2. Paragraphs An Introduction

3. What is a paragraph?  A paragraph is the fundamental building block of written English.  A paragraph is a collection of sentences, all of which deal with a single idea.  Paragraphs help to focus the reader’s attention.  Paragraphs help the writer to present their ideas clearly and logically.  As soon as you move on to a new idea, you must start a new paragraph.  We call the main idea of a paragraph the controlling idea.

4. Controlling Ideas  The Controlling Idea dictates what information can and cannot be included in the paragraph.  Each sentence must be relevant to and develop the Controlling Idea, i.e. it must further the argument.  The Controlling Idea is expressed in a topic sentence, which is usually the first sentence in a paragraph.

5. Topic Sentences The topic sentence should tell the reader what the paragraph is going to be about. Poor: Some people like text messaging. Better: Students prefer text-messaging to email. Good: Many students prefer text-messaging to email as it suits their lifestyle better. The best topic sentences - contain a subject and an idea. - are specific and precise. - make a claim.

6. What’s Wrong Here?*  I am glad I changed my major to English.  I had a bad part-time job last summer.  I will never forget my last vacation.  The town roads are bad for cyclists.  I prefer living on my own. * and how can we fix it?

7. Development Many students prefer text-messaging to email, as it suits their lifestyle better. As they are often on campus, in lectures, or travelling to and from university, students are frequently difficult to contact, hence the popularity of mobile phones among them. If they need to reach each other, text messages are often more convenient. Why? …for several reasons:

8. Illustration Many students prefer text-messaging to email, as it suits their lifestyle better. As they are often on campus, in lectures, or travelling to and from university, students are frequently difficult to contact, hence the popularity of mobile phones among them. If they need to reach each other, text messages are often more convenient for several reasons: if a student is in class (and has their cell phone turned off), then they will get the message as soon as the class is over and they turn it back on. Even if they only have five minutes between classes, they can check their messages on the way. To get to their email, on the other hand, they would need wireless access. If they do not have a smartphone or a notebook, they may even need to go to one of the computer labs and hope that there is a free PC.

9. Conclusion Many students prefer text-messaging to email, as it suits their lifestyle better. As they are often on campus, in lectures, or travelling to and from university, students are frequently difficult to contact, hence the popularity of mobile phones among them. If they need to reach each other, text messages are often more convenient for several reasons: if a student is in class (and has their cell phone turned off), then they will get the message as soon as the class is over and they turn it back on. Even if they only have five minutes between classes, they can check their messages on the way. To get to their email, on the other hand, they would need wireless access. If they do not have a smartphone or a notebook, they may even need to go to one of the computer labs and hope that there is a free PC…. However, they can only do this on campus, and much of their time may be spent travelling, where it is a great advantage not only to be able to contact others, but also to be contactable.

10. So, it should look like this: Many students prefer text-messaging to email, as it suits their lifestyle better. As they are often on campus, in lectures, or travelling to and from university, students are frequently difficult to contact, hence the popularity of mobile phones among them. If they need to reach each other, text messages are often more convenient for several reasons: if a student is in class (and has their cell phone turned off), then they will get the message as soon as the class is over and they turn it back on. Even if they only have five minutes between classes, they can check their messages on the way. To get to their email, on the other hand, they would need wireless access. If they do not have a smartphone or a notebook, they may even need to go to one of the computer labs and hope that there is a free PC. However, they can only do this on campus, and much of their time may be spent travelling, where it is a great advantage not only to be able to contact others, but also to be contactable.

11. Practice Time: Task  One of you will argue in favor of one of the following propositions, the other against it.  Each person will come up with three points that you could use in an essay.  Decide which side you want to write on.  Pick one argument for your paragraph. Think about how you are going to develop it.  Write a topic sentence which gives a clear indication of what the paragraph is going to be about.  There is no guarantee that your reader is going to agree with you, so consider your arguments skeptically.

12. Practice Time Which is the better city: Dortmund or Cologne? Cats are better pets than dogs Drugs are bad Is Graffiti art?Compulsory school attendance? Better to work: home or office? Better method for learning: lecture or group work? Subtitling is better than dubbing Smartphones: more harmful than useful? Is tv bad for children? More S1 trains to university? Abolish Latin for Lehramt Should we feel bad about killing zombies? People complain too much Drinking age raised to 21