Writing 1

PART 1: An Introduction to Paragraphs

Lecturer: Assoc.Prof. Dr. Nguyen Thi Thu Hien

Dean, Department of Foreign Languages
Quy Nhon University
Paragraph structure
 I. Topic sentence
• A topic sentence is the sentence that tells the
reader the main idea of the paragraph.
• The topic sentence should contain only one
main idea. It should be specific and detailed.
• The topic sentence is often found at the
beginning of the paragraph, but it can be in
other places, too.
PRACTICE 1:

• A. It enables customers to do several banking

transactions twenty – four hours a day
• B. In addition, a customer can transfer funds
between accounts or get a cash advance on a
credit card.
• C. An automatic teller machine (ATM) is a
convenient miniature bank
• D. For example, a customer can use an ATM to
deposit money and withdraw a limited amount of
cash
• Paragraph 2:
• A. After an attack by a great white, 462 stitches were
required to sew up an Australian scuba diver.
• B. With their razor- sharp teeth and strong jaws, great
white sharks are very dangerous.
• C. Nevertheless, one did just that near a public beach
in Australia in 1985
• D. Even when they attack humans, however, great
white do not usually eat them
• E. It bit in half and totally devoured a young female
swimmer.
• F. Great white do not usually attack humans, but when
they do, they always cause serious injury and even
death.
TWO PARTS OF A TOPIC SENTENCE
 Practice 2
• Circle the topic and underline the controlling
idea in each of the following sentences.
• 1. Driving on freeways requires nerves of steel.
• 2. Driving on freeways requires an aggressive attitude.
• 3. The Caribbean island of Trinidad attracts tourists because of its
calypso music.
• 4. Spectacular beaches make Puerto Rico a tourist paradise.
• 5. Living in an American college dormitory can be a stressful
experience for newly arrived international students.
• 6. Many religious rules developed from the health needs of ancient
times.
• 7. The spread of AIDS can be slowed by educating the public.
• 8. A major problem for international students is taking essay
examinations.
• 9. Participating in class discussions in English is a problem for
international students.
• 10. In my opinion, many television commercials for cosmetics lie to
women.
• 11. Owning an automobile is a necessity for me.
• 12. It is an expensive luxury to own an automobile in a large city.
 Writing topic sentences
• Too general: American food is terrible.
• Too specific: American food is tasteless and
greasy because American use too many
canned, frozen, and packaged foods and
because everything is fried in oil and butter.
• Good: American food is tasteless and greasy.
• Too many ideas: San Francisco is famous for its
temperate climate, its many tourist attractions,
and its cosmopolitan atmosphere.
• Good: San Francisco is famous for its
cosmopolitan atmosphere.
 Practice 3
Write a topic sentence for the following paragraphs

• 1. (…)Americans relaxing at home, for example,

may put on kimono, which is a Japanese word.
Americans who live in a warm climate may take
an afternoon siesta on an outdoor patio without
even realizing that these are Spanish words. In
their gardens, they may enjoy the fragrance of
jasmine flowers, a word that came into English
from Persian. They may even relax on a chaise
longue while sipping a drink made with vodka,
words of French and Russian origin, respectively.
• 2. (…)In European universities, students are not
required to attend classes. In fact, professors in
Germany generally do not know the names of the
student enrolled in their courses. In the United States,
however, students are required to attend all classes
and may be penalized if they don’t. Furthermore, in the
European system, there is usually just one
comprehensive examination at the end of the students’
entire four or five years of study. In the American
system, on the other hand, there are usually numerous
quizzes, tests, and homework assignments, and there is
almost always a final examination in each course at the
end of the semester.
• 3. (…)For example, the Eskimos, living in a treeless
region of snow and ice, sometimes build
temporary homes out of thick blocks of ice.
People who live in deserts, on the other hand, use
the most available material, mud or clay, which
provides good insulation from the heart. In
Northern Europe, Russia, and other areas of the
word where forests are plentiful, people usually
construct their homes out of wood. In the islands,
people use these tough, fibrous plants to build
their homes.
 B. Write two or three topic sentences
for each of the following topics
• Example: Television’s effects on children
Topic sentences:
• 1. TV is harmful to children because it teaches
them violence as a way of solving problems.
• 2. TV retards a child’s reading ability
 Topics
• 1. Smoking cigarettes
• 2. Foreign travel
• 3. Prejudice
• 4. Pollution
• 5. Touring your hometown
II.
Exercise on concluding sentence
 III. UNITY AND OUTLINING
•A unified paragraph discusses only one main idea.
•Every supporting sentence must directly explain or
prove the main idea stated in the topic sentence

MODEL: PAGE 31
PRACTICE
 PARAGRAPH OUTLINING
• Topic sentence
A. First supporting point
B. Second supporting point
C. Third supporting point
• Concluding sentence
 Sample analysis
• Learning to outline will improve your writing for three reasons. First
of all, it will help you organize your ideas. Specifically, an outline will
ensure that you won't include any irrelevant ideas, that you won't
leave out any important points, and that your supporting sentences
will be in logical order. Second, learning to outline will help you
write more quickly. It may take some practice at first, but once you
become used to outlining your ideas before you start to write. You
win be surprised at how fast you will actually be able to write.
Preparing an outline is 75 percent of the work. The actual writing
becomes easier because you don't have to worry about what you
are going to say: you already have a well-organized plan to follow.
Finally, your grammar will improve because you will be able to
concentrate on it, not on your thoughts or organization. Improved
organization, speed, and grammar make learning to outline well
worth the effort.
 PARAGRAPH OUTLINING
• MODEL:
Learning to outline will improve your writing for
three reasons.
A. It will help you organize your ideas.
B. It will help you write more quickly.
C. It will help you Improve your grammar.
Improved organization, speed, and grammar make
learning to outline well-worth the effort.
• A detailed outline
• Learning to outline will improve your writing for three reasons.
A. It will help you organize your ideas.
1. You won't include irrelevant ideas.
2. You won't leave out important points.
3. Your supporting sentences will be in logical order.
B. It will help you write more quickly.
1. It may take practice.
2. Seventy-five percent of the work is done.
3. You don't worry about what you are going to say.
C. It will help you improve your grammar.
You will be able to concentrate on it.
• Improved organization, speed, and grammar make learning to
outline well worth the effort.
 Rules in making an outline
• The ‘parallel form’ rule
The English language is constantly changing.
A. Pronunciation has changed in the past years.
B. Some grammatical changes.
C. Vocabulary.
Indeed, English, like all living languages is continually
changing in pronunciation, grammar, and especially
vocabulary.
• The English language is constantly changing.
A. Pronunciation
B. Grammar
C. Vocabulary.
• Indeed, English, like all living languages. is
continually changing in pronunciation,
grammar, and especially vocabulary
The English language is constantly changing.
• A. Pronunciation has changed in the past years.
• B. Some changes in grammar have occurred and
are still occurring.
• C. Vocabulary is the area of greatest change.
Indeed, English, like all living languages. is
continually changing in pronunciation, grammar,
and especially vocabulary.
• Equal parts of an outline should be written in
parallel form. This means that all ideas with
the same kind of letter or number should have
the same grammatical form; that is, they all
should be complete sentences, or all nouns, or
all adjectives, or all prepositional phrases, etc.
 Rewrite each of these outlines to make the
support part parallel in form.

1. San Francisco is famous for its tourist attractions.

A. Golden Gate Park is very famous.
B. Chinatown.
C. Fisherman's Wharf attracts hundreds of tourists.
D. Riding the cable cars.
For these four attractions alone. San Francisco is well worth
a visit.
2. Gold, a precious metal. is prized for two important characteristics.
A. It is beautiful.
B. Usefulness to science and industry.
In conclusion, gold is treasured not only for its beauty but also for its
utility.
3. Medical researchers will produce some amazing advances in the
very near future.
A. By the year 2009, a vaccine against the common cold.
B. Cloning of the first human in the same year.
C. By the year 2014, parents will be able to create designer
children.
D. By 2020, most diseases diagnosed and treated at home.
E. By the year 2030, cancer and heart disease wiped out.
These are just a few examples of medical miracles that are expected
in the next few decades.
 Equivalent value rule

• Learning to outline will improve your writing for three reasons.

A. It will help you organize your ideas.
1. You won't include irrelevant ideas.
2. You won't leave out important points.
3. Your supporting sentences will be in logical order.
B. It will help you write more quickly.
1. It may take practice.
2. Seventy-five percent of the work is done.
3. You don't worry about what you are going to say.
C. It will help you improve your grammar.
You will be able to concentrate on it.
• Improved organization, speed, and grammar make learning to
outline well worth the effort.
Exercise: Fill ideas in the blanks to make an outline
Ideas: Mental impairment, Psychological effects, Cost of drugs arrest, Drug
overdose, Mental addiction, Brain damage, Economical effects , Cost of drug
purchases, Physical effects

Topic sentence: The use of drugs can affect a person in 3 areas.

A. ..................
1. ……………………….
2. ……………………….
B. ................
1. ……………………….
2. ……………………….
C. ..................
1. ……………………….
2. ……………………….
 Practice of making an outline
• Topic suggestions
• 1. How have computers changed our lives?
• 2. Important skills or qualities of a teacher/ a
student
• 3. The source of one type of pollution
IV.
Compare the two paragraphs
Practice
+ noun
Practice
 TYPE 1: CHRONOLOGICAL
PARAGRAPHS
• Turkish coffee is not easy to make with following clear steps.
First, you need a special coffeepot called a "jezve". This is a
long-handled, open brass or copper pot. Pour three small cups
of water into the pot. Next, heat the water until it boils. Then
remove the pot from the heat. Add three teaspoons of coffee
and three teaspoons of sugar to the water. Gently stir the
mixture and return it to the heat until you can see foam on
the top. When you can see the foam on top, take the "jezve"
from the heat and hit it lightly with a spoon to make the foam
go down. Reheat the coffee and tap the pot two more times,
making sure to remove it from the heat each time the foam
forms. Before you serve the coffee, give everyone a small
glass of fresh water to drink with their hot, thick coffee.
• Practice 1: A
• - Step 1: Check (v) the topic sentence that suggests a
chronological order. Put a double check (vv) next to the topic
sentence that suggests the paragraph will describe a process or a
procedure.
• - Step 2: In the sentences you have checked, circle the word or
words that indicate chronological order.
• 1. A child learns to handle responsibility in a series of small steps
• 2. A person's intelligence is the product of both heredity and
environment.
• 3. There are two main reasons I believe women in the army should
not be allowed in a war zone along with men.
• 4. The procedure for submitting expense reports has recently
changed.
• 5. The tensions that led to last year's student riots had been
developing for several years.
• 6. North American directness often conflicts with
Asian modesty.
• 7. The two busiest travel days in the United States
are the-Wednesday before and the Sunday after
Thanksgiving.
• 8. Cultures celebrate the end of winter and the
arrival of spring in different ways.
• 9. The preparation of the poisonous puffer fish for
eating is a delicate process that is not for amateur
chefs.
• 10. The life cycle of the monarch butterfly is an
interesting phenomenon.
• B. Write a topic sentence for a process paragraph on the
following topics.
• How to take a good photograph
• How to overcome a fear
• How any special occasion, such as a favorite holiday, a special
birthday, a wedding, an anniversary was celebrated
• How to shop successfully on Tiki
• How to mend a broken heart
• How to raise a spoiled (or a perfect) child
• Practice 2: Use the topic in Practice 1B.
• Step 1: Make a simple outline that lists the
events (in a narrative) or the steps (in a
process) in the order of their occurrence.
• Step 2: Write your paragraph, following your
outline. Add enough details to make the chain
of events or steps in the process very clear.
• Practice 2: Use the topic in Practice 1B.
• Step 1: Make a simple outline that lists the
events (in a narrative) or the steps (in a
process) in the order of their occurrence.
• Step 2: Write your paragraph, following your
outline. Add enough details to make the chain
of events or steps in the process very clear.