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Cause and effect paragraphs

A cause is a reason for, or events leading up to. An effect is the results of a
cause or causes. Having the skill to think the mode of cause and effect is a
key to victory in daily situations.

Transitional Expressions for Cause and Effect

To show causes

 The first cause (second, third)

 The first reason (second, third)
 Yet another factor
 Because
 Is caused by
 Results from

To Show Effects

 One important effect

 Another result
 A third outcome
 As a result
 Consequently
 Then, next, therefore, thus, so
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Exercise: Read the paragraph and answer the questions.

The Positive Effects of Daycare

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Since my daughter has been in daycare she has become better at a few
different things. To start off, her vocabulary is much larger and more
developed. Before she started daycare, my daughter had a few select words
that she would say like; momma, dada, Cocoa (one of the puppies) and some
other simple select words. Now she tries to repeat everything that is said.
Another result of her being in a daycare is that she can interact with other
children better. In the past, she was only around one child. Now she is
around about six to eight kids, and she has learned to share toys and to play
in a group with other children. Her learning to share has carried over at home
when she tells her daddy or me that’s its his turn or mommy’s turn when
putting her socks on. A third outcome of her being in daycare is the fact that
she is becoming more self-reliant. Before daycare, she wouldn’t try very hard
to help me with getting dressed, but now she wants to try to do it all on her
own. She puts her pull ups on and tries to pull on her shirts and pants herself.
Socks still go upside down, but at least her shoes go on the correct feet I am
glad that I decided to put her in a daycare, for the benefits have been great.

Jessi Johnson 2005

1. What is the topic sentence? ______________________________

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2. Mention 3 details
a.___________________________________________
b. __________________________________________
c. ___________________________________________
3. Are the details causes or effects? __________________________
4. What is the concluding sentence? _________________________
Exercise: Read the paragraph and answer the questions.

Effects of Alcohol

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Letting alcohol take control over your life has many negative effects on
a person and the people around them. One important effect is the damage
you can do to your body. Drinking can lead to severe illness and even
eventual death; some health consequences to consider might be liver
disease, kidney failure and, for pregnant women, the loss of their unborn
child. Another detriment is that an addiction could lead to drinking and
driving; possibly causing a fatal car accident for either yourself and/or an
innocent by stander. Another concern to consider is the relationships alcohol
can destroy. Alcohol abuse can have very serious effect on a person’s
temperament, which can lead to spousal and even child abuse. Alcohol often
is the number one cause in divorce and spending time in jail. It can also affect
relationships outside of the family; many people have lost lifelong friends
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whether it is due to foolish arguments and behavior or possibly death. Lastly,

drinking has negative effects on self-esteem and rational thinking. People
become more self-centered, develop low self-esteem, doing things or
behaving in ways that they would not normally. They have little or no regard
to the outcomes of what is said or done when they grow reliant on getting
that alcohol high. The negative effects of alcohol abuse are overwhelming
when considering the many consequences that drinkers and the people
around them must deal with.

Racheal Guza 2005

1. What is the topic sentence? ______________________________

2. Mention 3 details
a.___________________________________________
b. __________________________________________
c. ___________________________________________
3. Are the details causes or effects? __________________________
4. What is the concluding sentence? _________________________

Exercise: Read the paragraph and answer the questions.

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Dropping Out

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For many teenagers, there are numerous negative factors that can lead
them to give up on their education and drop out of school. The first cause is
that many teenagers lack positive role models in their lives. The lack of an
encouraging adult in their lives can cause them to think negatively about
themselves and it does not allow them to live up to their full potential. Also,
the lack of a positive role model can cause them to get involved with the
wrong kind of people and activities. When students get involved in these
types of negative situations, they usually don't focus on school. This can lead
many impressionable young children to give up on their education. Another
factor that cause a student to give up on school is a lack of determination. If
they're not determined to graduate, it can be very difficult for them to stay in
school. Many students find it difficult to stay focused on school when they
when they feel that getting an education is useless. Some students only
attend school because they are forced to, and they are not there to further
their education. The third and final factor is peer pressure. Many students
give into pure pressure very easily. If the pure pressure is negative, this can
lead them into drugs and alcohol. The drugs and alcohol can cause them to
drop out very easily because that is the only thing that they are focused on
and it can easily ruin a child's life.

Copyright 2005 Mike Sullivan

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1. What is the topic sentence? ______________________________

2. Mention 3 details
a.___________________________________________
b. __________________________________________
c. ___________________________________________
3. Are the details causes or effects? __________________________
4. What is the concluding sentence? __________________________

Find the Cause and Effect

Read each sentence below. Write the cause on the first line and the effect on
the second line.

Example: Larry ran across the road and was hit by a car.
Cause: Larry ran across the road.
Effect: He was hit by a car.

1. Amanda missed the bus and was late for school.

Cause: _________________________________
Effect: _________________________________

2. Vance worked hard on his homework and made an A.

Cause: _________________________________
Effect: _________________________________

3. Lighting struck a tree, and the tree started to burn.

Cause: _________________________________
Effect: _________________________________

4. Daisy did extra chores around the house and earned extra money to
buy a new purse.
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Cause: ________________________________
Effect: ________________________________

5. A heavy rain flooded the town.

Cause: ________________________________
Effect: ________________________________

6. He watered the tomato plant regularly, and it produced dozens of

tomatoes.
Cause: ________________________________
Effect: ________________________________

7. We forgot to put gas in the car, and we ran out of gas.

Cause: _______________________________
Effect: _______________________________

8. The cake burned in the oven that was too hot.

Cause: ______________________________
Effect: ______________________________

9. Spring came, and the trees all got leaves.

Cause: _____________________________
Effect: _____________________________

10.Mr. Jones hit a squirrel when it ran across the road.

Cause: ____________________________
Effect: ____________________________

11.The café was out of cream, so I had milk in my coffee.

Cause: ___________________________
Effect: ___________________________

12.John has a cold, so he uses a lot of tissues.

Cause: _____________________________
Effect: _____________________________
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13.Fiona didn’t charge her phone, so it died.

Cause: _____________________________
Effect: _____________________________

The Big Mess

Directions: Read the story. Complete the chart below.

Charles was filthy from playing football all day. “Take off those filthy
clothes and put them in the laundry!” his mother said.

Charles did. His clothes were so filthy that there were even little
clumps of dirt in the washing machine. Charles shook laundry soap into the
machine. I had better put in some extra soap, Charles thought himself. I want
my extra-dirty clothes to get extra-clean! Charles shook in more soap, and
them even ore soap.

“That ought to do it!” he said. He left the laundry room and shut the
door behind him.

About halfway through the cycle, the washing machine began to rattle.
It cracked. It banged. Charles’ mother ran to the laundry room.

“Charles!” she cried. “What did you do to the laundry?”

“Nothing,” Charles said. “I just used some extra soap.”
“Extra soap!” his mother exclaimed, as soap bubbles began to ooze out
from underneath the laundry room door. More and more bubbles came, until
Charles and his mother were up to their knees in bubbles.

“I guess I used too much soap,” Charles said.

“I guess you did!” his mother agreed.
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Cause Effect

His playing football all day Charles was filthy.

I used too much soap The laundry machine began to rattle.

Charles used extra soap.

the washing machine began to rattle. Soon Charles and his mother were up
It cracked. It banged to their knees in bubbles.

Exercise: Write one cause and one effect paragraph using the following topic.

What are the causes of stress?

What are the effects of stress?

Remember to write a clear and organized paragraph for each one.

Paragraphs should include:
a. Title
b. Indentation
c. Topic sentence
d. Details
e. Concluding Sentence

Paragraph 1: What are the causes of stress?

_________________________

________________________________________________________________
________________________________________________________________
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________________________________________________________________
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Paragraph 2: What are the effects of stress?

________________________

________________________________________________________________
________________________________________________________________
________________________________________________________________
________________________________________________________________
________________________________________________________________
________________________________________________________________
________________________________________________________________
_____________________________________________________________.