Elaboration!
Tips to assist you when writing your informational essay.
With elaboration you always want to give examples!
For example, if one of my sentences was:
Ruth Wakefield was the inventor of chocolate chip cookies.
You want to make this plain sentence more interesting so you could add in a definition. Here I am just giving the definition of Ruth herself.
Ruth Wakefield, the inventor of chocolate chip cookies...
To add on now you could add in a fact about your topic.
I am just using the fact that Ruth actually discovered chocolate chip cookies by accident.
Ruth Wakefield, the inventor of chocolate chip cookies came up with the idea of the cookies by accident!
Now, this sentence is okay but if you want to take it to the next level, add an example.
Here I am going to add in the story of how she discovered the recipe of the cookie. Don't forget to cite your source!
Ruth Wakefield, the inventor of chocolate chip cookies came up with the idea of the cookies by accident! "One late afternoon in 1933 Ruth Wakefield was preparing her Butter Drop do batter for the evening guests. Much to her dismay, she discovered that she was out of this ingredient and she became apprehensive, wondering what she was to do when her guests came to the inn's restaurant expecting the "Butter Drop Dos" at the conclusion of their meals. She had to think fast. As she looked around the kitchen she caught sight of a few Nestles Semi-sweet Chocolate Bars on a sideboard table. Thinking fast, she decided to break the chocolate bars into small pieces and added them to the batter" (http://historyspaces.blogspot.com/2012/03/history-of-chocolate-chip-cookie-and.html ).
See how much more interesting this simple sentence is now! Just be sure to conclude your sentence. I am just going to give a little overview/summary for the ending.
"Ruth Wakefield, the inventor of chocolate chip cookies came up with the idea of the cookies by accident! One late afternoon in 1933 Ruth Wakefield was preparing her Butter Drop do batter for the evening guests. Much to her dismay, she discovered that she was out of this ingredient and she became apprehensive, wondering what she was to do when her guests came to the inn's restaurant expecting the "Butter Drop Dos" at the conclusion of their meals. She had to think fast. As she looked around the kitchen she caught sight of a few Nestles Semi-sweet Chocolate Bars on a sideboard table. Thinking fast, she decided to break the chocolate bars into small pieces and added them to the batter" (http://historyspaces.blogspot.com/2012/03/history-of-chocolate-chip-cookie-and.html ). Therefore, you can see that Ruth Wakefield was the inventor of chocolate chip chip cookies and actually made the first batch chocolate chip cookies by accident!
Does your information go along with your subtopics?
I absolutely love dogs. I once saw a dog dressed like a donut and I liked the costume idea! Ever since, dogs have been my favorite animal and I've been researching some really cool facts about dogs that I want to share with you!
You've explained and so now your finished. If your sentence happens to be like mine, you could even use it as an intro!
Can't say....
Could say...
Would be the best thing to say...
ALWAYS CITE YOUR SOURCE!
If your text is from a book, website, or catalog, use the format of parentheses, author's last name, comma, page number, parentheses, and a period at the end.
When you're done it should look like this:
"Your text here" (Baker, 47).
If you are citing a video, use the format of parentheses, the video you're watching, the length of time the information you're using comes up on, parentheses, and a period at the end.
When you're done it should look like this:
"Your text here" (National geographic, 2:59-3:04)
Now that you know how to cite your source, you need to use this format anytime you use someone else's information.
Make your writing fun, interesting, understandable, and emotional!
Save the sea turtles!
You need to add in why they should care!
Save the sea turtles because Sea turtles often drown when caught in fishing gear, both nets and longlines. Also, coastal development can destroy important nesting sites, impact coral reefs, and artificial light from houses and other buildings attracts hatchlings away from the ocean. One of the problems is us! Pollution like plastic bags are often mistaken for food such as jellyfish and ingested, which blocks their intestines and potentially kills them.
This gives a sense of emotion towards your audience and they will definitely like your writing piece A LOT more!
Also when you're writing, make sure that you make it understandable. You could have amazing facts and great ideas but if you can't get them through to your audience, then it doesn't work out how you planned. To make sure your writing is understandable, read through it many times. One thing I recommend is to copy and paste your writing and then put it into Google Translate and listen so you are more prone to catch a mistake. Sometimes when reading through it you can't catch little mistakes so this tip could help you out in a situation like that!