Unit 1

1. Unit 1 Basic Skills in Writing Paragraphs

2. 1.1 Introduction to Paragraphs • 1.1.1 Paragraph

3. What is a paragraph? • It is the basic unit of organization in writing in which a group of related sentences develops one main idea. • ---- short as one sentence • ---- long as ten or more sentences • ---- The number of sentences is unimportant. • ---- The main idea should be developed clearly.

4. A paragraph comprises three major structural parts • ----a topic sentence • ----supporting sentences • ----a concluding sentence

5. 1.1.2 Essay • What is an essay? • An essay is a piece of writing with several related paragraphs. • The topic of an essay is • ---- too long • ---- too complex • ---- all the separated paragraphs tied together

6. 1.2 Organization of a paragraph • ----Organization is vital to good composition. • ----A paragraph is a unit of organization of written language. • One basic aim: • To communicate one central idea clearly and effectively.

7. 1.2.1 A Narrowed-down Topic • There is usually only one central idea in a paragraph. • What is a narrowed-down topic? • ----It is a focused topic to of a subject. • ----You have to limit your paragraph to the main idea of your subject.

8. Example

9. House • living room • favorite desk (fireplace, bookcase) Page 5 ( Sample 1,2,3)

10. 1.2.2 A Reasonable Sequence • What is a reasonable sequence? • ---- It is not enough to have a specific topic. Since a paragraph is like a mini-essay, it needs a reasonable organization or sequence. • The content of the paragraph and the intention of the writer are important. • Page 7 ( Sample 1)

11. 1.3 Qualities of a Good Paragraph • What is a good paragraph? • It is characterized by its • ---- unity • ---- coherence • ---- continuity • ---- completeness

12. It is commonly said that a good paragraph is characterized by its unity, coherence, continuity and completeness. To achieve these, each paragraph should have just one central idea, which is usually expressed n a key sentence-the topic sentence. • The central idea (the topic sentence) • ----functions as a summary • ---- is a helpful guide • ---- is best put at the beginning of a paragraph • ---- is also positioned at the end of a paragraph • ---- sometimes can be implied ( not written at all)

13. Not matter where a topic sentence is placed, or whether it is written or not, it functions as the link to all its related sentences in order to achieve unity,coherence, continuity and completeness of the paragraph, which are the indispensable qualities of a good paragraph.

14. 1.3.1 Unity • Unity = one main idea • Every supporting sentence in the paragraph must be directly related to the main idea. • Any information that has no relation with the topic sentence should be avoided • Page 13 ( Sample 1)

15. Sample writing • Health • As the proverb says, “No one knows the value of health until he loses it.” In other words, nothing is more valuable than health. Health is the foundation of our future, so we should maintain and enhance it. • It is clear that health is the foundation of one’s future success. If you become sick, it is nearly impossible to pursue your career effectively, much less make your dream come true. On the other hand, if you are stout and strong, you can go all out to overcome the obstacles that lie ahead of you.

16. Now that we know that health is the resource of our energy, what should we do to maintain and enhance our health? First, we should exercise every day to strengthen our muscles. Second, we might as well keep good hours. If we get up early, we can breathe fresh air and see the sunrise. This habit can do wonders for our outlook on life. Third, there is a proverb that says. “ Prevention is better than cure.” If you pay close attention to your health, you can avoid getting sick, or at least cure yourself of a disease while it is still in its incipient stage.

17. In conclusion, health is more important than wealth. Thos who are rich but lose their health are no more fortunate than those who are poor. If you want your wish to come true, health is the most important ingredient of your success.

18. 1.3.2 Coherence • What is coherence of a paragraph? • It refers to the proper arrangement of sentences. • Each sentence in a paragraph leads to the next sentence in explaining the controlling idea. • Example: How a pianist plays a good composition from beginning to the end without stopping?

19. In a coherent paragraph, the sentences are woven together in such a way that the paragraph reads as an integrated whole rather than as a series of separated sentences. • Coherence---- organization • Unity ----content • Coherence focuses on the organization of a paragraph while unity emphasizes the content of a paragraph.These two features overlap each other to a great extent. • Page 16 ( Sample 1,2 )

20. Sample Writing • Television • Television presents a vivid and a true world in front of us. TV news programs always keep us well-informed of current events happening in the world and tell us all the things that are going on outside our own world. By watching TV we enjoy seeing interviews of famous people or sports games in other parts of the globe or lovely films made in other countries. In a word, we enjoy seeing many things without bothering to go outside of our own homes.

21. Television can also play an educational role in our daily life. TV presents people with a wide range of educational programs: from learning a foreign language to doing some repair work; from doing some research to dealing with housework. Unlike schools or colleges, TV can involve as many people as possible. In addition, TV educational programs will never bore the audience or place stress on the viewer, for it is always at the mercy of the viewers.

22. However, television can be harmful, too. Those who become addicted to TV will be distracted from their work and studies. They tend to spend too much of their time in front of the TV set and do much less than they should. Moreover, films about sex and violence on TV will have some very negative effects on many people, especially children and teenagers.Therefore, we should watch TV in moderation and never let it stop us from doing what we need to do.

23. Sum-up to Coherence • To achieve coherence, all sentences in a paragraph should be arranged in a logical order. • Usually, a sentence of general statement comes first, then is followed by a less general statement, and then the least general statement would be the last. Sentences of equal generality should be in the same position. • Page 16 ( Sample 1, 2 )

24. 1.3.3 Continuity • What is continuity in a paragraph? • It is something that can be called transitions with which the writer can use so that one sentence leads smoothly to another. • Appropriate transitions are necessary between paragraphs, between sentences, and even within sentences.

25. Transitions include: • ---- pronouns • ---- pronominal adjectives • ---- synonyms • ---- repetition of important words &phrases • ---- parallel sentence structure • ---- consistent point of view • ---- transitional words (esp.conjunctions & adverbs ) • Page 20 ( see 1.3.3.1 and 1.3.3.2 )

26. 1.3.4 Completeness • What is completeness? • Completeness in a paragraph means that the topic is adequately developed by details, explanations, evidence, and the like, so that the reader is not left with only a fuzzy idea of what you mean.

27. There is no simple answer to how much development is “adequate” • The degree of development depends on the purpose of the content of the paragraph. • Example: table, house, machine or anything else cannot be left unfinished.

28. Summary to Completeness • A paragraph may contain a fair amount of information but still be incomplete if this information is not fully developed. • Page 24 (Sample 1,2 and 3)

29. Conclusion • When you develop a paragraph,you’d try to do the following instructions: • 1) Don’t just write more; instead, say more. A paragraph should not go on and on; it should go in and in. • 2) Keep in mind the reader’s question “What do you mean by that?” and “What is your proof?”. • 3) Know your subject thoroughly. • 4) Develop the topic adequately • 5) The ideas should be specific rather than general.