Informative

Paragraph
Writing
101
As you improve your English writing
skills, your teachers will begin asking you
to write informative paragraphs.

A paragraph is a unit of information. Paragraphs usually

contain several sentences grouped together around a
main idea. Learning how to write an organized
paragraph will improve your essays and demonstrate
your thinking skills.

Basic paragraphs include three elements:

• The topic sentence, often found at the
beginning of the paragraph, tells the reader the
main idea, or topic, of the paragraph.
• The sentences following the topic sentence
contain supporting details that develop the main
idea of the paragraph. Supporting details may
include facts or quotes from your research, or
other information.
• At the end of the sentence is a concluding
sentence that summarizes the main. point of the
paragraph.
 Here is a simple example
paragraph
Roasting a chicken is very simple. The only
ingredients you need for a perfect roasted chicken
are the chicken, some salt, and an onion or lemon
to stuff in the chicken. Once you have your
ingredients, rub salt on the outside of the chicken
and let it sit at room temperature for one hour.
Preheat the oven to 450 degrees. After the
chicken has been salted for one hour, stuff it with
the onion or lemon and put it in the oven. Roast it
for 15 minutes per pound. Once the chicken is
done, pull it out of the oven and let it rest for at
least 10 minutes. After that, you will have a
perfect roasted chicken for you and your family to
enjoy. Roasted chicken is an easy recipe to try at
your next meal.

In this example, “Roasting a chicken is very

simple” is the topic sentence. The sentences that
follow provide supporting details. The last
sentence sums up the point of the paragraph with
a conclusion.
 TOPIC SENTENCE

• The first sentence in your informative

paragraph is the topic sentence. It tells
the reader what your paragraph will be
about. The reader should understand the
topic with no further explanation, so keep
it simple and easy to understand. After
reading the topic sentence, any student
should know what your paragraph is going
to be about without reading the question
on the test or the rest of the essay. A topic
sentence can sometimes be a question.

• If the writing topic/ test question asks you

for your OPINION, you should only pick
ONE side to write about.
 TOPIC SENTENCE
PITFALLS
• A topic sentence should NOT begin with:
• You asked me if….
• I think that…..
• I believe/feel that…..
• My answer is….
• In this paragraph I will talk/ write about/
explain…..
• In my essay I will talk/ write about/
explain….
• The reason why….
ONLY IF THE ESSAY ASKS FOR YOUR
OPINION YOU MAY INCLUDE:
• I agree/ disagree…
• In my opinion……
• I believe/ think/ feel
 Good Topic Sentences
From Our Last Essay.

• The motherboard of the

computer is a very important
part of the computer for many
reasons.
• The motherboard is a crucial
part in everyone's computer.
• The motherboard is important
to the function of a computer.
 SUPPORTING SENTENCES

Supporting sentences should:

• Back up the topic sentence with as
many facts as possible.
• Stay on topic- do not add in
unnecessary information that does not
relate to the topic.
• Be written as facts, not opinions.
• Use a variety of sentence structure and
vary in length. They do not all start the
same way.
• Be statements, not questions.
• Be written in 3rd Person. (Uses pronouns
like he, she, it, or they. Not pronouns
like I, me, or you)
 SUPPORTING SENTENCE
PITFALLS

Supporting sentences should:

• NOT Restate a previously used idea in a
new way. Two supporting sentences with
the same idea will only be counted as one
supporting sentence.
• NOT Use 1st or 2nd Person pronouns like I,
me, or you.
• NOT Include opinions or feeling about the
topic unless your teacher has asked you to
write an opinion essay.
 Good Supporting Sentences
• From Our Last Essay.
The motherboard is a large circuit board that connects
input, output and processing devices.
• Even though the motherboard isn’t the only important part,
a computer is useless without it.
• The motherboard powers almost everything that it in a
computer.
• Everything in a computer is connected to the motherboard.
• The motherboard is like the heart of the computer, it keeps
information flowing to the separate parts .
• The motherboard is important because it puts all the other
parts to work.
• Without the motherboard, the CPU can’t do anything and
without the CPU, the motherboard can’t do anything.
• The motherboard contains important parts like the video
card, internet and USB ports and sound card. Without these
parts, the computer is useless.
• If the motherboard doesn’t work, neither does the rest of
the computer.
• The rest of the computer parts can’t work together without
the motherboards help.
CONCLUDING SENTENCES

The last sentence in your informative

paragraph is the concluding sentence.
It should restate the Topic Sentence
and main idea in a new way.
Sometimes a question can be used as a
conclusion, but not often. Many writers
include the words “In conclusion” to
begin their final sentence.
 CONCLUDING SENTENCE
PITFALLS

Concluding sentences should NOT include:

• The end.
• Thanks for reading my essay….
• I hope you liked my essay….

• EVEN IF THE ESSAY WAS AN OPINION IT

STILL SHOULD NOT INCLUDE
• You may not agree with me, but that’s how
I think….
• It is for these reasons that I feel….
 Good Concluding Sentences
From Our Last Essay.

• These are some reasons why

the motherboard is so
important to the function of a
computer.
• In conclusion, the motherboard
is important to the computer
for many reasons.
• As you can see, the
motherboard is crucial in every
way for a computer to function
properly.
 AVOID NONSPECIFIC WORDS
• What is IT? You do not have to repeat the same
noun over and over, but you must also be
cautious when using the word IT. If there are two
pronouns in the same sentence, the reader can
become confused. Use synonyms to add a
variety of words and only use the pronoun IT,
THEY, THEM every other time you would use a
noun after you have established what you are
writing about.

• Ex- The computer is a helpful too. Computers

save us time, effort and money. Using computers
at school help us learn in more creative ways.

• Better: The computer is a helpful tool. It saves us

time, effort and money. Using these machines at
school help us learn in more creative ways.

• Bad: It is a helpful too. They save us time, effort

and money. Using them at school help us learn in
more creative ways.
 TRANSITION WORDS
IN INFORMATIVE TOPICS

• Use transition words to help move the

reader from one supporting idea to the
next. They also add variety to your writing
and change up your sentence structure.
• Most informative essays do not follow
time. Do not use First, Second, Last, Then,
After, Finally. …..
• You may ONLY use time transition words if
you are:
• Explaining the steps in a process (Science or
Math)
• Explaining how a series of events led up to
another event. (History)
• Storytelling (Fiction)
• Writing about the events in a person’s life
(Biography) or a book (Summary).
 TRANSITION WORDS

To Show Agreement or Similarity

Between Two Ideas
 TRANSITION WORDS

To Show Disagreement or Contrast

Between Two Ideas
 TRANSITION WORDS

To Show Cause Between Two Ideas

 TRANSITION WORDS

To Show An Example or Support

Between Two Ideas
 TRANSITION WORDS

To Show the Effect or Consequence

Between Two Ideas
 TRANSITION WORDS

To Show the Conclusion of Ideas

 TRANSITION WORDS

To Show Sequence of Time

 TRANSITION WORDS

To Show Space or Location