3 Parts Of The Paragraph

3 PARTS OF THE PARAGRAPH

A.    TOPIC SENTENCE

The topic sentence is a prescriptive grammatical term to describe the sentence in an expository paragraph which summarizes the main idea of that paragraph.It is usually the first sentence in a paragraph. The topic sentence acts as a kind of summary, and offers the reader an insightful view of the writer’s main ideas for the following paragraph.More than just being a mere summary, however, a topic sentence often provides a claim or an insight directly or indirectly related to the thesis. It adds cohesion to a paper and helps organize ideas both within the paragraph and the whole body of work at large.

Its use is considered standard in the American educational system and most venues of writing mainly because it increases reading accessibility.

A topic sentence (also known as a focus sentence in some cases) encapsulates or organizes an entire paragraph. Although topic sentences may appear anywhere in a paragraph, in academic essays they often appear at the beginning.

B.     SUPPORTING SENTENCE

      The supporting sentence is the developing part which improves major ideas. While writing supporting sentence, controlling idea must be fully explained, discussed and exemplified. 

Example:

      Nature has a perfect system for recycling water. That is, water is used again and again. It falls as rain. Then it goes one of the three places, it may seep slowly into the thick soil as it soaks through into the natural reservoirs quickly. It might run off into streams to rivers to the oceans. In short, the chain of changes goes on and on systematically.   

C.     CONCLUDING SENTENCE

    Generally, a concluding sentence is a restatement of the topic sentence, it gives the same information as the topic sentence but it is expressed in a different way. While writing concluding sentence, we can use adverbs such as “all in all, consequently, in conclusion, in short, in summary”. 

Example: 

      My special treasure is a picture of my mother on her fifteenth birthday. This picture is always in my house when I was growing up. Years later when I got married and moved to Montreal, my mother gave it to me so that I would always remember her. Now, it sits on my table next to my bed. I look at it and, imagine my mother’s life on that day. I think she was excited because her eyes are shining with happiness. Her smile is shy as if she were thinking about a secret. She is standing next to rose bush, and the roses are taller than she is. She is wearing a beautiful white lace dress and black shoes. Her hair is long and curly. She looks lovely in this peaceful place, and I feel calm when I gaze into her eyes at the end of my busy day. This picture of my mother is my most valuable possession.

D.    WRITING PRACTICE

The writing on red Ravine evolved from our practice. If you want to be a writer, you have to write. If you want to write, you have to practice.

Simple. Yet, not easy.

Writing Practice is based on a set of six rules. We learned about Writing Practice by reading Natalie Goldberg’s Writing Down the Bones. Then we signed up for her workshops and learned more.

Natalie created Writing Practice rules based on years of her own practice. Each of us has taken those rules and used them to make the practice our own. We are profoundly grateful for what Natalie has handed down to us through her books and teachings.

You are encouraged to join us in the practice of writing. Grab one of our Writing Topics. Take a word or phrase that holds juice for you. Read our Writing Practices. Give us Recall. Practice creates structure and grounds your writing.

How Writing Practice Works

Follow these six rules as you write:

·         Keep your hand moving. (Don’t pause to reread the line you have just written. That’s stalling and trying to get control of what you’re saying. Don’t stop until the time is up.)

·         Don’t cross out. (That is editing as you write. Even if you write something you didn’t mean to write, leave it. Don’t backspace.)

·         Don’t worry about spelling, punctuation, grammar. (Don’t even care about staying within the margins and lines on the page.)

·         Lose control.

·         Don’t think. Don’t get logical.

·         Go for the jugular. (If something comes up in your writing that is scary or naked, dive right into it. It probably has lots of energy.)