10 Department of Education

National Capital Region

SCHOOL S DIVISION OFFICE
MARIK INA CITY

ENGLISH
Second Quarter- Module 5
Writing an Expository Essay

Writer: Cyril P. Santos

Illustrator: Marexcza Z. Salinas
Layout Artist: Arneil A. Pagatpatan
Marvin M. Tamayo
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 Hello learners! Writing is a big part of Quarter 2. In this module, we will focus on
another writing skill specifically to:

Write an exposition or discussion of a familiar issue to include key structural elements

and language features.

You can say that you have understood the topic of this module if you can already:

1. define an expository essay.

2. identify the basic parts of an expository essay.

3. determine the steps/techniques in writing an expository essay.

4. write a 3-paragraph expository essay about an issue or topic familiar to you.

Write T if you think the statement is true and F if you think the statement is false.

__________ 1. Expository essays are written to give comments/criticize an issue.

__________ 2. An expository essay has four basic parts: title, introduction, body, and
ending.
__________ 3. An essay explaining the harmful effects of smoking to a person’s health is
an example of an expository essay.
__________ 4. In writing an expository essay, the first step that beginning writers need to
do is think of a good title for the essay.
__________ 5. Long titles are preferred in writing expository essays to make the readers
interested to read the essay.

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 Lesson
Writing an Expository Essay
1

Hello Grade 10 learners! Let’s look back to the lessons in Quarter 1. Can you still
remember what you have learned about author’s purpose? Write the information you have
remembered in the graphic organizer.

__________

What I
remember
about author's __________
purpose

__________

Today’s lesson about expository writing is connected to what you know about
author’s purpose in writing. Let us find out more about expository writing in the
paragraphs that will follow.

When was the last time you had a quarrel with a family member? What was the
cause of it? Read the short essay below to learn more about family conflict.

What causes family problems?

I am sure no one will disagree with me when I say
that the family is very important. Family members give
each other’s needs and love one another unconditionally.
Families bring joy, comfort, security, and love. However, it
is also true that problems happen among the members of
a family. Parents sometimes have problems with their
children or with one another. Children have
disagreements among themselves. For example, older
children often quarrel with their younger siblings. There
are many reasons why conflicts like these occur within a
family.

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 According to the writer K. Lee Banks, there are several common causes of conflicts
within a family. The first and major source of problem is money especially if there is not
enough money to pay the rent and the bills, to buy food and other needs, and to enjoy
simple luxuries like family outings and simple celebrations. Connected to the issue of
money is work. Work causes conflict if it keeps a parent away from the home most of the
time. As a result, the other members of the family feel left behind.

Jealousy and rivalry among brothers and sisters are another cause of problem in
the family especially when they compete for the attention or recognition of parents. The
feeling of jealousy among siblings intensifies when parents take sides and have favorites
among their kids. Similarly, the way parents discipline their children can also lead to
conflicts. Some parents can be very strict to their children while others can be very
permissive and simply let their kids do what they want. If parents do not agree on a way
to discipline a misbehaving child, this will lead to the two of them quarreling.

Finally, members of an extended family like grandparents, cousins, uncles and

aunts can also add to conflict within a family. For example, when grandparents interfere
with the decisions and lifestyle of their grandchildren, disagreements and even quarrels
often ensue. Husbands or wives who live with their in-laws also feel frustration when their
decisions are restricted.

It is important to remember that conflict is an unavoidable part of life. All kinds of

human relationships, including the family, experience problems every now and then. What
matters is how family members try to handle the conflicts they experience and how each
member tries to mend and strengthen their relationship after the conflicts they face.

Let’s think about the essay you have read by answering the questions below:

1. Read the essay’s title. What information can you already get just by reading the
title? _________________________________________________________________________

2. What is the author’s purpose in this essay? ____________________________________

3. What is the main idea of the essay? ___________________________________________

4. According to the writer, what are the causes of family conflict? Aside from the
causes mentioned by the writer, what other causes can you think of?
_________________________________________________________________________
_______________________________________________________________________

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 The essay “What causes family problems?” is an example of an expository essay. It
is an essay written with the purpose of informing or explaining a topic to readers. It comes
from the root word expose which means to uncover or show. Let’s go back to the essay in
pp. 3-4. What is it trying to expose or uncover?
An expository essay can also be used to achieve the following:
o explain how something is done
o give the causes and effects of something
o give the similarities and differences between two things
o give examples of something
o describe (a place, a person, an object)

What is the author’s purpose in the essay “What causes family problems?”
What are the basic parts of an expository essay?
An expository has four basic parts: title, introduction, body, and ending. As you
study these parts, read again the essay “What causes family problems?” to help you
understand each part.
1. TITLE
It must be interesting and not very long/wordy. At the same time, it must
give the readers an idea of what the essay will be.

Here are some techniques in writing the title of the essay:

• repeating sounds or letters (My Mother’s Memories of Martial Law)
• asking a question (“What can we learn from COVID 19?”)
• a simple and direct to the point title that captures the topic of the essay
(Four Ways to Protect your Facebook Account)

2. INTRODUCTION (Paragraph 1)

The first paragraph of an expository essay introduces the topic. It also makes
the readers interested in reading the whole essay. In the Introduction, you can find
the main idea or what the whole essay is all about.

Let’s go back to our sample essay. The writer used a general to specific
technique in writing his Introduction. He started with what family is and why it is
important (general). He then became more specific and focus the readers’ attention
on family problems which is the topic of his essay. He ended his introduction by
stating the main idea of his essay which is there are many reasons why conflicts or
problems happen within a family.

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 3. BODY (Paragraphs 2-4)

The body of the essay is where the writer tries to accomplish the purpose in
writing. For example, if the writer’s purpose is to explain to the readers what they
can do to stay safe during the COVID-19 pandemic, the writer will write these
things in the body of the essay.

Let’s go back to our example essay. Clearly, the writer’s purpose is to explain
the causes of family problems. Thus, when you read the body of the essay
(paragraphs 2-4), you will find information about the different causes of family
problems. Focus on your purpose and do not write ideas not related to the topic.
Also, notice how the body of the essay is divided into smaller paragraphs and not
just into one long paragraph that may be confusing to some readers.

4. ENDING (Paragraph 5)

Some writing experts will say that people remember more the last paragraph
of an essay than all the other parts! That is why it is also important to think
carefully when writing your ending paragraph.

The ending paragraph gives a finality to the whole essay. Without a proper
ending, an essay feels incomplete. In the ending paragraph, the writer can
summarize. Also, the writer can give a final point that the readers can think about
after reading. Let’s go back to our sample essay. The writer did not summarize
anymore. What he did is he gave a final point to the readers that conflicts or
problems are a natural part of human life. He also gave some recommendations
that the readers can think about after they have read the essay.

Do you have any questions about the different parts of an expository essay?
What are some steps in writing an expository essay?
Below are some useful steps to follow in writing an expository essay.
STEP 1. BEFORE YOU START WRITING:
1. Think of a topic and a clear purpose for writing.

2. Read and surf the World Wide Web for information connected to your topic and will
help you achieve your purpose for writing.
o Expository writing is information sharing so it needs a lot of
reading/researching. Use reliable websites and get information from
multiple/many resources.

3. Write an outline first. Organize your essay according to your purpose for writing.
o Outline your ideas first before writing actual paragraphs.
o If you are planning to write an essay explaining the causes of musicians
losing popularity, you can start with the number one/most common reason
going to the least common reason.

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STEP 2. AS YOU WRITE:
4. Using your outline, write a draft of your essay. Focus on your topic and purpose
for writing.

5. In writing, use appropriate language. For example:

o Use transition words.
o Use declarative sentences.
o Vary or change the length of sentences. A paragraph full of short sentences
sounds choppy while too many long sentences can be confusing, and the
idea may be lost.
o Use words/phrases that acknowledge or recognize sources of information.
For example: according to, base from, for ______, and others.
o Avoid using phrases like “Okay?”, “You know”, or “Right?”.

STEP 3. AFTER WRITING:

6. Read and revise.

o After writing, read your work. Check:

o if your ideas are all related to each other;

o for possible errors in spelling, in grammar, capitalization, or use of

punctuation marks; and

o if some words can be replaced or some words are redundant/repeated

and can already be removed.

Answer Activities 1 and 2 to help you in writing an expository essay.

Activity 1

Topic is very important in an expository essay; without a clear topic, there is no

essay! A topic can be general or specific. Equally important is the purpose for writing.
Together, topic and purpose will guide and shape your essay.

In this activity, you will practice the first step in writing an expository essay which
is thinking of a topic and a purpose for writing. Think of three general topics. After
each general topic, write a more specific one which will be the topic of your essay. After
the specific topic, write your purpose for writing.

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 Think about the topics that you like or interesting to you. You can also think of a
topic that you think your fellow students will like to read about. Below are topic cards.
See the example for Topic 1.

Topic 1 Topic 2 Topic 3

• General Topic: • General • General

modern music Topic_____________ Topic_____________

• Specific Topic: • Specific • Specific

different kinds or Topic_____________ Topic_____________
genres of music
(example: rock, pop, • My purpose for • My purpose for
alternative, RnB) writing ___________ writing ___________

• My purpose for
writing : I want to
describe the different
genres of music and
give examples of each.

Copy this template in your answer sheets.

Activity 2

In this activity, you are going to practice outlining the topics you have listed in
Activity 2. Follow the steps below.

1. Choose one topic from your answers in Activity 2 that you like to develop into an
expository essay.

2. Write an outline for your chosen specific topic. Outline first the basic parts of the
essay using Paragraph (Par.) I, II, III, IV, V and so on.

3. Read/research for information about your chosen specific topic. Revise your outline
with the information you will get by writing/adding information.

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 Example:

Name: __________________________________ Section: _____________________

Expository Essay Outline

Title of my essay:
The Many Genres of Modern Music

General Topic: modern music

More specific topic: different kinds or genres of music (example: rock, pop,
alternative, RnB)
My purpose for writing: I want to describe the different genres of music and give
examples of each.

Par. I. Genre and Music

a. What is genre?
b. Examples of genre in other works of art like painting, movies, etc…
c. What is genre in music?

Par. II. Rock Genre

a. What is rock music?
b. What are some of the best rock music?

Par. III Pop Genre

a. What is Pop?
b. Who are some of the best pop music singers/performers?

Part IV RnB Genre

a. What is RnB?
b. Who are some of the RnB musicians/performers?

Par. IV I will give some suggestions to music fans like myself

a. respect for artists/musicians
b. buying/downloading authentic songs only (and not pirated)

Use this template in your answer sheets.

Activity 3
Below are some additional techniques in writing the opening paragraph of your
expository essay which can be useful in catching the interest of the readers.
1. a question
2. a quotation
3. a short anecdote or a story
4. dramatic numbers or statistics

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 Read the following sample opening paragraphs and identify the technique used by the
writer in each.
1. Last 2019, a total of 1.3 billion tons of food go to waste around the world. That
weight of food humans wasted is equivalent to the weight of 260 million elephants!
Indeed, food wastage has become a global problem. What causes this problem? Can
humans still do something to somehow reverse this ever-growing problem?

Answer: _______________________________________________________________

2. “Water, water everywhere/Nor any drop to drink”. This line by the poet Samuel
Taylor Coleridge perfectly summarizes a problem that many Filipinos are
experiencing. In the summer months, people suffer from water shortage; as the
rainy season arrives, Filipinos loss property and lives from flooding. This problem
with water is caused by many reasons, both man-made and environmental. Let us
find out more about these reasons in this essay.

Answer: _______________________________________________________________

3. Can we learn something from COVID-19? Can the awful events that it brought
teach us anything about living life in the future? Indeed, the COVID-19 pandemic
is a traumatic experience for all of us. It changed the way we go out, travel, eat,
and socialize with people. Others even experienced the loss of love ones. However,
it doesn’t mean that we cannot use the experience of COVID-19 to learn about living
life.

Answer: _______________________________________________________________

In this lesson, we talked about what an expository essay is and the basic steps to
follow in order to write one. Express what you have learned by answering these questions.

1. What is an expository essay? _________________________________________________

________________________________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________________________

2. What are the different basic parts of an expository essay? Give a short explanation
about each part. _________________________________________________
________________________________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________________________

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For 3-5, complete the graphic organizer below with the correct steps in writing an
expository essay.

Before you write, As you write, After writing,

________________. _____________. ____________.

Transform your outline from Activity 2 into a complete expository essay. Use the
checklist as an additional guide in writing your essay. Before passing your work, show it
first to friends/family members and let them use the checklist to give some comments to
your essay.

Expository Essay Checklist

Put a check if the essay…

 has a title, an introduction paragraph, a body, and an ending

 has a title which is interesting and connected to the essay
 has an opening paragraph which introduces the topic and makes the readers
feel excited to read the whole essay
 has a body divided into small paragraphs and not just one long paragraph
 has an ending which summarizes or gives a final point (ex. a
recommendation) to its readers
 has a clear topic and clear author’s purpose for writing
 gives information to its readers
 has ideas all connected to the main topic and purpose for writing the essay
 uses transition words (ex: for example, however, similarly etc.)
 has a combination of short and long sentences
 uses words which give credit to sources of information (ex. According to
______)
 does not use filler words like “Okay”, “Do you get it?”, “Alright?” and other
words which we only use when speaking
 has little or no mistakes in grammar
 has little or no mistakes in punctuation marks
 has little or no mistakes in capitalization

Tip: Do not write your essay in just one day! Work on it several days, on a given
schedule (30 minutes a day for example) so you will not feel rushed/crammed.

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 For 1-3, read and answer these questions. Choose from the options after each
question.
1. What is the main purpose for writing an expository essay?
A. to entertain readers
B. to give information to readers
C. to criticize something/someone
D. to convince people to believe or act

2. Which is an example of an expository writing?

A. a commercial convincing the audience to vote for a politician
B. an essay explaining the history of Facebook
C. a paragraph arguing about that it is better to use herbal medicine than
medicines brought at a drugstore
D. a story of a man lost at sea, trying to find his way home

3. What is considered as the first important step in writing an expository essay?

A. Make a claim. C. Focus on a topic.
B. Research for arguments. D. Think of a title for the essay.

For 4-5, select your answers from the list below.

A. title of the essay B. introduction C. body D. ending

4. It is the part of the expository essay in which the writer tries to catch the readers’
interest in reading the whole essay.

5. In this part, the writer can summarize the important ideas in the essay or give a
suggestion to the readers.

Practice is the key! Look back at your topics in Activity 2. Choose another topic and
write another expository essay. You can use a different style of opening paragraph and
style in writing a title.

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Posttest
For 1-5, answer these questions.
1. What is the main purpose for writing an expository essay?
A. to entertain readers
B. to give information to readers
C. to criticize something/someone
D. to convince people to believe or act

2. Which is an example of an expository writing?

A. an essay convincing the people to wear facemasks
B. an essay explaining how the internet originated
C. a paragraph arguing about the need for stricter penalties for traffic violators
D. a story of a man who fought for 10 years in a war

3. What is considered as the first important step in writing an expository essay?

A. Make a claim. C. Focus on a topic.
B. Think of a good way to end the essay. D. Think of a title for the essay.

4. In what part of an expository essay does the writer tries to catch the reader’s
interest in reading the essay he wrote?
A. introduction C. body
B. title D. ending

5. Why do we sleep? Why do we spend 8-10 hours of our lives, every day, with our
eyes closed and our bodies immobile? Is there any benefit that we get from it? Sleep
is important. It is essential to our lives. In this essay, I will explore about the
different ways sleep is beneficial to our body, mind, and emotions.

What technique in opening/starting an expository essay was used by the writer?

A. use of dramatic numbers C. a shocking statement
B. a question D. a short anecdote or story

For 6-15 (10 points):

Instructions
a. Choose a topic that you like to develop into an expository essay
b. Research/read more about the topic you chose and make an outline of your ideas.
c. Transform your outline into a three-paragraph expository essay.
d. Do not forget to write a title for your essay.

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1. Information about expository writing from

• https://owl.purdue.edu/owl/general_writing/academic_writing/essay_writ
ing/expository_essays.html

• https://7esl.com/expository-essay/

• https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Xa_LqEYsvpQ

• The Longman Writer: Rhetoric and Reader, 8th Edition. (2011). By Judith
Nadell, John Langan, and Eliza A. Comodromos.

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 15
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 Development Team of the Module
Writer: Cyril P. Santos (SEHS)
Internal Reviewer: Janet S. Cajuguiran- EPS-English
External Reviewer: Adelyne M. Costelo-Abrea (PNU Professor)
Illustrator: Marexcza Z. Salinas (PHS)
Layout Artist: Arneil A. Pagatpatan (NHS)
Marvin M. Tamayo (SNNHS)

Management Team:

Sheryll T. Gayola
Assistant Schools Division Superintendent
OIC, Office of the Schools Division Superintendent

Elisa O. Cerveza
Chief, CID
OIC, Office of the Assistant Schools Division Superintendent

Janet S. Cajuguiran
EPS-English

Ivy Coney A. Gamatero

EPS – LRMS

For inquiries or feedback, please write or call:

Schools Division Office- Marikina City

191 Shoe Ave., Sta. Elena, Marikina City, 1800, Philippines

Telefax: (02) 682-2472 / 682-3989

Email Address: sdo.marikina@deped.gov.ph

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