Composition: Developing Effective Paragraphs
A paragraph is a series of sentences related to a single topic. That may sound simple enough, but finding the right topic, building sentences with good details, and connecting those details clearly can sometimes be a challenge. Here we will practice various strategies for developing well-organized paragraphs that keep readers interested and informed.
300 Writing Topics
Coming up with a good topic can be one of the hardest parts of composing a paragraph or essay. These 300 topic suggestions should make that job a little easier.
Coming up with a good topic can be one of the hardest parts of composing a paragraph or essay. These 300 topic suggestions should make that job a little easier.
Writing Topics: Description
Descriptive writing calls for close attention to details. To help you get started, here are some topic suggestions for a descriptive paragraph or essay.
Descriptive writing calls for close attention to details. To help you get started, here are some topic suggestions for a descriptive paragraph or essay.
How to Write a Descriptive Paragraph
In this project, you will practice organizing specific details into an effective descriptive paragraph.
In this project, you will practice organizing specific details into an effective descriptive paragraph.
Model Descriptive Paragraphs
These four descriptive paragraphs respond to the guidelines in the project "How to Write a Descriptive Paragraph."
These four descriptive paragraphs respond to the guidelines in the project "How to Write a Descriptive Paragraph."
Model Place Descriptions: Four Descriptive Paragraphs
These four descriptive paragraphs respond to the guidelines in the project "How to Write a Place Description." As you read each paragraph, notice how place signals help to promote coherence, guiding the reader clearly from one detail to the next.
These four descriptive paragraphs respond to the guidelines in the project "How to Write a Place Description." As you read each paragraph, notice how place signals help to promote coherence, guiding the reader clearly from one detail to the next.
Practice in Revising a Place Description
In this exercise, we consider ways of revising a paragraph that was drafted in response to the guidelines in "How to Write a Place Description."
In this exercise, we consider ways of revising a paragraph that was drafted in response to the guidelines in "How to Write a Place Description."
Composing a Character Sketch
This descriptive paragraph--a student's sketch of his school principal--served as the model for the exercise "Sentence Combining With Basic Modifiers."
This descriptive paragraph--a student's sketch of his school principal--served as the model for the exercise "Sentence Combining With Basic Modifiers."
Discovery Strategy: Probing Your Topic
One way to generate details for a descriptive paragraph is to probe your topic, which means to answer specific questions about it. This discovery strategy should help you to create a long list of precise descriptive details.
One way to generate details for a descriptive paragraph is to probe your topic, which means to answer specific questions about it. This discovery strategy should help you to create a long list of precise descriptive details.
Draft a Descriptive Paragraph
Once you have settled on a topic for your descriptive paragraph and collected some details, you're ready to assemble those details in a rough draft. Here's a basic model you can follow when organizing a descriptive paragraph.
Once you have settled on a topic for your descriptive paragraph and collected some details, you're ready to assemble those details in a rough draft. Here's a basic model you can follow when organizing a descriptive paragraph.
Practice in Supporting a Topic Sentence with Specific Details
A topic sentence contains the main idea upon which a paragraph is developed. What follows a topic sentence are a number of supporting sentences that develop the main idea with specific details.
A topic sentence contains the main idea upon which a paragraph is developed. What follows a topic sentence are a number of supporting sentences that develop the main idea with specific details.
Practice in Composing Topic Sentences
This exercise will give you practice in expressing a main idea in a topic sentence that attracts the interest of your readers.
This exercise will give you practice in expressing a main idea in a topic sentence that attracts the interest of your readers.
Practice in Organizing the Descriptive Paragraph
This exercise will give you practice in organizing a descriptive paragraph.
This exercise will give you practice in organizing a descriptive paragraph.
Writing Topics: Narration
These topic suggestions may remind you of a particular incident that you can relate in a clearly organized narrative essay.
These topic suggestions may remind you of a particular incident that you can relate in a clearly organized narrative essay.
Writing a Narrative Paragraph: Freewriting and Drafting
By showing how one student turned an exercise in freewriting into a coherent draft, this article will help you compose your own narrative paragraph.
By showing how one student turned an exercise in freewriting into a coherent draft, this article will help you compose your own narrative paragraph.
Paragraph Unity
Unity is the quality of sticking to one idea from start to finish, with every sentence in a paragraph contributing to the central purpose and main idea of that paragraph.
Unity is the quality of sticking to one idea from start to finish, with every sentence in a paragraph contributing to the central purpose and main idea of that paragraph.
Coherence Strategies: Transitional Words and Phrases
Transitional words and phrases show the direction of our thought as we move from one sentence to the next.
Transitional words and phrases show the direction of our thought as we move from one sentence to the next.
Coherence Exercise: Building & Connecting Sentences
This sentence-building exercise offers practice in applying the principles introduced in Coherence Strategies: Transitional Words and Phrases.
This sentence-building exercise offers practice in applying the principles introduced in Coherence Strategies: Transitional Words and Phrases.
Coherence Strategies: Revising Paragraphs with Transitional Words
These two revision exercises provide opportunities to apply the techniques introduced in Coherence Strategies: Transitional Words and Phrases.
These two revision exercises provide opportunities to apply the techniques introduced in Coherence Strategies: Transitional Words and Phrases.
Coherence Strategies: Repetition of Key Words & Structures
Repeating key words and sentence structures can be an effective way to achieve coherence in paragraphs.
Repeating key words and sentence structures can be an effective way to achieve coherence in paragraphs.
Revision Checklist for a Descriptive Paragraph
Once you have completed a draft of your descriptive paragraph, you can use the following checklist to guide your revision.
Once you have completed a draft of your descriptive paragraph, you can use the following checklist to guide your revision.