Worksheet

Write a clear thesis statement

Grade 7 Reading Worksheet - Building Confidence

NameDate

Circle the best answer.

  1. Read this first

    Open Later at the Library (draft essay)

    [1] Imagine finishing a soccer practice at six o'clock and finding the library already dark and locked for the night. [2] The Pine Hill library now closes at five o'clock on weekdays and opens at nine on Saturdays, a schedule it has kept for twelve years. [3] The Pine Hill library should stay open until eight o'clock on weekdays so that students and working families can use it.

    [4] First, most students cannot reach the library before five. [5] A survey of 140 seventh graders found that 96 of them have an activity after school on at least three weekdays each week. [6] Second, working parents need evening hours as well. [7] The library's sign-in sheet shows that the busiest hour on Saturdays is the first hour after opening, which suggests that many families are waiting for a free time to come.

    [8] Third, longer hours would reduce crowding at the computers. [9] On a typical Saturday, patrons wait up to forty minutes for one of the eight computers in the reading room. [10] For these reasons, the Pine Hill library should extend its weekday hours until eight o'clock.

  2. Ari reads a draft essay. Which sentence is the thesis?

    • A survey of 140 seventh graders found that 96 of them have an activity after school on at least three weekdays each week.
    • The Pine Hill library now closes at five o'clock on weekdays and opens at nine on Saturdays, a schedule it has kept for twelve years.
    • Imagine finishing a soccer practice at six o'clock and finding the library already dark and locked for the night.
    • The Pine Hill library should stay open until eight o'clock on weekdays so that students and working families can use it.

  3. Bo checks the draft. What job does sentence [4] do in the essay?

    • It names the first reason that supports the thesis.
    • It supplies a number that shows how many students are busy.
    • It states the position that the whole essay argues for.
    • It gives background about when the library opens and closes.

  4. Esme wants to reword thesis [3]. Which version still fits all three body paragraphs?

    • Libraries are important to a town and should do more to serve each kind of resident, so towns should fund them well.
    • The Pine Hill library should extend weekday hours, because students need evening access, parents work late and computers are crowded.
    • The Pine Hill library should lend tablets to students who lack a computer at home, because homework now needs one.
    • The Pine Hill library should add more computers to the reading room, because patrons wait up to forty minutes on Saturdays.

  5. Jun lists sentences for a new essay about the library. Which one could be a thesis, not just a topic?

    • The Pine Hill library has eight computers and two quiet study rooms in its reading room area.
    • The Pine Hill library should open its quiet study rooms on Sundays for students preparing for tests.
    • This essay is about the hours and study rooms at the Pine Hill library near the school and downtown.
    • Have you ever tried to find a quiet place to study for a test on a Sunday afternoon?

  6. Compost the Cafeteria Waste (draft essay)

    [1] On each school day, the Maple Grove cafeteria throws away about forty pounds of food scraps, from apple cores to untouched sandwich crusts. [2] Those scraps are hauled to the town landfill, which the town council says will be full within nine years. [3] Maple Grove Middle School should start composting its cafeteria scraps to cut trash, save money and feed the school garden.

    [4] First, composting would shrink the trash the school sends away. [5] The custodian estimates that about a third of the cafeteria's trash by weight is food that could be composted. [6] Second, composting would lower the school's hauling bill. [7] The district pays by the pound, and the garbage contract lists a charge of seven cents for each pound hauled away.

    [8] Third, the finished compost would feed the school garden. [9] The garden club now buys four bags of soil each spring at ten dollars a bag. [10] A composting bin by the cafeteria door would turn those scraps into a resource instead of a cost.

  7. Kira reads a draft essay. Which sentence is the thesis?

    • The district pays by the pound, and the garbage contract lists a charge of seven cents for each pound hauled away.
    • Maple Grove Middle School should start composting its cafeteria scraps to cut trash, save money and feed the school garden.
    • Those scraps are hauled to the town landfill, which the town council says will be full within nine years.
    • On each school day, the Maple Grove cafeteria throws away about forty pounds of food scraps, from apple cores to untouched sandwich crusts.

  8. Luz checks the draft. What job does sentence [6] do in the essay?

    • It names the second reason that supports the thesis.
    • It states the position that the whole essay argues for.
    • It supplies a number that shows the cost of hauling.
    • It gives background about how the cafeteria scraps are hauled.

  9. Milo wants to reword thesis [3]. Which version still fits all three body paragraphs?

    • Schools should do more to protect the planet through recycling, energy saving and gardening, because students can lead.
    • Maple Grove should ask students to bring lunches in reusable containers instead of paper bags, because it cuts the waste.
    • Maple Grove should buy a composting bin and place it beside the cafeteria door, because the bin is the first step.
    • Maple Grove should compost its cafeteria scraps, because it would reduce trash, lower hauling costs and supply soil for the garden.

  10. Noah lists sentences for a new essay about the garden club. Which one could be a thesis, not just a topic?

    • The garden club buys four bags of soil each spring at ten dollars a bag for its beds.
    • This essay is about the garden club and the soil it needs for each planting season at school.
    • Did you know that a garden can grow in soil that was made from leftover lunch scraps?
    • The garden club should run a weekly compost sale to pay for its spring planting each year.

  11. A Student Seat on the Park Board (draft essay)

    [1] Last spring, the Riverton Park Board voted to remove the skate ramp from Lincoln Park without asking a single young person who used it. [2] The board has five adult members, and its meetings take place on Tuesdays at four o'clock, when most students are still in class. [3] The Riverton Park Board should add a voting seat for a student under eighteen so that young people have a say in the parks they use.

    [4] First, young people are a large share of park users. [5] A count on a sunny Saturday found that 61 of the 118 visitors at Lincoln Park were under eighteen. [6] Second, students notice problems that adults may miss. [7] The skate ramp's rough landing area had already been reported by students in a letter that the board never answered.

    [8] Third, a student seat would teach habits of civic life. [9] Oakton, a city of similar size, has a youth seat, and its reports describe higher teen attendance at public meetings. [10] A student seat would make the board's decisions fairer and better informed.

  12. Pia reads a draft essay. Which sentence is the thesis?

    • The Riverton Park Board should add a voting seat for a student under eighteen so that young people have a say in the parks they use.
    • A count on a sunny Saturday found that 61 of the 118 visitors at Lincoln Park were under eighteen.
    • The board has five adult members, and its meetings take place on Tuesdays at four o'clock, when most students are still in class.
    • Last spring, the Riverton Park Board voted to remove the skate ramp from Lincoln Park without asking a single young person who used it.

  13. Tala wants to reword thesis [3]. Which version still fits all three body paragraphs?

    • The Riverton Park Board should hold its meetings on weekends instead of on Tuesday afternoons, because students are free then.
    • The Riverton Park Board should restore the skate ramp that it voted to remove last spring, because students used it often.
    • The Riverton Park Board should add a student voting seat, because young people use parks, notice problems and learn civic habits.
    • Young people deserve more influence in each part of town government, not just in the parks, because they are future voters.
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Write a clear thesis statement

Answer Key - Grade 7 Reading Worksheet - Building Confidence

Circle the best answer.

  1. Read this first

    Open Later at the Library (draft essay)

    [1] Imagine finishing a soccer practice at six o'clock and finding the library already dark and locked for the night. [2] The Pine Hill library now closes at five o'clock on weekdays and opens at nine on Saturdays, a schedule it has kept for twelve years. [3] The Pine Hill library should stay open until eight o'clock on weekdays so that students and working families can use it.

    [4] First, most students cannot reach the library before five. [5] A survey of 140 seventh graders found that 96 of them have an activity after school on at least three weekdays each week. [6] Second, working parents need evening hours as well. [7] The library's sign-in sheet shows that the busiest hour on Saturdays is the first hour after opening, which suggests that many families are waiting for a free time to come.

    [8] Third, longer hours would reduce crowding at the computers. [9] On a typical Saturday, patrons wait up to forty minutes for one of the eight computers in the reading room. [10] For these reasons, the Pine Hill library should extend its weekday hours until eight o'clock.

  2. Ari reads a draft essay. Which sentence is the thesis?

    • A survey of 140 seventh graders found that 96 of them have an activity after school on at least three weekdays each week.
    • The Pine Hill library now closes at five o'clock on weekdays and opens at nine on Saturdays, a schedule it has kept for twelve years.
    • Imagine finishing a soccer practice at six o'clock and finding the library already dark and locked for the night.
    • The Pine Hill library should stay open until eight o'clock on weekdays so that students and working families can use it.

  3. Bo checks the draft. What job does sentence [4] do in the essay?

    • It names the first reason that supports the thesis.
    • It supplies a number that shows how many students are busy.
    • It states the position that the whole essay argues for.
    • It gives background about when the library opens and closes.

  4. Esme wants to reword thesis [3]. Which version still fits all three body paragraphs?

    • Libraries are important to a town and should do more to serve each kind of resident, so towns should fund them well.
    • The Pine Hill library should extend weekday hours, because students need evening access, parents work late and computers are crowded.
    • The Pine Hill library should lend tablets to students who lack a computer at home, because homework now needs one.
    • The Pine Hill library should add more computers to the reading room, because patrons wait up to forty minutes on Saturdays.

  5. Jun lists sentences for a new essay about the library. Which one could be a thesis, not just a topic?

    • The Pine Hill library has eight computers and two quiet study rooms in its reading room area.
    • The Pine Hill library should open its quiet study rooms on Sundays for students preparing for tests.
    • This essay is about the hours and study rooms at the Pine Hill library near the school and downtown.
    • Have you ever tried to find a quiet place to study for a test on a Sunday afternoon?

  6. Compost the Cafeteria Waste (draft essay)

    [1] On each school day, the Maple Grove cafeteria throws away about forty pounds of food scraps, from apple cores to untouched sandwich crusts. [2] Those scraps are hauled to the town landfill, which the town council says will be full within nine years. [3] Maple Grove Middle School should start composting its cafeteria scraps to cut trash, save money and feed the school garden.

    [4] First, composting would shrink the trash the school sends away. [5] The custodian estimates that about a third of the cafeteria's trash by weight is food that could be composted. [6] Second, composting would lower the school's hauling bill. [7] The district pays by the pound, and the garbage contract lists a charge of seven cents for each pound hauled away.

    [8] Third, the finished compost would feed the school garden. [9] The garden club now buys four bags of soil each spring at ten dollars a bag. [10] A composting bin by the cafeteria door would turn those scraps into a resource instead of a cost.

  7. Kira reads a draft essay. Which sentence is the thesis?

    • The district pays by the pound, and the garbage contract lists a charge of seven cents for each pound hauled away.
    • Maple Grove Middle School should start composting its cafeteria scraps to cut trash, save money and feed the school garden.
    • Those scraps are hauled to the town landfill, which the town council says will be full within nine years.
    • On each school day, the Maple Grove cafeteria throws away about forty pounds of food scraps, from apple cores to untouched sandwich crusts.

  8. Luz checks the draft. What job does sentence [6] do in the essay?

    • It names the second reason that supports the thesis.
    • It states the position that the whole essay argues for.
    • It supplies a number that shows the cost of hauling.
    • It gives background about how the cafeteria scraps are hauled.

  9. Milo wants to reword thesis [3]. Which version still fits all three body paragraphs?

    • Schools should do more to protect the planet through recycling, energy saving and gardening, because students can lead.
    • Maple Grove should ask students to bring lunches in reusable containers instead of paper bags, because it cuts the waste.
    • Maple Grove should buy a composting bin and place it beside the cafeteria door, because the bin is the first step.
    • Maple Grove should compost its cafeteria scraps, because it would reduce trash, lower hauling costs and supply soil for the garden.

  10. Noah lists sentences for a new essay about the garden club. Which one could be a thesis, not just a topic?

    • The garden club buys four bags of soil each spring at ten dollars a bag for its beds.
    • This essay is about the garden club and the soil it needs for each planting season at school.
    • Did you know that a garden can grow in soil that was made from leftover lunch scraps?
    • The garden club should run a weekly compost sale to pay for its spring planting each year.

  11. A Student Seat on the Park Board (draft essay)

    [1] Last spring, the Riverton Park Board voted to remove the skate ramp from Lincoln Park without asking a single young person who used it. [2] The board has five adult members, and its meetings take place on Tuesdays at four o'clock, when most students are still in class. [3] The Riverton Park Board should add a voting seat for a student under eighteen so that young people have a say in the parks they use.

    [4] First, young people are a large share of park users. [5] A count on a sunny Saturday found that 61 of the 118 visitors at Lincoln Park were under eighteen. [6] Second, students notice problems that adults may miss. [7] The skate ramp's rough landing area had already been reported by students in a letter that the board never answered.

    [8] Third, a student seat would teach habits of civic life. [9] Oakton, a city of similar size, has a youth seat, and its reports describe higher teen attendance at public meetings. [10] A student seat would make the board's decisions fairer and better informed.

  12. Pia reads a draft essay. Which sentence is the thesis?

    • The Riverton Park Board should add a voting seat for a student under eighteen so that young people have a say in the parks they use.
    • A count on a sunny Saturday found that 61 of the 118 visitors at Lincoln Park were under eighteen.
    • The board has five adult members, and its meetings take place on Tuesdays at four o'clock, when most students are still in class.
    • Last spring, the Riverton Park Board voted to remove the skate ramp from Lincoln Park without asking a single young person who used it.

  13. Tala wants to reword thesis [3]. Which version still fits all three body paragraphs?

    • The Riverton Park Board should hold its meetings on weekends instead of on Tuesday afternoons, because students are free then.
    • The Riverton Park Board should restore the skate ramp that it voted to remove last spring, because students used it often.
    • The Riverton Park Board should add a student voting seat, because young people use parks, notice problems and learn civic habits.
    • Young people deserve more influence in each part of town government, not just in the parks, because they are future voters.