Reverse Outlining

Outlining your essay before you write a draft is an important step. It allows you to set up a framework (skeleton) before you start filling everything in. Seeing a bare-boned outline allows you to really think about your order and organization. It also allows you to see easily if you are missing anything from your essay.


Reverse outlines allow the same thing. With a reverse outline, you are able to see what is missing and what order you have chosen. The difference is that you do a reverse outline AFTER you have written your paper. You go backwards and create an outline based on your finished paper.

We do this so that we see what organization we DID use, not what we PLANNED on using.



Reverse Outlining:

First, count your body paragraphs. That will be how many divisions you have on your outline.

Then, summarize each paragraph into a single sentence. If you need two sentences to cover everything in a single paragraph, then make a note of that. That is something you need to revise.

After you have your outline, think if you have covered everything you need. Did you organize your essay in a logical way for the reader?