PARAGRAPH WRITING

What is a Paragraph?

A paragraph is a component of fictional prose and non-fiction writings. When writing essays,
research papers, books, etc, new paragraphs are indented to show their beginnings. Each new
paragraph begins with a new indentation. The purpose of a paragraph is to express a speaker’s
thoughts on a particular point in a clear way that is unique and specific to that paragraph. In other
words, paragraphs shouldn’t be mixing thoughts or ideas. When a new idea is introduced,
generally, a writer will introduce a new paragraph.

Topic Sentence:

What is a topic sentence? A topic sentence is the first sentence of the body paragraph. Simply
put, the topic sentence introduces the topic of the paragraph. A good topic sentence will be broad
enough to allow for explication but narrow enough that it does not require a paragraph that is too
long.

Supporting Sentences:

What is a supporting sentence? The supporting sentences of a paragraph are the sentences
between the topic sentence and the concluding sentence. The supporting sentences “support” the
topic sentence. That is, they explain and elaborate the point of the paragraph.

Concluding Sentence:

What is a conclusion paragraph? What is a concluding sentence? The concluding sentence is the
last sentence in the paragraph. It should succinctly end the paragraph and transition to the next
paragraph, if appropriate.

The four different types of paragraphs are descriptive, narrative, expository, and persuasive.
These four types allow you to write about absolutely anything that you want.

DESCRIPTIVE PARAGRAPH:
A descriptive paragraph is a focused and detail-rich account of a specific topic. Paragraphs in
this style often have a concrete focus—the sound of a waterfall, the stench of a skunk's spray—
but can also convey something abstract, such as an emotion or a memory. Some descriptive
paragraphs do both. These paragraphs help readers feel and sense the details that the writer wants
to convey. A good descriptive paragraph is like a window into another world. Through the use of
careful examples or details, an author can conjure a scene that vividly describes a person, place,
or thing. The best descriptive writing appeals to multiple senses at once—smell, sight, taste,
touch, and hearing—and is found in both fiction and nonfiction.

Finding a Topic:

The first step in writing a strong descriptive paragraph is identifying your topic. If you received a
specific assignment or already have a topic in mind, you can skip this step. If not, it's time to
start brainstorming.efore you finalize your choice, consider the goal of your descriptive
paragraph. If you're writing description for description's sake, you're free to choose any topic you
can think of, but many descriptive paragraphs are part of a larger project, such as a personal
narrative or an application essay. Make sure the topic of your descriptive paragraph aligns with
the broader goal of the project.

Examining and Exploring Your Topic:

After you've selected a topic, the real fun begins: studying the details. Spend time closely
examining the subject of your paragraph. Study it from every possible angle, beginning with the
five senses: What does the object look, sound, smell, taste, and feel like? What are your own
memories of or associations with the object? If your topic is larger than a single object—for
example, a location or a memory—you should examine all of the sensations and experiences
associated with the topic. Let's say your topic is your childhood fear of the dentist. The list of
details might include your white-knuckled grip on the car door as your mother tried to drag you
into the office, the gleaming white smile of the dental assistant who never remembered your
name, and the industrial buzz of the electric toothbrush. Don't worry about writing full sentences
or arranging the details into a logical paragraph structure during the prewriting phase. For now,
simply write down every detail that comes to mind.

Organizing Your Information:

After you've compiled a lengthy list of descriptive details, you can begin assembling those
details into a paragraph. First, consider again the goal of your descriptive paragraph. The details
you choose to include in the paragraph, as well as the details you choose to exclude, signal to the
reader how you feel about the topic. What message, if any, do you want the description to
convey? Which details best convey that message? Reflect on these questions as you begin
constructing the paragraph. Every descriptive paragraph will take a somewhat different form,
but the following model is a straightforward way to get started:

A topic sentence that identifies the topic and briefly explains its significance

Supporting sentences that describe the topic in specific, vivid ways, using the details you've
listed during brainstorming

A concluding sentence that circles back to the topic's significance

Arrange the details in an order that makes sense for your topic. (You could easily describe a
room from back to front, but that same structure would be a confusing way to describe a tree.) If
you get stuck, read model descriptive paragraphs for inspiration, and don't be afraid to
experiment with different arrangements. In your final draft, the details should follow a logical
pattern, with each sentence connecting to the sentences that come before and after it.

Showing, Not Telling:

Remember to show, rather than tell, even in your topic and concluding sentences. A topic
sentence that reads, "I am describing my pen because I love to write" is obvious "telling" (the
fact that you're describing your pen should be self-evident from the paragraph itself) and
unconvincing (the reader cannot feel or sense the strength of your love of writing).

Avoid "tell" statements by keeping your list of details handy at all times. Here's an example of a
topic sentence that shows the subject's significance through the use of detail: "My ballpoint pen
is my secret writing partner: The baby-soft tip glides effortlessly across the page, somehow
seeming to pull my thoughts down from my brain and out through my fingertips."

Edit and Proofread Your Paragraph:

The writing process isn't over until your paragraph has been edited and proofread. Invite a friend
or teacher to read your paragraph and provide feedback. Assess whether the paragraph clearly
conveys the message you intended to express. Read your paragraph aloud to check for awkward
phrasing or cumbersome sentences. Finally, consult a proofreading checklist to confirm that your
paragraph is free of minor errors.

NARRATIVE PARAGRAPH
Narrative paragraphs are the building blocks you need to tell a story in English. This type of
paragraph explains something that happened. Think about a time that a friend or family member
came to you and said, “guess what!”. They probably then told you a story about something that
happened to them. This is what a narrative paragraph is, but in written form. The lesson here
breaks down all of the pieces that go into building a strong narrative paragraph. When you have
mastered this lesson, you will be able to describe things that happened to you, or your memories,
in writing in English.

Narrative paragraphs are a great way to grow your vocabulary. You can use this type of writing
to talk about new things or places, and as you do so, you will find yourself needing new words.
For extra practice after completing this lesson, write a favorite memory: about a delicious meal, a
new city you visited, or how you met a friend. At the end of this lesson, you can even find
instructions on how to get feedback on your paragraph! Because narrative paragraphs resemble
fiction (an untrue story), you have a little more freedom to write the story in the style you prefer.
This is known as artistic freedom or artistic license. You can use the first-person narrative style
and include words that clearly refer to you (I, me, my, mine, etc.), or you can try to tell the story
from a purely objective point of view that is not personal but gives a straight-forward, factual
account of what happened. If your teacher asks you to write about a personal experience, try to
tell it by using the first person. This is the easiest style in which to write something. You might
choose something that you remember well or something that changed your life. Teachers who
work with a large number of foreign-born students often ask them to write about the time they
first arrived in the United States. That’s a good assignment because it allows you to write in the
first person and the details in this kind of paragraph are likely to be very vivid. Here’s an
example:

I remember when I first arrived in the United States. Even before the plane landed, the little
windows in the airplane revealed snow and ice-covered houses and buildings. As I walked off
 the plane, cold air crept through the corrugated ramp that led to the airport terminal. Some
people inside the airport were wearing big coats and hats, which I had seen on television, but
never up close. I felt a little dizzy and needed to sit down, and then my cell phone rang. It was
my Aunt Sophia. She was waiting for me outside in the passenger pick-up area, so I walked
quickly to the exit, forgetting all about my luggage. When the sliding glass door opened to the
outside, there was my aunt–a woman I hadn’t seen in over ten years–wearing a parka and waving
her arms frantically in my direction.
The topic sentence in this paragraph is the first sentence, I remember when I first arrived in the
United States. The supporting sentences that follow should be about this experience and how it is
still remembered. The concluding sentence in this kind of paragraph would lead to the action in
the next paragraph, if there is one. The sequence of activity can be implied or reassembled by the
reader as demonstrated in this paragraph:

Those of us who found out early that our teacher would be Mr. Fine shuddered to think of having
to spend an entire year in his classroom, trapped and subjected to months of unending terror.
We’d heard stories. We knew. Then a month before school was to begin, a list mysteriously
surfaced showing the names of all the sixth-grade students at Fairmont Elementary, their
teachers, and their classrooms. Normally such information wasn’t known until the first week of
classes, but John Patrick’s mother was a secretary at the school, and somehow this list appeared.
It didn’t matter how it was found, or who exactly leaked the information. It was that cold list of
names that would cause a couple of dozen eleven-year-olds to panic. But as it turns out, we were
all wrong about Mr. Fine.
Or the activity can be clearly sequenced so that there’s no mistake about what happens first,
second, third, and so on:

Theo’s day began with a shock. As soon as he arrived at the office that morning, he learned that
his best friend was dead. Wasn’t it just twelve hours ago that they were eating chicken wings and
tipping back beer in front of a baseball game at the Cooper’s Bar and Grill? After a long day of
crunching numbers at the office, they stopped at a bar for a Thursday afternoon happy hour.
They saw a few coworkers there, and before they knew it, it was closing time. Bill got in a car
with someone he met just that evening and that was the last time Theo saw him.
When you do the prewriting for a narrative paragraph, list the sequence of activity. When you are
ready to write, you can use this information in plotting out the events. It is not necessary to
always go directly in order. An event that happens last can appear first in the paragraph. In fact,
this is a good way to arouse interest in the reader. As long as the paragraph seems fairly logical,
you have a lot of creative freedom in writing this kind of paragraph. You could also just start
writing the paragraph in a stream-of-consciousness sort of way and let the ideas and action flow
freely from your mind as you remember them.