Paragraph Writing

In the English language, the smallest building block used for writing is the letter. It is a
graphical representation of a sound. When letters are grouped together, they form words.
Words in turn can be grouped together to form a sentence. A sentence contains a complete
thought or idea. When you group sentences together, a paragraph is formed, and
paragraphs are the building blocks for almost all forms of writing: essays, books, letters,
journals, newspapers, etc.
Fortunately, paragraphs are easy to write. All you need are a topic sentence, supporting
sentences, and a conclusion sentence. A topic sentence's job is to inform the reader what
the paragraph is about. It should contain a subject and a focus. Supporting sentences
merely expand upon the idea presented in the topic sentence. Generally, they add
information and details. The conclusion sentence simply wraps up the paragraph neatly. It
can end with the last event, a suggestion, a summary, etc.
In our classroom, we focus on 5 types of paragraphs:
* Descriptive - Describes something and appeals to the 5 senses
* Narrative - Retells a story or event
* Persuasive - Gives an opinion and tries to make people think differently
* Expository - Gives information or explains something
* Compare/Contrast - Tells how things are similar and different
Below is a recipe for making a great paragraph:
The Ingredients of a Great Paragraph
* A Great Paragraph Always Contains One Topic Sentence, At Least Five Supporting Sentences, and
One Conclusion Sentence. 1-5-1
* A Great Paragraph Always Has a Topic Sentence That Contains a Subject and a Focus.
* A Great Paragraph Always Stays On The Topic
* A Great Paragraph Always Has Proper Grammar, Spelling, Punctuation, and Capitalization, and
Indentation
* A Great Paragraph Never Repeats Ideas or Sentence Beginnings.
* Furthermore, When You Are Writing a Great Paragraph in Mr. D's Classroom, Be Sure To Underline
Your Topic and Conclusion Sentences. Also, Be Sure to Circle the First Word of Each Sentence You
Write.

Paragraph Writing
(Descriptive)
A descriptive paragraph simply describes something. In order to give the reader a feel for
what you are describing, you need to appeal to as many of the five senses as possible, and
include specific details.

*Example*
Concord's Fourth of July Parade is a sight to behold. Spectators line both sides of main
street, filling the sidewalks to capacity. Little children can be heard squealing in anticipation
of the parade's beginning. As soon as the parade starts, however, that sound is quickly
drowned out by the blaring music of the local high school marching bands. The smell of
popcorn, cotton candy, hot dogs, and other vended treats waft through the air. Kids and
adults alike can be seen gorging themselves on the tasty goodies as the multi-colored floats
pass by. If you're lucky, you may catch a piece of candy thrown by one of the neighbourhood
merchants promoting their company. Whatever the case, you are sure to have a good time.

Paragraph Writing
(Narrative)
A narrative paragraph tells a story. It's job is to be interesting while retelling events. Narrative
paragraphs can be fiction or non-fiction. One thing that you need to decide when writing a
narrative paragraph is what "person" you want to write it in. A "First Person" narrative is
narrated by someone from the story. This point of you uses pronouns such as: I, we, me, us,
my, mine, our, ours, etc. A "Third Person" narrative is a story that is narrated by someone
outside of the story. This point of view uses pronouns such as: he, she, it, his, her, hers, its,
him, her, it, they, them, their, theirs, etc.
*Example*

Two summers ago, I broke my baby toe. I was walking barefoot into my kitchen from the
dining room when that pesky little digit decided it would not be needed at my final
destination. It hooked onto the adjoining wall and stayed firmly in place as the rest of my
body went forward. The pain was excruciating; Who knew that such a little area of the body
had so many nerve endings and pain sensors? After reciting several of my favorite
expletives, hopping up and down on one foot, and shedding an ocean of tears, I finally
mustered enough courage to look down at that forlorn little toe. As I looked down, I could
see that my once straight and beautiful toe was now bending left at an impossibly perfect
ninety degree angle. When the oxygen finally returned to my brain, I had my wife drive me to
the emergency room, where I endured hours of torture as the doctors tried to straighten my
toe back to its original position. Never again will I allow that toe and the rest of my body be in
two different locations at the same time.

Paragraph Writing
(Persuasive)
A persuasive paragraph gives an opinion and tries to persuade people to think differently or
change their minds in some way. A good persuasive paragraph must contain a counter
argument. A counter argument is a statement that explains why an opposing viewpoint is
flawed.
*Example*

Killing unborn children is wrong. A human life, whether inside the womb or out, is precious.
The taking of this life through abortion, while legal, is murder. Opponents of this viewpoint
claim that human embryos and foetuses are not living, and therefore can be discarded like
trash. Not only is this outrageous, but untrue. Scientists outline a list of criteria that living
things must possess in order to be considered living. This list includes mobility, being able to
react to stimuli, growth, consumption, and cellular reproduction. All of these criteria is
present in every stage of the unborn child's life from conception through
delivery. Thus, terminating the life of an unborn child in any stage is homicide. You wouldn't
consider taking the life of a child that could protest, nor should you take the life of one that
cannot.

Paragraph Writing

(Expository)
An expository paragraph gives information or explains something. Textbooks,
encyclopaedias, and manuals rely heavily on this type of paragraph. Expository paragraphs
should contain only facts and should avoid using any type of personal pronoun.
*Example*

Anyone can make toast. All that is needed is bread, a toaster, a knife, and some sort of
spread. To begin, the toaster must be set to a particular level of darkness. This is based on
personal preference and falls anywhere between the range of very light to very
dark. Once the toaster has been set, the next thing to do is insert the un-cooked bread into
the slots of the toaster and push the plunger down. When the toast is ready, it will pop
up. After letting the toast cool slightly, the last thing to do is apply the spread of choice with a
knife. The toast is now ready to be eaten.

Paragraph Writing
(Compare/Contrast)
A compare/contrast paragraph discusses how things are alike and different. Almost any two things in
the world can be used in this type of paragraph. If the things being discussed are on completely
opposite ends of the spectrum, it may be difficult to find similarities. Likewise, if the things being
compared are almost identical, then differences may be hard to come up with. Either way, on some
level
all
things
have
similarities
and
differences
if
you
dig
deep
enough.
One challenge writers are faced with when writing this type of paragraph is not repeating the same
words over and over again. So, something that is helpful when writing this type of paragraph is to
have a list of synonyms for different and similar:
different
dissimilar
unlike
diverse
not like
not the same

similar
comparable
the same
alike
identical
like

Other than that, this is a pretty straightforward paragraph to write. Take a look at the
example below.
Apples and oranges have several similarities and differences. To begin with, they are both
fruits, they grow on trees, and they are of a similar size. Furthermore, both apples and
oranges can be found anywhere produce is sold, are popular lunch items, and are made into
tasty juices. Some of the differences between the two fruits include their texture, their taste,
and their appearance. An apple is a somewhat hard fruit that crunches when bitten into
while an orange is a soft, spongy fruit that must be peeled to enjoy. Additionally, apples are
strictly sweet whereas oranges are sweet and sour at the same time. These are just a few of
the ways in which apples and oranges are alike and different.