This document provides information on developing effective paragraphs. It defines a paragraph and explains that a paragraph should have a topic sentence, supporting details, and a concluding or clinching sentence. It provides an example of identifying these elements in a sample paragraph about trees. The document also covers different types of paragraph development, including narrative, descriptive, and compare/contrast paragraphs. It provides guidance on incorporating sensory details and appealing to emotions for descriptive paragraphs.

1. READING AND WRITING
SKILLS
WEEK 1
3RD QUARTER

2. Learning Competency:
 Compare and contrast patterns of written texts
across disciplines:
a) Narration
b) Description & Definition
c) Classification
d) Comparison & Contrast
e) Cause and Effect
f) Problem-Solution
g) Persuasion

3. Can you define what a paragraph is?

4. What is paragraph?

5. The word paragraph is associated with
two Greek words: para which means
“beyond” or “beside” and graphein
which means “to write”.

6. A paragraph is a collection of related
sentences with one central idea. Each
sentence shows connection to other
sentences in the paragraph.

7.  A paragraph is an independent unit or a
related unit. As an independent unit, it is
complete in itself. As a related unit, it is a
part of a composition that is combined with
other paragraphs to make a larger
composition.

8. Whether a paragraph is an
independent unit or a related unit,
it has its beginning, middle and
end.

9. DEVELOPING EFFECTIVE
PARAGRAPHS

10. A paragraph is made up of the
topic sentence which contains the
main idea, the supporting details
and the conclusion or the
clinching sentence at the end.

11. Topic sentence
 reveals the main or central idea of the
paragraph. It does not necessarily have to
be placed at the beginning of the
paragraph. It may be found in the middle of
the first and the last sentence or at the
end. If it is found at the end of the
paragraph, it may be used as a clinching or
concluding sentence.

12. Supporting details
give the paragraph life as it
elaborates on the scope given by
the topic sentence

13. Clinching sentence
 closes your paragraph. According to
Dagdag (2010), this “may be a restatement
of the topic sentence, a summary, or a
conclusion based on the supporting
details.”

14. Can you identify where the topic sentence,
supporting sentences and clinching sentence are?
Trees give us many things. They shade
us on hot days. Their wood helps to
build our homes. Their leaves give
oxygen to the air to help us breathe.
They are beautiful to look at, too.
Indeed, trees provide us a lot of
things.

15. The topic sentence is: Trees give
us many things.
(This sentence tells the reader
what the paragraph is going to be
about).

16. The supporting sentences are:
They shade us on hot days.
Their wood helps to build our
homes. Their leaves give
oxygen to the air to help us
breathe. They are beautiful to
look at, too. (These sentences
elaborates on the scope given
by the topic sentence)

17. clinching sentence is: Indeed, trees
provide us a lot of things. (This
sentence serves to close the paragraph
as it restates the idea of the topic
sentence

19. Try This

20. Group 1-Identify the
topic sentence and
write it in your paper

21. Group 2-Identify the
supporting details and
write it in your paper

22. Group 3-Identify the
clinching sentence and
write it in your paper

23. 1.) Oceans and lakes have much in common, but
they are also quite different. Both are bodies of
water, but oceans are very large bodies of salt
water, while lakes are much smaller bodies of
fresh water. Lakes are usually surrounded by
land, while oceans are what surround
continents. Both have plants and animals living
in them. The ocean is home to the largest
animals on the planet, whereas lakes support
much smaller forms of life. When it is time for a
vacation, both will make a great place to visit
and enjoy. I want to swim in the lake.

24. 2.) Sunset is the time of day when our sky
meets the outer space solar winds. There are
blue, pink, and purple swirls, spinning and
twisting, like clouds of balloons caught in a
blender. Sunset is the opposite of sunrise.
The sun moves slowly to hide behind the line
of horizon, while the moon races to take its
place in prominence atop the night sky.
People slow to a crawl, entranced, fully
forgetting the deeds that still must be done.
There is a coolness, a calmness when the sun
does set.

25. 3) Here is the perfect system for cleaning your
room. First, move all of the items that do not
have a proper place to the center of the room.
Get rid of at least five things that you have not
used within the last year. Take out all the trash,
and place all of the dirty dishes in the kitchen
sink. Now find a location for each of the items
you had placed in the center of the room. 5s is a
Japanese cleaning system. For any remaining
items, see if you can squeeze them in under
your bed or stuff them into the back of your
closet. See, that was easy!

26. Part 2
Make a paragraph about any
daily routine. Make sure that
you involved the parts of
making a paragraph.

27. Narration
NARRATIVE PARAGRAPH

28. Narration, from the root word
narrates, originated from the Latin
word narrare— which means
related or told.

29. It gives a written account of an
event or story, or simply,
storytelling. The sequence of
events is told in chronological
order.

30. It usually contains the
following: the who, what
and when.

31. A narrative must have a “vivid
description of details, a
consistent point of view and verb
tense, and a well-defined point or
significance.” (Tiongson, 2016).

32. At the end of writing it, it must
send a clear message to its
readers through the story.

33. A narrative paragraph simply tells
what happened and establishes
facts. It is sharing of personal
experiences that offer lessons and
insights. It is more than just a
chronological sequence of events
that happen to the different
characters. It also contains
elements of drama and tension.

34. Narration is the most common type of paragraph
development. It has the following elements:
Setting. It is the time and location in
which a story takes place.
2. Characters. The life-giving element
of the story.

35. Plot. It is the logical series of events in the story. The five
essential parts of the plot are:
 a. Exposition. It is the part of the story where the characters
and the setting are revealed.
 b. Rising Action. It is where the events in the story become
complicated and the conflict in the story is exposed.
 c. Climax. This is the highest point of interest and the turning
point of the story.
 d. Falling Action. The events and complications begin to resolve
themselves.
 e. Denouement. The final resolution of the plot in the story.

36.  Theme. It is the central message that the author is trying to
express.
 5. Point of View. It is the perspective of the writer in narrating
the story.
 a. First person point of view. The story is told by the
protagonist or one of the characters using pronouns I, me, we.
 b. Second person point of view. The author tells the story in
second point of view using the pronouns you, yours, and your.
 c. Third person point of view. The narrator is not part of the
story but describes the events that happen. The writer uses the
pronouns he, she, him, and her.

37. Directions: Narrate your single
experience that you never forget.
Be sure that you include the
elements in telling a story.
(setting, character, plot, theme,
and POV)

38. Description or
Descriptive Paragraph

39.  Description gives information of
what a person, an object, a place
or a situation is like.

40.  It appeals to the reader’s
senses.

41. A descriptive paragraph has
concrete and specific details,
which are carefully chosen by a
writer to paint a picture in the
mind of the reader.

42. Descriptive writing emphasizes a
reader’s ability to paint vivid
pictures using words on a
reader’s mind. This relies on the
writer’s ability to appeal to
his/her five senses: sight, smell,
touch, taste, and hearing.

43. To rouse readers' feelings,
emotions and reactions is what
descriptive paragraphs aim for.
Simple adjectives will not cut it
for readers desiring an
appropriate description of an
event, thing, place, or person.

44. According to Dagdag (2010),
there are two types of
description: objective and
subjective.

45. Objective description is a factual
description of the topic at hand.
This relies on its information on
physical aspects and appeals to
those who crave facts.

46. Meanwhile, subjective
description allows the writer to
explore ways to describe an
emotion, an event, a thing, a
place, or a person, appealing to
emotions. Often, this is an
artistic way of describing
things, mostly from the eye
and perspective of the writer

47. The kitchen table is rectangular, seventy-
two inches long and thirty inches wide.
Made of a two-inch-thick piece of oak. Its
top is covered with a waxy oil cloth
patterned in dark red and blue squares
against a white background. In the right
corner, close to the wall, a square blue
ceramic tile serves as the protective base
for a brown earthenware teapot.

48. A single white placemat has been set
to the left of the tile, with a knife
and fork on either side of a white
dinner plate, around nine inches in
diameter. On the plate are two thick
pieces of meat.

49. The descriptive paragraph on the previous
page is an example of an objective
description. It is primarily factual, omitting
any attention to the writer, especially with
regards to the writer’s feelings. Imagine that a
robotic camera is observing the subject; such
a camera has absolutely no attachment or
reaction to what is being observed. That is
objective description.

50. Our lives at home converged around the pleasantly-
shaped kitchen table. It was the magnet that drew
our family together quite warmly. Cut from the
sturdiest oak, the table was tough, smooth, and long
enough for my mother, my sisters, and me to work or
play on at the same time. Our favorite light blue
ceramic tile, stationed in the right corner, was the
table’s sole defense against the ravages of everything
from a steaming teapot to the latest red-hot gadget
from the magazine.

51. More often than not, however, the heat would spread
quickly beyond the small tile and onto the checkered
oilcloth, which just as quickly exuded a rank and sour
odor. Yet no matter how intensely the four of us
competed for elbow room at the table, none dared
venture near the lone dinner place arranged securely
to the left of the tile. There was no telling when
Father would get home from work, but, when he did,
he expected the food to be ready— steaming hot. He
liked to eat right away—steak mostly—two bloody but
thick pieces.

52. The descriptive paragraph
above is an example of
subjective description.
Subjective description includes
attention to both the subject
described and the writer’s
reactions to that subject.

55. WRITTEN WORK 2.1

56. Directions: Make a flash story
about your embarrassing
moment. Identify the elements
that involve your story.

57. PERFORMANCE TASK-1

58. A. Imagine yourself that you are in the
big old haunted house of your
grandparents. At night, when you
wanted to turn on the lights you
cannot find the switch on the lamp.
Your cellphone is low battery. Write a
short paragraph describing your
sensations.

59. imagine yourself in the forest. You
continue walking and you get lost
along the way and you don’t know
where to go. You get tired, so you
sit under a tree. Suddenly, a lady
appears in front of you! How would
you describe the lady so that
others could imagine her?

60. Definition Paragraph

61. What is Definition?
Anyone can define, what is
family.

62. Definition explains a concept,
term, or subject. Its main
purpose is to tell what
something is

63. It consists of three parts: (1)
the term, concept or subject to
be defined; (2) the general
class to which it belongs; and
(3) the characteristics that
differentiate it from the other
members of its class.

64. A definition explains what a
term means. When you want
your readers to know exactly
how you are using a certain
term or an unfamiliar concept,
you use definition.

65. In developing a paragraph by definition,
you should take account of these things:
a) the term to be defined
b) the class to which the term
belongs
c) the characteristics that
distinguish the term from the
other members of its class.

66. An owl is a bird with a large
head, strong talons, and a
nocturnal habit.

67. Owl – is the term to define
Bird – is the class where the owl
belongs
with a large head, strong talons,
and has a nocturnal habit – are
the characteristics that distinguish
the owl from the other birds

68. Water (term) is a liquid (class)
made up of molecules of
hydrogen and oxygen in the
ratio of 2 to 1 (differentiating
characteristics).

69. Astronomy (term) is a branch of
scientific study (class) primarily
concerned with celestial objects
inside and outside the earth’s
atmosphere (differentiating
characteristics).

70. The following are the different types of
definitions:
Formal Definition
Informal Definition
Definition Paragraph

71. 1. Formal Definition. The
definitions provided in
dictionaries

72. Informal Definitions. The four
common informal definitions are
operational, synonyms,
denotations, and connotations

73. a. Operational Definitions give the
meaning of an abstract word for one
particular time and place.
b. Synonyms or words that mean the
same as another word.
c. Denotation is the exact meaning of
the word
d. Connotation is an idea or meaning
suggested by or associated with a word
or thing.

74. 3. Definition Paragraph
It is a definition sentence that is
extended into a paragraph by adding
meanings, descriptions, narrations,
and other kinds of paragraph
development to make clear the term
being defined.

75. definition paragraph:
A racist is not someone who accepts another person for who
they are but rather judges them based on their appearance or
their skin color. The vast diversity of society makes it nearly
impossible to eliminate all racial tension. A racist usually has
no other reason to hate somebody except for the fact that the
other person may look different or have a different skin color
than them. In the long run, racists are only hurting themselves
because they are limiting their knowledge of different
cultures and people and they are not broadening their
horizons. Racists are extremely close-minded individuals and
they strictly adhere to their own set of morals without any
regard for other people’s belief systems. (Mike Sullivan, 2005).

76. Written Work-3
Directions: Make a definition
paragraph about love.

77. CLASSIFICATION
PARAGRAPH

78. Classification paragraphs
group items into categories,
to establish a clear
distinction.

79. If the topic encompasses a large body
of information, one effective way of
elaborating it is through classifying
things of distinct features into
groups/classes.

80. Classification groups items into
categories to establish a clear
distinction between related or similar
ideas. Similar items are grouped into
categories for the readers to better
understand and analyze the material
at hand

81. In a classification paragraph you tell
readers how a collection of items can
be sorted into categories. It is an
activity of sorting items (people,
things , ideas ) into categories.

82. 1. Terms that signal classification:
aspects areas
Kinds levels
qualities systems
traits types

83. 2. Transitional Expressions
can be divided
can be categorized
can be classified the first type

84. Types of Friends
Friends can be classified according to their
honesty, loyalty, the type that fits you into their
schedule, or the type that finds time for you
when they need something. An honest friend tells
you the truth even if it’s not always what you
want to hear. In the long run, that honest friend
may have saved you from embarrassment or
possibly rejection.

85. They give you constructive criticisms overall. The loyal
friend is the type of friend that will be there for you
through the thick and thin. They don’t care how good
or bad you may look one day; they are sensitive to your
feelings, they respect you and the other people in your
life, and most of all they will never let you down when
times are hard. They may be what you call a best
friend. The third group, the person that fits you into
their schedule, is the type of person that is always on
the go.

86. They barely have time for themselves let alone
another person. More than likely they will not be
there for you when you need them the most,
because they are so wrapped up in their busy,
hectic life. Then you have the self-absorbent
type of friend that finds time for you only when
they need something. This type of person isn’t
what you would call a friend.

87. This person may always be extremely nice to you
because they know that if they are nice to you then they
will more than likely get what they want. They will call
you every once in a while when it is almost time for
them to use that person again. It may be for a ride to
work, home or they just want somebody to hangout with
because they have no other friends. If the person that is
being used is smart they will eventually realize that they
are getting used and will stop being there for that
person. (Amy Neil, 2005)

88. Comprehension Questions
1. What are the types of friends?
2. What is the basis used by the author
to classify friends?
3. How does the author develop the
classification essay?