English Writing 101Chapter 3

Paragraph Structure

Last Week Review

Last week we went over the topic sentence and the job of the controlling idea in detail. We discussed how important it was for this information to come at the beginning of the paragraph so that readers could know the main idea of the paragraph.

We also talked about how most details should be included only in the supporting sentences that come in the middle of the paragraph.

Finally, we also talked about how to use For Example, For instance, and such as in sentences and whether or not they required commas.

Concluding Sentences And Punctuation

This week we are going to spend time digging into the concluding sentence and giving information on how the paragraph should end.

We are also going to talk about how to use apostrophes.

Concluding Sentences

A concluding sentence signals the end of the paragraph and reminds the reader of the main idea.

The concluding sentence restates (using different words) the topic sentence that was at the beginning of the paragraph.

Tips To Writing A Good Concluding Sentence

1. Begin with a conclusion signal. Most conclusion signals have commas after them; other do not.

Please turn to pg. 47 for the list of signals. This list includes signals that must be followed by a comma:

All in all, In summary,In conclusion, In short,To summarize, Indeed, This list also includes signals that do not need a

comma:It is clear that…These examples show that…

Tips To Writing A Good Concluding Sentence

2. Remind your reader of the main idea by one of the following methods:

-Repeat the idea in the topic sentence in different words. Do not just copy the topic sentence.

Topic Sentence:Successful bidding on Ebay requires patience and strategy.Concluding Sentence:In conclusion, wait patiently and place your bid with

precision timing, and you will be the winning bidder every time.

-Summarize the main point or points of the paragraph.In conclusion, follow the steps I have outlined, and you will

be the winning bidder every time.

Tips To Writing A Good Concluding Sentence

3. NEVER end a paragraph by introducing a new idea or new details! These new ideas or details would not have any supporting examples and would then cause confusion.

The last sentence is where you need to tie the paragraph together and remind the reader of the main idea.

Practice

Please work on Practice 6 A-B on pg. 47. Please complete this alone.

Practice

Please move on to Practice 7 on page 49. Please work on this alone.

10 MINUTE BREAK

Punctuation: Apostrophes

The apostrophe mark (‘) has three main uses in English:

-To make contractions-To make nouns and some pronouns

possessive-To make letters of the alphabet plural

Contractions

An apostrophe shows where letters are missing in a contraction.

Examples:isn’t is not won’t will notshe’s she is they’re they areit’s it is they’d they would We use contractions in conversation and in

informal writing (emails to friends, text messages), but we do not use them in formal academic or business writing. Those of you using them in your paragraphs, should note that this may cause you to lose points.

Possessives

Possessive words show ownership. In English, we can show ownership with nouns

in two ways. We can use an of the phrase and say the name of the friend, or we can use an apostrophe + s and say my friend’s name.

Examples:The speed of the runner OR the runner’s speedThe orders of the doctor OR the doctor’s ordersThe complaints of my neighbor OR my

neighbor’s complaints

Possessives

In general, we use an apostrophe or an apostrophe + s more often when the owner is a living being, and we use the of phrase more often when the owner is a nonliving thing. We prefer, for example, to say the child’s leg or the leg of the table.

Possessives

When the owner’s name is given, we don’t have a choice. We must use an apostrophe or apostrophe + s.

Examples:Maria’s book NOT the book of MariaThe Smiths’ house NOT the house of the

Smiths

Possessives

Besides nouns, we also make indefinite pronouns possessive. Indefinite pronouns are the words someone, anyone, somebody, anybody, everyone, everybody, no one, nobody, and one.

Examples:Someone’s jacketAnybody’s mistake

Practice

Please work on Practice 8 A-B alone.

Rules For Forming Possessives Pg. 52

Add an apostrophe + s:1. To singular nouns and to plural nouns

that don’t end in s.2. To indefinite pronouns.3. To Abbreviations. Add an apostrophe alone:-To plural nouns ending in s.