Qualities of an Effective

Paragraph
What is paragraph?
 A paragraph is a group of related sentences that develop a
single topic or idea.
 Itis composed of topic sentence that contains the main or
central idea to be developed, the details that support or
develop it, and the clinching sentence that concludes or
closes the paragraph.
What makes a good paragraph?

A good paragraph is characterized by unity,

coherence, and emphasis.
UNITY IN THE PARAGRAPH
 Unity in the paragraph means oneness of idea. A good
paragraph possesses unity when all the sentences develop the
main idea. Unity in the paragraph is achieved by the use of:
1. A topic sentence with its controlling idea
2. Supporting details, and
3. A clinching sentence
 Achieving unity in a paragraph is like making a hamburger.
 The lower bun serves as your topic sentence. It sets the limit of your discussion
(controlling idea) and provides a good foundation for your paragraph.
 The patty, cheese, and veggies are your supporting details. These provide color, value,
and taste to what you are writing. The more details you have, the tastier the paragraph
gets.
 Upper bun- this serves as the closing part of the paragraph (clinching sentence). It binds
all the elements together so that when your readers take a bite, they will be hooked
because the reading experience is one of a kind.
1. Unity through the use of the Topic
Sentence
 The topic sentence states the central idea to be developed. It may be stated or
implied.
 If it is stated- it is found at the beginning of the paragraph, at the end of the
paragraph or anywhere between the first and the last sentences. When placed at
the end of the paragraph, it serves as the concluding or clinching sentence.
 If it is implied- the central idea is hinted in the developing sentences.
 Another feature of the topic sentence is the controlling idea that is found in its
predicate. It expresses what is said about the subject of the topic sentence.
Sample Paragraph

 Touch is our most intimate and powerful means of communication. A doctor makes
the mother feel her baby to give her satisfaction after her birth labor. The mother
caresses the newborn to give the baby a feeling of love and security that will be the
foundation of the self. A father taps the shoulder of his son to boost the latter’s
sagging morale after his defeat in a school contest. A friend embraces another friend
to drive away the latter’s loneliness. A son holds his father’s hand in a final goodbye.
These tactile stimulations often send the most powerful messages.
 TOPIC SENTENCE

Touch is our most intimate and powerful means of communication.

SUBJECT
TOUCH

Controlling Idea: (Words that control or limit the discussion of the subject)

-intimate, powerful means of communication

 Sample Paragraph 2
 One night, there went out over the stillness of an evening breeze, out over the chalked hills of Bethlehem,
a cry, a gentle cry. The sea did not hear the cry, for the sea was filled with its own voice. The earth did not
hear the cry, for the earth slept. The great men of the earth did not hear the cry, for they could not
understand how a child could be greater than a man. The Kings of the earth did not hear the cry, for they
could not fathom how a King could be born in a stable. There were only two classes of men who heard the
cry that night: Shepherds and Wise Men. Shepherds: those who now they know nothing. Wise Men: those
who know they do not know everything. Shepherds: poor simple men who knew only how to tend their
flocks, who perhaps could not tell who was the governor of Judea; who perhaps did not know a single line
of Virgil, though there was not a Roman who could not quote from him. On the other hand, there were the
Wise Men; not Kings, but teachers of Kings; men who knew how to read the stars, tell the story of their
movement; men who were constantly bent on discovery. Both of these heard the cry. The shepherds and
the Wise Men discovered wisdom. And the shepherds and Wisdom was a Babe in a crib.
TOPIC SENTENCE

There were only two classes of men who heard the cry that night:
There were only two classes of men who heard the cry that night:
Shepherds and Wise Men.
Shepherds and Wise Men.

SUBJECT

Shepherd and Wise Men

Shepherd and Wise Men

CONTROLLING IDEA

Who
Whoheard
heardthe
thecry
cry
 Sample Paragraph 3
 Before the break of dawn, I leave my workaday world and slip into a far away from the
terrible traffic, away from the suffocating dust and smog of the crowded city. With my
fishing rod, hook, line and sinker, I sail into the vast expanse of sea, sun and sky. There,
cradled by the gentle waves, I mentally unwind, enjoying my wanton freedom from never-
ending job deadlines. The hustle and bustle of office rush drifts away. Stretching my feet,
I feel my tense muscles loosen and my nerves slacken as I play tug-of-war with the fish
that bite my baits. But the great calm surrounding me induces me to doze off. Only the
jerk on my fishing rod, however jolts me awake. Beaten, I fold it up, and decide to spend
the rest of the time savoring an intimate romance with nature and coming face to face with
the Great Unknown. I get to think of myself and my loved ones-my wife and my children-
and my One Love Who is always there for me with His footprints on the sands of my life.
Truly, fishing trips relax and recharge me mentally, physically, and spiritually.
TOPIC SENTENCE

Truly, fishing trips relax and recharge me mentally, physically, and spiritually.
(Serves also as the clinching sentence.)

SUBJECT
Fishing trips

CONTROLLING
CONTROLLING
IDEA
IDEA
Relax, recharge mentally, physically, spiritually
Unity Through the Use of
Supporting Details
 Sample Paragraph 1
 Touch is our most intimate and powerful means of communication. A doctor
makes the mother feel her baby to give her satisfaction after her birth labor.
The mother caresses the newborn to give the baby a feeling of love and
security that will be the foundation of the self. A father taps the shoulder of
his son to boost the latter’s sagging morale after his defeat in a school
contest. A friend embraces another friend to drive away the latter’s
loneliness. A son holds his father’s hand in a final goodbye. These tactile
stimulations often send the most powerful messages.
 TOPIC SENTENCE

Touch is our most intimate and powerful means of communication.

 A doctor makes the mother feel her baby to give her satisfaction after her birth labor.

-The mother caresses the newborn to give the baby a feeling of love and security that will be
the foundation of the self.

-A father taps the shoulder of his son to boost the latter’s

SUPPORTING
SUPPORTING sagging morale after his defeat in a school contest.
DETAILS
DETAILS
-A friend embraces another friend to drive away the latter’s
loneliness.
A son holds his father’s hand in a final goodbye.
 Implied Main Idea- When the author does not state the
main idea directly.
 An implied main idea requires you to look at the specific
statements in the paragraph and consider what idea they
suggest.
 Paragraph 2: Implied Main Idea
The very name of our country, the United States of America, suggests both
unity and division. To the modern citizen, it is the unity that counts, with
Americans generally thinking of themselves living in one country divided
mainly by geography. But there was a time when many Americans thought in
distinctly different terms. In 1774 when John Adams spoke of "our country,"
he meant Massachusetts. Even Thomas Jefferson took a while to move beyond
his own region of birth and in his early years, "my country" usually meant
Virginia to him. Consider, too, the original heading for the Declaration of
Independence, which was described as "The Unanimous Declaration of the
Thirteen United States of America."
As Daniel Boorstein has written in The Americans, "An unsuspecting
historian a thousand years hence might assume...that the Declaration
brought into being thirteen new and separate nations...." In 1787, Oliver
Ellsworth of Connecticut participated in making plans for a federal
government that would have power over the entire country. However, his
words suggest that his head and heart were at war with each other. Like
many others, Ellsworth knew that the states should strive for unity. Yet for
him, it was his home state that inspired the strongest patriotic feeling, as he
publicly declared "my happiness depends as much on the existence of my
state government, as a new-born infant depends upon its mother for
nourishment." Ellsworth was
 Implied Main Idea: Early in the history of the
United States, many Americans were more
devoted to their own home states than the idea of
a common country.
33.U
.Unnitiyty Through the U
Through the Useseoof f the
C li nch th e
ClinchininggSSeenntetennccee
 A clinching sentence may be a
restatement of the topic sentence, a
summary, or a conclusion based on
the supporting details. Hence, like the
topic sentence and the supporting
details, it helps achieve unity. At
times, the clinching sentence is also
the topic sentence.
Sample Paragraph 1

 TopicSentence : Touch is our most intimate and

powerful means of communication.
 Clinching Sentence: These tactile stimulations
often send the most powerful messages. ( The
clinching sentence restates the topic sentence.
Sample Paragraph 4 (Implied)

 Distraught, the lone survivor prayed for rescue. He had witnessed how the ship
had sunk three days before. The boiler exploded and ripped its bottom. So sudden
was the catastrophe that both the crew and the passengers were caught unaware.
Not a single lifeboat was lowered. After what had seemed an eternity, he was
almost half-dead with barely enough strength to cling to the raft coming within his
reach. Unless succor be coming soon, he would surely lapse into death, too.
The Atheist
Topic Sentence- (The sentences hint the shipwrecked
survivor’s harrowing experience.)

Subject- Shipwreck survivor

Clinching sentence- Unless succor be coming soon, he

would surely lapse into death, too. (The clinching sentence
expresses a conclusion. )
The Diagrams/Patterns of Paragraph
Development or Structures
T.S
T.S

T.S
T.S
DEDUCTIVE DEDUCTIVE-
INDUCTIVE
INDUCTIVE

T.S

INDUCTIVE-DEDUCTIVE
 Summer love, the of kind that grows between April and May, is the most carefree kind of
romance. It comes so natural, spontaneous and needs no prodding. It seems oblivious of
time and is in no hurry. It asks for nothing but time together and togetherness at close
proximity. And while summer is in bloom, this feeling seems to hold the promise of lasting
forever. Once in a while, though, a summer love labor Day. More often than not, it
succumbs to its own carefree nature, withering with the cold demands of the real world, of
the day to day humdrum of school and work. Aptly, it is called summer fever.

 Topic sentence:
 Subject:
 Controlling idea:
 Clinching sentence (including the types):
 Supporting details: