PARAGRAPH

WRITING
 BASIC OUTLINE OF A PARAGRAPH

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PARTS OF A PARAGRAPH

1.Introduction – the first section of a paragraph that

states the main theme or concept.
2.Body – follows the introduction and provides the
supporting details.
3.Conclusion - summarizes the connections between
the information discussed in the body of the
paragraphs and the paragraph's controlling idea.
Types of Sentences in a Paragraph

1.Topic Sentence - states the main topic of the

paragraph and the controlling idea.

Trees are useful to us. They clean the air around

us. On a hot day, they give us shade. We can use their
wood to build our homes. Trees also help to keep the
environment fresh. They provide us oxygen.
 A dog is a useful animal. It guards
our house. It protects us from burglars. It
plays with us and entertains us. It keeps
us safe and makes our life easy.
* Your topic sentence
should not be too general
and not be too specific.
 ______________________________________
She works ten hours a day. She goes to office early in the
morning and comes back quite late at night. Sometimes,
she even works on Saturdays. She doesn’t have much free
time at all.

a. Mrs. Smith is busy.

b. Mrs. Smith is a busy executive manager.
c. Mrs. Smith is a busy executive manager who works 7
am to 10 pm and has no social life.
 ________________________________.
They are naturally good caregivers because they take
care of their kittens, so they want to take care of their
owners as well. Cats are quite clean. If you train them
to use a litter box, they require almost no cleanup in
their areas.

a. Cats are caring and clean pets.

b. Cats are caring and clean mammals belonging to the
family called “Felidae”.
c. Cats are pets.
__________________________________________________________________.
They can be biological or genetic, and interactional or environmental. While
genetics can help explain the prevalence of ADD in children and families, they do
not necessarily explain its cause. Environmental factors such as social interaction,
attachment and other factors can also play a huge role in the development of
ADD but not necessarily its root. Research suggests that genetic and
environmental interactions may both be important in conditioning the risks of
ADD as well as its severity and progression. In the classic question of “nature vs
nurture”, in this case the answer appears to be both.

a. There are root causes to Attention Deficit Disorder (ADD).

b. The root cause of Attention Deficit Disorder (ADD) is hard to determine since
genetics, environment, interaction and attachment all contribute to it.
c. The root cause of Attention Deficit Disorder (ADD) is difficult to
determine due to several factors.
2. Supporting Sentences – are sentences
in the paragraph that provide the
supporting details.

3. Concluding Sentence – the sentence in

the paragraph that provides the summary.
Transitional Devices Used in Writing

1. Chronological Order – first, second, next

2. Order of Importance – primary, secondary, most important, last
3. Spatial Order – above, below, beside, under
4. Definition Order – is, refers to, means
5. Classification – classified as, under, it belongs to
6. Process – first, next, then, following
7. Cause and Effect – because, thus
8. Comparison and Contrast – both, while
9. Listing – for instance, for example
10. Clarification – in fact, in other words
11. Summary – as a summary, to sum up
12. Example – for example, like
13. Addition – moreover, in addition
 PROPERTIES OF A
WELL-WRITTEN TEXT
1. Organization – is the logical sequencing of
ideas, incidents, evidence or details in a
paragraph.
2. Coherence – connection of ideas at the
conceptual level.
3. Cohesion – connection of ideas at the
sentence level.
 “My favorite color is blue. I'm
calm and relaxed. In the summer, I
lie on the grass and look up.”
OUTLINE OF COHERENCE
SENTENCE 1

SENTENCE 4 CONCEPT SENTENCE 2

SENTENCE 3
 “My favorite color is blue. Blue
sports cars go very fast. Driving in this
way is dangerous and can cause many
car crashes. I had a car accident once
and broke my leg. I was very sad
because I had to miss a holiday in
Europe due to my injury.”
OUTLINE OF COHESION
Better way of writing it with coherence and
cohesion:

“My favorite color is blue. I like it because

it is calming and it relaxes me. I often go
outside in the summer and lie on the grass to
look into the clear sky when I am stressed. For
this reason, I'd have to say my favorite color is
blue."
COHERENCE + COHESION =
UNITY

4. Unity - is the oneness of ideas all

pertaining to the theme or the topic
sentence.
TECHNIQUES USED BY WRITERS TO
FORM COHESION AND COHERENCE
IN PARAGRAPH WRITING
 Volunteering offers individuals many
rewarding experiences. A volunteer may
change the lives of others while changing his
or her own life. Many opportunities exist to
volunteer in local communities. Consider
volunteering today!
A. Repetition – stating the same word again to
emphasize a concept.
 B. Antonyms – the use of an
opposing word to define another
word.
C. Synonyms – the use of another
word that has the same meaning
with the given word.
D. Pro-forms – the used of a word, most
of the time a pronoun, to make explicit
reference back to a word mentioned
earlier.
 Two Types of Pro-forms

i. Anaphora – is used when referring back

to another word that was mentioned earlier.

Example: Ms. Smith is a teacher. She

teaches mathematics.
ii. Cataphora – is used when referring to
words or phrases that refer to other words
used later in a text.

Example: She teaches mathematics.

Her name is Ms. Smith.
E. Collocations - refer to how words go together or
form fixed relationships in a sentence.

Examples: There was a hard traffic in Los Baños.

There was a heavy traffic in Los Baños.

Can you make me a favor?

Can you do me a favor?
F. Enumeration – is used to present
related information which is the same
way as exemplification.
5. Language Use – is one of the clearest
indicators of a well written text. It
enables writers to effectively
communicate ideas without confusing
the reader.

An effective language is: specific,

concise, familiar, correct, and
appropriate.
 LEVELS OF LANGUAGE USE
A. Informal/Impersonal – the use of slang, local
expressions, and text messaging.
B. Standard/Academic – widely accepted words
and phrases found in books, magazines, and
newspapers.
C. Business/Technical – scientific terms,
jargons, and special expressions.
 PRINCIPLES IN LANGUAGE USE OR DICTION
A. Use clear and concise sentences.
Image is a very important factor in
politics because once the reputation of a
person is smeared by accusations, the
people’s perception of the person is
forever tainted and it may cause him to
lose credibility and trust even when the
truth behind allegations is not yet
verified.
Image is an important factor
in politics. Once the reputation of a
person is smeared by accusations,
the people’s perception of the
person is forever tainted. The
person may lose his credibility and
trust, even when the allegations are
not yet verified.
 This is a free gift.
The dead corpse is lying on the ground.
I went to school at 7 am in the morning.

Redundancies - when we use two or more words together

that mean the same thing.

as red as a rose
once upon a time
all’s well that ends well

Cliche - is an expression that was once innovative but has

lost its novelty due to overuse.
 Malarky

What you’re saying is just a malarky.

Malarky = nonsense or meaningless talk.

Discombobulate

The lesson is difficult that I got discombobulated.

Discombobulate = confuse / upset

Highfalutin words

Highfalutin words - are words that are considered pompous or pretentious.

B. Avoid redundancies, cliches, and highfalutin words.

C. Avoid excessive use of “there” and “it”.
There's a book on the table. A book is on the table.

D. Use precise vocabulary. Be accurate.

We are endeavoring to construct a more Better sentence: We're going to make

inclusive society. a country in which no one is left out.

My father takes me to school daily using some Better Sentence: My father takes
sort of mechanized and moving transportation. me to school daily using a car.
 We need to go to the market. We will buy fish and bread. She will
cook them when we go home. He will eat them. You will wash the plates.

Better: We need to go to the market. We will buy fish and bread. We

will cook them when we go home. We will eat them. We will wash our
plates.

We should simply accept that fate is simply an illusion; you must

not leave our decisions to something that does not exist.

Better:We should simply accept that fate is simply an illusion; we

must not leave our decisions to something that does not exist.

E. Be consistent on pronoun POV.

F. Avoid sexist language.
The artist is a man of his time; he creates a visual manifestation of the deepest
longings of his culture.

Better: Artists are products of their times; they create visual manifestations of the
deepest longings of their cultures.

Because man is a being of many environments, his education should not confine him
to a limited view of himself.

Better: Because we are beings of many environments, our education should not
confine us to a limited view of ourselves.

Each student makes up his own schedule.

Better: The students make their own schedules.

G. Use appropriate level of formality.
Hi! I read in the paper that ya'll were looking for a receptionist. I
think that I am good for that job because I've done stuff like it in the past, am
good with words, and am incredibly well organized.

Better paragraph:
I am applying for the receptionist position advertised in the local
paper. I am an excellent candidate for the job because of my significant
secretarial experience, good language skills, and sense of organization.

Hi Ma’am Marla, I will be absent today due to sickness.

Better statement:
Good day Ma’am Marla. I am John Reyes. I am a Grade 11 STEM Q
student. I am writing this letter to inform you of my absence today due to
sickness. I am suffering from diarrhea and high fever.
6. Mechanics – focuses on the technicalities of
the structure of language. It determines errors on
subject-verb agreement or grammar, spelling,
capitalization, abbreviations, the use of numbers
as part of the statement, and the punctuation
marks.
A. Subject-Verb Agreement (SVA) or Grammar - is the grammatical rule that the verb
or verbs in a sentence must match the number, person, and gender of the subject in a
sentence.

• If the subject is singular, the verb should also be singular. A singular verb has “-s” or
“-es” at the end.
• If the subject is plural, the verb should also be plural. A plural verb is in its base form,
meaning there is no “-s” or “-es” after it.

Princess (play/plays) the piano.

She (is/are) pretty.
Anna, Maria and John (was/were) present in the party.

Did you (write/wrote) the assignment yesterday?

*Auxiliary verbs or helping verbs “do, does, and did” should always be followed by the
present tense of the verb without “-s” or “-es”.
Pluralizing nouns is different from pluralizing verbs

If the subject is singular, the noun should also be singular. A singular noun has
no “-s” or “-es” at the end.
If the subject is plural, the noun should also be plural. A plural noun has an “-s”
or “-es” at the end.

Six pen vs six pens

One dogs vs one dog
Three apples vs three apple

The participants gave their (feedbacks/feedback) after the presentation.

*Words like luggage, furniture and feedback are considered mass nouns.
Therefore, you cannot pluralize them by adding an “-s” or “-es” at the end.
Instead, you add a determiner to pluralize them like “pieces”, “sets” etc. Thus, it
is wrong to say “feedbacks”, it should be “sets of feedback”.
B. Spelling - the forming of words from letters according to
accepted usage.

Embarassed / Embarrased / Embarrassed

Accommodate / Accomodate / Acommodate

Acknowledgement / Acknowledgment / Acknowlledgment

C. Capitalization - the writing of a word with its first letter as an upper
case and the remaining letters in lower case.

Sentence: mathematics is the subject I am taking right now at school.

Mathematics is the subject I am taking right now at
school.
* General Rule – Always capitalize the first letter of the first word
in every sentence.

Sentence: Our teacher is sir marvin.

Our teacher is Sir Marvin.

Rule: The first letter of a proper noun should always be capitalized

whereas the first letter of a common noun should not be.
Sentence: This is the subject i was referring.
This is the subject I was referring.

Rule: The special pronoun “I” should always be capitalized in any

part of the sentence.

Sentence: My favorite season is Summer, especially when I get to walk

outside under the sun on a sunday morning.
My favorite season is summer, especially when I get to
walk outside under the sun on a Sunday morning.

Rule: The names of days, months, and holidays are proper nouns, so
you should capitalize them. The names of seasons, however, are not
proper nouns, so there’s no need to capitalize them.
D. Abbreviation - is a shortened form of a word or phrase.

LTFRB DepEd
DTI DOLE
NBI TESDA

Acronym - an abbreviation consisting of initial letters of

multiple words that can be pronounced as one word.
Initialism - an abbreviation consisting of initial letters that
cannot be pronounced as one word.
E. Number(s) - is a mathematical object used to count,
measure, and label.

105 is my favorite number.

One hundred and five is my favorite number.

Rule – Spell out all numbers beginning a sentence.

There are forty three students in the classroom.

There are forty-three students in the classroom.

Rule - hyphenate all compound numbers from twenty-one

through ninety-nine.
F. Punctuation Marks -  these are symbols that we use in writing
to separate written sentences and parts of sentences, and to make
their meaning clear.

1. Period or Full Stop (.) – is a punctuation used to signal the end

of a sentence, for abbreviation and for decimals.

Examples: She is pretty.

He got a consultation from Dr. Murray.
Your general average is 98.50.
2. Exclamation point or exclamation mark (!) – is a punctuation mark used at the
end of a sentence when that sentence expresses an intense emotion.

I’m so excited to go the park tomorrow!

Don’t you dare!
Excuse me!
*Interjection is a part of speech that always uses exclamation marks at the end
since it expresses an intense feeling. Examples are “Ouch!”, “Hey!”, “Wow!”

3. Question mark (?) – a punctuation mark placed at the end of a question, to ask
permission, and to note questionable items.

May I go to the bathroom?

Will you do this?
Why did you do that?
This bag?
4. Quotation Marks (“ ”) – are used to indicate direct
quotations for titles of poems, short stories, chapters,
essays, songs, episodes of television shows.

I enjoyed watching “Deadpool” starring Ryan Reynolds.

I love reading the poem called “Nature” by Henry David
Thoreau.
5. Apostrophe (‘) – used to show possession, contractions, abbreviating decade spans and pluralization of
single letters.

This is Maria’s bag.

You’re the most beautiful person I have ever seen in my entire existence.
He’s the love of my life.

I was born in the 70’s.

I was born in the ’70s. (correct way of writing)
*An apostrophe should not appear between the numeral of the year and the added “s.” Decades don’t own
stuff, so why make it possessive?

She got so many A’s in her subjects. (correct way of writing)

She got so many As in her subjects.

ABM’s vs ABMs
Pluralizing acronyms and initialisms do not require an apostrophe. Hence, the correct way of writing is
“ABMs” (without apostrophe) and not “ABM’s” (with apostrophe).
6. Colon ( : ) – a punctuation that used in several ways:

a. To introduce lists, series or elements

He is going to buy three things : chairs, tables and plates.

b. Ratios

The odds of winning are 3:1.

c. Time

The movie starts at 7:45 pm.

d. Biblical verses

Acts 4:12, Genesis 1:31

7. Parentheses ( ) - used to enclose incidental or extra information, to enclose a date
or range of years, to give a citation, and to state the first acronym or initialism of a
given set of names.

Some of the local store owners (Mr. Kwan and Ms. Lawson) insisted that the
street be widened.

She works for the Department of Education (DepEd).

Sir William Walton (1902–1983) composed the oratorio Belshazzar's Feast.

According to the reports of her contemporaries, she was a mediocre critic and a
worse artist (Travis, 26–62).
8. Brackets [ ] - are a special case and are only used in specific
situations. Use brackets to insert something into a sentence that is
already enclosed in parentheses, and to set off nonessential details
and explanations.

(Don't forget, however, that the joints will be filled with grout
[see page 46]).

“Bill and Melinda [Griffin] are two of my best customers,” the

street vendor bragged.
9. Hyphen (-) - is a punctuation mark that’s used to join words or parts of words, to divide a word
where there is not enough space for the whole word at the end of the line, and numbers between
twenty-one and ninety-nine when they are spelled out.

… a dog-friendly hotel
… a book-loving student

fifty-five
thirty-nine

“A curious sensation of terror came over me. I knew that I had come face to face with
some-
one whose mere personality was so fascinating that, if I allowed it to do so, it would absorb my
whole nature, my whole soul, my very art itself.” – The Picture of Dorian Gray by Oscar Wilde

“That’s it. If we had a keen vision and feeling of all ordinary human life, it would be like
hea-ring the grass grow and the squirrel's heart beat, and we should die of that roar which lies on the
other side of silence. As it is, the quickest of us walk about well wadded with stupidity.” –
Middlemarch by George Eliot.
10. Dash (–) - is a little horizontal line that floats in the middle of a line of text
(not at the bottom cause that’s an underscore). It’s longer than a hyphen and is
commonly used to indicate a range or a pause.

Two Types of Dashes

A. Em dash (–) – is often used to set off parenthetical information.
Using em dashes instead of parentheses puts the focus on the information
between the em dashes.

While I was shopping — wandering aimlessly up and down the aisles,

actually — I ran into our old neighbor.

B. En dash – most commonly used in giving time range.

I have to work from 10 a.m. – 6 p.m. today.

11. Slash (/) – a punctuation mark that we use to separate words or to show alternatives.

Two Types of Slashes

a. Backslash (Backward Slash) – is used only for computer coding.

b. Forward slash – is used in several ways:
1. To separate lines in prose or poetry
Mary had a little lamb/ little lamb, little lamb/ Mary had a little lamb/ whose fleece was white as snow.

The quality of mercy is not strained/ it droppeth as the gentle rain from heaven/ upon the place beneath.
It is twice blest:/ It blesseth him that gives and him that takes.

2. To indicate options or alternatives

When leaving the classroom, the teacher noticed that a student had left his/her backpack.
College freshmen should bring a mattress and/or cot to sleep on during orientation.

3. To form abbreviations
w/o = without, w/ = with, c/o = care of

4. To denote dates and fractions

½, 12/20/1982
12. Semicolon – is used to join independent clauses when and, or, yet, but, or so
are not present, and to separate items in a series that contains commas.

What is an independent clause? This is a clause or a group of words that

can stand alone on its own.

Examples:
I ordered a cheeseburger for lunch; life’s too short for counting
calories.
Martha has gone to the library; her sister has gone to play soccer.

I need the weather statistics for the following cities: San Pablo, Laguna,
Lipa, Batangas, Dasmarinas, Cavite, and Lucena, Quezon Province.

I need the weather statistics for the following cities: San Pablo, Laguna;
Lipa, Batangas; Dasmarinas, Cavite; and Lucena, Quezon Province.
13. Ellipsis ( . . . ) – is a set of three periods used to indicate that words have been deleted
from a quoted material.

Original text:
The mayor said, “Our city, which is one of the country’s most progressive,
deserves a high-tech light-rail system.”

With Ellipsis:
The mayor said, “Our city . . . deserves a high-tech light-rail system.”

Original Quote:
It must be obvious, from the very start, that there is a contradiction in
wanting to be perfectly secure in a universe whose very nature is momentariness and
fluidity.

With Ellipsis:
It must be obvious … that there is a contradiction in wanting to be perfectly
secure in a universe whose very nature is momentariness and fluidity. – Alan Watts.
14. Comma ( , ) – is a punctuation mark that is used several ways:

1. To show distinction of items in a series:

We bought apples, peaches, and bananas today. (series of words)

Mary promised that she would be a good girl, that she would not bite her brother, and
that she would not climb onto the television. (series of clauses)
The instructor looked through his briefcase, through his desk, and around the office
for the lost grade book. (series of phrases)

2. To set off appositives

Rule: An appositive is a noun or noun phrase that renames a nearby noun. Appositives
offer nonessential information.

Alexander Pope, the Restoration poet, is famous for his monologues. 

Maria, the most beautiful student in the classroom, is pregnant.

3. For numbers, dates, and address

12,000
August 8, 2002
Calamba, Laguna
The Oxford (or serial) comma is the final comma in a list of things.

Example: Please bring me a pencil, eraser, and notebook. (The Oxford comma
comes right after ”eraser”.)

* The use of the Oxford comma is stylistic, meaning that some style guides
demand its use while others don’t. AP Style—the style guide that newspaper
reporters adhere to—does not require the use of the Oxford comma.

Sentence: I love my parents, my dog and my cat.

Without the Oxford comma, the sentence above could be interpreted as
saying you love your parents, and your parents are your dog and your cat. Here’s
the same sentence with the Oxford comma: I love my parents, my dog, and my
cat.
With Oxford comma – We invited the Philippine president, a robber, and a dictator.
Without Oxford comma – We invited the Philippine president, a robber and a dictator.

photo from Chelze Gallenero, The Leadon.

General Principles
1. Always use standard English.
2. Avoid informal contraction - (wanna, gonna, gotta)
3. Avoid exclamation marks unless part of a quotation.
4. Mention full name in first mention. Thereafter, use
abbreviations.
5. Numbers zero to ten vs 11 and so on.
6. Citations are used in academic and formal texts but
sparingly used in business texts.
Proofreading - Proofreading a sentence
means trying to find a mistake and correct it
with focus on the mechanics such as
punctuation, capitalization, grammar, and
run-on sentence.
References:

English Grammar in Use by Raymond Murphy

Merriam-Webster’s Collegiate Dictionary – Eleventh Edition

https://www.grammarly.com/blog/what-is-the-oxford-comma-and-why-do-people-care-so-much-a
bout-it/

https://www.uopeople.edu/blog/punctuation-marks/

https://www.grammarly.com/blog/grammar-basics-what-is-subject-verb-agreement/