Writing+Skill+11

listen [|here] Writing Skill 11: WRITE UNIFIED SUPPORTING PARAGRAPHS A good way to begin writing effective supporting paragraphs in an independent writing task is to study your notes carefully before you begin to write. Then, as you write, you should think about introducing the main idea of each paragraph, supporting the main idea with adequate details, and connecting the ideas together in a unified paragraph (using cohesive techniques such as repeated key words, rephrased key ideas, pronouns and determiners for reference, and transition expressions).

Look at the notes on the first supporting paragraph of the essay and the supporting paragraph that is based on the notes.

SUPPORTING PARAGRAPH 1: advantages of working in groups

(advantages): • opportunity to learn from others

• less work for individual members

(example): • group project in history (four people,some know things others don't, one quarter of the work for each one) ,

The first point I would like to make is that there are strong advantages to working in groups. One(benefiy of this method of getting things done is that the mernbere of the(group)can learn from each other. Something else that is good is that the work can be divided among the members of the group. If'(for example)f.our people

have to work in a group to get a 20-page paper done for history class,

the paper can get done quickly.The reason form;his)is that different members of the group know different things and each group member has to write only 5 pages.

As you read the first supporting paragraph in the essay on working in groups and working individually, you should note that the first sentence of the paragraph is a topic sentence that ' indicates that the first supporting paragraph is about advantages of working in groups, and the rest of the sentences are details about this topic. You should also note the techniques that have been used to make the paragraph cohesive. The word benefit is a rephrasing of the key idea advantages, the word group is an example of a repeated key word, the phrase for example

is a transition expression, and the word this is a pronoun that refers back to the idea the paper can get done quickly. '

WRITING SKILLS 281

Look at the notes on the second supporting paragraph of the essay and the supporting paragraph that is based on the notes.

SUPPORTING PARAGRAPH 2: advantage5 of working individually

(advantages): • prevloueeucceee in workingthi6 way

• enjoyment of doing work whenand

how I want

.T......

(example): • individual project in hletory (me JJ

working alone, doing work my way,

getting good grade) lJ

Though there are 5trong advantage5 to working in group5, there IJr

are eorneeven more compellingadvantage5 for me to work by(mY5elV, I have had a lot of eucceee working(alon~,andG;h(5)i5becaues I enjoy

working by myself, working when I want, and getting things done the ""IJf

way that I want.~: if I had to write that 20-page history paper, I would rather do it myself. even though I would have to write all 20 pages,because I could do it the way that I want.

As you read the second supporting paragraph in the essay on working in groups and working. individually, you should note that the first sentence of the paragraph is a topic sentence that • indicates that the second supporting paragraph is about advantages of working individually,

and the rest of the sentences are details about this topic. You should also note the techniques fr•..

that have been used. to make the paragraph cohesive. The word myself is an example of a 11

repeated key word, the word alone is a rephrasing of the key idea by myself, the word this is a

pronoun that refers back to the idea I have had a lot of success, and the word Thus is a transi­tion expression.

The following chart outlines the key information you should remember about writing uni­fied supporting paragraphs.

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