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ELA 4: Conclusions, Famous Last Words 245 Views


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Description:

In this video, we'll learn about how not to jump to conclusions. They should be well thought out and carefully composed, just like the rest of your essay. 

Language:
English Language

Transcript

00:04

[Coop and Dino singing]

00:13

At the end of the classic film Casablanca, Humphrey Bogart utters the now-famous line, [Bogart standing with security guard]

00:18

“Louie, I think this is the beginning of a beautiful friendship.”

00:21

At the end of the first Back to the Future film, Doc and Marty flew off in their time-traveling

00:25

DeLorean as Doc says, “Roads? Where we're going, we don't need roads.”

00:31

And at the end of Babe, when Arthur the farmer and Babe the pig won a sheep herding contest [Arthur and Babe at the farm]

00:35

together, Arthur ends the film by saying, “That'll do, Pig. That'll do.”

00:40

Each of these lines ended their respective films perfectly…and memorably…and they

00:44

really showcase how important an ending can be.

00:47

Even if we do have to wait for the sequel to find out whether or not Arthur had bacon [Arthur with plate of bacon and sausage]

00:51

and pork sausage for breakfast the next day after the contest.

00:55

Strong conclusions send a strong message, reinforce main ideas, and leave the audience

00:59

with something to think about. But good endings aren't just reserved for film.

01:04

Concluding paragraphs for essays should do the exact same thing.

01:07

You just…can’t watch them in 3-D. [Man wearing 3-D glasses reading a essay]

01:09

Concluding paragraphs should reinforce the main points of your essay while leaving your

01:13

reader with something to ponder once they're finished.

01:15

But in case you're having trouble finding the words you want, follow these quick and

01:18

dirty Dos and Don'ts of writing a concluding paragraph… [Do and Don't lists]

01:21

Do restate the main idea. You want to really hammer home your point so that your reader [Hammer nails main idea note on brain]

01:26

doesn't forget. Assume they’ve got the memory of a housefly.

01:30

Don't introduce a new topic or idea. If you have any ideas left to share with the reader,

01:35

do so before your concluding paragraph.

01:37

Do leave the reader with something to think about. This will ensure they don't forget

01:41

about your writing any time soon. They’ll go to sleep at night with your words still [Words swirling inside man's brain]

01:44

swirling around inside their brain.

01:47

Don't try and sound extra mysterious. There's a difference between leaving them with an

01:51

interesting question to consider and just flat-out confusing them. Be clear and concise.

01:55

So…let's say we just finished up an essay on American aviation pioneer Amelia Earhart.

02:01

A bad conclusion might look like this:

02:03

“In closing, Amelia Earhart was a pioneer for being the first female aviator to fly [Conclusion paragraph on Amelia Earhart[

02:07

across the Atlantic Ocean on her own. But during an attempt to circumnavigate the world,

02:12

she mysteriously disappeared and no one knows what happened to her to this very day.”

02:15

Oof. This is a bad conclusion because it suddenly introduces a new idea about her disappearance…just

02:21

when we’re supposed to be wrapping things up. It’s just too open-ended. [Plane flying and disappears]

02:24

However, the first part of the introduction does do a good job restating a main idea about

02:28

Earhart. So we could change the conclusion paragraph to:

02:32

“In closing, Amelia Earhart was a pioneer for being the first female aviator to fly

02:37

across the Atlantic Ocean on her own. Without her brave efforts, what might the world of

02:41

women's aviation look like today?”

02:44

Ah…much better. Instead of being mysterious or confusing, it simply leaves the reader

02:48

with a compelling question to consider after the essay is finished. [Conclusion question highlighted]

02:52

The next time you have to write a concluding paragraph, simply follow our dos and don'ts

02:56

and you'll be sure to end your essay on a high note.[Boy playing the guitar]

02:59

Unless your essay is about the bass guitar. Then you might want to end on a low note...

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