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Choosing a Topic Sentence Worksheet

Directions: Below you will see three actual examples
of paragraphs from students papers. Each paragraph
is missing a topic sentence. Your job today will be to
carefully read the paragraph. Then, consider the main
idea of the paragraph and write it down. After jotting
down some informal ideas, write a final topic
sentence that introduces the paragraph. Lastly,
explain your reasoning for why you constructed your
topic sentence as you did. If you would like to review
what a topic sentence is, go back to the presentation
from yesterday.
1. Example#1: A body paragraph from an essay on
The Scarlet Letter.
Hester and Dimmesdale use nature to hide away and
be free with each other. This is still going back to chapters
17-19. Hester and Dimmesdale meet each other in the
woods where they have new- found hope in finding a way to
make their relationship work. In the forest, they both figure
out a plan of what to do, and they both become happy and
gleeful with the forest, as if their sins mean nothing in the

forest. In the story, the moment that the gloom leaves them,
it states, All at once, as with a sudden smile of heaven,
forth burst the sunshine, pouring a very flood into the
obscure forest, gladdening each leaf, transmuting the yellow
fallen ones to gold, and gleaming adown the gray trunks of
the solemn trees. The objects that had made a shadow
hitherto, embodied the brightness now. (143). Furthermore,
Ms. Hibbins and the other supposed witches use the woods
at night in order to talk to the Black Man and use their
witchcraft. We learn at the end of chapter 8 that Ms. Hibbins
goes into the forest in order to talk with the Black Man. This
represents the freedom of the forest as both good and bad.
Good, for it gives Hester and Dimmesdale the freedom to
forget their sins, but also bad, for the witches go out and
sign their name in the devils book.
Main Idea and Notes:

 Write your topic sentence here:

Reasoning:
2. Example#1: A body paragraph from an essay
on The Great Gatsby.
Throughout the novel, the majority of Gatsby's decisions are
based upon his obsession with Daisy. As previously
mentioned, his overwhelming desire to build up his
reputation and his wealth in many cases was driven by a
singular reason to impress Daisy and capture her
affections again. Rather than gain that position through
honest hard work, Gatsby instead lets his ravenous desires
take over and allow him to choose the fast and easy ways of
gaining money and position, like the shady business
practices of bootlegging, deceit, gambling, and conspiracy.
Alongside this obsessive motivation, Gatsby at times lets
emotions like anxiety or shame rule his conduct. For

example, when Gatsby sees his first opportunity to reunite

with Daisy, he is too frightened to even broach the subject
with her, so instead he persuades her cousin and his
neighbor, Nick Carraway, to arrange the meeting for him.
When the long-anticipated meeting finally takes place,
Gatsby becomes even more anxious and can barely
compose himself before Daisy, consumed with the fear that
their reunion may not match up to his idolatrous dreams.
Fitzgerald, through Nick's narration, exquisitely describes
Gatsby's emotional tumult and his following choices as a
kind of transformation: He had passed visibly through two
states and was entering upon a third. After his
embarrassment and his unreasoning joy he was consumed
with wonder at [Daisy's] presence. He had been full of the
idea so long, dreamed it right through to the endNow, in
the reaction, he was running down like an overwound clock
(92). Even till the end of the masquerade, after a
confrontation with Daisys husband that reveals the truth
about the life hes created, Gatsby refuses to face facts,
choosing to value his emotions surrounding Daisy rather

than the practical wisdom of backing off. In each of these

situations, Gatsby shows himself to be a Romantic Hero,
because he is unable to separate his decision-making
process from the overpowering influence of his own
emotions.

Main Idea and Notes:

Write your topic sentence here:

Reasoning:

3. Example#3:AbodyparagraphfromanessayonTheirEyes
WereWatchingGod.

Logan Killicks was Janie's first husband. Janie was

forced to marry him by her grandmother who was
dying. Nanny wanted Janie to have protection, not
because the world was dangerous, which it was at the
time, but because Nanny was a former slave and knew
how life was. This protection would be security for Janie
so that Nanny could rest easy knowing that Janie would
be taken care of. Logan Killicks was different from the
other men because he was not an interesting man.
Logan is also a man who wasn't meant to be loved, like
Janie says on page 24. From Logan, Janie learns that
with men like him, she would be controlled and told
everything that she had to do in order to keep the
peace with him. For example Logan tells Janie that she
doesn't have a particular place (p.31) and that it's
wherever he needs her, and Janie responds with a
smart remark of how Logan is trying to rush her and
that he hadn't done any favor in marrying her. Logan
then gets mad at Janie and threatens to kill her with an
ax for arguing with him. Janie then decides to leave

Logan for someone better who sweet talked her some

time before and was respectful to her. From this
experience, Janie may have learned that she can
change her life if she wanted, and didn't have to live a
certain way if she didn't have to. She may have also
learned that love can't come from something being
forced to be, rather love had to come from within an
individual.

Main Idea and Notes:

Write your topic sentence here:

Reasoning: