writing essay giving opinion

Opinion Writing: a Guide to Writing a Successful Essay Easily

An opinion essay requires students to write their thoughts regarding a subject matter. Relevant examples and explanations back their point of view. Before starting an opinion paper, it is important to study the definition, topics, requirements, and structure. Referring to examples is also highly useful. Perhaps you need help with our admission essay writing service ? Take a look at this guide from our dissertation writing service to learn how to write an opinion essay like an expert.

What Is an Opinion Essay

A common question among students is: ‘What is an Opinion Essay?' It is an assignment that contains questions that allow students to share their point-of-view on a subject matter. Students should express their thoughts precisely while providing opinions on the issue related to the field within reasonable logic. Some opinion essays type require references to back the writer's claims.

Opinion writing involves using a student's personal point-of-view, which is segregated into a point. It is backed by examples and explanations. The paper addresses the audience directly by stating ‘Dear Readers' or the equivalent. The introduction involves a reference to a speech, book, or play. This is normally followed by a rhetorical question like ‘is the pope Catholic?' or something along those lines.

What Kind of Student Faces an Opinion Essay

Non-native English-speaking students enrolled in the International English Language Testing System by the British Council & Cambridge Assessment English are tasked with learning how to write the opinion essays. This can be high-school or college students. It is designed to enhance the level of English among students. It enables them to express their thoughts and opinions while writing good opinion essay in English.

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What Are the Requirements of an Opinion Essay?

Avoid Going Off-Topic: Always write an opinion essay within relevance to answer the assigned question. This is also known as ‘beating around the bush' and should not be included in any opinion paragraph as it may lower your grade.

Indent the First Paragraph: With most academic papers, opinion writing is not different. Therefore, it contains the rule of indenting the first line of the introduction.

A Well-Thought Thesis: The full thesis statement is a brief description of the opinion essay. It determines the rest of the paper. Include all the information that you wish to include in the body paragraphs

The Use of Formal Languages: Although it is okay to write informally, keep a wide range of professional and formal words. This includes: ‘Furthermore,' ‘As Stated By,' ‘However', & ‘Thus'.

Avoid Internet Slang: In the opinion paper, avoid writing using slang words. Don'tDon't include words like ‘LOL', ‘OMG', ‘LMAO', etc.

The Use of First Person Language (Optional): For the reason of providing personal thought, it is acceptable to write your personal opinion essay in the first person.

Avoid Informal Punctuation: Although the requirements allow custom essay for the first-person language, they do not permit informal punctuation. This includes dashes, exclamation marks, and emojis.

Avoid Including Contradictions: Always make sure all spelling and grammar is correct.

We also recommend reading about types of sentences with examples .

Opinion Essay Topics

Before learning about the structure, choosing from a wide range of opinion essay topics is important. Picking an essay theme is something that can be done very simply. Choosing an excellent opinion essay topic that you are interested in or have a passion for is advisable. Otherwise, you may find the writing process boring. This also ensures that your paper will be both effective and well-written.

• Do sports differ from ordinary board games?
• Is using animals in circus performances immoral?
• Why should we be honest with our peers?
• Should all humans be entitled to a 4-day workweek?
• Should all humans become vegetarians?
• Does a CEO earn too much?
• Should teens be barred from having sleepovers?
• Should everyone vote for their leader?
• The Pros & Cons of Day-Light Saving Hours.
• What are the most energy-efficient and safest cars of X year?

Opinion Essay Structure

When it comes to opinion paragraphs, students may struggle with the opinion essay format. The standard five-paragraph-essay structure usually works well for opinion essays. Figuring out what one is supposed to include in each section may be difficult for beginners. This is why following the opinion essay structure is something all beginners should do, for their own revision before writing the entire essay.

You might also be interested in getting more information about: 5 PARAGRAPH ESSAY

Opinion essay introduction

• Address the audience directly, and state the subject matter.
• Reference a speech, poem, book, or play.
• Include the author's name and date of publication in brackets.
• 1 or 2 sentences to make up a short description.
• 1 or 2 summarizing sentences of the entire paper.
• 1 sentence that links to the first body paragraph.

Body Paragraph 1

• Supporting arguments
• Explanation
• A linking sentence to the second body paragraph.

Body Paragraph 2

• Supporting argument
• A linking sentence to the third body paragraph.

Body Paragraph 3

• A linking sentence to the conclusion.

Conclusion paragraph

• Summary of the entire paper
• A conclusive sentence (the bigger picture in conclusion)

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Opinion Essay Examples

Do you need something for reference? Reading opinion essay examples can expand your knowledge of this style of writing, as you get to see exactly how this form of an essay is written. Take a look at our samples to get an insight into this form of academic writing.

Over the past, American popular culture has been strong in creating racial stereotypes. Images displayed through television, music, and the internet have an impact on how individuals behave and what individuals believe. People find their identities and belief systems from popular culture. Evidently, I believe that American pop culture has created racial stereotypes that predominantly affect other ethnic minorities. Analyzing the history of America reveals that African Americans have always had a problem defining themselves as Americans ever since the era of slavery. AfricanAmericans have always had a hard time being integrated into American culture. The result is that African Americans have been subjected to ridicule and shame. American pop culture has compounded the problem by enhancing the negative stereotypes ofAfrican American. In theatre, film, and music, African Americans have been associated with vices such as murder, theft, and violence.

The family systems theory has a significant revelation on family relations. I firmly agree that to understand a particular family or a member, they should be around other family members. The emotional connection among different family members may create functional or dysfunctional coexistence, which is not easy to identify when an individual is further from the other members. Taking an example of the extended family, the relationship between the mother-in-law and her daughter-in-law may be tense, but once they are outside the family, they can pretend to have a good relationship. Therefore, I agree with the theory that the existing emotional attachment and developed culture in the family is distinctively understood when the family is together.

Opinion writing is a form of academic paper that asks students to include their thoughts on a particular topic. This is then backed by a logical explanation and examples. Becoming more knowledgeable is a practical way to successfully learn how to write an opinion paper. Before writing anything, it is essential to refer to important information. That includes the definition, topics, opinion writing examples, and requirements. This is what turns amateur writers into master writers.

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Ultimate guide to writing an opinion essay: 50 inspiring examples and topics, carla johnson.

• June 14, 2023
• Essay Topics and Ideas , How to Guides

An opinion essay is often given to students at all levels of schooling. In this type of essay, the writer has to say what they think about a certain topic or issue and back up their point with evidence and examples. Students should learn how to write opinion essays because they teach them how to think critically and how to explain and defend a point of view. Opinion essays are an important part of academic writing, but they are also a great way to learn persuasive communication skills that you can use in your personal and professional life. This article will tell you everything you need to know about how to write an opinion essay. It will also give you 50 examples and ideas to help you get started. We will talk about the basic structure of an opinion essay and how to make a strong argument and back it up with facts and examples.

This guide will give you the tools you need to learn how to write a good opinion essay, whether you are a student looking to improve your academic writing or a professional looking to improve your persuasive communication skills .

What You'll Learn

Understanding Opinion Essays

Opinion essays are a type of academic writing in which the writer has to say what they think about a certain topic or issue. In an opinion essay, the writer should back up their point of view with evidence and examples and try to get the reader to agree with them. The point of opinion essays is to teach students how to think critically and talk in a way that makes others want to agree with them. If students want to do well in school, on the job, and in their personal lives, they need to have these skills. Opinion essays are different from descriptive or narrative essays because the writer has to take a clear stance on a certain topic and back up their claim with evidence and examples. It’s also important to have a clear thesis statement that explains the writer’s point of view.

Elements of an Opinion Essay

An opinion essay typically includes the following elements:

1. Introduction paragraph : The introduction should grab the reader’s attention and provide background information on the topic. It should also include a clear thesis statement that outlines the writer’s position.

2. Body paragraphs: The body of the essay should provide supporting evidence and examples to support the writer’s argument. Each paragraph should focus on a single point and should begin with a topic sentence that relates back to the thesis statement .

3. Supporting evidence and examples: It is important to use evidence and examples to support the writer’s argument. This can include statistics, facts, quotes, and personal experiences.

4. Counter arguments: It’s also important to address counter arguments or opposing viewpoints in an opinion essay. This shows the reader that the writer has considered alternative perspectives and has still arrived at their own position. Addressing counter arguments can also strengthen the writer’s position by showing that they have thought critically about the issue .

5. Conclusion paragraph: The conclusion should summarize the main points of the essay and restate the thesis statement . It should also leave the reader with a final thought or call to action.

Opinion essays are an important genre of academic writing that require critical thinking and persuasive communication skills. To write an effective opinion essay, it is important to have a clear thesis statement , use supporting evidence and examples, address counter arguments, and provide a strong conclusion. By mastering the elements of an opinion essay, students can develop their writing skills and become more effective communicators.

Writing Process of an Opinion Essay

Writing an opinion essay requires careful planning and organization. Here are the steps to follow when writing an opinion essay:

1. Pre-writing strategies: Before you start writing, it’s important to brainstorm ideas and gather information on your topic . This can include researching your topic , making a list of arguments and counterarguments, and creating a mind map or outline.

2. Outlining an opinion essay : Once you have gathered your ideas, create an outline to organize your thoughts and develop a clear structure for your essay . Your outline should include an introduction, body paragraphs, and a conclusion.

3. Writing the introduction: The introduction should grab the reader’s attention and provide some background information on the topic. It should end with a thesis statement that clearly states your position on the issue.

4. Developing body paragraphs: The body of the essay should provide supporting evidence and examples to support your argument. Each paragraph should focus on a single point and should begin with a topic sentence that relates back to the thesis statement.

5. Using evidence and examples to support your argument: Use evidence and examples to support your argument. This can include statistics, facts, quotes, and personal experiences.

6. Addressing counter arguments: It’s important to address counterarguments or opposing viewpoints in an opinion essay. This shows the reader that you have considered alternative perspectives and have still arrived at your own position. Addressing counter arguments can also strengthen your position by showing that you have thought critically about theissue.

7. Writing the conclusion: The conclusion should summarize the main points of your essay and restate your thesis statement . It should also leave the reader with a final thought or call to action.

Tips and Techniques for Writing a Strong Opinion Essay

To write a strong opinion essay, follow these tips and techniques:

1. Writing with clarity and precision: Use clear and concise language to express your ideas. Avoid using too many complex words or phrases that may confuse the reader.

2. Crafting an effective thesis statement: Your thesis statement should be clear and concise, and it should clearly state your position on the issue.

3. Using transitional words and phrases: Use transitional words and phrases to connect your ideas and make your essay flow smoothly. Examples include “however,” “on the other hand,” and “in addition.”

4. Avoiding logical fallacies: Logical fallacies are errors in reasoning that can weaken your argument. Examples include ad hominem attacks, straw man arguments, and false causality.

5. Editing and proofreading: After you have written your essay, take the time to edit and proofread it carefully. Look for spelling and grammar errors, and make sure that your ideas are presented clearly and logically.

Writing an opinion essay requires careful planning, organization, and attention to detail. By following the steps outlined above and using the tips and techniques provided, you can craft a strong and persuasive opinion essay that effectively communicates your position on the issue at hand.

10 Inspiring Opinion Essay Examples

To help you understand what makes a strong opinion essay, here are 10 examples of well-written opinion essays, along with a detailed analysis of what makes each essay effective:

1. “The Benefits of a Vegetarian Diet” by Jane Smith

2. The Importance of Early Childhood Education” by John Doe

3. The Negative Effects of Social Media on Teenagers” by Sarah Johnson

4. The Pros and Cons of Online Learning” by Tom Brown

5. “The Need for Stricter Gun Control Laws” by Emily Davis

6. “The Ethics of Animal Testing” by Rachel Lee

7. The Benefits of Exercise for Mental Health” by David Nguyen

8. “The Importance of Diversity in the Workplace” by Maria Hernandez

9. The Harmful Effects of Plastic Pollution on the Environment” by Alex Lee

10. The Need for Universal Healthcare in the United States” by Samantha Jones

Each of these essays effectively communicates the writer’s position on a particular issue and provides strong supporting evidence and examples. By analyzing these essays , you can learn important lessons about how to effectively structure and develop an opinion essay.

50 Opinion Essay Topics That Will Impress Your Professors

To help you choose a topic for your opinion essay, here are 50 unique and engaging opinion essay topics that are relevant and important:

1. The impact of social media on interpersonal communication

2. The benefits and drawbacks of homeschooling

3. The role of technology in modern education

4. The need for stricter penalties for hate crimes

5. The impact of climate change on the global economy

6. The ethics of genetically modified foods

7. The impact of automation on jobs and the workforce

8. The effects of video games on children’s behavior

9. The need for better mental health support in schools

10. The benefits and drawbacks of remote work

11. The impact of social media on mental health

12. The need for stronger anti-bullying policies in schools

13. The effects of the gig economy on workers’ rights

14. The benefits and drawbacks of artificial intelligence

15. The impact of fast fashion on the environment

16. The ethics of animal agriculture

17. The need for more affordable housing in urban areas

18. The impact of immigration on local communities

19. The effects of screen time on children’s development

20. The need for stronger gun control laws

21. The impact of social media on political discourse

22. The benefits and drawbacks of renewable energy sources

23. The need for stronger anti-discrimination laws

24. The effects of legalization of marijuana on society

25. The impact of automation on the environment

26. The ethics of human cloning

27. The need for more accessible healthcare in rural areas

28. The effects of income inequality on society

29. The benefits and drawbacks of online dating

30. The impact of virtual reality on society

31. The need for stronger data privacy laws

32. The ethics of artificial intelligence in decision-making

33. The effects of social media on democracy

34. The impact of globalization on local economies

35. The benefits and drawbacks of autonomous vehicles

36. The need for stronger measures to combat cyberbullying

37. The effects of air pollution on public health

38. The ethics of euthanasia and assisted suicide

39. The impact of the sharing economy on traditional industries

40. The need for better access to mental health care for veterans

41. The benefits and drawbacks of cryptocurrency

42. The impact of space exploration on society

43. The ethics of gene editing

44. The need for stronger measures to combat human trafficking

45. The effects of social media on body image and self-esteem

46. The impact of automation on the future of work

47. The benefits and drawbacks of a cashless society

48. The need for stronger measures to combat domestic violence

49. The effects of social media on relationships

50. The impact of artificial intelligence on education

Choose a topic for your opinion essay that is important to you and about which you have strong feelings. Use the ideas and tips in this article to come up with a strong argument and back it up with proof and examples . With these tools, you can write a great opinion essay that will impress your professors and get your point across clearly.

1. What is the difference between an opinion essay and a persuasive essay?

An opinion essay and a persuasive essay are similar in that they both require the writer to express their viewpoint on a particular topic or issue. However, a persuasive essay is more focused on convincing the reader to take a particular action or adopt a particular viewpoint, while an opinion essay is more focused on expressing the writer’s personal perspective on the issue.

2. Can I include personal anecdotes in my opinion essay?

Yes, personal anecdotes can be a powerful tool for supporting your argument and making your essay more engaging. However, it’s important to ensure that your anecdotes are relevant to the topic and that they support your overall argument .

3. How do I address counterarguments in my essay?

To address counterarguments in your essay, consider presenting them in a separate paragraph or section of your essay . Then, explain why you disagree with the counterargument and provide evidence and examples to support your position.

4. How do I choose a topic for my opinion essay?

Choose a topic that you are passionate about and that you have a strong opinion on. Consider current events , social issues, or topics related to your field of study.

5. What is the recommended length for an opinion essay?

The length of an opinion essay can vary depending on the assignment requirements. However, a typical opinion essay is usually around 500-800 words.

6. What are some common mistakes to avoid when writing an opinion essay?

When writing an opinion essay, some common mistakes to avoid are not having a clear thesis statement, using weak or irrelevant evidence to back up your argument, not addressing counterarguments, and not proofreading your essay for mistakes. It’s important to take the time to carefully plan and edit your essay to make sure it clearly shows your point of view and gives strong evidence and examples to back up your argument.

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An opinion essay

Learn how to write an opinion essay.

Do the preparation task first. Then read the text and tips and do the exercises.

Preparation

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Information will soon be so easy to find on the internet that people will not need to remember anything. Do you agree?

Nowadays all the information we could ever need is available online and some people say that means the end of having to learn anything.

It is true that these days everything you want to know is a few clicks away as long as you have internet access. However, not everyone has working internet all the time, for example in certain buildings or remote locations, so we do need to be able to remember information. Moreover, it takes time to look up everything you need to know online, whereas remembering something is immediate. The human memory is a much more efficient system.

Another problem is the quality of the information online. How do we know if it is accurate or reliable? We need to think about other facts we know and remember how to compare information from different websites. Knowing (and remembering) how to find certain information will be more important than knowing the information itself.

Finally, the internet is a good tool but it is not a useful replacement for our brains. If we did not remember anything, we would all spend even more time on our phones and computers than we already do, which is not good for society.

In conclusion, the internet offers us many things but it is still important to use our knowledge and memories. We need our memories to function without the internet and we also need to know how to use the internet properly.

• Read the question carefully. Respond to all ideas in it or all parts of it.
• Plan your ideas first and then choose the best ones.
• Introduce your essay by restating the question in your own words.
• Show understanding of both sides of the argument.
• Use linking words to connect your ideas.
• Draw your conclusion from the main ideas in your essay. Don't introduce new ideas at the end.

What do you think about the question? Would it be better or worse if we never learned anything and just used the internet instead?

Language level

It would be worse. If we only look for information on the internet, for everythingg and every time when we have a question about something we will become ''rusty robots''.

In other words, our minds, without exercising the creativity and memory of our brains, will be almost completly out of purpose. What's more, we will be lazy and with a slow capacity of thinking properly.

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It is evidently known that in recent days, the exchange of information is progressive over the network of various channels which we call it as Internet. Experts have made some definite predictions about the availability of data and information on the above mode of communication in near future. This particular development is totally agreeable. With respect to the technological advancements pertaining to the above, the human life shall be prepared to be compatible with the communication platforms on the network of servers. The key strengths will mainly focus on speed of communication, less errors and information accuracy. This aspect of technological development will eventually replace the traditional modes of information storage. This requires no effort in preservation of information on physical devices as all the core information will be stored in virtual servers. On the other hand, the above paradigm shift in terms of data centralization will certainly replace human brains. This attempt will not trigger any living beings to memorize information physically. It is quite obvious that our brains are limited and restricted with space constraints. Hence, this technology of information storage will drastically replace these drawbacks. Overall, this phenomenal trend of networking has provided a seamless mode of gathering, interpreting and storing information. At the same time, the consequences will be tremendous and noticeable as it will lead to an era where in people across the globe can surf and search their expected piece of data with-in no time. Practically, they don’t have to bother about any challenges related to failure of storage elements. Finally, this pattern of information storage is promisingly going to be accepted.

I think the use of the internet is not only in conflict with learning, but It has made the speed of learning faster and more comfortable.

On the one hand, With the advent of the internet and access to data whenever we want, we were able to free our minds from memorizing a lot of unnecessary data. It caused that instead of spending our time to remember the formulas and data, we use our time for a deeper understanding of the concepts. Concentration on understanding was a big step in order to make us more clear about how to apply scientific concepts practically, and It made the evolutionary process of turning scientific concepts into experimental tests go faster. Going through this evolutionary process quickly, in turn, caused, firstly, the faster growth of modern technologies and, secondly, the creation of many new data, concepts, and sciences. And now the data volume is so much that not only you can never remember or learn them, but you have to choose the best one that works for you. Somehow, the internet has changed how to learn. It has focused on analyzing the options and choosing the best one to learn Instead of memorizing a bunch of content.

On the other hand, Theoretically speaking, One of the laws In the world is that everything can be useful or harmful in turn. This law also applies to the internet. In fact, how to use the internet determines whether it is useful or harmful. Like many other tools that have been invented such as smartphones, smartwatches, electric cars, and so on we have spent time learning how to use them. In order to get the best out of the internet and don't waste our time, we must take the time to learn how to search. The searching skill is the most important one that helps us find better results.

In conclusion, Given the two analyzed reasons above, I agree with the idea that easy access to Information makes people get rid of memorizing lots of data. But this has nothing to do with the quality or quantity of learning.

I think it depends on the type of information. Some information are easier to remember, and hence it's more efficient to have them in memory instead of looking for them online. However, some complex information is offered online, and it will be impractical if we tried to remember it. Additionally, I believe that learning is not just about acquiring knowledge. It's about learning how to think with this knowledge available and solve problems efficiently. That's why the internet is considered a valuable tool to promote learning, not to replace it.

Nowadays we are witnesses how far technology has developed in a short time. A huge of information is backing up on internet and if you have access of surfing you can find any information that you are looking for. However, there are some relevant aspects that should be taking into account when we are talking about using always internet instead of learning. In this sense, the purpose of this essay will be to explain why it is not a good idea. Firstly, as you know, most of the information on internet is fake. For that reason, it is impossible the learning process can be replaced by internet use. If you are looking for reliable information you have to learn how it works. In other words you need of learning even if you want to use internet all the time because you have to discern what of all information is useful for you purpose. For example, if you are a student and want to write an essay about a specific topic you likely have to search for the best information if you want to get a job position or scholarship. Secondly, there is a high demand for professionals who have specific skills in the field that they are pretending to be involved. That’s why learning always is a must for satisfying the requirements of companies and institutions. For instance, in the education field, the main aim is the learning and knowledge which are essential on a daily life to be an expert in your field of action and these skills can’t be acquired through internet surfing. To sum up learning and knowledge are fundamentals in a current world that is demanding professionals highly qualified even in our daily live and the internet is far away of satisfying the required skills that you get every day through the practice, research and networking.

I think it become worse and dangerous for our society, we need to control it making rules. Without internet, many skills and knowledge could´nt be used.

I believe that, The internet become even more dangerous for young people who barely discovered the world around them, If they count on it for seeking information without parental supervision, it would be a disaster!

In nowadays,there are many ways to reach information.The Internet is just one of them but maybe most promising one.The Internet helps us to find information easily and efficently.

However there are some negative sides of Internet.For instance realibilty of information.There are no real control on Internet.I reckon there will not be soon.This reduces the trust in internet.This is why People will always need another source to be make sure and need to remember information.

It is also necesseray for objectivity. You can not just have one source and expect true and impartial information. It is against nature of science.This is not how science works.People must have and process the information.In this way we expand our knowledge.When we make brainstorm we always end up with another information. If we don’t have and process the information how Science works?

I suppose in the future People will never trust completely to Internet. They will always need another source and they will need to interrogate source of information.In conclusion Internet is by far most promising invention People have ever invented.However Internet is not beyond our brain and imagination.We will always need to posses and process the information.

It is about my hometown: My hometown is a beautiful, attractive and cool. N'beika is one of the most famous places in Mauritania where attractive views and economic capacities are in. It is located in Tagant which is in middle of the map. Therefore, It is one the biggest cities in the country. As there are interesting geographical features such as: high Mountains, nice valleys, light hills and wonderful pools. Historically, N'beika played an important role in culture, trade exchange and fighting colonialist. Also it has saved historical landmarks, for example: manuscripts, books and cities which the most important is Gasr Albarka. In the north, there have tourist views and in the East big mountains with lovely valleys like Matmata where there are some Alligators in and other attractive animals. As well as from the south and the west there are some fields, forests and farms. Moreover, people are interested in agriculture, trade, development and education. Furthermore, there are many schools and Mahidras and three colleges providing well-deserved education to students. What's more, mall shops is offering demands and created jobs for unemployment. There are different favourite for people , some of them are crazy about football as youth, and some people like doing agriculture and development. Moreover, there are entrepreneurs doing a small business like selling clothes, pitch, barbershop... etc. In conclusion, N'beika is a gift of Allah that has given to people to spend nice moments in order to feel happy and to invest for everything we want due to gain lots of money .

I believe it is amazing updated technology which has helped us a lot in our lives. In todays era everyone has access to internet over the globe. you can easily find all the information on internet that is required to you. Even though learn many new skills which aren't even taught you from the help of internet. it is good help for book writer like us where we can be part of book writing communities or book writing resources to enhance our skills and provides more guidance to others.

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How to Write an Opinion Essay (With Tips and Examples)

Are you struggling with how to write an opinion essay that effectively communicates your viewpoint on a particular topic while providing strong evidence to back it up? Fear not! In this comprehensive guide, we will walk you through the process of crafting a quality opinion essay, from understanding the purpose and structure to choosing engaging topics and employing effective writing techniques. Let’s dive in!

Table of Contents

Key Takeaways

• Opinion essays are formal pieces of writing that express the author’s viewpoint on a given subject.
• Crafting an effective thesis statement and outline, choosing engaging topics, using formal language and tone, addressing counterarguments and maintaining logical flow are essential for creating compelling opinion essays.
• The revision process is key to producing polished opinion essays that effectively convey one’s opinions.

What is an Opinion Essay?

An opinion essay, also known as an opinion paper, is a formal piece of writing wherein the author expresses their viewpoint on a given subject and provides factual and anecdotal evidence to substantiate their opinion. The purpose of an opinion essay is to articulate a position in a clear and informative manner, following a proper opinion essay structure. Opinion essays are commonly found in newspapers and social media, allowing individuals to articulate their perspectives and opinions on a specific topic, striving to create a perfect opinion essay.

While the focus of an opinion essay should be on the writer’s own opinion concerning the issue, it necessitates more meticulous planning and effort than simply articulating one’s own thoughts on a particular topic. The arguments in an opinion essay should be grounded on well-researched data, making it crucial to consult pertinent information, including the definition, topics, opinion writing examples, and requirements, to write an opinion essay and transform novice writers into proficient writers.

Crafting the Perfect Thesis Statement

A strong thesis statement is the foundation of a great essay. It clearly expresses the writer’s opinion and sets the stage for the rest of the essay. To craft the perfect thesis statement, start by perusing the essay prompt multiple times to ensure you fully understand the question or topic you are being asked to discuss. Once you have a clear understanding of the topic, construct your opinion and conduct thorough research to locate evidence to corroborate your stance and examine counterarguments or contrasting perspectives.

Remember, your thesis statement should provide a succinct overview of the opinion essay and serve as a guide for the remainder of the paper. By crafting a strong thesis statement, you will be able to capture your reader’s attention and set the tone for a well-structured and persuasive essay.

Building a Solid Opinion Essay Outline

A well-structured opinion essay format is crucial for organizing your thoughts and ensuring that your entire essay flows smoothly from one point to the next. An opinion essay outline typically comprises an introduction, body paragraphs, and a conclusion, following the standard five-paragraph essay structure.

Let’s delve deeper into each component of the outline. The introduction should provide a brief overview of the topic and your opinion on it. It should be.

Introduction

The introduction of your opinion essay should hook the reader and provide an overview of the essay’s content. To achieve this, consider addressing the reader directly, introducing a quotation, posing thought-provoking or rhetorical questions, or referring to a remarkable or unconventional fact, concept, or scenario.

It is essential to introduce the topic clearly in the introduction to avoid superfluous phrases and inapplicable facts that are not pertinent to the topic. By crafting an engaging introduction, you will set the stage for a compelling and well-organized opinion essay.

Body Paragraphs

The body paragraphs of your good opinion essay should provide arguments and supporting examples to substantiate your opinion. Begin each paragraph with a distinct topic sentence and use credible sources to provide substantiation for your viewpoint with dependable data.

Addressing counterarguments in your body paragraphs can also enhance your essay by illustrating a comprehensive understanding of the subject matter and fortifying your stance.

Organize your body paragraphs in a coherent manner, ensuring that each argument and supporting example flows logically from one to the next. This will make it easier for your reader to follow your train of thought and strengthen the overall impact of your essay.

The conclusion of your opinion essay should summarize the main points and restate your opinion in a new manner, providing a sense of closure and completion to your argument. Keep your conclusion concise and avoid introducing new information or arguments at this stage. By effectively summarizing your main points and restating your opinion, you will leave a lasting impression on your reader and demonstrate the strength of your argument.

In addition to summarizing your main ideas, consider providing a final thought or call to action that will leave your reader pondering the implications of your essay. This can further reinforce the impact of your conclusion and leave a lasting impression on your reader.

Choosing Engaging Opinion Essay Topics

Selecting engaging topics for opinion essays is crucial for capturing the reader’s interest and encouraging critical thinking. While there are an abundance of potential questions or topics that could be utilized for an opinion essay, it is important to choose topics that are relevant, interesting, and thought-provoking.

To find inspiration for engaging opinion essay topics, consider browsing the Op-Ed sections of newspapers, exploring social media debates, or even reflecting on your own experiences and interests. Keep in mind that a well-chosen topic not only draws the reader’s attention, but also stimulates critical thinking and fosters insightful discussions.

Opinion Essay Writing Techniques

Effective opinion essay writing techniques include using formal language and tone, addressing counterarguments, and maintaining logical flow.

Let’s explore each of these techniques in more detail.

Formal Language and Tone

Using formal language and tone in your opinion essay is essential for conveying a sense of professionalism and credibility. This can be achieved by avoiding slang, jargon, and colloquial expressions, as well as short forms and over-generalizations. Moreover, expressing your opinion without utilizing the personal pronoun “I” can give your essay a seemingly more objective approach.

Remember that the recommended tense for composing an opinion essay is present tense. By maintaining a formal language and tone throughout your essay, you will demonstrate your expertise on the subject matter and instill confidence in your reader.

Addressing Counterarguments

Addressing counterarguments in your opinion essay is an effective way to demonstrate a well-rounded understanding of the topic and strengthen your position. To do this, introduce opposing viewpoints in a straightforward manner and provide evidence to counter them. This not only showcases your comprehension of the subject matter, but also bolsters your own argument by refuting potential objections.

By acknowledging and addressing counterarguments, you will create a more balanced and persuasive opinion essay that encourages critical thinking and engages your reader.

Maintaining Logical Flow

Ensuring your opinion essay maintains a logical flow is critical for enabling your reader to follow your arguments and evidence with ease. To achieve this, utilize precise and succinct words, compose legible sentences, and construct well-structured paragraphs. Incorporating transitional words and varied sentence structures can also enhance the flow of your essay.

By maintaining a logical flow throughout your opinion essay, you will create an organized and coherent piece of writing that effectively communicates your viewpoint and supporting arguments to your reader.

Analyzing Opinion Essay Examples

Analyzing opinion essay examples can help improve your understanding of the structure and style required for this type of writing. Numerous examples are available online as a source of reference, providing valuable insights into how other writers have approached similar topics and structured their essays.

By examining opinion essay examples, you will be better equipped to identify the elements of a successful essay and apply them to your own writing. This will not only enhance your understanding of opinion essay writing, but also inspire you to develop your own unique voice and style.

The Revision Process: Polishing Your Opinion Essay

The revision process is essential for polishing your opinion essay, ensuring clarity, logical flow, and proper grammar and punctuation. Start by rereading your first draft, making improvements as you progress and rectifying any grammar errors that may be observed. Having another individual review your writing, such as a family member or friend, can provide candid feedback, allowing you to refine your essay further.

The ultimate step in composing an opinion essay is proofreading. This final review will ensure that your essay is polished and free from errors, resulting in a well-crafted and persuasive piece of writing that effectively communicates your opinion on the topic at hand.

Frequently Asked Questions

How do you start an opinion essay.

To start an opinion essay, begin by stating the subject of your essay and expressing your perspective on it. Follow up by using an interesting or provocative statement to capture the reader’s attention.

Introduce your essay by restating the question in your own words, making sure to make your opinion clear throughout your essay.

What is the structure of an opinion essay?

An opinion essay is typically structured with an introduction containing a thesis statement, body paragraphs providing arguments or reasons that support your view, and a conclusion.

Each section of the essay should be written in a formal tone to ensure clarity and effectiveness.

What is the format of an opinion paragraph?

An opinion paragraph typically begins with a clear statement of the opinion, followed by body sentences providing evidence and support for the opinion, before finally summarizing or restating the opinion in a concluding sentence.

It should be written in a formal tone.

What not to write in an opinion essay?

When writing an opinion essay, make sure to stay on topic, avoid slang and jargon, introduce the topic clearly and concisely, and do not include unnecessary facts that do not relate directly to the question.

Use a formal tone and keep your conclusion clear in the first sentence.

What is the purpose of an opinion essay?

The purpose of an opinion essay is to articulate a position in a clear and informative manner, providing evidence to support it.

This type of essay requires the writer to research the topic thoroughly and present their opinion in a logical and convincing way. They must also be able to back up their opinion with facts and evidence.

In conclusion, crafting a quality opinion essay requires a clear understanding of the purpose and structure of this type of writing, as well as the ability to choose engaging topics and employ effective writing techniques. By following the guidelines and tips provided in this guide, you will be well on your way to creating a compelling and persuasive opinion essay that effectively articulates your viewpoint and supporting arguments.

Remember, practice makes perfect. The more you write and revise, the more adept you will become at crafting insightful and impactful opinion essays. So, go forth and share your opinions with the world, backed by strong evidence and persuasive writing!

How to write an Opinion Essay from Start to End

Are you struggling with writing an opinion essay, or is it your first time writing one? Then, you might as well use our ideas, tips, and tricks to write an opinion essay that scores you an A+ grade.

The process of creating a successful essay is different for everyone. Some will prefer working undistracted while others work better with distractions.

Although no guide can comprehensively fit your writing style, one thing is for sure: our guide will help you write an opinion essay in a step-by-step format. We have broken down the opinion-writing process into three core stages: prewriting, writing, and revision to make it easy to grasp.

This guide also covers aspects such as opinion essay topic, structure, and the essential guidelines to set you up with writing an opinion essay.

Our comprehensive opinion essay guide inspires your confidence as a writer from the beginning, mid-way, to the end. Consult with us if you feel you need further help.

What is an Opinion Essay?

An opinion essay is a formal piece of writing that presents an author's point of view (opinion) supported with reasoning, evidence, and examples and can entail opposing inconsistent viewpoints.

Unlike an argumentative or persuasive essay where you offer counterarguments or counterpoints, you focus more on your opinion about an issue at hand in an opinion essay.

You don't necessarily have to explore the advantages or disadvantages (pros and cons). Besides, you don't have to describe the essay topic from a different perspective. Instead, you give your opinions based on well-researched data.

Opinion writing is all about you giving your point of view or perspective in a layered manner. By layering, we mean that you support your opinion with examples and explanations.

Opinion essays are often written by college and university students. Besides, non-native English-speaking students enrolled in the IELTS must write an opinion piece. Thus, opinion essays help you express your thoughts, perceptions, and opinions while writing in English.

Prewriting Stage

Before you commence writing your opinions in an essay, you need to have a clear idea of what you want to write about in your opinion essay and how you will express it. Here are a few major steps that you must undertake:

1. Understand the assignment

Consider reading the opinion essay prompt as the very first step in your writing journey. As you read the instructions, you will get to know the objective of the assignment/essay, the length and deadline of your opinion essay, the formatting style required, and the number of sources to use when writing the essay.

Reading the prompt also helps you understand the questions you will be tackling as you write. It also helps set out the main points that must feature in your opinion writing. These points include the central idea or thesis and the extent of research required to support the opinions in your essay.

2. Brainstorming

As you read the instructions, you can use mind maps or short notes to brainstorm over the topic provided. You can also do the same to develop ideas that you can turn into topics if one is not given.

In this phase of your writing, you can utilize the freewriting technique to develop as many ideas as possible. Freewriting allows you to download all your thoughts concerning a certain topic.

No idea is terrible, off-topic, or strange during the discovery or investigation phase. As you brainstorm, do some light research to familiarize yourself with concepts, frameworks, and facts about the ideas you have developed.

If you think outside the box, for one moment, you will be amazed at how much there is to write an opinion essay about.

3. Select a topic

If no topic is given, go ahead and select a topic you feel works well for you. Pick something that you are familiar with and find interesting to write about. As you have already brainstormed, choosing a topic should not be hard.

Related: Best argumentative essay topics.

4. Do your research

Read through the primary and secondary sources as you take notes, organize facts, and develop ideas so that you can work out your position, perspective, lens, and perspective on a topic.

This is the evidence that you will be using when drafting your opinion essay.

Research online, read related books, find related peer-reviewed scholarly journals, use Wikipedia to familiarize yourself with concepts, and choose the sources to keep for the writing phase.

5. Formulate a thesis

Are you already familiar with thesis statements? If you are, you do not have to worry about developing an opinion essay thesis statement. The process is the same because an opinion essay thesis is a central idea or argument you want the entire essay to be about. It is the idea that the body paragraphs will be expounding and developing. Remember to have a clear thesis so that you have a focused opinion essay. To do this, refer to your thesis each time you are writing the paper.

6. Choose a befitting title

Like other academic papers, opinion essays must have a short, clear, and precise title. Your title often comes from the topic and the thesis. To develop your title, take your thesis and compress it into 3-4 words. Remember, the title should not tell the entire story; it leaves that to the body paragraphs.

7. Create an outline

With the topic, thesis, and title ready, it is time to c reate an outline or a rough template for your opinion essay. An outline helps you to organize your essay into paragraphs. It is the blueprint or the map of the rough structure of your essay. Although many students deliberately skip this step, it is vital as it makes it easier to stay focused when writing an opinion essay.

Writing Stage

Real work begins during the drafting phase, where you begin to write your paper. With all you've done in the preparation phase, you should not be afraid to handle this stage.

You already have a thesis, which is good because a lack of it often leads to drifting, making it hard to frame the fact. As you draft the opinion essay, you will be using the materials from the prewriting stage to build your paragraphs.

Most successful opinion writers will begin with the body paragraphs without an introduction. When you start with the body paragraphs, you get the independence to work through your ideas without restriction to a thesis. However, this is only useful if you are unsure about the direction you need your opinion essay to take. However, we will explain it step by step and leave the approach for your choosing.

1. Write the introduction

Your opinion essay must have an introduction as the first paragraph after the title page. The introductory paragraph presents your subject and states your opinion clearly, concisely, and precisely.

Since it is the first part your reader focuses on, you need to impress them immediately. Using a solid essay hook, you can only beckon them off the bat.

When you introduce a hook in the opinion essay introduction, you will capture your audience's attention, psyche, and interest, motivating them to keep reading. For example, you can begin your essay with a statistic, fact, rhetorical question, addressing the readers directly, anecdote, or a quote of your choosing. It should be the first sentence in your introduction.

After hooking your reader, provide the background on your topic to help your readers understand: the intent and significance of your opinion essay. Offer some overview of the critical debates about the topic, but do not provide too many details in the introduction.

Finally, present your thesis statement in your last one or two sentences. You already have your thesis statement from the prewriting stage. Present it so that your reader understands your central argument, and focus and so that you can signal your readers about your position on the topic.

If you are writing a longer opinion essay, say eight pages and beyond, you can end your introduction by briefly describing the contents of every section of the essay. Thus, you provide a roadmap of your essay so that your reader grasps the structure and has a preview of how you will develop arguments in your opinion essay.

2. Write the main body (body paragraphs)

The main body of your essay needs to support your thesis statement, set out in the introduction. For a standard five-paragraph essay, your opinion essay will have three linked body paragraphs. Each paragraph should present a separate idea or point of view that is supported by evidence, examples, and facts that must be well-cited.

Each body paragraph must begin with a unique topic sentence, a mini-thesis, or the main idea that you will back with arguments and evidence in the paragraph. Ensure that you do not start a new paragraph because the one you are writing has become longer. Instead, begin a new paragraph only when you want to discuss another idea.

As you write the body paragraph, use the right tenses, transition or linking words, formal vocabulary, right punctuations, and cite the sources well.

The body paragraphs account for 80% of your essay, which means that you should balance the word count among the three body paragraphs.

After the topic sentence, present evidence that can include quotes, data, or examples from relevant scholarly sources. Then, interpret and explain the evidence and show how it builds your thesis.

Related Read :

• How to develop ideas in a paragraph .
• Persuasive essay topics and ideas

3. Write the conclusion

The third step in writing an opinion essay is concluding it. The conclusion of an opinion essay should restate the main opinion/thesis statement using different words. It should also contain a brief summary of the main points supporting your arguments. Finally, it should equally show why your main opinion matters.

Refrain from introducing new ideas or apologizing for your opinions in the essay. But, on the other hand, never undermine your arguments as well. You should also avoid cliché concluding phrases like to sum up, in summary.

The conclusion should engage your readers. You can end with a warning, ask a provocative question, make recommendations, or suggest consequences if your opinion is not considered.

For a great and meaningful conclusion for an opinion essay, end your essay with an impactful or memorable sentence to create one last strong impression in the mind of your readers.

Revision Stage

After writing your first draft, take a break from writing. This is the time to close your computer, arrange your table, catch that movie or series, drink some water, or take a walk.

Once you have rested enough, assuming your essay is not urgent, you can proceed to the revision stage when fresh. Some call it the editing and proofreading phase; whatever it is, it is the last part of writing an opinion essay where you make sure you dot your i's and cross your t's.

In the revision phase:

• Evaluate the overall organization of your essay
• Revise the content of each paragraph in your opinion essay
• Proofread for grammatical and language errors
• Check for plagiarism so that you have the acceptable similarity level
• Revise your opinion essay for issues such as cohesion
• Check whether there are transitions in your essay
• Check the clarity in sentences and coherence of your ideas
• Check whether you have used varied sentence structures
• Edit the paper by reading what you have written. Look for any punctuation errors
• Read your paper aloud so that you can catch some errors
• Check the formatting of your paper in MLA, Harvard, APA, CSE, or ASA format
• Ensure all the inner-text citations are as per the formatting
• Check capitalization and vocabulary are well placed
• Check the title and reference pages
• Check the numbering
• Assess your choice of words, ease of reading, and flow

An opinion essay is written in prose form. Therefore, ensure that you do not have listicles in your essay; it is not a camping list either way!

If crafted the right way, your opinion essay will become an excellent piece of writing that your professor can use as an example of the best opinion essay for the following classes. The tips we have shared above can help you pull your a-game when writing an opinion essay.

Related Read: How to write a comprehensive A+ essay .

Opinion Essay Outline/Template

You have probably already encountered and used the basic five-paragraph essay structure, which works well with opinion essays.

I. Introduction

• An introductory statement, mostly a  hook statement .
• Background information.
• A great thesis statement that clearly states your opinion on the given topic or issue.

II. Body Paragraphs

A. Body Paragraph 1

• Topic sentence with the chief argument that supports your opinion.
• Evidence and facts supported the ideas in the thesis statement.
• Analysis and explanation of your facts and pieces of evidence.
• A closing remark that points out the correlation between the thesis statement and your arguments in paragraph one
• Transition to your next paragraph .

B. Body Paragraph 2

• Topic sentence with the principal argument that supports your opinion.

C. Body Paragraph 3

• Topic sentence with the main argument that supports your opinion.
• Evidence and facts supported the ideas in the thesis statement .

III. Conclusion

• Restate your thesis using new words and sentence structure
• Give brief remarks on the arguments, examples, evidence, and facts in the body paragraphs.
• A closing statement that leaves your readers impressed.

Expressions to use when writing an Opinion Essay

We already covered some phrases to use when writing essays. However, when you are undertaking opinion writing, the chances are that you need to explain your point of view in the best way. So, here are some basic expressions that you can use to expose how good a critical thinker and a creative writer you are, which is the key to scoring an A+ grade.

If you want to fix an opinion essay assignment faster and better, use some of these expressions or phrases to put through your opinions:

Nothing is cast in stone; you can always choose your words wisely. However, the ultimate goal is to write an outstanding opinion essay that seduces the best grade from your instructor or professor. Remember, you can use adverbs, adjectives, and nouns when writing but mind the flow of ideas and simplicity of your opinion piece.

Dos and Don'ts when Writing an Opinion Essay

As you set out to write an opinion essay, we have gathered some dos and don'ts to help you write a great essay. Read them and keep them in mind when researching, drafting, writing, and editing your opinion essay.

150 Plus Opinion Essay Topics

Here is what to write your opinion essay about

• Should American citizens serve on the jury?
• Should the voting age be changed to allow minors?
• Laws should apply equally to anyone
• Is the president above the law?
• Should political leaders be held accountable for misbehavior in the media?
• Should governments tax churches?
• Can wars be avoided?
• Are wars the creation of stable governments?
• Do we need to spend much on military and defense might?
• Are private prisons ethical?
• Socialism is still the best philosophy.
• Is capitalism killing the world?
• Does the media have freedom of speech?
• Should governments gag the media?
• Are protocols necessary during national celebrations?
• Can politicians represent the interests of certain media outlets?

Related Read: How to choose topics for your essay .

Social Media Opinion Essay Topics and Ideas

• Is Facebook becoming a surveillance tool?
• Social media has a role in governance
• Is slacktivism legitimate action or a lazy move?
• Can clicktivism shape public opinion
• Social media creates rifts between people
• Social media affects the family values
• Social media is the primary divisive tool in the U.S
• Social media and hate crimes
• Social media leads to depression and suicide among teens
• Anorexia nervosa and the rise of social media influencers
• Does social media normalize material wealth?
• Social media promotes an unrealistic lifestyle.
• Twitter is for elite thinkers in the society
• Twitter is a political messenger
• Youths are influenced by social media
• Social media is an integral tool of changing society today
• Modern students rely too much on technology
• Social media helped students during the Covid-19 pandemic
• Facebook affects the personal relationship
• Social media promotes stalking
• Social media encourages body shaming
• Memes shared through social media relieve depression
• Social media negatively impacts body image

General Opinion Essay Topics

• Children should not watch too much television
• Schools should teach sex education
• Countries should create buffer zones that accommodate refugees to curb emigration.
• Laws prohibiting heroin should be applied to tobacco
• Animal use in scientific research should be regulated
• Parents are a student's first and the best teachers
• Children who grow in the countryside are well mannered compared to those from big cities
• Zoos are not cruel to animals
• Education is vital in the development of a country
• Politicians should be educated to make great laws
• Ministers should be professionals in the ministries they head
• Luck has little to do with success
• Hard work beats luck when it comes to succeeding
• Private cars are the leading cause of pollution
• Using hybrid and electric vehicles does not curb pollution
• Anybody can do without a TV
• Smartphones are addictive
• Does traveling have benefits?
• Does fasting help reduce weight?
• Are feminists destroying society?
• Should schools still teach handwriting?
• Should university and college education be free?
• Does failure in school mean failure in life?
• Should doping be allowed in extreme sports?
• Is graffiti part of art?
• Mass media has a role in shaping public opinion
• Are women better parents compared to men?
• Childhood obesity leads to an obese society
• Leaders should be fit
• Rich countries should forgive the debts from developing countries
• Rich countries should pay more for pollution
• Sometimes telling the truth hurts
• It is justifiable to tell lies if the truth is dangerous
• Students should be allowed to evaluate their teachers
• The media should give famous people privacy
• Corrupt leaders should be jailed
• Corrupt presidents should be dethroned
• Proceeds from corrupt governments hidden abroad should be used to fight hunger and poverty in the respective continents.
• Rich people should pay more taxes.
• Are hormonal birth control pills bad for women's health?
• Fraternities promote misogyny on campus
• First-year students should reside on campus
• Rich peoples have no obligation of helping the poor
• The internet brings the world close together
• Face to face communication is deteriorating thanks to technology
• Retirement age should be compulsory at 65 years
• Governments should reserve certain leadership positions for women
• Access to law and lawyers should be affordable to poor citizens
• Homeless people are desperate
• Homelessness is not the end of the road
• The use of animals in circuses is unethical
• Poachers should be hanged
• Automakers are greenwashing electric cars
• Drug use is becoming a culture in the USA
• The American Dream is dead
• CEOs should not earn too much while employees contribute to the success
• Teens should be barred from sleepovers
• We should be honest with our peers
• Ill-gotten wealth does not last
• Celebrities are the cause of hate online
• Children should be encouraged to read physical books
• Classical music is valuable
• Hip hop music gives youths false hopes
• Music videos promote materialism over values
• Music piracy affects creatives
• The use of the internet should be charged
• Classical music boosts productivity
• Music boosts academic performance
• Physical activity promotes healthy life
• Emojis help people express themselves better
• Vegetarians are as healthy as meat-eaters

Related Read: Political science essay topic ideas .

Sports Opinion Essay Topics

You can decide to write an opinion essay on a sports topic. If sport is your thing, focus on the current affairs, arising issues, and the news. Here are some topics:

• The use of animals in sports is ethical
• Athletes should be exempted from taxes
• Teams with successful coaches are successful
• Hunting sports should be banned
• Doping is unethical and bad sportsmanship
• Professional athletes deserve better pay
• College athletes should be paid
• College athletes should have scholarships
• Female athletes should participate in extreme sports
• Mountain biking is a demanding sport
• Olympic games promote global unity
• Cheerleading is part of sports
• Hooliganism in football affects brand image
• Athletes should continue getting full-ride scholarships
• Sports psychologists ensure teams' wellbeing
• Athletes are fit and strong
• Golf is a sport for the wealthy
• Winter sports athletes should wear helmets
• Basketball players are vulnerable to racial discrimination
• Sportspeople today champion for equality
• Sportspeople influence political processes

Check this out, too : Sports topics for essays.

Psychology Opinion Essay Topics

• Anorexia is widespread among the youth
• Telepsychiatry can help people in remote areas with mental illnesses
• Autistic children are gifted learners
• Having pet animals reduces stress
• Soldiers with PTSD take a long to recover
• Homelessness leads to mental illness
• Imprisonment can affect the psychology of an individual
• School counselors save children from suicidal thoughts
• Meditation and Yoga help relieve stress
• Racism is linked to mental illness

Related: Adoption topics to consider for essays .

Culture-related opinion essay topics

Culture has become a hot topic for almost every essay. Many students realize the importance of culture in society. Under it, you can explore mentality, fashion, arts, beliefs, religion, and language. Here are some topics to write an opinion essay about culture:

• Left and rightwing politics, do they matter?
• Impacts of social media on national culture
• Are we developing a ubiquitous global culture?
• Family values depend on our culture
• Religion and culture peacefully coexist
• Religion directs national values
• Millennials are challenging old traditions, customs, and norms, and they are right.
• Food has a national cultural origin
• Culture defines how we engage others
• Students going abroad should be taught how to manage culture shock
• UNESCO does a better job preservice heritage and culture
• Governments must preserve national cultures
• Museums are a great place to learn a given people's culture
• Cultural anthropologists and archeologists are influential professionals
• Our cultural mindset reflects in our language

Related: Black death essay topics .

Parting Shot!

In a nutshell, our article has comprehensively covered the opinion writing process. Coming this far means you know how to write an opinion essay introduction, body, and conclusion. Whether it is a three-paragraph essay or a five-paragraph opinion essay, our tips will see you through to success.

Related Article: Descriptive essay writing guide .

As a final remark, once you have entirely fixed every part of your essay outline, turn the first draft into a final draft by thoroughly proofreading your paper. Remember to also revise for organization, language, grammar, vocabulary, style, and spelling. And when choosing the sources to use, utilize the CRAAP test to get credible and reliable sources.

As you write, remember not to use I when stating your opinion. Instead, use an objective and formal style when writing an opinion essay. It is a paper where you express your opinion, yes, but try to do it objectively.

If you need help writing or editing your opinion essay, you can consult with our professional writers .

Gradecrest is a professional writing service that provides original model papers. We offer personalized services along with research materials for assistance purposes only. All the materials from our website should be used with proper references. See our Terms of Use Page for proper details.

Opinion Writing: Everything You Need To Know (+ 8 Examples)

Everybody has opinions and the perfect medium to convey them is through opinion writing.

Learning how to convey your opinions to others by writing is an excellent way of voicing your ideas and suggestions and becoming more confident as a person and an articulate writer.

What is the purpose of opinion writing?

Opinion writing is a powerful type of writing that helps you convey your opinion to the audience in the most effective and compelling manner.

It has a specific format:

Thesis statement

• Introduction

It also consists of structural elements such as

Let’s delve further into opinion writing, its types, and how to write an opinion piece in this guide.

What is opinion writing?

As its name implies, opinion writing is a type of writing in which the writer gives their opinion on a topic or subject matter.

The writer shares their perspective or stance on that topic and offers reasons and supporting arguments to support that opinion.

What must be included in opinion writing?

Here are some features that every piece of opinion writing should have.

• Supporting reasons and evidence
• Well-researched and well-presented arguments
• A definite, well-organized structure
• Quotes or experiences by credible authorities on the subject that lend credence to the writer’s opinion
• Relevant and authentic facts and statistics
• A reasonable conclusion summing up the main idea and reiterating the writer’s viewpoint

Importance of Opinion Writing: Why is opinion writing important for students?

Opinion writing is an essential kind of writing for a multitude of reasons. As a student, a writer, or a blogger, it helps you share your views and opinions on various subjects with your audience.

It also enables you to develop and further enhance your writing skills, and you learn how to effectively communicate your ideas and perspectives with the aid of authentic evidence. Moreover, it helps build confidence.

For readers, opinion pieces are a great source of knowledge, facts, and other opinions that may or may not be different from their own.

Knowing other opinions on various subjects is essential and allows one to broaden their perspective.

What are some types of opinion writing?

Opinion pieces can mainly be divided into columns, editorials, and op-eds. We’ll explore each type in detail below.

Writers who write columns are often referred to as columnists and write opinion pieces on various current events, political events, social issues, and other topics.

Columns are usually published in newspapers, magazines, and other literary publications.

Like columns, editorials are also published in newspapers and magazines and convey a specific opinion or stance on a particular subject matter.

Editorials are written by an editorial board member of a newspaper or magazine.

Op-eds are opinion pieces commonly featured in magazines and newspapers and written by guest contributors.

“Op-ed” is short for “opposite the editorial page,” where these pieces are mostly found.

What is the structure of opinion writing?

Every opinion piece should be well-structured, with different paragraphs dedicated to other parts of the arguments.

Typically, an opinion piece has the following structural elements: thesis sentence, introduction, body, and conclusion.

The body is the part where the bulk of the writer’s opinions, arguments, supporting evidence, and statistics go.

In the body part, ideas should be formulated using this order:

• Examples/Evidence
• In the next section, we’ll explore these structural elements in more detail.

Opinion writing format

While there is no strict format, every writer has to adhere to when penning opinion pieces, certain structural elements (that we’ve mentioned previously) must be present in every opinion piece.

Here are some of them:

The thesis statement gives the reader a quick overview of what the opinion piece is about and what the writer’s stance is.

Introduction Of Your Opinion

The introduction is an integral part of an opinion piece in which the writer gives some background about the topic and paves the way for their upcoming arguments.

The opening may also contain the writer’s name, publication details, etc.

Next comes the body. The body is where the bulk of the writer’s arguments, supporting reasons, facts, and statistics go.

It can contain multiple supporting arguments, examples, and references from credible sources. The body usually contains numerous paragraphs.

Opinion Conclusion

In the conclusion, the writer effectively wraps up their argument and reiterates their stance on the subject matter.

The conclusion is basically a summary of the whole opinion piece.

Besides the essential structural elements and necessary parts (supporting arguments, evidence, examples, etc.), there are other vital components that every opinion piece must have.

These include:

• A bold, clear statement of the writer’s opinion or stance on the subject matter
• Formal language and a polite and informative tone
• Relevant and appropriate evidence
• Varying sentence length and convincing word choice to inform the audience and keep them engaged

How do you start opinion writing?

The beginning of an opinion piece is important and must set the stage for the upcoming arguments.

The opinion piece should begin with a clear statement of the subject matter and hint at the writer’s stance on it.

In addition, your introduction should provide a smooth transition to the main body of the opinion piece.

Opinion writing topics: What is an example in opinion writing?

Here is a list of 8 excellent topics for writing opinion pieces.

• Should organizations adopt a 4-day work week?
• Should standardized testing be abolished?
• Is homeschooling better than traditional schooling?
• Are video games turning children violent?
• What are some of the best electric cars you can buy?
• Should every child receive awards for participating in school events instead of only those who win?
• Is online education as effective as in-person education?
• Is it wrong to put animals in cages?

Final thoughts

Opinion writing is a crucial type of writing and is something everybody should try their hand at. It helps you voice your opinions and empowers you to address an audience and speak your mind.

Since it is specialized writing, it has its own format, structural elements, and other essential components.

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How to Plan & Write IELTS Opinion Essays

IELTS opinion essays, also known as ‘agree or disagree’ essays, come up frequently in the writing exam. In this lesson, I’m going to show you how to plan and write them step-by-step.

Here’s what we’ll be covering:

• 3 Common mistakes
• Essay structure
• How to plan
• How to write an introduction
• How to write main body paragraphs
• How to write a conclusion

Click the links to see lessons on each of these Task 2 essay writing topics. 

Once you understand the process, practice on past questions. Take your time at first and gradually speed up until you can plan and write an essay of at least 250 words in the 40 minutes allowed in the exam.

The Question

The first part of the question for an IELTS opinion essay will be a statement. You will then be asked to give your own opinion about the statement. Here is some typical wording that might be used:

• What is your opinion?
• Do you agree or disagree?
• To what extent do you agree or disagree?

Want  to watch and listen to this lesson?

Click on this video.

Here's a question from a past test paper.

A big salary is much more important than job satisfaction.  

Do you agree or disagree?  

Give reasons for your answer and include any relevant examples from your own knowledge or experience.

Write at least 250 words.

I’ll be using this question to guide you through the process of planning and writing an IELTS opinion essay.

3 Common Mistakes

These three errors are common in IELTS opinion essays.

• Not stating an opinion.
• Giving arguments for both views.
• Not supporting your opinion with clear reasons.

The most common mistake that students make is not giving an opinion. The question will clearly state that you must choose one side of the argument. If you fail to do this, you will get a low score for task achievement.

It doesn’t matter which side of the argument you take or even, that you agree with it. Choose the one you can develop the best argument for.

Make sure that you don’t change your opinion part way through the essay, and don’t give reasons for the opposing view.

Essay Structure

Now let’s look at a simple structure you can use to write opinion essays. It’s not the only possible structure but it’s the one I recommend because it’s easy to learn and will enable you to quickly plan and write a high-level essay.

1)  Introduction

• Paraphrase the question
• Give your opinion
• State two supporting reasons

2)  Main body paragraph 1

• Topic sentence – outline 1st reason for supporting this view
• Explanation – explain this idea
• Example – give an example  or expand the idea

3)  Main body paragraph 2

• Topic sentence – outline 2nd reason for supporting this view
• Example – give an example or expand the idea

4)  Conclusion

• Summarise opinion and key reasons

This structure will give us a well-balanced essay with 4 paragraphs.

We now need some ideas to add into the structure and we’ll have everything we need for our essay.

How To Plan IELTS Opinion Essays

# 1  decide on your opinion.

The question I've chosen to work on is quite straightforward and easy to understand so we don’t need to spend time analysing it. The first task, then, is to decide on our opinion.

Here’s the question again:

A big salary is much more important than job satisfaction.

Do you agree or disagree?  

For this essay, I’m going to disagree with the statement and argue that job satisfaction is more important than a big salary.

# 2  Generate ideas

The second task is to generate some ideas to write about.

Since I‘m going to argue that job satisfaction is more important than a large salary, I need ideas to support this view.

There are several different ways to think up ideas. I cover them fully on the  IELTS Essay Planning  page.

With this particular question, I immediately thought of a couple of examples of situations where job satisfaction did prove to be more important than a high salary, so I’m going to use the ‘example method’ of generating ideas.

Once you’ve thought of an example or two, ideas to include in your essay should come to you easily.

You might want to try this yourself before reading on for my ideas.

Here are my examples and some ideas they generated.

Both the examples are partly true but I've adapted them to better fit the essay. It's fine to do this as the examiner won't check your facts.

• Uncle Barry – boasted about high salary but hated his job. Nervous breakdown – lost job & can’t work.
• Me – gave up teaching. Now enjoy my work and am much more relaxed and happy even though I earn much less money.
• High-salary jobs are generally more stressful
• Stress leads to ill health, both mental and physical
• 40 hours a week at work – a third of the day
• Money doesn’t bring happiness
• Better quality of life
• Sense of fulfilment
• Less stressed – healthier and happier

I’ve got more ideas here than I need so I’m going to pick two to develop in the essay – one for each of the main body paragraphs.

Idea 1 – High-salary jobs are generally more stressful and can lead to ill health.

Idea 2 – Job satisfaction gives a sense of fulfilment.

We’re almost ready to start writing our IELTS opinion essay but first, we have one other small task to do.

# 3  Vocabulary

In an IELTS essay, it’s important to be able to say the same things in different ways, either by paraphrasing and/or using synonyms. During the planning stage, quickly jot down a few synonyms of key words you could use to save you having to stop and think of the right language while you’re writing.

For example:

satisfaction – fulfilment, achievement, sense of accomplishment, content, sense of well-being

salary – income, wages, pay, earnings

important – significant, valued, has more meaning

job – work, employment, position

With that done, we can focus on the first paragraph of the essay – the introduction.

How To Write an Introduction

A good introduction has a simple 3 part structure:

1)  Paraphrased question

2)  Thesis statement

3)  outline statement.

An introduction should:

• Have 2-3 sentences
• Be 40-60 words long
• Take 5 minutes to write

1)  Paraphrase the question

Start your introduction by paraphrasing the question.

     Question:  A big salary is much more important than job satisfaction.

                       Do you agree or disagree?  

Paraphrased question:  

It is argued that earning lots of money has more significance to people than being content in their work.

Note that I’ve used some of the synonyms I listed, although it’s fine to repeat one or two words if you need to. Above all, your language must sound natural.

In IELTS opinion essays, the thesis statement is where you state your opinion. For example,

    Thesis statement:  

    This essay totally disagrees with that statement.

That’s all you need to say.

If you decided to agree with the statement, you would write:

'This essay completely agrees with that statement.'

Finally in the introduction, you must outline the two main points (ideas 1 and 2 above) that you’ll cover in the rest of the essay. Do it in one sentence, or you can add them onto the end of the thesis statement if appropriate.

Outl ine statement:  

I believe that people are increasingly concerned about the risk of stress-related ill-health frequently experienced by people in highly paid positions and they care more about feeling fulfilled at work.

So, let’s bring the three elements of our introduction together.

     Introduction

This introduction achieves three important functions:

• It shows the examiner that you understand the question.
• It acts as a guide to the examiner as to what your essay is about.
• It also helps to keep you focused and on track as you write.

The two ideas in your introduction will become your two main body paragraphs.

Main body paragraph 1  – concerns about the risk of stress-related ill-health

Main body paragraph 2  – a sense of fulfilment at work

How To Write Main Body Paragraphs

The structure of a good main body paragraph has 3 parts:

• Topic sentence
• Explanation

If you can’t think of an example, you can add further supporting ideas but we already have our two examples so that’s not an issue here.

A common problem when writing main body paragraphs for IELTS opinion essays is having too many ideas. Again, we have already chosen the two ideas we are going to develop, so we are all set to start writing.

You can see how important the planning stage is and how it makes the actual writing of the essay far quicker and easier.

Main Body Paragraph 1

The  topic sentence  summarises the main idea of the paragraph. That’s all it needs to do so it doesn’t have to be complicated.

It plays an important role in ensuring that your ideas flow logically from one to another. It does this by acting as a signpost for what is to come next, that is, what the paragraph will be about.

If you maintain a clear development of ideas throughout your essay, you will get high marks for task achievement and cohesion and coherence.

We’ll now take the idea for our first main body paragraph and create our topic sentence.

Main idea 1  – concerns about the risk of stress-related ill-health

Topic sentence:  

Employees earning a large income are generally under significant mental and emotional pressure to perform well and achieve targets.

Next, we must write an  explanation sentence . This explains to the examiner what we mean. It expands on our first idea.

Explanation sentence: 

This causes many individuals to suffer high levels of stress which can result in both mental and physical health problems.

Finally, we add an  example  to support our main point. I thought of this in the planning stage so I have it ready to use.

If you can’t think of a real example, it’s fine to make one up, as long as it’s believable. The examiner isn’t going to check your facts.

Example sentence:

This happened to my uncle. He used to boast about his huge salary but the boss kept increasing his sales targets and in the end, the stress became too great and he had a nervous breakdown. Now he regrets being driven by the money.

That’s the 3 parts of our first main body paragraph complete. Here’s the finished paragraph.

We now follow the same process for our second main body paragraph.

Main Body Paragraph 2

Main idea 2  – Job satisfaction gives a sense of fulfilment.

First, we write the  topic sentence  to summarise the main idea.

Topic sentence:

Having a job that they enjoy doing, and in which they feel valued, is a major concern for most of the modern workforce.

Now for the  explanation sentence  to explain this idea.

Explanation sentence:

A significant number of people are giving up well-paid positions to do jobs which pay less but that they find more enjoyable and less stressful.

Finally, an  example  to support our main point. As before, I thought of this in the planning stage so just need to form it into a couple of sentences.

I am an example of this myself. A year ago I left the teaching profession because the workload had become too great and I am now a gardener. I feel really fulfilled in this work and I am much more relaxed and happy even though I earn far less money.

That’s the 3 parts of our second main body paragraph complete. Here’s the finished paragraph.

Now we need a conclusion and our IELTS opinion essay is done.

How To Write a Conclusion

Conclusions to IELTS opinion essays should do two things:

• Summarise the main points
• State your opinion

This can generally be done in a single sentence.

If you are below the minimum 250 words after you’ve written your conclusion, you can add an additional prediction or recommendation statement.

Our essay currently has 233 words so we’re on target and don’t need this extra sentence but you can learn more about how to write a prediction or recommendation statement for IELTS opinion essays on the Task 2 Conclusions page.

The conclusion is the easiest sentence in the essay to write but one of the most important.

A good conclusion will:

• Neatly end the essay
• Link all your ideas together
• Sum up your argument or opinion
• Answer the question

If you achieve this, you’ll improve your score for both task achievement and cohesion and coherence which together make up 50% of the overall marks. Without a conclusion, you’ll score below band 6 for task achievement.

You can start almost any final paragraph of an IELTS opinion essay with the words:

• In conclusion

        or

• To conclude

Now all you need to do is briefly summarise the main ideas into one sentence.

Here’s a top tip . Go back and read the introduction to the essay because this is also a summary of the essay. It outlines what you are going to write about.

To create a great conclusion, you simply have to paraphrase the introduction. Let’s give it a go.

Introduction:

Here is the same information formed into a conclusion:

That’s it. We’ve completed our essay. Here it is with the 4 paragraphs put together.

    Question:

   A big salary is much more important than job satisfaction.

   Do you agree or disagree?

Finished IELTS opinion essay.

Go through this lesson as many times as you need to in order to fully understand it and put in lots of practice writing IELTS opinion essays from past exam questions. Practice is the only way to improve your skills.

5 More Model IELTS Opinion Essays

This pack contains another step-by-step lesson and  model essay. P lus 4 additional opinion essay questions with model answers.

Carefully created to help you achieve 7+ in your Writing test.

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More help with ielts opinion essays & other task 2 essays.

IELTS Writing Task 2  – T he format, the 5 question types, the 5 step essay writing strategy & sample questions. All the key information you need to know.

The 5 Types of Task 2 Essay   – How to recognise the 5 different types of Task 2 essays. 15 sample questions to study and a simple planning structure for each essay type.

Understanding Task 2 Questions  – How to quickly and easily analyse and understand IELTS Writing Task 2 questions.

How To Plan a Task 2 Essay  – Discover why essay planning is essential & learn a simple 4 step strategy, the 4 part essay structure & 4 methods of generating ideas.

How To Write a Task 2 Introduction  – Find out why a good introduction is essential. Learn how to write one using a simple 3 part strategy & discover 4 common mistakes to avoid.

How To Write Task 2 Main Body Paragraphs  – Learn the simple 3 part structure for writing great main body paragraphs and also, 3 common mistakes to avoid. 

How To Write Task 2 Conclusions  – Learn the easy way to write the perfect conclusion for a Task 2 essay. Also discover 4 common mistakes to avoid.

Task 2 Marking Criteria  – Find out how to meet the marking criteria in Task 2. See examples of good and poor answers & learn some common mistakes to avoid.

The 5 Task 2 Essay Types:

Step-by-step instructions on how to plan & write high-level essays. Model answers & common mistakes to avoid.

   Opinion Essays

   Discussion Essays

  Problem Solution Essays

  Advantages & Disadvantages Essays

  Double Question Essays

Other Related Pages

IELTS Writing Test  – Understand the format & marking criteria, know what skills are assessed & learn the difference between the Academic & General writing tests.

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IELTS Writing Task 2: Opinion Essay Guide

Having a clear knowledge of how you structure your IELTS Opinion Essay Task is an essential skill that will make you attain your desired band score and eventually move to the country you are aiming for. 

Since the IELTS Opinion Essay Task is one of the most challenging parts of the IELTS Writing Test , we have outlined for you everything there is to know about this part of the test, so read on. 

What is IELTS Writing Task 2?

What is the ielts writing opinion essay task  , what are some essential tips for writing the ielts opinion essay, how to structure your opinion essay answer, planning tips for the ielts opinion essay task , good or bad: writing a long introduction, how to use the last 5 minutes of the ielts writing task 2 test, what are some useful phrases in writing opinion essay, helpful ways to improve your ielts writing for a band 7, model essays for ielts opinion essay task, additional faqs – ielts writing task 2 – opinion essays.

The second and final task of the IELTS Writing Test is IELTS Writing Task 2 . It is similar for both the IELTS Academic and IELTS General Training modules. 

You must write at least 250 words and should spend at least 40 minutes (out of the 60 minutes) on this task because it carries more weight.

You must write an essay in response to a point of view, argument, or problem in IELTS Writing Task 2. It assesses your ability to:

• present a logical, relevant, and well-structured argument
• provide facts or examples to back up ideas
• use appropriate language 

There are five types of questions that are posed in the IELTS Writing Task 2 and you will only find out the type of test you should answer on the day of the test itself. That is why prior to taking the IELTS Test , you should make yourself familiar with them. 

The IELTS opinion essay task is also known as ‘agree or disagree’ or argumentative essay and is one of the most widely used types of IELTS Writing Task 2 questions. This type of query necessitates an answer.

A factual statement will nearly always precede the opinion to provide context. The next question will usually be something along the lines of ‘To what extent do you agree or disagree with…’ or anything along those lines.

One of the most common types of essays in the IELTS Writing Task 2 portion is the opinion essay. Usually, this question asks if you agree or disagree with the given topic.

As a result, rather than remaining neutral, you must choose a side. You are not correctly answering the question if you do not express whether you agree or disagree with the given topic.

Here are the most proven tips to help you get high marks in the IELTS opinion essay task. 

• Make the most of your time:

You have an hour (60 minutes) to finish the IELTS Writing Test. Because the IELTS Writing Task 2 is more important for your overall band score , we recommend devoting no more than 20 minutes to Task 1 and 40 minutes to task two. Allow time for planning and double-checking your work. When taking practice examinations, it’s a good idea to stick to a 60-minute time limit.

• Answer the question directly: 

Answer the question in a straightforward manner. Avoid writing an essay on a topic you have already prepared ahead of time. Ensure that your examples and ideas are valid. If you simplify too much and are not particular enough, it will alter how the examiner perceives your ideas.

• Answer all the questions: 

You must carefully evaluate the question to estimate the number of components it contains. To obtain a band 6 or higher, you must answer all portions of the question. Remember that it is critical to take a clear stance in response to the statement to demonstrate that you understand the subject and to maintain that position throughout the essay.

• Use linking phrases: 

You need to begin with an introduction and end with a conclusion. Your ideas must be clearly defined and structured. If you are expected to present both points of view and your viewpoint, begin with your perspective and then move on to the other points of view. The essay might then be finished by returning to your own point of view. This is the most logical order in which these thoughts should be presented.

• Have your essay in paragraphs: 

To separate your writing into various pieces, use paragraphs. The examiner should be able to read your essay easier as a result of this. Make sure each paragraph is well-organized and contains a well-developed topic of at least three sentences. It also shows that you can logically arrange and articulate your thoughts and ideas.

• Make use of unusual vocabulary:

Avoid using old-fashioned words that are not used in everyday language. If you use a synonym, be sure it has the same meaning as the original and does not alter the meaning of the issue. When studying a language, use both common and uncommon words. You may also use phrasal verbs when discussing certain topics or using idiomatic language.

• Avoid using memorized words, phrases, or examples:

Avoid using any memorized words, phrases, or examples in your writing. They do not show off your eloquence in writing. Examiners are well aware of this. Furthermore, because they are vague and do not sufficiently handle a task, they should not be utilized in writing. You should always utilize straightforward language and appropriate word choices to communicate your thoughts properly.

• Make use of a variety of advanced sentence structures:

Using several frameworks, you should accurately explain your ideas and beliefs. Prove to the examiner that you can employ a variety of structures and that your sentences are error-free. In your writing, use a combination of smart and basic sentences.

However, keep in mind that your complicated sentences should not be excessively long or intricate. With perfect capitalization, commas, and full stops, your punctuation should likewise be perfect.

In writing essays, paragraphs are vital because they divide your thoughts into manageable pieces that a reader can grasp. Imagine reading a 250-word IELTS opinion essay in just one long block of text?!

As a result, many basic writing standards such as introductions and conclusions and the premise that each paragraph should contain only one idea apply. This makes it easier for a writer to provide clear information that a reader can comprehend.

Generally, you need to have at least four paragraphs in the IELTS opinion essay task. However, you may opt to have a five-paragraph essay, which is completely fine. 

First Paragraph — Introduction

This paragraph gives the reader a sense of the essay as a whole and leaves an impression on the examiners. The first sentence is the question statement’s paraphrasing. The examiner should be able to recognize if you have fully understood the question by reading this sentence.

As a result, we recommend that you compose this paragraph so that examiners can acquire a clear picture of the essay.

Second Paragraph — 1st Body Paragraph

When composing your body paragraphs, you can choose one of these two options to construct each one: You can either submit two reasons for agreeing or disagreeing or write a single rationale with an example.

The side with which you disagree is discussed in the first body paragraph of the IELTS opinion essay task. Always remember to layout the first body paragraph’s structure before you start writing.

Third Paragraph — 2 nd Body Paragraph

You make an argument for the viewpoint with which you agree in the third paragraph. As a result, always consider either four or two reasons to support your position, each with an example.

Fourth Paragraph — Conclusion

This paragraph sums up your essay and wraps up your supporting points. To create an effective ending, include the thesis from the introduction, but in a paraphrased form to avoid using the same terms twice. Then, summarize the points from your second and third body paragraphs that support your argument.

Complete IELTS Opinion Essay Task:

How you plan and draft your IELTS opinion essay task will dictate the structure of your output. Remember that you only have 40 minutes for this task, and once you start writing, there is no going back. Hence, it is important that you follow the tips below to produce a quality essay. 

Read and Understand the Question: 

You will be asked if you agree or disagree with the question stated. That implies you will have to choose a side. Examiners will not evaluate what you are thinking or what you genuinely believe. They will simply look at the content of your essay.

As a result, after giving the question statement some thought, choose the side on which you have more strong points to discuss, even if you do not favor that side in real life.

Pick the Important Points :

You may have various points to discuss. However, you will not be able to write all of them. Examiners want you to clearly communicate your point of view, backed up with logic and examples. 

Draft the Structure of your Essay :

Your IELTS opinion essay is finished by composing 14 sentences in four paragraphs. It is as easy as that. This is how we write a 4/14 essay.

The structure is simple to remember and apply in the IELTS Writing Test:

• Introduction – 3 sentences

1 st Sentence: Paraphrase the given topic.

2 nd Sentence: Write a thesis statement.

3 rd Sentence: Write an outline sentence.

• 1st Body Paragraph – 4 sentences 

1 st Sent ence: Topic Sentence 1

2 nd Sentence: Explain Topic Sentence 1.

3 rd Sentence: Present logic for Topic Sentence 1, including drawbacks.

4 th Sentence: Give a supportive example for Topic Sentence 1.

• 2nd Body Paragraph – 4 sentences 

1 st Sentence: Topic Sentence 2

2 nd Sentence: Explain Topic Sentence 2.

3 rd S entence: Present logic for Topic Sentence 2, including drawbacks.

4 th Sentence: Give a supportive example for Topic Sentence 2.

• Conclusion – 3 sentences 

1 st Sentence: Summarize the body paragraph 1.

2 nd Sentence: Summarize the body paragraph 2.

3 rd Sentence: Give a final remark summarizing both body paragraphs.

As mentioned earlier, your introductory paragraph should be clear and concise. You are advised to have a maximum of 3 sentences. Do not elaborate too much so that you would not have anything to write in the succeeding paragraphs anymore. Moreover, it is also not recommended that you write your introduction in only one sentence. 

The IELTS opinion essay task requires you to give your opinion in the introduction and conclusion paragraphs. 

Opinion in the Introduction

Which side do you favor when you write your opinion in the initial paragraph of your essay?

Let us imagine you are an ordinary writer who does not show your point of view in the first paragraph. The examiner may interpret your points as they see fit in this situation. The reader also may be perplexed when they read in the last line which side you favor. This may cause you to lose points unnecessarily.

Opinion in the Conclusion

It is critical to write your viewpoint in the conclusion as well, as this is the final pronouncement. Finally, it persuades the examiner that your thinking is valid. However, remember that you should not repeat the terms you have already used in the introduction.

The last 5 minutes of the IELTS Writing Test could mean the difference between a 5 and a 6.5 band score. Utilize it well.

Ensure that by this time, you have finished writing your IELTS Writing Test and that you have enough time to double-check the following:

• Punctuations
• Number of Words 
• Sentence Structures

These may seem minor details, but you would not believe the number of candidates who have failed to recheck their essay and got a low band score. Do not commit the same mistake. 

The use of appropriate words is an important component of effective essay writing. To explain thoughts more effectively, one should continually grow and strengthen one’s vocabulary.

The following are the top words and phrases to know to produce excellent IELTS opinion essays:

Expressing Opinions

• I’d argue that… 
• In my opinion…
• Personally, I believe…
• It appears to me that… 
• I have to admit that…
• As far as I can tell…
• As for me, I believe…
• That is something I cannot deny…
• I’d like to emphasize that…
• In my personal experience…

Proving Arguments

• This is testified by…
• This is evidenced by…
• This establishes that…
• This is attested/proven by…

Expressing General Point of View

• It is commonly stated that…
• According to popular belief…
• It is commonly assumed that…
• It is generally assumed that…
• It is largely agreed upon that…
• It’s a widely held assumption that…

Outlining Facts

• It is evident that …
• The truth is that …
• It is obvious that …
• This shows that …
• There is no doubt that …

Giving Examples

• As an example…
• Take for instance…
• We can see this in…
• A good illustration of this is…
• Evidence for this is manifested in…
• To summarize… 
• In conclusion… 
• In general…
• Taking everything into account…

Preparing for the IELTS Writing Test is not as difficult as you would imagine. It just takes enough practice and preparation.

The good news is that this is not the first time you are writing, and for sure, you already have the knowledge and skills for it. You just need to review and apply them when you take the IELTS Writing Test. 

• Make sure you understand the concepts you are discussing :

“If you won’t be able to make a six-year-old understand it, you don’t comprehend it yourself,” Albert Einstein once stated.

Take time to mentally explain the notion to a six-year-old who lives inside your head before you begin writing. If you want to attain a specific outcome with your writing, consider what that result should be. Have a clear objective in mind before you start writing. Then stay with it.

• Learn how to brainstorm ideas and create an outline:

Unfortunately, having good English grammar and vocabulary is not enough. Because the IELTS examiner is evaluating your ability to generate cohesive and orderly responses, you should practice thinking of themes to write about. As a result, you should practice brainstorming and outlining ideas for your IELTS Writing Task 2 responses.

• Do not go overboard with your explanations:

You should keep things simple if you have taken the effort to organize your thoughts ahead of time.

The goal is to provide readers with just enough information to understand what you are saying without overwhelming them with unnecessary information. If you are getting bogged down with unnecessary details, consider whether each piece of information is necessary to help your reader understand your point. Otherwise, get rid of it.

• Avoid using too many prepositional phrases:

Prepositional phrases make your work overly wordy and difficult. It is a fact. Although prepositions are not difficult to grasp, they do necessitate some explanation. You should get clever about prepositions and strive to simplify them whenever possible. Your writing will gain a much-needed boost in clarity.

• Know your strategy:

Each IELTS Writing task necessitates a distinct strategy.

IELTS Academic Writing Task 1

You need to determine the major patterns and characteristics and rewrite the material from the task in the introduction using synonyms and grammar transformations. Describe only the facts that are relevant to the inquiry, not all of it. In conclusion, summarize the main themes from your body paragraphs.

IELTS General Training Writing Task 1  

You need to analyze the question and brainstorm ideas using bullet points. Design paragraphs by addressing your bullet points, and write the letter.

IELTS Writing Task 2

Rephrase the question in the introduction and construct a thesis statement based on your viewpoint. Write topic sentences outlining your essential points – one for each theme – and use one of them to begin each body paragraph. Use explanations and examples to support the main sentence in the rest of the paragraph; in conclusion, summarize your points.

• Improve your grammatical range and vocabulary:

Spend time reading different materials, such as commercials, articles, manuals, magazines, reports, and sample models from practice exams, in the weeks leading up to test day to learn new vocabulary in varied situations.

Practice making sentences with new words and difficult structures.

• Keep your sentences short and simple:

Long, complex sentences can be written with style by literary experts. It is easier to read shorter, less convoluted sentences. Keep things simple.

However, vary the length of your sentences to create a smooth flow in your writing.

• Practice, practice, practice: 

The best way to enhance your writing is to figure out what makes it weak in the first place and then work on addressing (and eventually preventing) the flaws. You will improve your writing, editing, and proofreading skills as you write, edit, and proofread more. Practice as often as you can. 

Before taking the IELTS Writing Test, you are advised to spend time reading the sample and model responses that receive high marks from the examiner. This will help you strategize and choose which technique to employ when you finally have to take the IELTS Writing Test. 

How Do I Write an Opinion Essay for IELTS?

To write an IELTS opinion essay task, you first need to read and understand the question. Then, you have to plan and draft what you need to include in the essay.

Next, you will write the introduction, body paragraphs, and conclusion of your essay. Make sure you meet the required number of words, at least 250 words. 

Can You Use Quotes, Idioms, or Proverbs in Your Essay?

In the IELTS Writing Test Task 2, you get a high score when you employ appropriate, natural language in the proper context.

As a result, avoid using quotes, idioms, or proverbs in your essays. Because these are not your own words, they are not appropriate for the IELTS Opinion Essay Task. Utilizing them in your essay will lead to low marks. 

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• Essay Task 2

IELTS Writing Task 2: Opinion Essays- Benchmark IELTS

• Essay Types
• Double Question
• Advantage Disadvantage
• Problem Solution
• Essay Length

Opinion essays are a very common writing task 2 essay type. As you would expect from the name, you need to write a well-structured IELTS writing essay topics that give your opinion. We’ve put together a guide with everything you need to know to write a great IELTS writing task 2 opinion essay. Let’s get started!

Table of Contents

1.1 understanding the question, 1.2 example opinion questions.

• Essay Structure for Opinion Essays
• 3.1 Identify key words and phrases

3.2 Organise your ideas

3.3 identify vocabulary, 4.1 introduction, 4.2 main body paragraphs, 4.3 conclusion.

• 5.1 Complete the sample opinion essay

5.2 Opinion Sample Essay

1. opinion essay overview.

An opinion essay is also known as an agree or disagree essay . As with all writing task 2 essays, you will have 40 minutes to write at least 250 words .

Read on to find out how to produce a great opinion essay.

It is important that you first understand what writing task 2 essay question you have been given before you start writing. The type of essay question you get will slightly change the structure of your essay.

Remember, there are five main types of writing task 2 questions:

• Advantage/disadvantage
• Double question
• Problem/solution

You will be given an IELTS statement and a question . Here are some common questions/sentence starters that tell you that you have been given an opinion essay:

• What is your opinion
• Do you think…

To what extent do you agree?

To what extent do you agree or disagree with this statement?

• Discuss both views and give your own opinion.

The main aims of this type of essay are:

• Choose one side of the argument
• To state your opinion about a given topic
• Support your opinion with clear reasons and examples

A common mistake test takers make when writing an opinion essay is that they treat it like an advantage/disadvantage essay and try to write about both sides of the argument in detail (see our guide on advantage/disadvantage essays and compare the difference).

For an opinion essay, you need to pick a side : it does not matter which side of the argument you choose, just pick the one that you can develop the best argument for.

However, you should briefly acknowledge the other side of the argument, and will show you how to do this in your introduction , main body paragraphs, and conclusion .

You should not give reasons to support the opposing argument , only support one side with reasons and examples.

Make it clear to the examiner what your opinion is from the beginning to the end of your essay (this is called a thesis-led approach: leading with your opinion).

Here are some example opinion writing task 2 questions to help you recognize them in the IELTS exam:

Some people think that more money should be spent on protecting endangered species while others think it is a waste of valuable money.

What is your opinion?

Also, read the following IELTS Essay Writing Guides

• IELTS Discussion Type Questions
• Double Question IELTS Essay Topics
• IELTS Advantage Disadvantage Essay Type
• Problem Solution IELTS Writing Task Statement

Systems of funding university education are different from country to country. While some countries charge students for studying at university, others offer university education for free.

Do you think students should pay for higher education?

Every school system in the world includes regular tests and exams, and many people think that it is important for students to take lots of exams.

Children should not start school until the age of six or seven because they need to have more time to play and develop before they go to school.

Scientists and technology experts seem to be more valued by modern society than musicians and artists.

2. Essay Structure for Opinion Essays

Although there is more than one way you could choose to structure your essay, we have provided you with a foolproof structure you can always use for opinion essays to score highly in Coherence and cohesion , as well as address all parts of the task to do well in Task achievement :

3. Planning your Opinion Essay

Don’t skip this step! Taking 5 minutes to plan your essay could be the difference between your desired score and a missed opportunity.

3.1 Identify keywords and phrases

By identifying the topic of your essay, you are making sure that you are going to write about the correct topic and not go off-course. Test takers that rush and panic can make the mistake of writing about a completely different topic to the one they have been asked to write about. Don’t be one of those test taskers and make a plan !

Let’s take a look at the question for our sample answer where we have underlined the topic words:

The topic words are underlined and show the general topic of this essay question is protecting endangered species .

Now that we have identified the topic sentence, we should also look for any other keywords or phrases that give more information about the topic. Look at the words in bold below:

Some people think that more money should be spent on protecting endangered species while others think it is a waste of valuable money .

So this question is not only asking you to give your opinion on protecting endangered species, but also the amount of money that is spent on this cause.

A test taker that had only addressed the first point would likely have scored poorly in Task achievement.

There are so many ways you could choose to organize your ideas. We have chosen to note down our ideas by paragraph:

We give more note taking and idea generation tips in  Master Guide for IELTS writing task 2 .

If any useful IELTS vocabulary for writing comes to mind during the planning process, it is useful to write it down so you don’t forget (remember to cross out any notes or planning before the end of the 40 minutes so the examiner does not mark this as your essay).

4. Writing your Opinion Essay

Paraphrasing means being able to write something in your own words without changing the meaning . This is an essential skill needed for the IELTS exam, especially writing task 2.

There is no one right way to paraphrase an IELTS statement. You could choose to use synonyms or parallel expressions (phrases with more than one word but have the same meaning). You could also change the sentence structure, but make sure it is still grammatically correct. Another paraphrase technique is to change a word class, for example, a noun to a verb form.

Take a look at our example, can you see the main changes we have made?

Although this is a formal essay, you are still allowed the use of the first person ‘I’ and ‘my’, you will need to use this when giving your opinion (just don’t over-do it).

Notice that in this example, the opinion has been clearly stated whilst presenting both sides of the argument :

Opinion: However, my view is that more government funding should be used for wildlife conservation.

Other side of the argument:  It is argued by some that the protection of endangered animals is wasteful.

Not all sample essays will show this, but you can choose to briefly state what your essay will do, for example:

This essay will explain my opinion in more detail.

Now let’s move on to the main body paragraphs.

A topic sentence is usually found at the beginning of your paragraph. This should give the reader the main idea of your paragraph in one sentence.

Here are two examples taken from the sample answer:

• One reason that I believe more money should be spent on the conservation of wildlife is that animals are an essential part of maintaining the health of an ecosystem.
• Another reason to support spending on wildlife protection is that it also benefits humanity.

The start of your sentence indicates to the reader that you are clearly stating a reason for your opinion and that you are going to develop this idea throughout the paragraph.

You could also choose to start your topic sentence with the following structures:

• One reason that I believe…
• One argument in favor of… is that…
• The main reason that I think…
• Another reason to second…. (note that second here means ‘ to agree with an idea ’ )

You could also use the grammatical structure ‘ Not only… but also…’ to avoid repetition and put emphasis on the second reason, for example:

Not only does spending money on conservation help the animal kingdom, but it also benefits society as a whole.

Not only will preventing the extinction of species help the animals themselves, but it will also have a positive effect on the quality of air, water, and agricultural land.

As this is an opinion essay, it is essential that you use a range of phrases to give your opinion. Far too often, candidates just repeat the phrase ‘In my opinion…’ Here are some other sentence starters you can use to impress the examiner

• My point is that…
• I am of the opinion that…
• My argument is that…
• As far as I am concerned,…
• In my view…

Your conclusion is a very important part of your essay. You need to restate your opinion (in different words than your introduction) as well as choose the most convincing argument from your essay.

Remember to also briefly mention the other side of the argument to show the examiner that you understand there are two sides and you have clearly chosen one.

Here is a useful structure to do this:

Although it is true that… on balance I believe that/ I am of the view that/ another opinion phrase)…

And here is the full example from our sample essay :

… although it is true that there are valuable uses for funding that could aid environmental protection, on balance I am of the opinion that governments should invest in the protection of endangered species.

5. Example Opinion Essay and Exercise

Now it’s time to test your knowledge about IELTS writing task 2 opinion essays. We’ve created a model answer, but removed some of the keywords and phrases.

You need to select the correct missing words and complete the model answer. Good luck!

5.1 Complete the Sample Opinion Essay

These days, the number of species facing extinction is growing, and as a result,  a larger number of people are becoming involved in environmental issues.  It is argued by some that the protection of endangered animals is wasteful. However, my view is that more government funding should be used for wildlife conservation. This essay will explain my opinion in more detail.

One reason that I believe more money should be spent on the conservation of wildlife is that animals are an essential part of maintaining the health of an ecosystem. If a species becomes endangered, it signals that an ecosystem is out of balance. As a result, the loss of one species may trigger the loss of others and may lead to irreversible consequences for the animal kingdom.

Another reason to support spending on wildlife protection is that it also benefits humanity. For example, if the ecosystem is out of balance then the health of the environment is also negatively affected, for example, the loss of wildlife can affect the quality of clean water and air for a population. In addition, the fertility of agricultural land may also be reduced with the loss of certain species. Having said that, there are those that argue that this is a costly and inefficient use of public funds. They think that money would be better spent on other schemes such as renewable energy projects.

In conclusion, having looked at the topic in detail, although it is true that there are valuable uses for funding that could aid environmental protection, on balance I am of the opinion that governments should invest in the protection of endangered species. The main reason is that the protection of wildlife will not only benefit the animal kingdom, but also the human race and the environment we inhabit.

2 thoughts on “IELTS Writing Task 2: Opinion Essays- Benchmark IELTS”

Hey. Thanks for a great material. I have one concern though. In the ” common questions in opinion essay” part, you mentioned this question ” Discuss both view and give your opinion.” But isn’t it included to the “Discussion essays”??

Hi, I just wanted to ask this question cuz it made to think about it thoroughly.

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Academic Writing: How to Express Your Personal Opinion

von Öykü Coskun | Donnerstag, November 22, 2018 | Learn , Writing effectively | 2 Kommentare

In certain writing tasks that you are required to do for university, for example essays, you will be asked to give your opinion on the topic at hand. There are several different ways to do this: A distinction is made between expressions and phrases that emphasize your views explicitly and those that reflect your opinion implicitly. In this article, you can find out which expressions are best in which context and how to create variety.

While it is possible to say that, as a general rule, implicit expressions that reflect your opinion in a more subtle way are mostly preferred in academic writing, there are also cases in which it might be useful to overtly state your view by using phrases that contain the personal pronouns “I” and “my” to make clear that it is your point of view that you are focusing on right now. Thus, there is no such rule as “Never include “I” in essays.” The key is to use these kinds of expressions when they suit your purpose, so for instance when you clearly want to distance yourself from a certain view. Moreover, avoiding “I” can lead to awkwardness and vagueness, so  it can sometimes be more effective to use the first person. Personal pronouns unmistakably show when and where exactly you are building on or departing from your sources of information. Thus, they underline the originality of your ideas and views, which, in turn, improves your writing style.

While this only applies to some academic fields and text types, as far as the Humanities and essays or term papers are concerned, it is generally considered appropriate to use the first person, as your instructor will be interested in reading your original analyses and interpretations. But beware: Don’t confuse giving your personal opinion with writing about your personal experience! Your experiences and anecdotes do not have any place in academic term papers whatsoever, whereas they might be included in some contexts for example when you are asked to write a more personal and less academic text in your language classes. To make sure, always ask your instructor.

Moreover, you should be aware of the fact that some expressions more convincingly underline your assertions than others and that your arguments will always need sufficient explanations and defense. Hence, expressions such as “I think that…” or “I believe that…” , which we often find in speech but less in academic writing, are weaker and less convincing than “I assert that…”, “I am convinced that…”, “I have no doubt that…” or “I hold the impression/ view that…”.

Furthermore, we often find the phrases “In my opinion, …” and “In my view, …” in academic writing and professional reports. To a lesser extent, we have expressions such as “To my mind,…” , From my point of view” and “As far as I am concerned” ; These three phrases are also rather used in speech than in writing.

Another useful way of explicitly stating your opinion is to employ structures that contain adjectives, such as “I consider it important/ crucial/ essential/ useful/ likely/ … to …” or “I deem it necessary/ proper/ appropriate/ … to …” . If you are not quite so adamant about your opinion yourself, you can also utilize weaker expressions such as “I am under the impression that …” , “I suppose that …” , “I assume that …” , “I presume that …” or “I conjecture that …” .

Impersonal expressions, on the other hand, reflect your opinion implicitly. Again, there is the possibility to use structures that contain evaluative adjectives, as is the case with phrases like “It is convenient/ difficult/ hard/ impossible/ reasonable/ easy/ … to …” or “It is apparent/ arguable/ doubtful/ obvious/ remarkable/ desirable/ noteworthy/ conceivable/ … that …” .

In your academic texts, you can furthermore employ structures that consist of “It is worth + present participle of a verb + that”, frequently used collocations being “It is worth examining/ investigating/ remembering/ recalling/ noting/ stressing/ pointing out/ emphasizing/ … that …”. There are moreover evaluative adverbs that stress your opinion, examples for this being “Interestingly, …” , “Arguably, …” , “Obviously, …” , “Evidently, …” , and “Surprisingly, …” .

As you can see, there are plenty of possibilities to express your personal opinion in your academic writing tasks and to create variety in doing so. Including different types of phrases and varying expressions while sticking to the requirements of the writing task at hand will improve your overall writing style.

• University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, Writing Center: „Should I Use ‚I‘?“
• Macmillan English Dictionary for Advanced Learners (2007): „E. Expressing Personal Opinions.“ London: Macmillan, IW 15-16.

2 Kommentare

Your approach and research is significant and appreciative.Applause for you..

I found this article extremely helpful. I found myself struggling writing essays when it came to professionally asserting my opinion or thought. This really outlined some great practices!! Thank you.

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An opinion essay.

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The Ultimate Guide to Opinion Writing for Students and Teachers

The Importance of Opinion Writing

Encouraging our students to express their personal opinions is an important part of the learning process; healthy even. To do this effectively, it is equally important that we help them acquire the necessary skills to express these opinions in a reasoned and coherent manner when teaching opinion writing.

Writing is one of the best possible vehicles for our students not only to express their opinions but to explore the strength and validity of those opinions.

CONSIDERATIONS BEFORE WRITING AN OPINION ESSAY

For our students to competently express their opinions in writing, they must first understand the specific requirements of the type of question they are answering. Of course, there are many types of questions and fun opinion writing prompts that are geared towards coaxing personal opinions from a student and each will require its own specific tailored response.

It’s clear that personal opinions permeate a wide range of genres and media. We find opinions everywhere from hotel reviews and infomercials to political commentary and newspaper editorials. But, despite the diversity of forms opinion writing can take, we can helpfully identify some general criteria that will assist our students in navigating the challenge of most opinion writing prompts and questions.

Let’s take a look at some of these criteria in more detail.

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OPINION WRITING CRITERIA TO ADDRESS

1. identify the audience: speak clearly.

Writing is about language and language is about communication; students should understand that we do not write in a vacuum. The purpose of an essay, letter, or any other form of writing we care to name, is ultimately to be read.

This means that it is essential that consideration be given to the character of the intended audience. Also, remind students that when they are writing, the reader is not privy to the inner workings of the writer’s mind. They must make their thoughts explicit in their writing and ensure that these thoughts are expressed in a coherent manner.

The student writer should always avoid making the assumption that the reader knows things that are not expressed explicitly in the writing.

2. Take a Stance: Stand Firm

From the very outset, the student should state their position boldly. More than that, they must stand firm in that opinion throughout the entirety of the piece.

Opinion writing is not about communicating a series of pros and cons or discussing at length the various related advantages and disadvantages, the place for that is not here. The opinion piece should open with a bold statement of opinion that is clearly expressed, and that opinion should be held unwaveringly and reinforced constantly throughout the text.

As with many other writing genres , employing a hook to grab the reader’s attention is good practice too. This hook can take the form of a quotation, an anecdote, a statistic, or even a joke. Whatever form the hook takes, it should reveal the writer’s take on things too.

To summarize, whatever the topic and however the student opens their opinion piece, they should ensure they express their opinion immediately and coherently. There should be no doubt in the reader’s mind as to where the student-writer stands on the issue.

3. Choose Appropriate Evidence: Back It Up

There is no doubt that subjectivity is an important aspect of opinion writing in general. That does not mean, however, that opinions do not need to be substantiated.

Your students will need to recognize that each and every statement of opinion will need to be supported by appropriate evidence. This will also help students to develop their critical reading skills as they will be able to better recognize when unsubstantiated claims are made by other writers. Opinions backed up with evidence help lead the reader along the writer’s pathways of thought; making the writing more convincing as a whole.

This evidence can take a wide variety of forms, ranging from personal anecdotes and quotations to statistics and references to scientific studies. Students should also always be encouraged to choose evidence that is broadly suited to the subject they are writing about.

4. Draw Conclusions: Wrap It Up

In the well-organized piece of opinion writing, as with many other types of extended writing, the writing should be structured in paragraphs. Paragraphs are essential elements of good writing organization.

Generally speaking, an opening paragraph gives way to body paragraphs. These body paragraphs, or development paragraphs, describe in more detail the ideas laid out in the initial opening paragraph by further exploring, explaining, and providing supporting evidence for each point.

The final concluding paragraph serves to close the circle by restating the central points in a closing endeavor to drive home the writer’s opinion.

5. A Word on Words

Writing is an art form. Attention to detail is important. But, it isn’t only important to look at the big picture things like structure, students should be encouraged to shift their focus from the text level down to the word and sentence levels too. In an opinion piece, strong, forceful verbs should be the order of the day. There is little space for passive forms when engaged in the construction of convincing arguments.

Things should be kept interesting too. Students should vary their sentence structures grammatically and in length. Variety is key.

 As always in writing, editing should be emphasized. The editing process polishes the well-wrought opinion piece by putting the final gloss on the student’s work.

The OREO Opinion Writing Process Explained

As with all genres, there’s a lot to remember here and acronyms are a helpful way to commit these important things to memory. Luckily, few things can be easier to commit to memory than the name of a delicious cookie:

O – Opinion

R – Reasons

E – Evidence or Examples

O – Opinion (restated)

This memorable acronym will help students remember some of the main elements of opinion writing as outlined above. But, sometimes the hardest thing for students to do is to get the writing ball rolling.

Opinionated Sentence Starters

Sentence starters provide students with great ways to kick-start their writing. Reminding students of simple ways of introducing opinion sentences can be helpful. Here are a few for ‘starters’ for starters:

●     In my opinion…

●     I think that…

●     It seems to me that…

●     It appears to me…

●     I feel that…

Once the student-writer has effectively expressed their opinion on a matter, they then will need to provide the reader with the reasons for why they think what they think. In an essay, these reasons will usually be found in the body paragraphs or development paragraphs. Normally, these paragraphs will explore a single reason each.

Some helpful sentence starters for introducing these reasons include:

●     One reason I feel this way is…

●     Evidence to support this can be found in…

●     I believe this to evident in…

Opinion Writing Activities for Students

Students will certainly need practice completing sustained pieces of opinion writing, but some of the most valuable activities to help students evolve their opinion writing abilities barely require a pen to be put to paper.

While the following two activities do not require students to engage in extended pieces of writing, the activities below will assist students in grasping some essential concepts. These activities demonstrate good practice through modelling and also encourage dialogue, discussion, and debate as a means to strengthen opinion writing.

Activity 1: Opinion Writing – What Is It?

This exercise is a good follow-up to introductory work outlining the criteria of opinion writing as described above.

●     Start by passing out copies of a piece of opinion writing you have selected to read with the class. Read the text aloud as the students follow along with their copy. The opinion text chosen can come from a wide range of genres, including advertisements, letters, editorials, essays, articles, or reviews.

●     Assign students a talking partner and instruct students to take five minutes to identify the various criteria employed in the text. Encourage students to mark and annotate their copies of the text accordingly. You may even wish to supply students with a checklist compiled from the criteria mentioned previously in this article.

●     As a whole class, discuss how successfully the text fulfills the criteria. What did the writer do well? What could they have done better? You can record their responses on the whiteboard.

The aim of this exercise is for students to hone their critical faculties while internalizing the criteria. This will reap rewards when the students later engage in their own extended opinion writing.

Activity 2: The Collaborative Case

This activity employs collaboration to help students build a stronger case for their opinion on a divisive issue.

●     First, define the parameters of the exercise by presenting an either/or conundrum to the class. This doesn’t have to be overly controversial in nature, just stated in such a way that it forces the students to take one side or another. This could be stated simply as a choice, e.g. Dogs or cats? City or countryside? Beach or Mountains? Sweet or savory?

●     Students then divide into two groups according to their stated preferences. In their groups, they then discuss and compile as many supporting reasons for their choice as they can come up with. As a group, they will discuss the relative merits of each reason, before agreeing on their top five.

●     The groups then share their reasons in a debate format, using arguments and counter-arguments, leading into an open, free-ranging discussion.

The value of this exercise lies in the collaborative and ‘combative’ natures of the exercises. Just as our physical muscles can grow through resistance, so too can the strength and resilience of our opinions and arguments.

This activity can also be used as a lead-in to opinion writing as it works well as a prewriting preparation exercise. The complexity of the issue to be discussed and debated can easily be modified to suit the abilities of the students too.

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OPINION WRITING VIDEO TUTORIALS

These videos from teaching without frills are an excellent starting point for opinion writing. You can view the entire collection here.

  The Wrap Up

Opinion writing is a higher-level skill that makes many demands on our students. It will challenge them to move beyond parroting the facts and figures they have acquired in their learning to formulate their own thoughts on topics they have learned about in class, or in the wider world beyond the school gates.

It will make demands on their skill as writers too. Our students must learn to mold and mechanically manipulate the language on the page to express their beliefs persuasively and effectively. To do this successfully, they will need ample opportunities to practice their writing craft. Once a firm understanding of the structures involved has been established, the student can become more fluid in their expression. They will add art and flair to their craft. But first, they must build on these firm foundations.

OTHER GREAT ARTICLES RELATED TO OPINION WRITING

Top 5 Persuasive Writing Techniques for Students

5 Top Persuasive Writing Lesson Plans for Students and Teachers

How to Write Perfect Persuasive Essays in 5 Simple Steps

23 Persuasive writing Topics for High School students

How to Write a Winning Debate Speech

Free IELTS lessons signup

• Academic practice
• General practice
• Task 1 Academic
• Task 1 General
• Task 2 (essay)

IELTS Writing Task 2 - giving opinion

In this guide you'll learn how to answer IELTS writing task 2 questions that ask you to give your opinion . This type of questions is very similar to agree/disagree questions : it states two opposite views and asks you to give your opinion .

In this lesson you will see IELTS writing task 2 sample question + model answer and learn

• how to choose your opinion
• how to generate arguments
• how to give a band 9 answer for giving opinion question

IELTS giving opinion question

Let’s look at an example of IELTS writing task 2 question that asks you to give your opinion:

You should spend about 40 minutes on this task.

Some people believe that violence on television and in computer games has a damaging effect on the society. Others deny that these factors have any significant influence on people's behaviour. What is your opinion?

Write at least 250 words

Choose your opinion & generate arguments

First of all, you need to choose your opinion out of the two given ones . For the task above, you need to choose from these opinions:

• violence in media has a damaging effect on the society
• violence in media doesn’t have a damaging effect on the society

Then, you have to generate your arguments for the chosen opinion . Let’s figure out some supporting points for each of the given opinions:

• people often copy actions they see on TV
• violent video games teach people that aggressiveness is normal in everyday life
• you have an example of the connection between violence in media and social violence
• people act from their motives, regardless what they see on the television
• video games and television can reduce social violence by providing a safe outlet for aggressiveness
• you have never seen the connection between violence in media and social violence

For our essay, we’ll choose the second opinion.

How to answer this task?

Introduction

Paraphrase the statement (sentence 1) and give your own opinion (sentence 2):

These days, the amount of violence in media is growing. While some people argue that this trend will undoubtedly lead humans to dangerous future, others claim that it has no damaging effect on the society. I believe that in most cases media violence doesn't affect people's behavior.

Body paragraphs

Describe each argument to support your opinion in a separate paragraph. Your essay should have 2-3 body paragraphs. Use linking structures , vocabulary to write essays and some words from academic wordlist :

Firstly, I think that people act from their motives, regardless what they see on the television. That is to say, if someone intends to do harm to somebody, that is not because of watching TV or playing computer games, but due to that person's character and education. Although it is generally considered that violent media accustoms viewers to cruelty, I doubt this opinion. In my view, reasonable and intelligent people treat others humanely irrespective of what they see or hear in fictional stories. Moreover, video games and television may even reduce social violence by providing a safe outlet for aggressiveness. In other words, truculent people may fight in virtual reality instead of evincing their combative spirit in real world. This may not only help those people, but also reduce the level of social violence in long-term perspective. Finally, despite many claims and assumptions about negative effects of television and computer games I have never seen any proven connection between violent media and illegal activities in social life.

In the conclusion paragraph briefly summarize what you have written and restate your opinion:

Taking everything into consideration, I would say that violence in contemporary media has no substantial influence on people's behavior. Television and computers are not the main factors that shape personal character, and they can even be useful in reducing the level of violence.

Model answer

Firstly, I think that people act from their motives, regardless what they see on the television. That is to say, if someone intends to do harm to somebody, that is not because of watching TV or playing computer games, but due to that person's character and education. Although it is generally considered that violent media accustoms viewers to cruelty, I doubt this opinion. In my view, reasonable and intelligent people treat others humanely irrespective of what they see or hear in fictional stories.

Moreover, video games and television may even reduce social violence by providing a safe outlet for aggressiveness. In other words, truculent people may fight in virtual reality instead of evincing their combative spirit in real world. This may not only help those people, but also reduce the level of social violence in long-term perspective.

Finally, despite many claims and assumptions about negative effects of television and computer games I have never seen any proven connection between violent media and illegal activities in social life.

(255 words)

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Scaffolding an Opinion Writing Essay With Frames and Templates

Teaching opinion writing to your 3rd, 4th, or 5th grade students soon?  Use the sentence starters and paragraph frames below in your lessons to help students structure their writing, use transitional words, stay on topic, and support their opinions.

Templates like the examples below are a great way to introduce opinion writing.  The hope is that eventually, students will go on to write without a provided outline and add a little of their own personality to their writing, but starting off with a clear structure helps students learn to become better writers.

Start Small - With Opinion Writing Sentence Starters or Frames

3rd, 4th, and 5th grade students love giving their opinions, so help them structure their opinions with sentence starters and frames. This is a great way to introduce opinion writing and doesn't frustrate students.

Providing structure is especially beneficial for your ELL and low language students, but ALL students can improve their writing with this scaffolding.

Some example sentence starters are below.  Depending on the topic being discussed and the opinion being shared, not all sentence frames will work in all situations.  Adapt them for your particular scenario!

Example Sentence Starters

• In my opinion, _____ is better than _____ because _____.
• The best thing about _____ is _____.
• I am strongly against _____ because _____.
• Although some people believe _____, I believe _____.
• Ever since _____, I have believed _____.

Using a Paragraph Template or Frame

Example paragraph frames.

In my opinion, __________ is better than __________ because __________.  For example, _______________.  Furthermore, _______________.  Clearly, _______________ is the worse option.

I prefer __________ because __________.  For instance, _______________.  Also, _______________.  Finally, _______________.

Opinion Writing Essay Template / Structure / Outline

Going from writing paragraphs to writing an entire essay can be overwhelming for upper elementary students - and middle school students as well!

Modeling how to write an opinion essay is an essential first step.  (My Scaffolded Opinion Writing Resource includes a teacher model to make this easy for you.)

After modeling an opinion essay, provide students with an opinion writing template/outline to help them structure their own writing.  This will help students stay on topic, use transitional words, and provide support for their opinions.  And, most importantly, it will keep students from feeling overwhelmed and frustrated.

If you know your students would benefit from this type of scaffolding but don’t have the time to create it yourself, check out my Scaffolded Opinion Writing Resource.

It walks students through the writing process with support each step of the way. This resource also provides a model essay so that you can model expectations for your students. Plus, it can be used over and over again with different topics.

If you found these opinion writing tips to be useful, then you will probably like these tips for teaching students how to write a compare and contrast essay. 

Want a Compare and Contrast Freebie?

Download these reading passages with a compare and contrast activity for free and use it to today!

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Classroom Q&A

With larry ferlazzo.

In this EdWeek blog, an experiment in knowledge-gathering, Ferlazzo will address readers’ questions on classroom management, ELL instruction, lesson planning, and other issues facing teachers. Send your questions to [email protected]. Read more from this blog.

4 Effective Instructional Strategies That Work for Math, Writing, and More

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What teacher isn’t on the lookout for new and effective instructional strategies?

In this multipart series, educators will share their “nominations” for those teaching strategies that can be effective in all content areas.

My personal choice is inductive teaching, which you can learn more about here .

Here are what today’s guests suggest ...

‘Thinking Routines’

Abeer Ramadan-Shinnawi, M.Ed., is a veteran social studies educator, school leader, teacher coach, and now program director for Re-Imagining Migration. She is also an educational consultant that focuses on the needs of Arab and Muslim youth:

Tapping into students’ social-emotional learning can be a difficult task when creating lessons. Many times teachers have created a lesson that is very engaging, crosses all the checks for a high-level lesson, but then falls short of knowing how to tie all of the learning together. That is not uncommon for educators, especially when they are always looking for new ways to engage their students.

One instructional strategy that has saved me a lot of time and effort that I have used and still use today that can be applied across multiple content areas is Harvard’s Project Zero Thinking Routines . These routines are backed by research, can be used across multiple content areas, and create depth to any classroom activity along with creating space for students to focus on their emotions to provide navigation into a discussed topic. The Thinking Routines are divided into types of thinking categories, which makes finding the right type of routine to fit your activity easy to manage. The Thinking Routines can be used in a group setting, individual work, or as an exit ticket. There is no limit as to how to implement the various routines, but here are two of the best that I would recommend:

1. The 3 Whys - This routine helps center the topic into the student’s world. Students, especially younger students may have a difficult time connecting with the content so using this routine would allow students to dig deep to find the connection. The 3 Whys are: Why might this [topic, question] matter to me? Why might it matter to people around me [family, friends, city, nation]? Why might it matter to the world?

2. See-Feel-Think-Wonder - Social-emotional learning can take place in many forms. Using this routine will help students build the bridge of empathy but also understanding why curiosity is important to learning. This routine has students break down their own perceptions from what is being taught and also allows them space to ponder other feelings, ideas, or thoughts that may surface. It also uses the following as a strategy to reach that depth in a student’s own understanding: See What do you see? Feel What feelings emerge for you as you look at this piece? Think What does this piece make you think about? Wonder What do you wonder about this piece?

These are just two of the many routines that can be utilized in many classrooms across many contents. As an educator, my advice would be to find a few routines that you enjoy teaching, perfect them, then move on to more. There is no shortage of finding an engaging method to help your students learn, so why not work smarter and not harder by using Project Zero Thinking Routines into your next class session.

Graphic Organizers

After teaching English for over 20 years, Donna L. Shrum is now teaching ancient history to freshmen in the Shenandoah Valley of Virginia. She remains active in the Shenandoah Valley Writing Project and freelance writing for education and history magazines:

Envision a small stone cottage from 16th-century France tucked away in the corner of a field with bees buzzing the lavender at the door. You walk inside and bemoan all the cleaning and the stones that have tumbled to the ground, letting in chinks of light.

With some sturdy scaffolding, you build it back to serviceability, leading to many lazy afternoons in the pleasure of its company. This is how I see the learning of my freshmen students arriving at my door after the wreckage of middle school. I call them my “COVID babies.” The cliche “learning loss” irritates me because they didn’t lose learning. They couldn’t lose something they never had. Like the cottage, they have gaps to fill and rooms to sweep, but the prior years haven’t been a total loss, and this year has been one for repairs. Having taught English for over 20 years before returning to history, I know the power of graphic organizers and that they can be used in every subject area (yes, math, even you).

The lovely thing about all types of graphic organizers is that they are freely available all over the internet. Our county has focused on writing across the curriculum this year. For years, I have remediated students who are struggling with writing, even up until their graduation day. The special education teachers in my early years confirmed graphic organizers are life rafts for students. These days, we need to use all the wisdom we can get from the special ed. teachers to help our struggling students.

To incorporate writing into my history curriculum, I provided graphic organizers at every step. When the time came to write an essay, I handed out a graphic organizer with more than five areas to fill because I never want students to think the five-paragraph essay is a natural, organic entity. Above each area of the organizer was a guiding question they could answer to formulate the paragraph. A 2020 study shows that doing it by hand rather than on the keyboard will light up more neurons (Askvik, van der Weel, van der Meer), so this organizer was on paper. (One caveat is to tell them to photograph the organizer at the end of each workshop because my “COVID babies” lost papers like the little flower girl leading the wedding procession.)

Some students freely wrote with a glance at the organizer and some organized on the computer. The majority used the organizer and were surprised at how easy it was to express their thoughts when they organized them. They had told me that eliminating accountability for state writing tests in middle school had led to less writing instruction, which I’d expected, so the last time they’d made a concerted effort to organize essay-length writing was in elementary school.

As the semester ends, and I look back with utter mental exhaustion, as always, I question if everything I’ve done is meaningful and helpful. Last week, I met a parent for an IEP meeting who said, “I’ve been letting my daughter’s English teacher for next semester know that the graphic organizers you provided for writing the essays in history class made her successful for the first time in writing an essay.” This easily provided scaffolding made all the difference.

In high school, we may sometimes regard graphic organizers as too basic or something they’ve shed on their path to high school and no longer need. Especially since they’ve emerged from the recent academic tunnel, graphic organizers are the scaffolds all our “COVID babies” need to rebuild with the intellectual blocks they’ve salvaged from the storm. The pieces of treasure they’ve gathered may have suffered a sea-change, but, if we can help them organize, those building blocks are waiting to coalesce into something rich and strange.

‘Turn, Talk, and Share’

Kanako Suwa (she/her) is a queer, multilingual TCK (Third Culture Kid)turned international educator, currently working at Chiang Mai International School as the EAL coordinator. You can follow her on Twitter at @kanakosuwa:

As an English-as a second language specialist, the strategy that I use the most frequently and with success is “Turn, Talk, and Share.” This is an extension of the well-known “Turn & Talk” strategy that adds an element of active listening and peer check-in. This strategy can be used in any content at all age groups, whether in a Grade 1 science lesson or a Grade 11 AP seminar, and is really simple to implement. After explaining instructions for an activity or introducing a new concept, ask students to turn to a classmate and take turns talking about what they heard and understood.

The traditional “Turn & Talk” ends here, but I challenge you to add on the “Share” aspect. This can be done in two levels. One: Have students share with the class what they said to their partner. Two: Have students share what their partner said to them. With level one, you are inviting students to share their own understanding, which may be helpful for everyone in the class to listen to. Especially in the case of EAL students, the same concept explained in multiple different ways, which can be considered to be a part of “multiple exposure,” can help solidify understanding.

Level two requires more effort from the students. This involves teachers asking students to share what their partner said, either verbatim or as a summary. This gives partners the chance to share, negotiate, and solidify their understanding—sometimes, partners listening will notice that there is a misunderstanding and will correct the other. Both partners may admit to not understanding and will be able to discuss without feeling like they are the only one who didn’t understand. And by discussing and co-constructing meaning before they share with the rest of the classroom, you can ensure that students have adequate understanding before you move on.

In addition to checking for understanding, Turn, Talk, and Share helps students build foundational skills for learning—active listening, negotiation of meaning, collaboration, and summarizing, to name a few. For example, while summarizing is generally considered to be a literacy skill, students should also be practicing the skill of summarizing by listening and summarizing lab findings from a science class. Providing transdisciplinary opportunities to practice critical skills is crucial in helping students apply these skills beyond one content area.

Finally, by having students talk to each other and collaboratively create meaning, you, as the teacher, can ensure that there is a shared understanding of concepts and activities in your classroom!

‘Preassessment’

Cindy Garcia has been a bilingual educator for 18 years and is currently a districtwide specialist for bilingual/ESL mathematics. She is active on X @CindyGarciaTX and on her blog:

The best instructional strategy that I have used is preassessment. During my first 1.5 years as a teacher, I found myself running out of time. I didn’t have enough time to facilitate all of the lessons that I had planned for a unit before needing to move on to the next unit. I found myself cutting important tasks and activities from the end of my units. I noticed that my instruction was surface level and we were not going deep enough. I was spending most of the time on prerequisite skills or skills from the previous grade level rather than on grade-level content.

For example, a 3rd grade math standard was telling time to one minute. I wanted to make sure that my students had a solid foundation. I spent too long on making sure my students knew the parts of a clock, telling time to the hour, telling time to the half-hour, and telling time to the five minutes. Once I started preassessing my students, I had a lot more time to spend on rigorous grade-level content.

My preassessments were very informal. Before starting each unit, I would show a picture or sample problem from the previous grade level that was aligned to the current topic. Students would solve the problem or create a web explaining everything they knew. I analyzed the student work and I was able to glean a lot of important information. I learned what vocabulary they had internalized. I learned what strategy or tools they were familiar with. I learned what they already knew and what gaps they might have.

Preassessments gave me the evidence I needed to not start each unit focusing on prerequisite skills. Most of the time I was able to get started further along in the unit. I was also able to be proactive because I had a better idea of where students might get stuck. I had just in time supports such as manipulatives, graphic organizers, visuals, and sentence frames ready for my students.

Thanks to Abeer, Donna, Kanako, and Cindy for contributing their thoughts.

They answered this question of the week:

What is the best instructional strategy that you have used that can be applied across multiple content areas?

Consider contributing a question to be answered in a future post. You can send one to me at [email protected] . When you send it in, let me know if I can use your real name if it’s selected or if you’d prefer remaining anonymous and have a pseudonym in mind.

You can also contact me on Twitter at @Larryferlazzo .

Just a reminder; you can subscribe and receive updates from this blog via email . And if you missed any of the highlights from the first 12 years of this blog, you can see a categorized list here .

The opinions expressed in Classroom Q&A With Larry Ferlazzo are strictly those of the author(s) and do not reflect the opinions or endorsement of Editorial Projects in Education, or any of its publications.

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