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English 101

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English 101

ONE

Paragraph Structure

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English 101

Overview:1. What is a paragraph? 2. What does a paragraph look like?3. Parts of a paragraph?4. Types of paragraphs (with an example)5. The steps to writing a good paragraph 6. Coherence & unity in a paragraph7. Connecting Sentences within the paragraph

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English 101

1. What is a paragraph?• A paragraph is a group of sentences which develop one

central idea. The central idea is usually sated in a topic sentence. Every sentence in the paragraph must help the development of the topic sentence.

• A paragraph consists of several sentences that are grouped together.  This group of sentences together discusses one main subject.   In formal academic English, paragraphs have three principal parts.  These three parts are the topic sentence, supporting sentences, and the concluding sentence. 

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English 101

2. What does a paragraph look like?

( ……)The first sentence of a paragraph is always indented so that the reader will know that a new subject – or a different aspect of the same subject– is being dealt with. This means you must leave an empty space to show the beginning of the paragraph. Consider indentation as another form of punctuation. Just as every sentence ends with a period (.), so each new paragraph begins with an indentation.Make sure that you capitalize the first word of each sentence and end each sentence with a period (.), question mark(?), or exclamation point (!).

Indentation

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English 101

3. Parts of a paragraph

Most paragraphs have three main parts: The topic sentence The supporting sentences The concluding sentence

Topic sentence

Supporting Sentences

Concluding Sentences

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English 101

The topic sentence and concluding sentence are like the two pieces of bread. The supporting sentences are like the lettuce, tomatoes, meat, onions, and cheese that you put between the pieces of bread.

Supporting sentences

Concluding sentence

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Topic sentence

The topic of a paragraph is stated in one sentence. This sentence is called the topic sentence. The topic sentence is the main idea of a paragraph and it usually comes at the beginning of a paragraph. It is usually the first sentence in a formal academic paragraph.

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English 101

Supporting SentencesThe supporting sentences are the major points that explains the main idea. They are called supporting sentences because they support, explain, or give more information about the idea expressed in the topic sentence. 

Supporting

sentence

Supporting sentenceSupporting sentence

Supporting

sentence

main idea

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English 101

Concluding SentenceIn formal paragraphs you will sometimes see a sentence at the end of the paragraph which summarizes the information that has been presented.  This is the concluding sentence.  You can think of a concluding sentence as a sort of topic sentence in reverse. The Concluding Sentence: The topic is restated to remind the reader what the composition was about. (Begin this sentence with Clearly,... In conclusion,... All in all,...)

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English 101

Example of a paragraph

Steve Fredericks cares about keeping fit. First of all, he tries to get some exercise every day. He belongs to a health club where he usually exercises after work. In addition, he is also careful about his diet. For example, he rarely eats food that has a lot of fat or sugar. Finally, Steve never smokes cigarettes. Like many of his friends, Steve tries to keep in shape and stay healthy.

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English 101

Example of a paragraph

Steve Fredericks cares about keeping fit. First of all, he tries to get some exercise every day. He belongs to a health club where he usually exercises after work. In addition, he is also careful about his diet. For example, he rarely eats food that has a lot of fat or sugar. Finally, Steve never smokes cigarettes. Like many of his friends, Steve tries to keep in shape and stay healthy.

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English 101

4. Types of paragraphs

1. The narrative paragraph• tells a story

2. The persuasive paragraph.• tries to convince the audience

3. The descriptive paragraph• describes something

4. The expository or explanatory paragraph• gives information or explains something

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English 101

5. The steps to writing a good paragraph

• Decide what you are going to write about• Identify your audience (readers) and purpose

Choosing your topic

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English 101

6. Coherence and unity in a paragraph• Coherence in writing means that all the ideas in a paragraph flow

smoothly from one sentence to the next sentence. With coherence, the reader has an easy time understanding the ideas that you wish to express.

• Stick to the point: The ideas have a clear and logical relation to each other.

• Put details or examples or incidents in logical order. 4

3

2

1

chronological

in relation to each other

in order of importance

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English 101

6. Coherence and unity in a paragraph

Paragraph Unity Unity is a very important characteristic of good paragraph writing. Paragraph unity means that one paragraph is about ONLY ONE main topic. That is, all the sentences -- the topic, supporting sentences, the detail sentences, and (sometimes) the concluding sentence -- are all telling the reader about ONE main topic. If your paragraph contains a sentence or some sentences that are NOT related to the main topic, then we say that the paragraph "lacks unity," or that the sentence is "off-topic."

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English 101

7. Connecting Sentences Within the Paragraph

Transition words

chronological orderfirstmeanwhilelaterafterwardsfinally

objects in relation to one anothernext toin front ofbesidebetweenbehind

in order of importancehoweverfurthermoreas a resultin factyet

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English 101

7. Connecting Sentences Within the Paragraph

Major Connectors

For example,For instance,One example of (this) isFirst, Second, Third, etc.

As another example,Another example of [xxx] is    (that)Finally,In conclusion, To summarize,

On the one hand,On the other hand,However,..., but...also

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English 101

Group Task: read the following paragraphMy hometown is famous for several amazing natural features.  First, it is noted for the

Wheaton River, which is very wide and beautiful. On either side of this river, which is

175 feet wide, are many willow trees which have long branches that can move

gracefully in the wind.  In autumn the leaves of these trees fall and cover the riverbanks

like golden snow.  Second, on the other side of the town is Wheaton Hill, which is

unusual because it is very steep.  Even though it is steep, climbing this hill is not

dangerous, because there are some firm rocks along the sides that can be used as

stairs.  There are no trees around this hill, so it stands clearly against the sky and can

be seen from many miles away.  The third amazing feature is the Big Old Tree. This tree

stands two hundred feet tall and is probably about six hundred years old.  These three

landmarks are truly amazing and make my hometown a famous place.

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English 101

Group Task: Answer the following questions What is the topic/main idea of this paragraph? Find the topic sentence, the supporting sentences, and the

concluding sentence How is the paragraph organized? what are the major and minor connectors used? Is the paragraph coherent? Does this paragraph have unity? What does the concluding sentences do in this paragraph?