The paragraph

• paragraph : a group of sentences that develop one idea i.e. the paragraph develops a topic
• the topic sentence is the most important sentence in the paragraph: a good topic sentence also serves to state an idea or an attitude about the topic
• this idea or attitude about the topic is called the controlling idea; it controls what the sentences in the paragraph will discuss
• all sentences in the paragraph should relate to and develop the controlling idea
• material used to develop a paragraph - support - it is used to support the opinion or attitude expressed in your topic sentence - it serves to back up, clarify, illustrate, explain or prove the point you make in your topic sentence
• transition - links ideas
• concluding sentence - summarises

    Smoking cigarettes can be an expensive habit. Considering that the average price per pack of cigarettes is about two dollars, people who smoke two packs of cigarettes a day spend $ 4.000 per day on their habit. At the end of one year; these smokers have spent at least $ 1,460.00. But the price of cigarettes is not the only expense cigarette smokers incur. Since cigarette smoke has an offensive odour that permeates clothing, stuffed furniture and carpet, smokers often find that these items must be cleaned more frequently than those belonging to non-smokers. Although it is difficult to estimate the cost of this additional expense, one can see that this hidden expense does contribute to making smoking an expensive habit.
(from Smalley, R. L. & Ruetten, M. K.(1995). Refining composition skills. London: Heinle and Heinle)
 

Peer review checklist - Paragraph writing

1. What is the topic of the paragraph? Is it narrowed down enough? Could it be narrowed down further?
2. What is the topic sentence of the paragraph?
3. What is the controlling idea of the paragraph? Is it clear and focused? Do you have any suggestions for improving the controlling idea?
4. Is the paragraph unified? Do all the sentences support the controlling idea? If not which sentences are irrelevant?
5. Is the paragraph coherent? Are the ideas logically arranged? Does the paragraph flow smoothly? If not suggest ways to improve coherence.
6. What is the most interesting part of the paragraph?
7. What has the writer done well?

The narrative paragraph

• narrative paragraph relates to a story or an incident with a purpose
• presents the events in chronological order
• clear topic sentence or implied topic sentence

The descriptive paragraph

• description of place, object or person
• organisation depends on the purpose of the essay (e.g. spatial organisation,  focus on the described thing, focus on the surroundings)
• adverbs of place
• vivid description - adjectives, prepositional phrases, adjectival clauses

Checklist for the descriptive paragraph:

1. Descriptive paragraph uses sensory details to paint a picture of a place, a person or an object. Does your paragraph use sufficient vivid details?
2. The controlling idea of a descriptive paragraph is often an attitude or an impression about the subject. Does your paragraph have a clear, focused controlling idea?
3. Is the controlling idea in your paragraph contained in a clear topic sentence?
4. Are the topic sentence and the details logically arranged in your paragraph?
5. Is your paragraph unified?
6. Is your paragraph coherent? That is do the sentences flow smoothly?

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