'll never forget the joyous look on her face when she understood that she could write a *4*-paragraph theme. (LOL!) It was like I'd freed her! Seriously!

Her revised paper was wonderful. She just needed to be told that ideas matter more than the formula, that form should follow function.

Okay. I need to stop posting to this thread! Sorry, gang! This was one of my soapbox issues when I was teaching, and I guess it's still a problem for me. Is there an "Anonymous" group for haters of the 5-paragraph theme?

LOL thanks Kriston!

Kris,

I stumbled across this one in search of a writing program that I can use for the summer with FDS13 who is in dire need of remedial help. Any suggestions?

Sure! Let's do this in a PM, though, since remedial needs are somewhat different than GT needs. You know?

And BTW, my rant against the 5-paragraph theme does NOT extend to people younger than high school age. It IS a good *starting point* for argumentative writing. I taught college students, so at what should be a higher level of complexity, and my views are colored accordingly.

I just wanted to clarify.

Shari? I sent you a PM. I'm not sure if you've been around, but I wanted to be sure you saw it if you were.