Paragraph Writing
English-II (Communication Skills)
Paragraph Writing
A paragraph is a set of related sentences dealing with a single topic.
There is no rule about the length of a paragraph. It varies according
to the need.
In a story or a novel, there are some long paragraphs and some are
short.
In a book that discuses concepts such as Economics there may be
long paragraphs.
In business letters, the paragraphs are short; in a report, the
paragraphs may be long.
Cont …
A good paragraph has the following characteristics:
1) Topic Sentence
2) Adequate development with supporting ideas/facts.
3) Concluding sentence
4) Unity and coherence
These characteristics are not separate; they overlap.
Using and adopting them to your individual purposes will help you to
construct effective paragraphs.
Topic Sentence
A topic sentence is a sentence that indicates in a general way what
idea the paragraph is going to deal with.
It includes the topic and a controlling idea.
It may be in the form of a question.
Look at these sentences:
Personal relationships such as parent-child, husband-wife, brothers
and sisters suffer because most people in cities have busy schedules.
Talking to a sympathetic listener can have a great therapeutic effect.
Cont …
Skill in public speaking is not necessary for everyone.
Shouldn’t smoking in public places be made illegal?
Adequate Development
Add supporting ideas to the topic sentence, to develop it fully and
adequately.
There should be 3 to 6 ideas to support the topic sentence. This
varies from paragraph to paragraph depending on the purpose.
Add reasons, examples, names, numbers, senses which give details
and further explain the supporting details.
Some methods to add supporting details are:
Use examples and illustrations.
Cite data (facts, statistics, evidence, details)
Cont …
Examine testimony (what other people say, such as quotes and
paraphrases)
Define terms in the paragraph.
Compare and contrast.
Evaluate causes and reasons.
Examine effects and consequences.
Analyze the topic.
Describe the topic
Offer a chronology of an event (time segments)
Concluding Sentence
The concluding sentence is the last sentence of the paragraph.
It should leave the reader with something to think about.
It can be written by restating the topic sentence in different ways.
Look at these sentences:
Being a sympathetic listener is therefore a satisfying experience.
I think it is in the interest of public health to make it illegal to smoke
in public places.
Since there are many occupations that do not have any occasion for
speaking in public, everyone need not acquire public speaking skills.
Unity
Unity means that all sentences in the paragraph directly support the
topic sentence.
The entire paragraph should be about a single topic and have a single
focus.
If the topic sentence begins with a particular point of discussion, it
should not end with another or wander off to different ideas.
Coherence
Coherence means that all the information of the paragraph is well-
organized, logically ordered and easy to follow.
This is achieved by:
Repetition of keywords and phrases
Parallel grammatical structures
Transition words and phrases
Coherence is the quality that makes paragraph easy to understand.
Types of Paragraphs
There are several types of paragraphs. The main types are:
1) Definition
2) Classification
3) Description
4) Compare and contrast
5) Narration
6) Explanation
7) Choice
8) Evaluation
Writing a Paragraph
1) Compose your topic sentence on the given topic. Use a controlling
idea that will narrow the topic enough to support it well in one
paragraph.
2) Brainstorm supporting ideas. Choose 2 – 6 supporting ideas that can
best support your topic sentence.
3) Collect further explanation for each supporting idea.
4) Write your paragraph in topic outline form as follows. Don’t actually
write sentences in the outline except for the topic sentence.
Cont …
Topic Sentence:
A. Supporting idea 1
1.
2.
3.
B. Supporting idea 2
1.
2.
3.
Cont …
C. Supporting idea 3
1.
2.
3.
Concluding Sentence:
5) Put your supporting ideas in a logical order.
6) Think of a concluding sentence.
7) Write your paragraph using sentences. Use the coherence strategies
to make your paragraph easy to follow.
