Grade by Grade
Writing · Writing: Planning, Drafting, Revising and Publishing

The Literary Essay II: Introductions, Conclusions, Alternative Readings and the Full Draft

2.1 2.7 2.4About 75 minutes
Learning goals
  • I can write an introduction that moves from a hook, through a bridge, to my thesis.
  • I can connect body paragraphs with bridges that echo one idea and turn to the next.
  • I can present an alternative reading fairly and respond to it with evidence.
  • I can write a conclusion that echoes, synthesizes and extends, and check my draft against the achievement chart categories.

Words to know

hook
An opening sentence that draws the reader into the essay's idea.
bridge (introduction)
The sentences that give the title, form and context between the hook and the thesis.
transition
Words or sentences that show how one idea connects to the next.
alternative reading
A different interpretation of a text, which a strong essay acknowledges and answers.
synthesize
To combine ideas to show how they work together.
achievement chart
Ontario's four assessment categories: Knowledge and Understanding, Thinking, Communication, Application.
criteria
The standards a piece of work is judged by, usually listed in a rubric.

Building the whole house

In the last lesson you built a strong thesis and a body paragraph about "Notes on the Fridge." Now you will put a complete essay together: an introduction that leads the reader to your thesis, body paragraphs that connect to each other, a paragraph that takes on a different reading of the story, and a conclusion that leaves the reader with something to think about. You will also learn to draft to criteria, the way your teacher will mark it.

The introduction: hook, bridge, thesis

  1. Hook: open with an idea related to the story's insight, not with the plot. Avoid Have you ever...? and dictionary definitions. Some of the most important conversations in a family never happen out loud.
  2. Bridge: give the title and form and just enough context for a reader who has read the story. In the short story "Notes on the Fridge," a teen and a parent who works night shifts communicate almost entirely through notes left on the kitchen fridge. (If the author is named, give the full name here and the last name afterward.)
  3. Thesis: your claim, often as the last sentence of the introduction.

An introduction usually narrows from a general idea to your specific claim.

The thesis thread runs through the whole essayIntroduction: hook → bridge → THESISBody 1 topic sentence: the notes as a motifBody 2 topic sentence: setting and the paper quiltBody 3 topic sentence: the ending's paradoxAlternative reading + responseConclusion: echo thesis → synthesize → so what?thesis
Every topic sentence connects back to the thesis, and the conclusion returns to it. If a paragraph does not connect to the thread, it does not belong in this essay.

Bridges between paragraphs

Transitions are not just words like Furthermore stuck on the front of a paragraph. The strongest transitions echo the idea that ended the last paragraph and turn to the new idea. This shows the reader how your points build on each other.

A bridge between body paragraphsEnd of Body 1"...connection is built throughsmall, repeated acts ratherthan one dramatic moment."Start of Body 2"Those small acts build to onedramatic image: the fridgedoor on the first snowy morning."Body 2 echoes the last idea of Body 1 (small acts), then turns to a new one (one dramatic image).
The echo (small acts) connects the paragraphs; the turn (one dramatic image) introduces the new point. This is much stronger than starting Body 2 with Secondly.

The alternative reading

Grade 10 essays get stronger when they show you have considered another interpretation and can respond to it. This is the literary-essay version of a counter-argument.

Some readers might see the final one-word note as a return to the narrator's earlier distance, since "Yes" is almost as short as "Ok." However, the story itself calls it "the one that says the most." Unlike "Ok," which ended conversations, "Yes" accepts an invitation to talk face to face, so its brevity signals trust rather than distance.

Use fair wording (some readers might argue), state the other reading accurately, then use evidence to explain why your reading is stronger. It can be its own paragraph or part of your final body paragraph.

The conclusion: echo, synthesize, extend

  1. Echo the thesis in fresh words (never copy it).
  2. Synthesize: show how your points work together. Do not list them again one by one.
  3. Extend: answer So what? Why does this insight matter beyond the story? Connect it to readers' lives or to a larger idea, without adding a brand-new argument.

"Notes on the Fridge" suggests that closeness does not always require being in the same room. The notes grow from instructions into conversation, the paper quilt gathers months of small kindnesses into one image, and the final "Yes" turns all that writing into an invitation. In a time when many families keep different schedules, the story reminds readers that small, steady messages can keep a connection warm until people find their way back to the same table.

Drafting to criteria

Your teacher marks using Ontario's achievement chart, which has four categories. Knowing them helps you check your own draft:

CategoryWhat it looks like in a literary essay
Knowledge and UnderstandingAccurate understanding of the text; correct terms (motif, symbol, irony)
ThinkingAn insightful, arguable thesis; analysis that goes beyond the obvious; an alternative reading
CommunicationClear organization, transitions, formal voice, correct conventions, MLA format
ApplicationUsing evidence effectively; connecting the insight beyond the text; using techniques learned in class
The four achievement chart categories applied to a literary essay. Your teacher's rubric will describe each level in detail.

Writing an in-class essay

Many Grade 10 classes write at least one literary essay in class under a time limit. Spend about the first 10 to 15 per cent of the time planning: thesis, three topic sentences, two pieces of evidence for each. Write the body first if the introduction will not come. Save the last few minutes to reread for missing words and tense shifts.

Worked example

Let's assemble and check a full essay plan

Create the full plan for a four-paragraph-body essay on "Notes on the Fridge" and check it against the criteria.

  1. Introduction: Hook: Some of the most important conversations in a family never happen out loud. Bridge: title, form, situation. Thesis: the growing notes trace the narrator's shift from distance to connection, suggesting that small, steady acts of communication can hold a family together.
  2. Body 1, motif: "Ok." → questions → "one line, then two." (Analysis from the last lesson.)
  3. Body 2, setting and symbol: Bridge sentence from Body 1. Evidence: the dark November evenings and the radio left on "so the house sounds full"; the fridge that "hums... like it is waiting"; the "paper quilt" on the first snowy morning. Analysis: loneliness gives way to warmth; a quilt is many small pieces made over time.
  4. Body 3, the ending: Evidence: "Let's talk the old-fashioned way" and "Yes." Analysis: the paradox of the shortest note; the move from paper to presence.
  5. Body 4, alternative reading: "Yes" as a return to distance; response with evidence ("the one that says the most").
  6. Conclusion: echo, synthesize the three techniques, extend to families with different schedules.
  7. Check against the achievement chart: Knowledge: terms named correctly. Thinking: arguable thesis plus alternative reading. Communication: bridges planned between paragraphs; present tense; formal voice. Application: insight extended beyond the story.

A complete plan where every paragraph connects to the thesis thread, plus a self-check against all four achievement chart categories before drafting.

Hands-on activity

Build a bridge, then test it aloud

You need: the body paragraph you wrote in the last lesson's activity (or the model paragraph), paper and a family member.

  1. Write the first sentence of a second body paragraph that echoes the last idea of the first paragraph and turns to a new idea.
  2. Write an introduction (hook, bridge, thesis) and a conclusion (echo, synthesize, extend).
  3. Write two sentences presenting an alternative reading and your response.
  4. Read the introduction, bridge sentence and conclusion aloud to your family member. Ask: Could you tell what my essay argues? Did the paragraphs feel connected?

What to look for: a hook that is about the idea (not the plot), a bridge that repeats a key word or idea from the previous paragraph, and a conclusion that is not a copy of the introduction.

Just for fun

A conclusion that only says In conclusion, in this essay I have concluded my conclusions is technically a conclusion. It is also technically a circle.

Your turn

1

Put the parts of an introduction in order: thesis, hook, bridge.

2

Why is Have you ever left a note on a fridge? a weak hook?

3

Write a bridge sentence that moves from a paragraph about the dark November evenings to a paragraph about the first snowy morning.

4

What three things does a strong conclusion do?

5

Which achievement chart category includes an insightful thesis and an alternative reading?

6

What wording can introduce an alternative reading fairly?

More practice: warm-up

1

Where does the thesis usually go?

2

Name the four achievement chart categories.

3

True or false: a conclusion should introduce a new main argument.

4

What is a bridge in an introduction?

5

About how much of an in-class essay's time should go to planning?

More practice: on your own

1

Improve this conclusion: In conclusion, the notes are a motif, the setting is important, and the ending is a paradox. That is why the story is good.

2

Write an alternative-reading sentence and response about Mom: some readers think she is distant because she is always at work.

3

A body paragraph starts: Secondly, the setting is important. Rewrite it as a bridge plus a claim.

4

Explain how an alternative reading can make an essay more convincing, not less.

5

A student's introduction is 3 sentences of plot summary followed by the thesis. Suggest a revision.

Challenge

1

Write a complete introduction (3 to 4 sentences) for an essay arguing that the fridge itself is the most important symbol in the story.

2

Write a full alternative-reading paragraph (5 to 6 sentences) on whether the ending is completely happy or only hopeful.

3

Using the achievement chart, explain which category each problem belongs to and how to fix it: (a) the essay calls the fridge a metaphor when it is a symbol; (b) quotations are dropped in without explanation; (c) the conclusion repeats the introduction word for word.

Check your understanding

Quiz

1.

Which is the best hook for an essay on "Notes on the Fridge"?

2.

A strong transition between body paragraphs usually:

3.

An alternative reading paragraph should:

4.

Which is not part of a strong conclusion?

5.

Using correct literary terms is part of which achievement chart category?

6.

In an in-class essay, what should you do first?

For parents and teachers

Big idea: This lesson completes the literary essay (2.1) and focuses on producing a full draft to criteria (2.7), including transitions between ideas (2.4). The Grade 10 additions are bridge transitions and the alternative reading.

How to help: ask your teen to read you just their thesis and the first sentence of each body paragraph. Do they connect? Then ask: What might someone who disagrees say? Ask to see the teacher's rubric and talk through what each category means.

Common difficulties: introductions full of plot summary; transitions like Firstly/Secondly with no real connection; conclusions that repeat the introduction; leaving the alternative reading out because it feels like weakening the argument (it strengthens it).