ESL & SGS WORKSHOP SERIES (WRITING):

DEVELOPMENT OF IDEAS
TERMS TO KNOW
 Paragraph

Controlling
Idea Introduction

Unity Conclusion

Thesis
Coherence
statement

Rhetorical Topic sentence

pattern
 INTRODUCTION
• From general to specific information (funnel method)
• Definition
• Surprising statistic or a set of statistics
• Quote by an expert
• Counterargument

CONCLUSION
• Recommendation
• Prediction
• Close by return (Echo the introduction)
 THESIS STATEMENT

• Consists of one or more sentences

• Concisely indicates the subject of your paper
• Lists (and limits) the points you are going to discuss
• Lists main ideas in the order in which they are going to be
presented in the paper
• Should be debatable - cannot be a statement of fact
• Gives YOUR opinion – not the ideas of other researchers
 PARAGRAPH

”It is important to remember that your reader needs help in

following your line of thinking. You can give such help by using
explicit structural signals: one important such signal is the
paragraph. In academic writing the paragraph signals a
thought unit: i.e. a paragraph deals with one main idea or
topic.”
(Björk & Räisänen, p.172)
 PARAGRAPH
• Presents a single idea
• Begins with a topic (main-idea) sentence
• Includes several sentences that specifically support or explain
the topic
• Makes writing reader-friendly with transitional words/phrases
• Should not be longer than a page
 TOPIC SENTENCE
• Is often the first sentence of the paragraph
• Is more general than the other sentences in the paragraph
• States the idea that the other sentences develop and specify
• Contains a clear structural signal helping reader predict what to
expect from the text
• Links to the thesis statement
Let’s practice: Using the internet gives young people increased
literacy but also leads to health problems and isolation from other
people.
 CAN YOU FIND THE TOPIC SENTENCE
IN THIS JUMBLED PARAGRAPH ?
1The right side, on the other hand, seems to control artistic,
musical and spatial skills. 2Logical reasoning and mathematics
are left-brain skills. 3Interestingly, the left side of the brain controls
the right hand, and vice versa. 4The human brain has two
distinct halves, or hemispheres, and in most people, each one
controls different functions. 5Emotion is also thought to be
controlled by the right hemisphere. 6The left side of the brain
controls spoken and written language.
 CAN YOU FIND THE TOPIC SENTENCE
IN THIS JUMBLED PARAGRAPH ?
The right side, on the other hand, seems to control artistic,
musical and spatial skills. Logical reasoning and mathematics
are left-brain skills. Interestingly, the left side of the brain controls
the right hand, and vice versa. The human brain has two distinct
halves, or hemispheres, and in most people, each one controls
different functions. Emotion is also thought to be controlled by
the right hemisphere. The left side of the brain controls spoken
and written language.
 RHETORICAL PATTERNS
• Cause/Effect
(METHODS OF ORGANIZING IDEAS)
• Classification/Division
• Contrast/Comparison
• Definition
• Process/Analysis
• Exemplification
• Description
• Narration (Chronology)
• Ascending/ Descending Order--involves classifying parts according to their relative
position in terms of some predefined criteria, such as: importance, appeal, benefit,
cost, delivery, durability, frequency, size, difficulty etc. (often used with a chart)
Authors use one or more rhetorical strategies in order to achieve their purpose.
 ASCENDING ORDER BY COST

Source: https://w ww.sewinginsight.com/a-comparison-of-singer-heav y-duty-sewing-machines/

 FORMING A CLEAR COMPARISON

• Block method
ITEM 1 ITEM 2
Characteristic A Characteristic A
Characteristic B Characteristic B
Characteristic C Characteristic C

• Point-by-point
Characteristic A ITEM 1 ITEM 2
Characteristic B ITEM 1 ITEM 2
Characteristic C ITEM 1 ITEM 2
 FORMING A CLEAR COMPARISON
E.g. Block Method
ITEM 1 Girls
Characteristic A dolls, dishes
Characteristic B dressed in pink
Characteristic C polite, gentle speech
ITEM 2 Boys
Characteristic A trucks, sticks
Characteristic B dressed in blue
Characteristic C tough, rough

E.g. Point-by-Point Method

Characteristic A toys ITEM 1 dolls, whereas ITEM 2 trucks

Characteristic B colours of clothes ITEM 1 pink, but ITEM 2 blue

Characteristic C manner ITEM 1 polite; on the other hand ITEM 2 rough

 WHAT RHETORICAL PATTERN IS
USED HERE?
Hurricanes, which are also called cyclones, exert
tremendous power. These violent storms are often a hundred
miles in diameter, and their winds can reach velocities of
seventy-five miles per hour or more. Furthermore, the strong
winds and heavy rainfall that accompany them can completely
destroy a small town in a couple of hours. The energy that is
released by a hurricane in one day exceeds the total energy
consumed by humankind throughout the world in one year.
(Oshima & Hogue, 1999)
 WHY DO YOU THINK THE SENTENCES ARE
PLACED IN THIS ORDER?
Male and female insects are attracted to each other by
visual, auditory, and chemical means. Butterflies attract by
sight, and their brightly colored wings play an important role in
courtship. Through its chirping call, the male cricket attracts a
mate and drives other males out of its territory. Some female
insects, flies among them, release chemicals called
pheromones that attract males of the species.
(Fawcett, 2007, p.26)
 WHY DO YOU THINK THE SENTENCES
ARE PLACED IN THIS ORDER?
Male and female insects are attracted to each other by
visual, auditory, and chemical means. Butterflies attract by
sight, and their brightly colored wings play an important
role in courtship. Through its chirping call, the male cricket
attracts a mate and drives other males out of its territory.
Some female insects, flies among them, release chemicals
called pheromones that attract males of the species.
(Fawcett, 2007, p.26)
 UNITY

• “Oneness”
• All sentences in a paragraph are linked to the main
idea (controlling idea) of the topic sentence
• All topic sentences are linked to and support the thesis
 COHERENCE

• A paragraph should not be a “shopping list” of points that

support the main idea in the topic sentence
• Sentences have to “stick together”
• Each new sentence needs to smoothly flow out of the
previous one
 COHERENCE
To create an effective flow of ideas:
1. Use introductory phrases to show a logical order of information
2. Use connecting words and phrases
3. Repeat key words and ideas
4. Use synonyms
5. Use pronoun references to point to old information
6. Refer to old information using this or these plus noun that refers
to old information (anaphoric references)
7. Use passive if necessary to connect an idea at the end of one
sentence with the same idea at the beginning of the next
 COHERENCE EXAMPLE

Source: https://literaryterms.net/coherence
 WHAT TECHNIQUES ARE USED HERE?
1. Most students are intimidated by the works of William Shakespeare. They believe
Shakespeare’s sonnets and plays are far too complicated to read and
understand.
2. Many students believe they cannot write a good essay because they are not
writers. However, as they practice writing and work on developing their writing
skills, most students are able to gain the needed confidence to start thinking of
themselves as writers.
3. Mr. Thompson agreed to meet with members of the worker’s union before he
signed the contract. He was interested in hearing their concerns about the new
insurance plan.
4. Teenagers face an enormous amount of peer pressure from friends and
schoolmates. As a result, many young adults are exhibiting signs of severe stress or
depression at an early age.
Source:
http://www.southeastern.edu/acad_research/programs/writing_center/handouts/pdf_handouts/coherence.pdf
 COHERENCE TECHNIQUES
1. Most students are intimidated by the works of William
Shakespeare. They believe Shakespeare’s sonnets and
plays are far too complicated to read and
understand.
Use Repetition to Link Ideas, Sentences, and Paragraphs
Repeating key words or phrases helps connect and focus
idea(s) throughout the essay. Repetition also helps the reader
remain focused and headed in the right direction.
 COHERENCE TECHNIQUES
2. Many students believe they cannot write a good essay because
they are not writers. However, as they practice writing and work
on developing their writing skills, most students are able to gain
the needed confidence to start thinking of themselves as writers.

Use Transitional Expressions to Link Ideas, Sentences, and

Paragraphs. Transitional expressions, such as however, because,
therefore, and in addition, are used to establish relationships
between ideas, sentences, and paragraphs. They serve as signals to
let the reader know the previous idea, sentence, or paragraph is
connected to what follows.
 COHERENCE TECHNIQUES
3. Mr. Thompson agreed to meet with members of the worker’s
union before he signed the contract. He was interested in
hearing their concerns about the new insurance plan.

Use Pronouns to Link Sentences. Pronouns are used to link

or connect sentences by referring to preceding nouns and
pronouns. Pronouns can also help create paragraphs that are
easy to read by eliminating wordiness and unnecessary
repetition.
 COHERENCE TECHNIQUES
4. Teenagers face an enormous amount of peer pressure from
friends and schoolmates. As a result, many young adults are
exhibiting signs of severe stress or depression at an early age.

Use Synonyms to Link Ideas and Create Variety. Synonyms are

words that have the same or nearly the same meaning as
another word. They provide alternative word choices that can
add variety to an essay and can help eliminate unnecessary
repetition.
 COHERENCE TECHNIQUES
5. Usually, the children spend the summer weekends playing ball in park,
swimming in the neighbor’s pool, eating ice cream under the tree, or
camping in the backyard.

Use Parallel Structures to Link Ideas, Sentences, and Paragraphs.

Parallelism is the use of matching words, phrases, clauses, or sentence
structures to express similar ideas. Parallel structures allow the reader to
flow smoothly from one idea, sentence, or paragraph to the next and to
understand the relationships and connections between ideas.
 WHAT DEVICES ARE USED HERE?

The human brain has two distinct halves, or hemispheres,

and in most people, each one controls different functions. The
left side of the brain controls spoken and written language. The
right side, on the other hand, seems to control artistic, musical
and spatial skills. Logical reasoning and mathematics are left-
brain skills. Emotion is thought to be controlled by the right
hemisphere. Interestingly, the left side of the brain controls the
right hand and vice versa.
 WHAT DEVICES ARE USED HERE?
The human brain has two distinct halves, or hemispheres,
and in most people, each one controls different functions. The
left side of the brain controls spoken and written language. The
right side, on the other hand, seems to control artistic, musical
and spatial skills. Logical reasoning and mathematics are left-
brain skills. Emotion is thought to be controlled by the right
hemisphere. Interestingly, the left side of the brain controls the
right hand and vice versa.
 IS THIS BETTER?
• The human brain has two distinct • The human brain has two distinct halves,
halves, or hemispheres, and in most or hemispheres, and in most people, each
people, each one controls different one controls different functions. The left
functions. The left side of the brain side of the brain controls spoken and
controls spoken and written written language. The right side, on the
language. The right side, on the other hand, seems to control artistic,
other hand, seems to control artistic, musical and spatial skills. Emotion is also
musical and spatial skills. Logical thought to be controlled by the right
reasoning and mathematics are left- hemisphere, while logical reasoning and
brain skills. Emotion is thought to be mathematics are left-brain skills.
controlled by the right hemisphere. Interestingly, the left side of the brain
Interestingly, the left side of the brain controls the right hand, and vice versa.
controls the right hand and vice Because of this, some researchers believe
versa. that people who are left-handed also
tend to have a more dominant left
hemisphere and better-developed artistic
and spatial abilities.
 COMPARE POINT VS BLOCK
Point Method (Zig-Zag)
The human brain has two distinct halves, or
hemispheres, and in most people, each one
controls different functions. The left side of the brain
controls spoken and written language. The right
side, on the other hand, seems to control artistic,
musical and spatial skills. Emotion is also thought to
be controlled by the right hemisphere, while logical
reasoning and mathematics are left-brain skills.
Interestingly, the left side of the brain controls the
right hand, and vice versa. Because of this, some
researchers believe that people who are left-
handed also tend to have a more dominant left
hemisphere and better-developed artistic and
spatial abilities.
Block Method
The human brain has two distinct halves, or
hemispheres, and in most people, each one
controls different functions. The left side of the brain
controls spoken and written language. Logical
reasoning and mathematics are also left-brain skills.
Some researchers believe that people who are left-
handed also tend to have a more dominant left
hemisphere and better-developed artistic and
spatial abilities. The right side, on the other hand,
seems to control artistic, musical and spatial skills.
Emotion is also thought to be controlled by the right
hemisphere. Interestingly, the right side of the brain
controls the left hand, and vice versa.
 HOW IS COHERENCE ACHIEVED IN
THIS PARAGRAPH?
“Since readers all read differently it is important that you make
the logical links between your sentences explicit. The more
clearly you indicate such links concretely in the text, the
greater the chance of helping your reader follow and
understand your line of thought. Naturally, there is a limit, you
are not writing academic papers for schoolchildren. However,
the risk of oversimplification is a minor one. The vast majority of
students fail to be explicit enough.”

Source: Björk & Räisänen, 2003, p.187

 HOW IS COHERENCE ACHIEVED IN
THIS PARAGRAPH?
“Since readers all read differently it is important that you make the
logical links between your sentences explicit. The more clearly you
indicate such links concretely in the text, the greater the chance of
helping your reader follow and understand your line of thought.
Naturally, there is a limit, you are not writing academic papers for
schoolchildren. However, the risk of oversimplification is a minor
one. The vast majority of students fail to be explicit enough.”

Source: Björk & Räisänen, 2003, p.187

 • Björk, L., & Räisänen, C. (2003).
Academic writing: A university
writing course (3rd ed.). Lund:
Studentlitteratur.
• Fawcett, S. (2007). Evergreen: A
REFERENCES guide to writing with readings
(8th ed.). Boston: Houghton
Mifflin Company.
• Oshima A., & Hogue, A. (1999).
Writing academic English (3rd
ed.). River, NJ: Pearson
Education.
 THANK YOU

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