Writing A Paragraph+ Writing Process

Writing a Paragraph

Topic Sentence Parts of a

Supporting Details

Paragraph Closing Sentence Prewriting Paragraphs Writing Paragraphs How to Write a Editing Paragraphs

Paragraph

Publishing Paragraphs

Kinds of Paragraphs

Narrative

1. What is your main idea? a. There is one main idea and it must be clear to your reader. Does it exactly say what you want to express in your paragraph? It needs to be reworked on until it does. 2. What should your topic sentence say? a. State the main idea clearly. Tell exactly what the paragraph is about. Not too general, not too specific i. What is the topic sentence? The topic sentence is the first sentence in a paragraph. ii. What does it do? It introduces the main idea of the paragraph. iii. How do I write one? Summarize the main idea of your paragraph. Indicate to the reader what your paragraph will be about. Source: http://www2.actden.com/Writ_Den/tips/contents.htm

Example: There are three reasons why Canada is one of the best countries in the world. 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. 3. How will you develop your main idea? a. Find and use details that help tell about your main idea (supporting details): i. Facts ii. Examples iii. Reasons iv. Description v. Events vi. Steps (next) 4. Do your details stick to the topic? Each detail must support your main idea. In the opening paragraph, every sentence develops one specific topic. i. What are supporting sentences They come after the topic sentence, making up the body of a paragraph. ii. What do they do? They give details to develop and support the main idea of the paragraph. iii. How do I write them? You should give supporting facts, details, and examples. Source: http://www2.actden.com/Writ_Den/tips/contents.htm

Example: b. There are three reasons why Canada is one of the best countries in the world. 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. 5. Who is your audience? What is your purpose? a. Always consider your audience (for an individual or a group, a friend or a stranger) and purpose (to inform, to persuade, to entertain or to express yourself) when your write. 6. How will you organize your details? a. Decide the organization of your paragraph, what makes sense for you. i. Start with the big idea and support it (topic first then the supporting details) ii. Build up to the big idea (supporting details then topic sentence) 7. Where should you put your topic sentence? a. The topic sentence can be at last or at the beginning 8. How will you begin? a. Beginning with your topic sentence and making it interesting and appropriate is the best way to start a good paragraph. 9. How will it end? a. Write a concluding sentence that ties up the paragraph neatly. i. Restate the main idea in different words ii. Pick up key words or details and summarize Source: http://www2.actden.com/Writ_Den/tips/contents.htm

iii. Add a new detail or understanding a. What is the closing sentence? The closing sentence is the last sentence in a paragraph. b. What does it do? It restates the main idea of your paragraph. c. How do I write one? Restate the main idea of the paragraph using different words. Example: There are three reasons why Canada is one of the best countries in the world. 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.

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Writing Process Notions 1. Prewriting: gathering and organizing ideas for a composition a. Step 1.1: BRAINSTORMING i. Look at the topic and try to collect information 1. Listing 2. Clustering 3. Questionning b. Step 1.2: OUTLINING i. Before you start listing your ideas, you need to define your purpose. Then, you can make a list of your best ideas. Put them in order that makes sense. Don’t forget that each main idea refers to a paragraph. 2. Drafting: a. Now it’s time to start writing your text. It doesn’t have to be perfect. It is only a draft and needs to be improved. So, you are allowed to make mistakes. i.

Work from your outline. Use your outline and add new ideas as you go along if it is necessary. Audience + purpose = fundamental

ii.

Let the words flow. Write quickly. Don’t worry about neatness. Don’t be afraid to cross out words, leave blank spaces, or move things around. Don’t stop because of mistakes.

iii.

Start anywhere. When a good idea pops up in your head, write it down immediately, even if it’s about the middle of the story. You can fill out the empty parts later.

iv.

Jump around if necessary. When ideas rush to your head, make a few notes here and there.

v.

Do more prewriting. If you get stuck, work on your prewriting some more and sometimes you may also need to adjust your Source: http://www2.actden.com/Writ_Den/tips/contents.htm

plan (brainstorming and outline). vi.

Write on every other line. Give yourself room for making changes.

vii.

Leave your draft aside. When nothing seems to work, put your draft away for a while. A day’s rest will allow you to look at it with fresher eyes.

3. Revising a. The revising part is one step to the final product. Do not be afraid to use a pen and to cross out, add and shift words or sentences. i. Reread with a fresh eye. Try to look at your draft as if it was written by someone else. What do you like? What could be better? What should be cut out? ii. Consider purpose and audience. How can you make your composition achieve its purpose better? Is there any way you can make it more appealing to your audience? iii. Find another eye. Ask a friend or relative for comments. iv. Expand your best ideas. Develop interesting parts and descriptions with more details, examples, and incidents. v. Cut out unnecessary parts. Weed out, or rewrite, parts that lack appeal or are unrelated to the main idea. vi. Check you writing style. Consider these: 0 1 2 3 4

- Which long, rambling sentences could be broken up? - Which short, choppy sentences could be combined? - Where can I use vivid words instead of dull ones? - Have I used transition words to make the order clear? - Does every paragraph have a main idea? - How can I vary my sentence beginnings? 4. Proofreading a. Before handing in your text, it is important to correct your mistakes. i.

0 1 2 3 4

Check for errors. Pay special attention to the following details:

- spelling (use a dictionary) - punctuation - capitalization - plurals - verb tenses Source: http://www2.actden.com/Writ_Den/tips/contents.htm

ii.

Look at one line at a time. Take the time to look carefully at each sentence. Start by the end of your text. iii. Go through your draft several times. Go over your text when you’re well rested. A checklist may be useful to guide you finding your mistakes. iv. Find another eye. Ask a friend or relative to check your paper. 5. Publishing a. Finally, you’re done!!!! You can publish your text in different way; news paper, internet, journal prompts or entry, book report, magazine, and so on. i. Add a title and heading to your final draft ii.

Make a neat copy.

iii.

Proofread one last time.

iv.

Find a way to make the writing public

6. Editing a. The editing part is done with your writing. You should ask other people’s opinion to help you to improve yourself. There are different kind of peer-evaluation feedback grids that can help to provide great comments and being fair with the person you are evaluating.

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Kinds of Paragraphs Narrative Paragraph Purpose: The narrative paragraph tells about one main incident or happening. The author brings the incident to life so the reader shares the experience. It should be written in logical order. It describes what a person does over a period of time. How to Write the Narrative Paragraph: - Have a topic sentence that arouses the reader's interest. You can describe a scene or introduce characters. - Build your paragraph around one main incident. Here is where your action takes place. - Write the event in the order that it occurred. Do not skip around. - Your ending should satisfy your reader's expectations. Bring your paragraph to a close. Signal Words and Phrases: next, then, while, after, first ,after while, a little later, at the same time, during the morning, later that night Example of Narrative Paragraph: Yesterday evening I got home from school around 4 o'clock. My mother had dinner prepared which we ate as soon as Dad came home from work. After eating, I helped mother clear the table and do the dishes. After we got the kitchen cleaned, I had to sit and do my homework. Mother always says, "No television until your homework is done". I finally got my math finished, so I went into the family room and turned on the television. I was watching American Idol, when the phone rang. It was my best friend, Amy. I talked to her for awhile then it was time for bed. I put on my pajamas and turned on my favorite cd. I finally started to get sleepy around 9:30. The next thing I knew, mother was calling me to get ready for school. Source: http://www2.actden.com/Writ_Den/tips/contents.htm

You must write your narrative paragraph with interesting events that will catch the reader's attention. It is important to start your narrative with a suspense. There must be dialogs that will help the reader to understand the character and the personality of the character. The events must be arranged one by one in a chronological order. The narrative must have a climax. You can also end your narrative with a conclusion or leave it to the imagination of the reader.

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