Let’s cut to the chase. You have to write an informative essay. You pretty much know how to write one, but you’ve been staring blankly out the window because you can’t think of anything to write about.
Am I right?
Regardless of whether you’ve been staring out the window or avoiding the task at hand by endlessly updating your Facebook page, you need to get writing…and fast.
Lucky for you, you’ve found your way to the right place. I have 21 informative essay topics to help get your essay started.
What Is an Informative Essay?
I’m sure you can figure out that when writing an informative essay you need to inform your audience about a topic. Of course, there’s more to it than that.
You need to give your readers enough information so they fully understand what you’re writing about.
You need to assume your readers don’t know much (if anything) about your topic. This is why you’re informing them. (Makes sense, right?)
Here’s an example. Let’s say you’re into skateboarding, and you’re trying to tell a friend all about it. You can’t just start using terms like dropping in, heel-flips, and half-pipes.
You need to explain the lingo and provide enough information so your friend actually understands the words you’re using!
The same is true for an informative essay.
Readers should learn something by reading your essay, so your goal is to provide interesting and informative content in understandable terms (just like I’m doing here!)
How Do I Choose Good Informative Essay Topics?
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A good informative essay topic is a topic that isn’t too broad (like the meaning of life) or too narrow (like the best place to take a nap on campus).
A good informative essay topic needs to be interesting to both you and your audience.
Remember, the history of the universe might be interesting to you, but not necessarily to your audience. In this case, it’s your job to make it interesting by engaging your audience.
One final note about choosing informative essay topics: check your assignment guidelines!
If you need to do some research about the topic (and maybe cite your sources in MLA or APA format), then you most certainly need to get researching.
Okay, now that you have the basics about how to choose an informative essay topic, let’s dig into some great ideas! Check out these 21 topics to get your paper started. For some topics, I’ve linked to example essays to help you even more.
21 Informative Essay Topics to Inform Your Next Essay
1.Caffeine addiction
Need a few cups of coffee or a Big Gulp to get through the day? If you’re a caffeine addict like me, think about how miserable you feel without your caffeine fix. Have you ever tried to quit and felt even worse? You might start your paper by informing readers why you live on caffeine and why you’re hooked. You might also include a discussion of how it has affected you or maybe even your struggles to break your addiction.
2.Domestic violence
Because this is such an important issue, make sure to provide readers with statistics and facts to help drive home the importance of helping prevent domestic violence and helping victims.
3. Poverty
You might narrow this broad topic to discuss poverty in your community or a specific region. Informing people of the effects of poverty can help educate and also help people understand how to solve the problem.
4.Plastic surgery
Plastic surgery has grown in popularity in recent years, and many teens are even lining up for surgery. How young is too young to go under the knife? You might want to include a brief history of plastic surgery and why it has become so popular.
5.Stress
I’m guessing that, like procrastination, this is a word than most students can relate to. Especially if your audience is made of fellow students, an essay explaining how to beat stress will be both informative and useful.
6. Procrastination
This is something most students can relate to. If you decide to inform readers about procrastination, you might try a more unconventional approach and tell your audience how procrastination can actually work to your advantage.
7. Winning the lottery
Most of us have had dreams of hitting it big, and we have a long list of ideas of how we’d spend that much money. (A new BMW is at the top of my list.) But have you ever watched those TV shows that explain how winning the lottery actually ruined someone’s life? An informative essay about winning the lottery could easily explain both the positive and negative outcomes of winning such a large sum of money.
8.Prostitution
This type of essay might focus on a historical discussion. After all, prostitution is often called the world’s oldest profession.You might also approach the topic with a discussion of the dangers of prostitution or even why it should be legalized.
9.Anorexia/Bulimia
Informing readers of possible causes and/or solutions to either problem is a good place to start. You might also consider focusing on various ways to treat either disorder.
10. Illegal immigration
While illegal immigration easily lends itself to a historical discussion, keep in mind that immigration is also a current topic with plenty of arguments surrounding immigrants and their status within the U.S.
11.Racism
Although racism can be a touchy subject, it’s important to educate your readers about both the causes and effects (and of course solutions). Because it’s such a big topic, you’ll want to narrow your paper down to a specific angle. For example, racism in the U.S. justice system or racism in schools.
12.Tattoos
For years, adults hated tattoos and rebellious teens and young adults loved them. The tide has shifted, though, and seemingly everyone has a tattoo now. What has caused this societal shift? Why are tattoos now mainstream?
13.Tanning
The tanning industry argues that tanning beds are safe, yet doctors report that the beds are a clear link to skin cancer. Examining both sides of the issue can help your readers form their own opinions.
14.Teen Pregnancy
Some point to a lack of parental supervision as the reason behind high teen pregnancy rates. Others point to media and social pressures. Still others think TV shows, such as “Teen Mom” are actually decreasing rates of teen pregnancy. Your essay might include the reasons for teen pregnancy and discuss the current rates of teen pregnancy and possible solutions.
15.Violence on college campuses
This topic lends itself to a discussion of current violent attacks on campus and the debate on whether or not people should be allowed to openly carry firearms on campus.
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16.Homelessness
Because this is such a broad topic, you might try focusing your paper on your local community and community resources. Write about why the problem of homeless exists in your community and possible solutions.
17.Childhood obesity
People point to many causes for childhood obesity, including fast-food, video games, and a lack of physical education in schools. You might focus your paper on one of these causes, or you might try to address aspects of several arguments (if you have enough time and space).
18.Prison overcrowding
Many argue that legalizing drugs is the simplest solution to overcrowding in prisons. Others argue for decreased mandatory minimum sentences for nonviolent offenses.You may also want to examine the effects of prison overcrowding on staff and inmates.
19.Music censorship
Do you love it when your favorite song comes on the radio but are ready to scream when the station plays the edited version? Should music be censored, or does censorship violate freedom of speech?
20. Cybersecurity
With society more dependent on the Internet than ever, online security is a constant concern for consumers and businesses. Explain how banks, businesses, or consumers have had to change their habits in the face of rapid technological advances in the past decade.
21. College textbook costs
Do I need to even mention how ridiculously expensive textbooks are today? Explaining how to save money by using open-source texts and online textbook rental websites would make for a very informative essay.
Putting It All Together
Like a mad scientist who throws a dash of this and a pinch of that together to create some evil concoction, now’s that you’ve chosen your topic from these informative essay topics, it’s time to throwin the other ingredients to create your geniusessay.
Add a dash of introduction, a clear thesis statement, a few good hook sentences, a healthy portion of information about your topic, and a pinch of conclusion, and you’ve got a recipe for a killer informative essay!
Don’t forget to have a Kibin editor review your final paper to make sure it’s on the right track.
Good luck!
Psst... 98% of Kibin users report better grades! Get inspiration from over 500,000 example essays.
FAQs
What are good topics for an informative essay? ›
- The role of water in our lives.
- The challenges of raising a well-behaved dog.
- What does it mean to be popular in middle school?
- The dangers of cyberbullying and the ways to prevent it.
- How can scouting help us become more responsible?
- The reasons why smoking is bad.
- Assisted suicide should be legalised.
- Junk food should be banned.
- All schools should be co-ed.
- Homework should be banned.
- Song lyrics should be censored.
- The monarchy should be abolished.
- Children should have their own phones.
- Everyone should have a pet.
- Descriptive Essay. A descriptive essay is an essay type that describes an event, concept, or subject in detail. ...
- Cause and Effect Essay. ...
- Compare and Contrast Essay. ...
- Process Essay. ...
- Problem - Solution Essay. ...
- Expository Essay.
An informative essay educates your reader on a topic. They can have one of several functions: to define a term, compare and contrast something, analyze data, or provide a how-to. They do not, however, present an opinion or try to persuade your reader. Examples are; animals, a country, a sport or club, cooking.
What are some examples of informative writing? ›Newspaper articles, almanac entries, and reference books are all examples of informational writing.
What are the 4 parts of an informative essay? ›The basic structure of an informative essay is very simple and easy to follow. Like most types of essays, the informative essay will consist of the basic format of four to five paragraphs. These five paragraphs will include the introduction, two to three supporting paragraphs, and a conclusion.
What are some good argumentative essay topics 2022? ›- Unrequited love in the world famous books.
- Correct upbringing of children and adolescents.
- Patriotism in the United States.
- Choosing a future profession.
- The role of art and culture in the life of every person.
- US culture in the 21st century.
- What should the US do about the refugee crisis?
- Should the death penalty be banned?
- Should the US prison system include for-profit prisons?
- Should Confederate statues and memorials come down?
- Should the US switch to a single-payer health system?
Argumentative Essay Topics Education
Parents should have an active role in their child's education. The grading system shouldn't exist to judge a student's abilities. Standardized tests should be abolished in schools. All students must wear a uniform in high school.
The purpose of an expository essay is to inform, describe, or explain a topic.
What are the types of inform writing? ›
Expository writing is used to inform, explain or describe something to the reader. The expository writing style is one of the most common types of writing and answers questions the reader has, such as what, why and how.
What are the 7 different kinds of informative speeches? ›The four types of informative speeches are a descriptive speech, demonstrative speech, an explanatory speech, and a definition speech. Each of the different types of speeches has its own positives and negatives.
What are the 7 features of an informative text? ›Characteristics of informational text include facts and text features such as table of contents, pictures, captions, bold print, and glossary. These characteristics help the reader find information, add to information presented in text, call the reader's attention to important words, and explain what words mean.
What are the 4 types of essays? ›There are many different types of essay, but they are often defined in four categories: argumentative, expository, narrative, and descriptive essays.
What is the most common essay topic? ›- overpopulation.
- poverty.
- homeless people.
- crime on the streets.
- modern life styles.
- budget spending.
- public services.
To outline your essay, you must remember that this is a 5-paragraph essay which means paragraph one will be your introduction, paragraph two will be your first main point, paragraph three will be your second main point, paragraph four will be your third main point, and paragraph five will be your conclusion.
What is an informative essay PDF? ›It is intended to present or expose something while at the same time avoiding to present arguments or personal opinion from the writer. An informative essay is also sometimes called an expository essay in the sense that it also aims to expose or display an information which will be beneficial for the reader.
What is informative writing for students? ›Informational writing is factual, and its purpose is to inform or explain something to the reader. In this series, elementary students learn how to write informative pieces that provide factual information about a given topic.
What is a good example of an informative speech? ›Reports, lectures, training seminars, and demonstrations are all examples of informative speaking.
How do you write a 5 paragraph essay? ›The five-paragraph essay structure consists of, in order: one introductory paragraph that introduces the main topic and states a thesis, three body paragraphs to support the thesis, and one concluding paragraph to wrap up the points made in the essay.
How do you write a 5th grade informative essay? ›
- Introduce your topic in the opening sentence.
- Be clear and comprehensible in your introduction.
- Group related information into several categories and represent these categories in separate body paragraphs.
- Make sure that each body paragraph is easy to read.
- Summarize all your ideas in the conclusion.
First paragraph should briefly describe the subject to your readers. Good introduction provides background information about the topic, notifies to audience its importance. Common way of starting an introductory paragraph is by questions such as, “Have you ever experienced fever after vigorous workout?
What is the 5 argumentative essay? ›The five parts include a strong introductory paragraph with a clear thesis, three body paragraphs substantiated with detailed evidence, and a compelling conclusion. Students should also use transitional words and phrases to guide readers through their arguments.
What are the latest research topics? ›- Infectious disease. 29 articles | 1,643,000 views. ...
- Nutritional immunology. 29 articles | 768,000 views. ...
- Music therapy. 44 articles | 268,000 views. ...
- Political misinformation. 11 articles | 219,000 views. ...
- Plant science. 15 articles | 198,000 views. ...
- Sustainable agriculture. ...
- Mental health. ...
- Aging brains.
- Why you need to have a plan.
- Pick a topic.
- Choose your research sources.
- Read your sources and take notes.
- Create a thesis.
- Create three supporting arguments.
- Optional: Find a counterargument and respond to it.
- Discuss and analyze the impacts of a famous musician on pop music.
- How has pop music evolved over the past decade?
- How has the portrayal of women in music changed in the media over the past decade?
- How does a synthesizer work?
- Should fracking be legal?
- Should parents be able to modify their unborn children?
- Do GMOs help or harm people?
- Should vaccinations be required for students to attend public school?
- Should world governments get involved in addressing climate change?
- Should we have to do homework? ...
- What are the arguments for and against driving cars?
- Are actors and professional athletes paid too much?
- Do you think there is life on other planets?
- Do video games make people violent? ...
- Should students be made to wear uniforms at school?
The purpose of argument writing is to convince a reader that a point of view is valid or to persuade the reader to take a specific action. Information is used, but it is organized based on these major components of an argument: claim, reason, evidence, counter-claim, and rebuttal.
What is the best topic for an informative speech? ›Informative Speech Topics For College Students
How the meaning of different words changed over time? Is practical knowledge more important than theoretical knowledge? Is it important to improve your communication skills to survive in college? How to decide your major for college?
What are informative examples? ›
Informative definition
The definition of informative is something that contains useful, helpful or relevant information or details. A lecture in which you learn a lot is an example of an informative lecture.
The four types of informative speeches are definition speeches, demonstration speeches, explanatory speeches, and descriptive speeches. A definition speech explains the meaning, theory, or philosophy of a specific topic that the audience likely does not know much about.
What are the 6 types of informative speech? ›As you read the chapter, consider specific topics for each category that you may be able to deliver an informative speech on. O'Hair, Stewart, and Rubenstein identified six general types of informative speech topics: objects, people, events, concepts, processes, and issues (O'Hair, et al., 2007).
What is the first step in writing an informative essay? ›The first step when writing an informative essay is to choose a topic. For an informative essay, this should be a topic that the writer can research. Generally, it is helpful for the writer to know a little about their topic before they begin.
What is an example of informative sentence? ›How to use Informative in a sentence. The educational lecture was informative and worth the trip. If you are writing an informative article, try not to use words with a negative connotation.