How to Write an Informative Essay: Outline, Topics, and Examples

Informative essay writing is not as simple as it might seem. You should inform the readers about the peculiarities of the topic. However, it should be done in a bias and opinion free manner. To master the art of informative essay writing, read the article. In it you will find writing tips, see a well-structured outline, and get a list of great informative essay topics. You will also receive several great essay examples. So, read on or request assistance from our essay writers that we are truly proud of!

What is an Informative Essay?

An informative essay is an academic writing assignment the purpose of which is to educate or inform a reader on a chosen topic. Most students tend to believe it is the simplest essay type. By contrast, teachers emphasize it might be the most challenging task.

It is not enough just to describe a specific topic in this assignment. A student should become an expert in the chosen field in the process of essay writing. Research the topic, find detailed and useful information, and provide relevant examples to make the audience aware of the given issue. In contrast to an informative essay, a synthesis essay, for example, requires analysis of given data to develop a single writing piece.

The essay should be informative and encouraging at the same time. However, do not try to take a stand on the topic or persuade readers. It is neither persuasive nor argumentative paper. To objectively present information might be the most challenging part for students. However, we will share with you all the details of informative essay writing. Step by step, you will manage to create an outstanding paper.

How to Write an Informative Essay: General Tips

If you want to learn how to write an informative essay, follow these simple steps. It is crucial to discuss the whole process step-by-step to make it clear.

1. Brainstorm to come up with the list of great topics. First of all, think of your own interests. What topics would you like to discuss? That is one of the main criteria for writing an outstanding informative essay. Conduct research to find the most relevant, credible, and up-to-date materials on each topic before making a final decision. Also, consider the audience. Which of the potential informative essay topics would be the most interesting for the reader? For example, eating disorders are a relevant topic today (it could be a perfect informative essay title).
2. Create a sound, tentative thesis statement before writing. A thesis statement is the main idea of an essay. It should be strong and original. Think about the information you want to share with the reader, reasons why the specific problem is important, and how to convey to the audience the significance of the issue. For instance, The progressing eating disorders caused 13% of the deaths in the United States last year. If a student writes something like that, they should specify a source of the statistics.
3. Write down a short outline. An informative essay outline should contain all the key ideas you want to write in the main body. It will help you out in the process of essay writing by saving your time. You will follow the plan and will not have to distract to think of what to write next.
4. Write a rough draft. In the initial draft, list the questions related to the chosen topic along with the facts you know based on personal knowledge and experience. Provide specific examples from real life to prove that you are well versed in or have faced the issue. You may specify how many eating disorders and their consequences you observed. Compare the number of females and males suffering from this problem. You may also recall the number of young and older adults who experience various eating disorders to provide a larger context for your informative essay.
5. Research the selected topic online and in the library. It is important to choose credible, relevant, and up-to-date sources meaning they should not be older than 5 years (start from textbooks and end up with journals and scholarly articles). Interviewing people is another great way to collect information if you are writing about eating disorders.
6. Write your essay. After you have collected all the necessary details and created an outline, go ahead with writing an informative essay. Ensure you do not miss any essay part and properly cite all the borrowed ideas to avoid plagiarism.
7. Review the final draft before submitting it. It is an essential part when writing. Proofread the paper to correct any mistakes and make your paper flawless. You can do it by yourself, try different free services and paid writing apps, or hire professional editors to ensure the text corresponds to the highest quality standards.

Informative Essay Outline Example: 3 Main Elements

An informative essay outline is an action plan, similar to the table of contents, which helps a writer not to get lost while working on the essay. Writing an outline is not obligatory. However, writing experts recommend creating it to avoid facing writer’s block in the middle of the process.

An outline for informative essays has a common five paragraph essay structure. The first paragraph is an introduction, which is followed by main body paragraphs, and ends with a conclusion part. Have a look at the informative essay example below.

The samples of an outline will help to understand how to write an informative essay. The paper topic is The influence of smoking on health.

Introduction

• Define the topic. What is smoking?
• Provide short background information on smoking. For example, the way people obtain this bad habit, reasons for becoming addicted, and what happens if the person decides to quit smoking.
• Create a thesis statement. It could be a correlation between smoking and the increased risk of various dangerous lung diseases. Identify the scope of the informative essay.

Main Body

• Develop each of the ideas presented below in a separate paragraph.
• Smoking and different dangerous lung diseases.
• Describe the way smoking can impact human organism in other harmful ways. For example: heart attack, decreased brain activity, etc.
• The ways to quit smoking/release form this harmful addiction.

Conclusion

• Restate the thesis. Recall the correlation between different types of lung and heart diseases and a bad habit such as smoking.
• Reiterate the significance of the research on the outcomes of smoking.
• Sum up the key points from each body paragraph.
• Offer some forecasts for the future. For example,example: If the American nation does not quit smoking in the closest future, it might result in… .

How to Write an Informative Essay Introduction?

The first part of an essay in an introduction. And the first sentence is usually a catchy hook. Good hooks for essays make the reader interested in a topic. After a hook, present your topic and provide some general info about it (do not get into details). Finish your informative essay introduction with a strong thesis.

Expert Tip

“Among all hooks, try to focus on using jokes, statistics, facts, famous quotes, anecdotes, similes, and metaphors. Example: “Eating disorders are among the leading killers of young girls.” Introduce the topic with its background in a couple of sentences. End up with a powerful thesis statement, which points to the necessity of topic research. Do everything possible to lure the audience's interest in the initial paragraph.”
Catherine Doyle, The University of Michigan professor and editor at Pro-Essay-Writer

Informative Thesis Statement

Thesis is a sentence at the end of the introduction that presents the main idea of your paper. It should be clear, succinct, and paper-specific. Often, it should express the writer’s opinion. However, an informative essay thesis statement should not express your view point, like you would do in an opinion essay. It should be bias-free. Thus, creating a thesis is another challenging stage of writing an informative essay. Ensure it is devoid of your personal opinion. Also, keep in mind that a strong thesis statement should not be:

• A question
• A quote
• Common knowledge

What to Include in the Main Body Paragraphs

Use the main body part to inform the target audience about the peculiarities of the topic. Include one main idea into each body paragraph. Share some interesting facts, go into the possibly unknown details, or present a common knowledge in a new light to make readers intrigued. The three integral elements of each body paragraph are the claim, supporting evidence, and explanation. Make sure all the paragraphs are balanced, meaning:

• Each topic has a topic sentence and supporting ideas
• All the body paragraphs resonate with thesis
• There is only one main idea per each paragraphs
• Transitional words are used for smooth transition between ideas.

Concluding an Essay

Finish your paper by providing a brief summary of the information given in the body of your informative essay. Bring a sense of closure to the paper while maintaining the interest of the audience in the offered topic or research problem. An informative essay conclusion should include:

1. Restated thesis
2. Summary of the main ideas
3. General conclusion

However, do not add any new ideas to your conclusion. It would be illogical, considering it’s the final part of an essay.

Works Cited Page

Name every source you have used to write your informative essay. All the ideas you have borrowed, especially statistics, should be cited both in text and in the reference list. If you fail to do it, you might be accused of plagiarism. The consequences might be different. You may receive an F or even get expelled from college. Do not forget that all the sources from the works cited list should be used in text and vice versa. Provide each entry on the References page according to the required academic format (MLA, APA, Harvard, ASA paper format etc.). Check the formatting style requirements in the essay guidelines.

40 Stunning Informative Essay Topics

If you run out of ideas, we have you covered! Look through the list of good informative essay topics and select the one that fits you the most.

Middle School

1. Childhood obesity: Causes and outcomes
2. The ways homeless people survive
3. Why does TV censorship exist?
4. Tell about your favorite book
5. The cost of education
6. The use of smartphones in education
7. Useless school laws
8. The way gravity works
9. The life cycle of any insect of choice
10. Things that make bloggers popular.

High School

1. Reveal the nature of domestic violence
2. The basic trends of alternative medicine
3. The history and development of social networks
4. Prostitution: Definition, background, and pros & cons
5. The process of winning a lottery
6. The problem of illegal immigration
7. Racism in modern American society
8. Is the Internet the most revolutionary invention ever?
9. Is it possible that marijuana can be helpful for human health?
10. What causes violence on college campuses?

College

1. The most devastating natural disasters
2. The consequences of consuming fast food
3. Current ecological issues
4. Plastic surgery: its role in the modern world
5. Effective, time-tested methods to overcome stressful situations
6. Measures people can take to defend nature
7. What is slow food?
8. How smoking harms mental activity?
9. What does a healthy lifestyle mean?
10. The history of alcoholic beverage industry

Easy Topics

1. The essence of cybersecurity
2. Advantages of MacBooks
3. A presentation on artificial intelligence
4. Doing a diploma coursework in French
5. The effect of global lockdown on education
6. Typical horror film scenarios
7. The percentage of female leaders compared to males
8. What measures should the school board take to prevent bullying?
9. Is it obligatory to wear a hijab on campus?
10. How can we differentiate a fever from a typical cold/flu?

Informative Essay Examples

Where can a student get free informative essay examples? Having a good example in front of you is the best warranty of successful work. We offer you several essay samples to get a better understanding of how to write an interesting essay.

Final Thoughts

An informative essay is a common academic assignment. Thus, you should be well versed with all its peculiarities. The main requirements are keeping it interesting, avoiding expressing your opinion, and having all the structural body parts. For sure, the informative essay topics should also be engaging enough. We hope our guide and examples have clarified the nuances of this essay type. If not, you can ask for help from professional writers. They can give you good advice on how to write an informative essay and offer assistance with other paper types, like observation essay.