In today’s lesson we’ll discuss outlines. An outline is a structured list detailing the plan, ideas, and order of a writing. Outlines can help us keep our thoughts organized as we work on our writing.

Outlines can be simple and informal or complex and formal. A simple and informal outline is helpful when we write something short like an essay or short story. It may be written similar to brainstorming but in a list format. A formal outline is better at helping us when we write something longer in length and has more structure to it. Formal outlines use numbers, letters, and Roman numerals to separate and differentiate sections of our writing.

Examine the examples below of formal and informal outlines used for this lesson. We’ll practice using both in future lessons.