English Skills Week 3 - Fitzpatrick Ch 1

expository writing

provide specific information

organise that information

1st - collect specific details or examples to illustrate your topic
2nd - organise the examples into logical groups - each group about one characteristic of the topic

To help readers follow your thinking, your expository paragraph should have three levels


1 - a main point presented in a topic sentence
2 - major supporting points that identify the characteristics of the topic
3 - specific support - examples, explanations, quotations

The topic sentence

Usually the most general sentence in the paragraph

Purpose is to help the reader focus on the topic and prepare them for supporting points to follow

Major supporting points

More specific than the topic sentence but more general than the details or examples

Supporting points must be clearly stated in the paragraph because they connect the topic sentence and the examples

Specific support

If your paragraph has a topic sentence and major supporting points but no specific support, the question will be raised - why is that important? or even objection: I don't think that's true

Examples - descriptions of situations or events that support general ideas - used to help understand and remember your major points

Explanations: tell what something means or why someone does something - adds to reader's understanding of your major points

Quotations: someone's actual words - always identified by quotation marks, they help the reader understand the major points and to add interest to examples

The writing process

Make an outline - to show the structure of the three-level paragraph


Main idea (topic sentence)
I) Major supporting point
A - Specific support
B - Specific support


II) Major supporting point
A - Specific support
B- Specific support


etc.

Prewriting - do a lot of thinking about the topic before beginning to write (brainstorming) and selecting ideas that are related to each other and that you can develop (focusing)

There are techniques you can use to brainstorm and focus for example


  • making lists of ideas and then selecting items from the lists

Paragraph form

  • Put the title in the middle of the top line of your paper - use capitals for the first word in the title. Use capital letters for all other words except for articles, prepositions, and conjunctions (and, but)


  • Indent the first line of the paragraph by five spaces


  • Each line should end at about the same place on the right


  • If you are handwriting, use lined paper with a margin line on the left - start next to the margin lines except on the first line (indented)


  • When typing, use double spacing and a 12 point type

Revising - all writers revise or rewrite to improve their writing


  • After writing the first draft set it aside for a few hours or days, when you pick it up again you see it as others see it - helps you see what information to include and what connections to strengthen

Composition focus

The controlling idea of the topic sentence and the major supporting points

A topic sentence usually has 2 parts - the topic and the controlling idea

Topic = what is the general subject of the paragraph e.g. 'Nora is my role model ...'

Controlling idea = limits the topic e.g. 'because she has two great qualities'

The controlling idea also tells you what parts of the topic the writer wants to focus on; the major supporting points in the paragraph

Transitions

A paragraph containing 2 or 3 major supporting points and some examples usually needs some signals - the transitions (which help readers follow its organisation)


Various kinds of transitions exist


  1. Identify items in a list or sequence: first, second, one, another etc. - One and another are adjectives so they come before nouns
  2. To introduce examples: for example, for instance (for sentence long examples), such as, like (to introduce words or phrases used as examples)
  • for example and for instance come at the beginning of a sentence and are followed by a comma
  • such as and like are used in the middle of sentences they are prepositions followed by nouns or noun phrases

Concluding sentences

  • A signal to the reader that the paragraph is finished
  • You can repeat the vocabulary of the controlling idea or use synonyms, or you can refer to the topic sentence in a general way
  • You can add a final thought but do not introduce new information readers would want you to explain or new opinions readers would want you to support

Language focus

Sentence combining - makes writing more effective - show logical relationships and include more information in your sentences.

Two kinds of conjunctions let you do this

Coordinating conjunction - and, so, but

Subordinating conjunction - when, because, although