Writing a paragraph

1. Or How to Build a Big Mac

2. What are the ingredients of a Big Mac Cheeseburger?
Top Bun
Lettuce
Tomato
Cheese
Onion
Special Sauce
Hamburger
Bottom Bun

3. The top and bottom bun hold the stuff inside together!
Topic Sentence
Details!
Important
facts!
More Details!
Closing Sentence
Or transition

4. How do you start to eat a hamburger that doesn’t have the
top bun?
You don’t
because
it’s too
difficult to
pick up!

5. If your topic sentence is not good, no one will want to read
the rest of your paragraph.
(Just as no one wants to
eat a hamburger with no
bun!)

6. This paragraph is missing its topic sentence. Can you
figure out what the main idea should be?
Cats have been used as
pets since the time of the
pharaohs in Egypt. They
have been found in
countries all over the world.
Obviously, cats have been
the favorites of man for
hundreds of years. I
suppose cats are so well
liked because they are
gentle, friendly and easy to
take care of.

7. Here is the paragraph with the topic sentence. It
makes much more sense now.
Although most people believe that man’s best friend is
a dog, I think it should be a cat. Cats have been used as
pets since the time of the pharaohs in Egypt. They have been
found in countries all over the world. Obviously, cats have been
the favorites of man for hundreds of years. I suppose cats are so
well liked because they are gentle, friendly and easy to take care
of.

8.  A ship without its rudder.
 An army without its general.
 A vacation trip without a map.
It has no direction.

9. The supporting sentences that follow the topic
sentence are the cheese, hamburger, and special
sauce!
They add flavor and substance!
Every supporting sentence has to have something to
do with the topic sentence.

10. Read each supporting sentence. Do you see how it
supports the topic sentence?
Although most people
believe that man’s best
friend is a dog, I think
it should be a cat.
Cats have been used as
pets since the time of the
pharaohs in Egypt.

11. Read each supporting sentence. Do you see how it
supports the topic sentence?
Although most people
believe that man’s best
friend is a dog, I think
it should be a cat.
They have been found in
countries all over the world.

12. Read each supporting sentence. Do you see how it
supports the topic sentence?
Although most people
believe that man’s best
friend is a dog, I think it
should be a cat.
Obviously, cats have been the
favorites of man for hundreds
of years.

13. Hamburger first, then cheese? Or do you start with the
sauce?
Well, in a paragraph…the order of supporting
sentences are also important.
You can organize by:
- Most important things first
- The order of events (First, Second, Third
- Relation to one another (Next to, beside, behind)

14.  first
 therefore
 Before this
 thus
 secondly
 at this time
 previously
 finally
 following this
 now at this point
 also

15.  First, second, third
 Then, afterward, later, next
 Earlier
 Meanwhile
 Soon before, after a while
 At last

16.  for instance
 of course
 to demonstrate
 to illustrate
 after all
 in this case
 for example
 in fact

17. The bottom bun of the Big Mac is like the final
sentence of a paragraph. It completes it!
The concluding or clincher sentence of a paragraph
should tie all the details of the supporting sentence
together to restate the topic sentence.
A concluding sentence can also help to introduce the
change that will lead to the next paragraph.

18.  in conclusion
 as mentioned earlier
 finally
 therefore
 as I have said
 thus
 to summarize
 as we have seen
 to sum up

19. Likewise, don’t put too many ideas
into 1 paragraph!
How do you know when to start a
new paragraph? Let’s find out.

20. Most importantly: When you want
to introduce a new idea!
1 paragraph = 1 idea + support for
the idea

21. Here are other signs you should
start a new paragraph:
- Start a new topic
- When 1 paragraph becomes too
long
- Skip to a new time or place
- A new person begins to speak
- When you want to produce a
dramatic effect