WRITING 2 – ASSIGNMENT 3

TON DUC THANG UNIVERSITY

FACULTY OF FOREIGN LANGUAGES
SECTION OF LANGUAGE SKILLS
WRITING 2 – 001151
Full name:
Student Code
Date:
Activity 1: Studying a Descriptive Paragraph
Read the paragraph and answer the questions.
Scenes from a Restaurant
I walk into the restaurant’s dining room and take in all the action – people from all
walks of life interacting with each other. At one table, I can see a group of four young
women. They are all laughing heartily. At the table just to the right of these women sits a
young couple. She is nervously playing with the diamond ring on her left hand. Are they
arguing? In the center area of the restaurant, five men in their thirties and forties are sitting
around a table directly in front of a large tropical plant. They look happy to be here. In the far
right corner of the restaurant, a middle-aged man is sitting alone. I can smell his top-of-the-
line cologne whenever I pass by as I head to the kitchen. Although he is alone, he is definitely
not lonely. His state-of-the-art cellphone has not left his ear since he came in. This is my job.
I take food orders and watch people, from couples fighting to people having a good time
talking. My job might not be the most socially rewarding job in the world, but every night I
learn something new about the nuances of human interaction, and that makes me happy.
1. Underline the topic sentence and circle the controlling idea.
2. List at least three groups of people the writer describes.
-Group of four young women laughing heartily
-The young couple, with the woman nervously playing with the diamond ring on her left
hand
-The five men in their thirties and forties, sitting around a table in the center area of the
restaurant
________________________________________________________________________
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________________________________________________________________________
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________________________________________________________________________
________________________________________________________________________
________________________________________________________________________
________________________________________________________________________
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Activity 2: Completing a Descriptive Essay Outline

Read the essay, study the incomplete outline below, and fill in the missing information.
THE RESTAURANT
On any given weekend, young people get together for an evening of fun. Friends
gather to go to the movies, to a local meeting place, or to a trendy restaurant. These are
normal activities, but not for me. I am a server. While my friends are socializing at get-
togethers or in restaurants, I work in the dining room of a popular eating place. It tis 8:00
p.m. and I scan the restaurant and take in all the action – people from all walks of life
interacting with each other.
In the left corner of the restaurant are several small round tables, and at this moment,
they are occupied. At one table, I can see a group of four young women. They are all
laughing heavily. The thinnest one has just finished telling a joke. These women are wearing
brightly colored career outfits; they probably decided to go out directly after work. It is, in
fact, a Friday night. At the table just to the right of these women sits a couple. She is
nervously playing with the diamond ring on her left hand. Are the arguing? They are hunched
forward, and their faces are tense. Perhaps they do not want others in the restaurant to hear
what they are talking about. The man is holding his cup tightly. The woman anxiously begins
to tear her napkin into tiny pieces. I am glad that I cannot hear what they are saying; their
body language speaks more loudly than any words that I could ever hear.
In the center of the dining room, things are happening. Five men in their thirties and
forties are sitting around a table directly in front of a large tropical plant. They look happy to
be here. They are talking and laughing. One guy whispers something to the guy next to him,
and the other three insist that these two reveal what they are whispering about. The oldest guy
is elegantly dressed in a cashmere sweater. The other four are wearing long-sleeved shirts.
Because all five of them are wearing ties, they must have just come from the office. Every
now and then, one of them will touch the table a few times as he is speaking, perhaps to
emphasize a particular point. To me, it appears that they are having a very lively discussion,
and each of them cannot wait to jump in to offer something to the conversation.

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In the far right corner of the restaurant, a middle-aged man is sitting alone. I can smell
his top-of-the-line cologne whenever I pass by as I head to the kitchen. Although he is alone,
he is definitely not lonely. His state-of-the-art cell phone has not left his ear since he came in.
I cannot tell whether his phone call is business or pleasure because he alternates from serious
tones to lighthearted chuckles. Every once in a while, he asks his server to refresh his cup of
coffee. He adds sugar and stirs his coffee rather loudly, but the noisy clinking of the spoon
against his coffee cup is drowned out by the music that is being played.
This is my job. I take food orders and watch people, from couples fighting to people
having a good time talking. I do not pretend to be a psychologist, but it is interesting to watch
people interact. My job might not be the most socially rewarding job in the word, but every
night I learn something new about the nuances of human interaction. That makes me happy.
I. Introduction (Paragraph 1)
A. Hook: What other do on a Friday night
B. Background Information: Description of these activities
C. Thesis Statement: _____________________________________________________
_____________________________________________________________________
II. Body Paragraph 1 (Paragraph 2) Topic sentence: In the left corner of the
restaurant are several small round tables, and at this moment, they are all
occupied.
A. Four young women
1. laughing heavily
_____________________________________________________________________
2. telling a joke
_____________________________________________________________________
3. wearing brightly colored career outfits
_____________________________________________________________________
B. The young couple
_____________________________________________________________________
1. Married or engaged
2. Playing with the diamond ring
_____________________________________________________________________
3. Woman is tear her napkin into tiny pieces
____________________________________________________________

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4. The man is holding his cup tightly

___________________________________________________________
III. Body Paragraph 2 (Paragraph 3) Topic sentence: In the center of the dining room,
things are happening.
A. Five happy men
1. Talking and laughing.
2. Elegantly dressed in a cashmere sweater, weared long-sleeved shirts and weared ties.
3. To touch the table a few times as speaking.
B. My reaction to them
1. It appears that they are having a very lively discussion
2. They look happy to be here.
IV. Body Paragraph 3 (Paragraph 4) Topic Sentence: _______________________
________________________________________________________________________
A. Middle-aged man
1. _____________________________________________________________________
2. _____________________________________________________________________
3. _____________________________________________________________________
4. _____________________________________________________________________
V. Conclusion (Paragraph 5)
A. Restates my job
B. _____________________________________________________________________

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