PARAGRAPH DEVELOPMENT

Hi guys, let’s see how we can develop our paragraphs in writing of an essay . An essay is a continuous prose writing consisting of many paragraphs. So what then is a paragraph? We can simply say a paragraph consists of one or more sentences constructed and arranged to develop a main idea.

THE STRUCTURE OF A PARAGRAPH
There are three types of paragraphs in a complete essay or composition: the introductory paragraph, the body paragraph and the concluding paragraph.

THE INTRODUCTORY PARAGRAPH AND ITS ELEMENTS

1. The lead- in , also called the context or background, introduces the thesis statement.
2. The thesis statement is the central idea around which the whole essay or composition revolves.
3. The plan of development is a sentence that contains the points to be developed in each of the paragraphs in the body of the essay.
   For example giving a topic like : MY PREFER UNIVERSITY.
   INTRODUCTORY PARAGRAPH

There are so many universities in Ghana today, both public and private. While some people prefer public institutions of higher learning ,others opt for private universities. I prefer Valley View University, a private institution, because of its holistic education. This university focuses on the spiritual, mental and physical development of its students.

THE BODY PARAGRAPHS AND THEIR ELEMENTS

The topic sentence
It is the central idea around which the whole paragraph revolves. It contains the controlling idea ( the subject matter of the sentence).

Supporting evidence/ details/sentences
These are examples, facts, statistics, illustrations, anecdotes, personal experiences, expert opinion, reasons etc that are used as evidence to support the topic sentence in order to make it more authentic and reliable.

Closure
This brings the paragraph to a satisfying end by paraphrasing the thesis in the introductory paragraph.

CONCLUDING PARAGRAPH

The concluding paragraph brings the whole composition to a satisfying end by :

• restating the thesis in a different mood or way
• summing up the topic sentence
• summarizing the arguments and the main themes.

CHARACTERISTICS OF A TOPIC SENTENCE

• It is a statement or a full sentence
• It has two main parts : the topic and the writers view. Eg. Academic writing is an interesting course.
  Topic = Academic Writing
  Writers View = It is an interesting course
• It is neither too broad nor too narrow
• It is not a statement of announcement

CHARACTERISTICS OF SUPPORTING DETAILS (EVIDENCE)

Evidence is a type of specific detail in a form of reasons, facts, statistics, personal experience, anecdotes, opinions, quotations from experts and illustrations. It has the following features:

• It is relevant: it relates directly to the essay’s central idea.
• It is specific: it gives concrete evidence. It is not vague
• It is adequate: it provides enough evidence to support a point of view.
• It is accurate: it is truthful.
• It is dramatic: the words used convey the meaning to readers.
• It is representative: it is within the generally acceptable evidence.

PARAGRAPH UNITY

Paragraph unity is the close relationship of all sentences in a paragraph to the topic sentence. All sentences in a paragraph must support the main idea of the paragraph. The entire paragraph, regardless of its length, focuses on one aspect of the topic. The content of each sentence is closely related to the content of the topic sentence.

PARAGRAPH COHERENCE

Paragraph coherence is the holding together of sentences within a paragraph through the use of transitional devices. It shows the relationship between the ideas in one sentence and those in the next and between the ideas on one paragraph and those in the next.

PARAGRAPH ADEQUACY

A paragraph is adequate or complete if there is enough evidence or supporting details to clarify the point raised in the topic sentence. Enough evidence is needed to exhaust a point raised.