INTRODUCTION TO THE WRITING PROCESS

To write a good paragraph or essay, good writers need time and a step-by-step approach. Even
writers who are writing in their first language have to change the words, grammar, punctuation,
and sentences several times. ​Good writing comes from rewriting. ​In most writing classes,
you will practice different writing processes. While there are many possible steps, there are
three main stages:

EXERCISE 1
Look at the diagram of the writing process above. Write a word or phrase from the diagram that matches
the definitions below.

______________ checking your writing for errors

______________ creating a lot of ideas by making a list or a mind-map before you write
______________ a way of organizing your writing using letters and numbers
______________ students reading each other’s writing to give advice and improve a draft
______________ focusing more specifically on your topic and removing unconnected ideas

Unit 1 - Elements of Paragraphs and Essays by Delpha Thomas, 2017; adapted by Tim Krause, 2018 2
WHAT IS A PARAGRAPH?

EXERCISE 2
Read the paragraph below. Can you complete these sentences with a word? Discuss your ideas with a
partner. 

In academic writing, a paragraph is a group of ____________ that are all about 

one ____________ idea. One paragraph in a longer piece of academic writing is very 

different from a paragraph you might see in newspapers, magazines, websites, or in a 

fictional story. In academic writing, a paragraph usually has three parts: a 

____________ sentence, some ____________ sentences, and a ____________ 

sentence. Each part of an academic paragraph plays a special role. 

 
 
Now, take a moment to look at the three parts of a paragraph in the diagram below. Does it help
you to finish the paragraph above? Think about what each part of the paragraph should do.
Also, notice how the paragraph looks. (Don’t worry about understanding the words; it’s not
written in a modern language!)

Unit 1 - Elements of Paragraphs and Essays by Delpha Thomas, 2017; adapted by Tim Krause, 2018 3
EXERCISE 3
Now, complete the sentences by matching the purpose or function (a-c) for each part of a paragraph
(1-3).

1. The topic sentence… ____

2. The supporting sentences … ____
3. The concluding sentence … ____

a. … can do many things, such as restate the main idea, summarize the main points, make a
prediction about the topic, or offer a suggestion. Sometimes they transition to the next
paragraph.

b. … tells the reader what the paragraph is going to be about and gives the writer’s opinion or
idea about the topic (it’s sometimes called “the controlling” idea or “ the main idea”).

c. … support the main idea in several ways by giving examples, specific details, definitions,
telling the events of a story, or giving reasons, etc.

EXERCISE 4
Put these sentences in order to make a paragraph.

The Process of Writing

______ After that, the best thing to do is just write the whole first draft.
______ Once you have a topic, the first thing to do is brainstorm and outline.
______ For many students writing is one of the most difficult subjects, but by following some
simple steps, it doesn’t have to be painful.
______ Following your teacher’s recommendations will ensure that you get the best grade
possible.
__​5​___ If you feel stuck while writing your first draft, stop and take a shower or go for a walk to
clear your mind.
______ Finally, carefully read your teacher’s feedback and follow their instructions if they ask
you to write a second draft.
______ These two steps go well together because you’ll need to get ideas with a brainstorm
and then organize them with the outline.
______ By following these simple steps, you will find that writing an essay is a piece of cake.
______ As soon as you have a finished draft, ask a friend or a tutor to read your paper before
you give it to your teacher.
(Look for the answers at the end of this unit.)

Unit 1 - Elements of Paragraphs and Essays by Delpha Thomas, 2017; adapted by Tim Krause, 2018 4
Topic sentences

Look at the two parts of the topic sentence from the paragraph “The Process of Writing” that we
organized in the last exercise.

The two parts of a topic sentence are the topic and the main idea (sometimes called the
controlling idea​). The ​topic​ tells the reader what the whole paragraph will be about. In the
paragraph from task four, the topic is writing. The ​main idea​ explains the writer’s opinion or idea
about the topic. What does the writer want to say about the topic? That’s the main idea. In this
topic sentence, the writer’s main idea is that writing is easier if you follow the steps they are
going to explain.

EXERCISE 5
The sentences below are all topic sentences taken from different paragraphs. Circle the topic and
underline the main idea in each one.

A. Global warming is one of the most serious problems facing society today.

B. Of all the academic skills, one of the most important to practice daily is reading.

C. For most people, changing dietary and exercise habits can be very challenging.

D. American students have more educational debt than ever before.

Now with a partner to think of some information than might be in the supporting sentences following the
topic sentences A-D above? Make a note below.

A. __________________________________________________________________
B. __________________________________________________________________
C. __________________________________________________________________
D. __________________________________________________________________

Unit 1 - Elements of Paragraphs and Essays by Delpha Thomas, 2017; adapted by Tim Krause, 2018 5
 The paragraph below comes from the ​University of Victoria English Language Centre ​. ​Terms of Use​
Published 1998, Revised 2011. Source: http://web2.uvcs.uvic.ca/elc/studyzone/490/reading/dog2-reading.htm
The content has been only slightly modified for readability and language level. The artwork is from
https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Dog_silhouette.svg​. The artwork on the following page is from
https://cdn.pixabay.com/photo/2017/03/05/22/47/icon-2120149_960_720.jpg​.

EXERCISE 6
Choose the best topic sentence from A-C for the paragraph below.

 
_____________________________________________________. As a dog owner, the child must 
take care of the animal's daily needs. The dog must be fed and exercised every day. A dog 
is completely dependent on its owner for all its needs, including the need for good health 
and a safe environment. Therefore, being responsible for a dog also means taking care of 
the dog so that it stays healthy. Furthermore, the owner must take responsibility for the 
safety of the dog and the safety of the people it comes into contact with. If the child 
forgets any of these duties, or ignores any of the dog's needs, the dog will suffer. This 
teaches the child that their responsibility to the dog is more important than their desire to 
play with toys, talk on the phone, or watch TV. This is true not only for the care of a dog, 
but also for the care of oneself, another person, or one's job. Learning how to look after 
the health and welfare of a dog leads to learning how to take responsibility for oneself. 
 
 
 
 
A. Dogs are better for young children than toys, phones, or TV. 
B. Having a dog helps a child learn how to act responsibly. 
C. There are many negative results when ignoring a pet dog. 

Unit 1 - Elements of Paragraphs and Essays by Delpha Thomas, 2017; adapted by Tim Krause, 2018 6
Now write a topic sentence for this paragraph. To write a good topic sentence, read all of the
supporting sentences carefully to decide what the writer’s main idea is. Then look carefully at
the concluding sentence.

________________________________________________________________

________________________________.._____________________________________

__________________________ Most people go through a lot of planning when they do it. 

Besides finding financial support, they also need to spend time searching for the right house. The right 

house should be the right size for the family now and in the future. If a family is planning to grow, 

finding a house with enough space for all family members is important. Once the right size house is 

found, the next step is to investigate the neighborhood. Many people omit this step, but it may be the 

most important step before buying a house. The 

neighborhood is the place in which people invest, 

expect to raise children, and plan to live for a 

long period of time. A bad neighborhood can have 

a higher crime rate, poor schools, and might be 

located in areas with a lot of traffic, noise, and 

air pollution. With careful consideration, buying 

a house can be one of the best investments a 

person can make in their future.  

Unit 1 - Elements of Paragraphs and Essays by Delpha Thomas, 2017; adapted by Tim Krause, 2018 7
Ways of developing a paragraph
In this course, you will study different types of paragraphs and essays. Each type of paragraph
or essay can use different ways of supporting an idea (sometimes called “means of support”).
When we talk about ​developing​ ​a paragraph (or essay), we are talking about adding ​enough
support for our ideas.

A well-developed paragraph has ​several​ supporting sentences that help to explain the main
idea. They help to make the main idea clearer and more believable to the reader. How many
supporting sentences do you need? Well, that depends on how complex your topic is. You use
as many sentences as you need to explain your idea clearly and completely. For this course, it
is a good idea to have at least three to four supporting sentences. However, academic
paragraphs in college writing can have ten or more sentences!

To develop your paragraph, supporting sentences can give the reader…

● examples
● specific details (time, date, place, number, percentage, or other facts)
● a clear description
● a definition
● an explanation
● an opposite point of view
● … and many other types of information.

For example …

Topic sentence: Supporting details:

A vegan diet is the best choice to avoid heart ● What is a vegan diet? ​(definition,
disease. description, example)
● Why is it the best choice?
(explanation)
● How do we know this? ​(facts, figures,
statistics from research)
● What do others think? ​(opposite point
of view)

Image source: https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/f/fd/Vegan_friendly2.png/800px-Vegan_friendly2.png

Unit 1 - Elements of Paragraphs and Essays by Delpha Thomas, 2017; adapted by Tim Krause, 2018 8
 The paragraphs below come from the ​University of Victoria English Language Centre​. ​Terms of Use​
Published 1998, Revised 2011. Source: http://web2.uvcs.uvic.ca/elc/studyzone/410/reading/happy-brain1.htm
The content has been only slightly modified for readability and language level.

EXERCISE 7
Which paragraph is better developed, 1 or 2? Do both paragraphs have enough support for an academic
essay? If not, how can they be improved?

1. People who form close relationships with other people tend to be

happier than those who do not. The number of friends a person has is not
important. When it comes to happiness, what matters most is the quality of
the relationships. Close relationships are ones that usually involve the
sharing of feelings, mutual respect, acceptance, trust, fun and empathy. As
long as the relationships are deep, a person will experience greater levels of
happiness.

2. People who exercise regularly are usually happier than people who
avoid exercising. People with good exercise routines are always improving
both their physical and mental well-being. In fact, research has shown that
exercise can be as effective as medication in treating depression.

Look back at the six ways to develop a paragraph mentioned earlier. What types of support does each
paragraph use?

1. _________________________________________________________________

2. _________________________________________________________________

Unit 1 - Elements of Paragraphs and Essays by Delpha Thomas, 2017; adapted by Tim Krause, 2018 9
EXERCISE 8
Review the types of information that you could include as supporting sentences below:

● examples
● specific details (time, date, place, number, percentage, or other facts)
● a clear description
● a definition
● an explanation
● an opposite point of view

What kinds of support could be used to write a paragraph about the following topics? Use the
types from the list above. Remember that most paragraphs use more than one type of support.

1. The bravest moment of your life

Type(s) support: _________________________________________________________

2. Taking an amazing photograph

Type(s) support: _________________________________________________________

3. The differences between high school and college

Type(s) support: _________________________________________________________

Discuss your answers with a partner. Why did you choose the types of support that you did?

Unit 1 - Elements of Paragraphs and Essays by Delpha Thomas, 2017; adapted by Tim Krause, 2018 10
Concluding sentences
Typically, the last sentence in a paragraph is the concluding sentence, and its job is to help the
reader feel that the writer has expressed a complete and finished idea. It closes the paragraph
by helping the reader move from the small details of the supporting sentences back to the big
picture of the topic sentence, or controlling idea. There are many simple and creative ways to
end a paragraph!

The concluding sentence can….

● give advice or make a suggestion about the topic to the reader

● make a prediction or offer hope for the future
● give the writer’s feelings or opinion about the topic
● restate the main idea from the topic sentence
● summarize the main points from the supporting sentences
● transition the paragraph’s topic to the next paragraph’s topic

EXERCISE 9
Look back at the two paragraphs in Exercise 7. Which paragraph doesn’t have a concluding sentence and
which one does? How do you know?

Paragraph 1. yes / no Paragraph 2. yes / no

EXERCISE 10
Now, let’s look at the concluding sentence in the paragraph titled “The Process of Writing” again:

By following these simple steps, you will find that writing an essay is a piece of cake.

Does the above concluding sentence…(check ✓ all that apply)

❐​ … give advice or a suggestion

❐​ ​…​ make a prediction or offer hope
❐ ​… give the writer’s feelings or opinion
​ restate the main idea
❐​ …
❐ ​…​ summarize the main points

Unit 1 - Elements of Paragraphs and Essays by Delpha Thomas, 2017; adapted by Tim Krause, 2018 11
 The paragraphs below come from the ​University of Victoria English Language Centre ​. ​Terms of Use​
Published 1998, Revised 2011. Source: ​http://web2.uvcs.uvic.ca/elc/studyzone/490/reading/tattoos2-reading.htm​ and Source:
http://web2.uvcs.uvic.ca/elc/studyzone/410/reading/most-amazing-structure1.htm​ The content has been only slightly modified for
readability and language level. The images below come from
https://www.publicdomainpictures.net/pictures/170000/velka/tattoo-clipart-illustration.jpg​ and
https://pixabay.com/en/brain-mind-thinking-a-i-ai-2789698/

EXERCISE 11
First, read the topic sentence and supporting sentences in the paragraph below. Then choose the best
concluding sentence for the paragraph.

It is not always the influence of other people or the media that

results in a person getting a tattoo. Many people decide to wear tattoos in
order to express their artistic nature, their beliefs, or their feelings; in
other words, they get a tattoo to show and express their individuality. A
musician in a rock band may get a tattoo of a guitar on the arm. Some
environmentalists may tattoo pictures of endangered animals on their
shoulders. Lovers may tattoo each others' names over their hearts.
_______________________________________________.

❏ A person’s friends and the media will affect their decision to get a tattoo.
❏ The unfortunate fact about tattoos is that they are impossible to remove.
❏ A tattoo can be a public sign to show what is important in a person's life.  

Next, read the following paragraph about the human brain.

The human brain is very mysterious and only partially understood.

Many questions about the brain have not yet been answered. For example, why
do we need to sleep or why do we dream? There is a lot about the brain that we
do not yet understand. In fact, people used to think of the brain as useless
stuffing. Of course, scientists now know the brain is our control center.
Scientists also know about the basic functions of the different parts of the brain. The surface of the
brain is called the cerebral cortex. It is the part of the brain that makes us intelligent, and it consists
of four parts called lobes. The front lobe is where much of our thinking and feeling happens. The top
lobe processes information which is coming from parts of our bodies, such as our skin and muscles.
The side lobe plays an important role in hearing, speech and long-term memories while the back
lobe processes images from our eyes. ___________________________________________________________________.

Unit 1 - Elements of Paragraphs and Essays by Delpha Thomas, 2017; adapted by Tim Krause, 2018 12
Now write two different concluding sentences for the paragraph about the brain. Use the technique for
writing a concluding sentence in parenthesis.

a) (restate the main idea from the topic sentence) ____________________________________

____________________________________________________________________________

____________________________________________________________________________

b) (make a prediction about the brain) _____________________________________________

____________________________________________________________________________

____________________________________________________________________________

Unit 1 - Elements of Paragraphs and Essays by Delpha Thomas, 2017; adapted by Tim Krause, 2018 13
Formatting your paragraph
Now look at this typed paragraph below and notice how it looks on the page. In college, your
teachers may ask you to format your paper differently, but this is a good example to copy.

EXERCISE 12
Label these things on your paragraph:

Header Indent Title Margin Double-spaced lines

Delpha Thomas
ESOL 162
Process Paragraph
April 1, 2018

The Process of Writing

For many students writing is one of the most difficult subjects, but with a little bit

of organization and a good attitude, writing can be a very simple process. Once you have

a topic, the first thing to do is brainstorm and outline. These two steps go well together

because you’ll need to get ideas with a brainstorm and then organize them with the

outline. After that, the best thing to do is just write the whole first draft. If you feel stuck

while writing your first draft, stop and take a shower or go for a walk to clear your mind.

As soon as you have a finished draft, ask a friend or a tutor to read your paper before you

give it to your teacher. Finally, carefully read your teacher’s feedback and follow their

instructions if they ask you to write a second draft. Following your teacher’s

recommendations and asking questions about them will ensure that you get the best

grade possible. By following these simple steps, you will find that writing an essay is a

piece of cake.

Unit 1 - Elements of Paragraphs and Essays by Delpha Thomas, 2017; adapted by Tim Krause, 2018 14
Paragraph practice
This is a good time to practice writing a paragraph using the ideas that we have discussed.

ASSIGNMENT
Choose one of the topics below. Use Google Docs to write a paragraph of 8-10 sentences that includes a
clear topic sentence with a specific controlling idea; meaningful supporting sentences that explain the
topic sentence; and a concluding sentence that wraps it up. Follow the formatting on the previous page.
When you are finished, share your assignment with your instructor.

Topics (choose one):

❏ Describe an interesting neighbor you have had.
❏ Describe something you could never give away.
❏ Describe a place you will never forget.

When you finish writing your paragraph, remember to proofread it carefully:

❏ Do you have 8-10 sentences?
❏ Do you have a clear topic sentence with a specific controlling idea? (not too general)
❏ Do your supporting sentences give more information about the topic and controlling
idea? (use lots of adjectives and adverbs to describe things)
❏ Does your final sentence make the paragraph feel complete and whole?
❏ Did you follow the formatting on the previous page? (header, indent, title, double-spaced
lines)
❏ Did you check your spelling?
❏ Did you check your grammar?
❏ Did you read it out loud to listen to the flow?

Unit 1 - Elements of Paragraphs and Essays by Delpha Thomas, 2017; adapted by Tim Krause, 2018 15