THE ELEMENTS OF PARAGRAPH

The Magic
Formula
an 
 interesting  how you/others a great
+ feel about it = topic
subject
 sentence

Many sports fans feel overwhelmed when they meet a

sports superstar
In the formula, the "interesting subject" is the topic.
What you plan to say about the topic is called the
controlling idea.

 ”Many sports fans feel overwhelmed when they meet a

sports superstar”

Topic: The attitude of sports fans

Controlling Idea: feel overwhelmed when they meet a
sports superstar.

Your paragraph will be about how do they feel when they

meet a sports superstar
 Elements of a Topic Sentence
• The topic names the subject, or main idea, of the paragraph
• Controlling idea:
– Makes a specific comment about the topic, which indicates what the
rest of the paragraph will say about the topic.
– It limits or controls the topic to a specific aspect of the topic to be
discussed in the space of a single paragraph.
Examples:
Convenience foods are easy to prepare

 The topic is named: convenience foods

 A specific comment is then made about the topic: They are easy to
prepare
 The paragraph will explain or prove how quick and easy it is to
prepare convenience foods and perhaps give some examples (frozen
dinners, canned soups, etc)
 are reflected in American cooking
The native foods of America’s immigrant population

 The topic is American cooking.

 The controlling idea is Americans eat many foods
from other countries.
 The paragraph will give the examples of popular
ethnic foods such as fried rice (Chinese), tacos
(Mexican), sukiyaki (Japanese), spaghetti (Italian),
and so on.
 Writing Topic Sentence
When you write a topic sentence, remember these two
points:
1. A topic sentence should not be too general or too
specific. Because the readers want to know generally what
to expect in a paragraph but they do not want to learn all
the specific details in the first sentence.
Too general : American food is terrible.
Too specific : American food is tasteless and greasy
because Americans use too many canned,
frozen, and prepackaged foods and
because everything is fried in oil or butter
Good: American food is tasteless and greasy
2.Do not include too many unrelated ideas in your topic
sentence; if you do, your paragraph will not be unified.
Too many ideas:
San Francisco is famous for its temperate climate, its many
tourist attractions, and its cosmopolitans atmosphere.

The three parts of this controlling idea are too unrelated for
a single paragraph. They would require three separate
paragraphs.
Good:
San Francisco is famous for its many tourist attractions.
 Supporting Sentences
Supporting sentences:
– Explain
– Describe
– Give reasons
– Give facts
– Give examples

Supporting details are sentences that back up what the topic sentence is
saying.
A good paragraph may contain
 

three supporting details

each detail may be followed up with a comment to further
elaborate on your detail. 
 
 Supporting sentences should all begin differently — using
a variety of vocabulary to specify word order. This is called
sentence variety.
 
All paragraphs should contain at least three supporting
detail sentences -- they can start with (especially at more
advanced levels):

1. first, initially, in the beginning

2. second, next, then
3. last, finally, in the end
 EXAMPLE
Topic Sentence: "My
hometown is known for
several amazing and
natural features."
 
Supporting Details: "First,
Fort Lauderdale is noted
for its beautiful beaches.
Just west of town is the
Florida Everglades, a
unique national park. The
third stunning feature is
the natural coral reef
located just off the coast."
Even though not all 3 of the
supporting details were
numbered, all the necessary
ingredients were there:
 
• examples were about the three
places in Fort Lauderdale
o beaches, the Everglades,
and coral reefs
• facts were about their location
in Fort Lauderdale
o west and off the coast
• descriptions were about each
location: 
o beautiful and unique
 Concluding Sentence
• Usually the last sentence of a paragraph
• Signal the end of the paragraph
• Giving a logical conclusion by:
– restating the main idea of the topic sentence
– offering a suggestion, opinion, or prediction
Common Words Used to Conclude a Paragraph
• Because of this
• As a result
• Certainly
• In conclusion
• Clearly
• Indeed
• Overall
• In the end
• Therefore
• Thus
• Hence
• For this reason
• Surely
• For these reasons
• In sum
 Concluding Sentence
• Usually the last Common Words Used to Conclude
a Paragraph:
sentence of a
paragraph • Because of this
• As a result
• Signal the end of the • Certainly
paragraph • In conclusion
• Clearly
• Giving a logical • Indeed
conclusion by: • Overall
• In the end
– restating the main • Therefore
idea of the topic • Thus
• Hence
sentence • For this reason
– offering a suggestion, • Surely
• For these reasons
opinion, or prediction • In sum
 Think of your paragraph like a
hamburger:

 
The top bun is the topic
sentence 
The middle ingredients are
the supporting sentences
The bottom bun is the
concluding sentence
 
The buns hold everything
together and resemble each
other, just as the topic and
concluding sentences should.
 Your
Reading Is My Hobby
My hobby is reading (TS). Because reading
can make me the knowledge. And reading,
make me can studying in the world. From
much reading me type of animal, plant, fruits.
Reading make we much experience. For
example from reading a book about healthy
teech we to live healthy everydays. So, join to
reading (CS).
 What do you think?
Reading Is My Hobby
My hobby is reading (TS).
Because reading can make
me the knowledge. And
reading, make me can
studying in the world. From
much reading me type of
animal, plant, fruits. Reading
make we much experience.
For example from reading a
book about healthy teech
we to live healthy everydays.
So, join to reading (CS).
Reading Is My Hobby
Reading is a good hobby for
improving my knowledge (TS).
By reading books, I can study
about many things in the world.
For example, when I read books
about animal, plant and fruit, I
get an enjoyable experience of
knowing the variety of them.
Then, my reading of books
about health teaches me how to
have a healthy lifestyle.
Therefore, reading is a positive
hobby to broaden my horizon
about knowledge (CS).
 Prepare Your Best
Burger!
1. What makes you proud of yourself?
2. What are the wonderful moments you have
ever had in life that you will never forget?
3. What will you be in the next five years?
4. What is your most precious
thing/collection?
5. What things are adorable from a teacher?