Page 153 - DENG101_Communication Skills-I

Communication Skills-I

Notes 13.4 Writing a Paragraph

Writing a paragraph involves many stages. Let us understand them.

13.4.1 The Prewriting Stage

The prewriting stage is when you think carefully and organize your ideas for your paragraph
before you begin writing.

Six Prewriting Steps

1. Think carefully about what you are going to write. Ask yourself: What question am I going
to answer in this paragraph or essay? How can I best answer this question? What is the
most important part of my answer? How can I make an introductory sentence (or thesis
statement) from the most important part of my answer? What facts or ideas can I use to
support my introductory sentence? How can I make this paragraph or essay interesting?
Do I need more facts on this topic? Where can I find more facts on this topic?

2. Open your notebook. Write out your answers to the above questions. You do not need to
spend a lot of time doing this; just write enough to help you remember why and how you
are going to write your paragraph or essay.

3. Collect facts related to your paragraph or essay topic. Look for and write down facts
that will help you to answer your question. Timesaving hint: make sure the facts you are
writing are related to the exact question you are going to answer in your paragraph or
essay.
4. Write down your own ideas. Ask yourself: What else do I want to say about this topic?
Why should people be interested in this topic? Why is this topic important?
5. Find the main idea of your paragraph or essay. Choose the most important point you are
going to present. If you cannot decide which point is the most important, just choose one
point and stick to it throughout your paragraph or essay.
6. Organize your facts and ideas in a way that develops your main idea. Once you have
chosen the most important point of your paragraph or essay, you must find the best way

to tell your reader about it. Look at the facts you have written. Look at your own ideas on
the topic. Decide which facts and ideas will best support the main idea of your paragraph.
Once you have chosen the facts and ideas you plan to use, ask yourself which order to put
them in the paragraph. Write down your own note set that you can use to guide yourself
as you write your paragraph or essay.

13.4.2 The Writing Stage

The writing stage is when you turn your ideas into sentences.

Five Writing Steps

1. Open your notebook and word processor.
2. Write the topic sentence, supporting sentences, and closing sentence.
3. Write clear and simple sentences to express your meaning.

4. Focus on the main idea of your paragraph.

5. Use the dictionary to help you find additional words to express your ideas.

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