Paragraph Writing

Definition of Paragraph

 A paragraph is made of a few sentences that talk about ONE single topic. You
should have at least five to seven sentences in your paragraph.
 Your topic can have some evidence or examples to support it, but these should all
be related to each other. Do not introduce any new topic.
 Each paragraph should have coherence and cohesion.
Topic Sentence

 What is the topic sentence?

 The topic sentence is the first sentence in a paragraph.
 What does it do?
 It introduces the main idea of the paragraph.
 How do I write one?
 Summarize the main idea of your paragraph. Make clear what your paragraph
will be about
Controlling Idea

 Remember this formula: Topic Sentence= Topic + Controlling Idea

 As the name suggests, controlling idea controls your thoughts and ideas. The controlling
idea tells your reader what specific aspect of this topic you are going to write about.
Example of Topic Sentence and Controlling Idea

 • Look at the following word: Raw Vegetables

 • If I say raw vegetable, nobody will know what I will write about raw vegetables.
I could write about how they are planted, what they are used for, different recipes
calling for raw vegetables, the vitamins in them, etc.
 • By writing a controlling idea, I can clarify what I am talking about. Look at the
following example: Raw vegetables might not be as healthy as we thought they
were.
 • Here I made it clear that I am going to talk about the health related aspect of
raw vegetables. So, my topic is “raw vegetables” and my controlling idea is
“might not be as healthy as we thought they were”. I also started my sentence
with a shocking claim that raw vegetables might actually be harmful!
 Example:

 Canada is one of the best countries in the world to live in. First, Canada has an excellent
health care system. All Canadians have access to medical services at a reasonable price.
Second, Canada has a high standard of education. Students are taught by well ‐trained
teachers and are encouraged to continue studying at university. Finally, Canada's cities
are clean and efficiently managed. Canadian cities have many parks and lots of space for
people to live. As a result, Canada is a desirable place to live.
Supporting Details

 What are supporting sentences?

 They come after the topic sentence, making up the body of a
 paragraph.
 What do they do?
 They give details to develop and support the main idea of the paragraph.
 How do I write them? You should give supporting facts, details, and examples.
 Example: Canada is one of the best countries in the world to
live in. First, Canada has an excellent health care system. All
Canadians have access to medical services at a reasonable
price. Second, Canada has a high standard of education.
Students are taught by well‐trained teachers and are
encouraged to continue studying at university. Finally,
Canada's cities are clean and efficiently managed. Canadian
cities have many parks and lots of space for people to live.
As a result, Canada is a desirable place to live.
Closing Sentence

 What is the closing sentence?

 The closing sentence is the last sentence in a paragraph.
 What does it do?
 It restates the main idea of your paragraph.
 How do I write one?
 Restate the main idea of the paragraph using different words
 Example:
 Canada is one of the best countries in the world to live in. First, Canada has an
excellent health care system. All Canadians have access to medical services at a
reasonable price. Second, Canada has a high standard of education. Students are
taught by well‐trained teachers and are encouraged to continue studying at
university. Finally, Canada's cities are clean and efficiently managed. Canadian
cities have many parks and lots of space for people to live. As a result, Canada is
a desirable place to live.
Types of Paragraphs

 There are four different types of paragraphs.

 The type of paragraph you use will depend on your purpose for writing.
 To entertain readers or express themselves, writers use narration or description.
 Exposition and narration are used to inform readers about something.
 Writers use persuasion to influence people.
 Several paragraphs written about the same subject might be very different, depending on
why the writers wrote them.
 The four paragraphs that follow all talk about roller coasters, but in different ways.
Narrative paragraphs

 Narrative paragraphs tell about an event or series of events, usually in

chronological order.
 Most short stories and newspaper articles are examples of narrative writing.
Descriptive paragraphs

 Descriptive paragraphs do exactly what you think they do; they describe a person,
an object, or a scene in detail.
Expository paragraphs

 Expository paragraphs are used for explanation.

 They can list facts, give directions, or explain ideas.
 Writers also use expository paragraphs to define terms, make comparisons, and
show cause and effect.
 Since information in expository writing can usually be put into categories, it often
uses logical order.
Persuasive paragraphs

 Persuasive paragraphs are used to share an opinion about a particular subject.

 Writers of persuasive paragraphs try to convince readers to agree with the
opinions in the paragraphs and, sometimes, to take action.
 A persuasive paragraph often uses order of importance.
 Activity #1

 Read each paragraph carefully and decide whether it is a narrative, descriptive,

expository, or persuasive paragraph.
 1. To be healthy, teens can exercise, eat nutritious foods, and
keep themselves safe. First, participating in various kinds of
fitness can keep them in shape. This can include walking, riding
their bikes, and playing sports. Next, maintaining a nutrient-rich
diet can help teens stay well. Three balanced meals and two
wholesome snacks a day can keep their health on track. Finally,
staying out of dangerous situations can keep teens healthy.
Avoiding strangers, wearing seatbelts in cars, and checking
smoke detectors are all great ways to accomplish this task.
Teens who follow these tips will keep their bodies unharmed
and in good physical shape.
 2. One of the oddest coincidences in my life happened when I left America to visit Seoul,
South Korea. A friend and I wanted to visit a castle in Seoul, so we found some locals
who agreed to take us to see it. As we were walking up some steps from one part of the
grounds to another, I saw some people watching us from the top of the steps. When I got
to the top, someone I had never seen before mentioned my sister’s name and asked if I
was her sister. I almost couldn’t talk! How could these people know my sister, who lived
in Australia? They explained that they were my sister’s neighbors in Australia and that I
looked just like her. It was the strangest experience in my life!
 3. Hanging on my bedroom wall is a picture of a train. Sometimes, when I’m lying on my
bed, I take a closer look. The front of the train has a number of flags, but they don’t look
like today’s American flag. Instead, these flags have stripes and a circle of stars. The train
is at a station, and the conductor is walking toward the tracks in front of the train. Is he
preparing to speak to all of the hat-wearing men and children behind him, or is he
checking out the tracks? I can’t decide. The clock on the post outside the station says it is
about six fifteen, and I’m guessing that it’s evening and not morning since it doesn’t look
dark. I can just imagine the smell of coal and hear the sound of the train as it snorts and
breathes, chomping at the bit to get moving. The picture always makes me think about
life in the past.
 4. All students should be required to learn how to use the internet. First, because the web
gives students access to a tremendous amount of research from the comfort of school or
home, they can save time doing research if they learn to use this resource. For example, if
students want to write about poodles, they can easily go to a search engine and find all of
the resources they could possibly want or need on the topic. Next, the internet allows
instant communication with access to everything from email to Skype. Students who have
access to the web can communicate with parents and friends during breaks, resolving
issues or letting parents know about a schedule change. Finally, learning to use the
internet will help students compete in the highly-competitive and technologically-savvy
world. Many jobs today require employees to use the internet, and if students don’t know
how to do this, they will be stuck in lower-paying jobs. Clearly, the internet is a necessity
in today’s world, so all students should learn how to use it.
 Activity # 2
Identifying Types of Paragraphs
 With two or three other students, find an example of each of the four paragraph
types in magazines, newspapers, books, or on Web sites. Then, answer the
following questions for each paragraph.
 1. Do you think the paragraph is narrative, descriptive, expository, or persuasive?
How can you tell?
 2. How are the details organized in each paragraph (chronologically, spatially,
logically)? How do you know? Could the information have been organized in a
different way? How?
 3. What was the writer’s purpose for writing each piece (to entertain, inform,
influence, express)? Does your group feel that the writer achieved his or her
purpose? Why?