Before writing anything, students should first brainstorm and organize thoughts in an outline. Outlines are great organizational tools for formal paper writing. When students begin with a well-organized outline, the final draft will be much better organized. The outline should address the key elements of the paper, including the substance of the introduction, the main points of each succeeding paragraph and the thrust of the conclusion.
The majority of formal papers require a thesis statement, which should be placed in the introduction. Each teacher has different preferences, but most good introductions have a few lead sentences, a thesis statement and a final, transitional sentence. Transitional sentences are important, helping set up the next paragraph. This avoids choppiness and helps make the paper flow.
The body is generally comprised of several paragraphs that support the thesis statement in the introduction. Each paragraph gives the student another opportunity to introduce facts in support of the thesis statement. The conclusion is the final paragraph in which the thesis statement is reiterated and a few key facts from the body are included to support the conclusion. A good stylistic technique is to set forth a sentence that reiterates the thesis statement without quoting it verbatim.
Many middle school teachers require certain formal elements as well. For example, the assignment might call for a certain font — such as Times New Roman — 1-inch margins, double-spacing and indentation. It is important for students to follow these guidelines, since getting in the habit of following essay instructions is crucial to academic success. Lastly, if the formal paper is a research paper, reputable sources are a must and following the instructions regarding how to cite those sources is also important.