CHUYÊN ĐỀ TIẾNG ANH: HOW TO WRITE A GOOD PARAGRAPH

SỞ GIÁO DỤC & ĐÀO TẠO TỈNH VĨNH PHÚC
PHÒNG GIÁO DỤC & ĐÀO TẠO HUYỆN LẬP THẠCH
-------------***-------------

THE STUDY

“HOW TO WRITE A GOOD PARAGRAPH”

Họ và tên : NGUYỄN THỊ HÀ
Chức vụ : Giáo viên
Đơn vị
: Trường THCS Lập Thạch – huyện Lập Thạch
Tỉnh Vĩnh Phúc.
Đối tượng học sinh bồi dưỡng: HS lớp 8,9.
Số tiết bồi dưỡng: 12

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PART I:
KNOWLEDGE SYSTEMS, BASIC METHODS, AND ILLUSTRATIVE
EXAMPLES

A, ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS:
As we know, many students in Viet Nam cannot use English in communication after
leaving high schools or universities, which is a big problem for our education system.
The authorities really concern about teaching and learning English in Viet Nam, so
they motivate the National Foreign Languages 2020 Project to help Vietnamese
students improve and use English fluently. However, during my teaching I realize our
students’ skills are not good. One of the four skills that students find it difficult and
confusing is writing skill, especially writing paragraphs. Although many students are

good at grammatical structures, know a variety of vocabularies, they do not know
how to organize sentences to make a good paragraph and get good grade for their
paragraph writing. To achieve this, students should hold the guidelines below.
B, CONTENTS
I, What is a paragraph?
A paragraph is a group of related sentences that discuss one (and usually only
one) main idea. A paragraph can be as short as one sentence or as long as ten
sentences. The number of sentences is unimportant; however, the paragraph should
be long enough to develop the main idea clearly.
A paragraph should always have complete, correct sentences. As well it should be
easy to read and well organized. The paragraph itself should focus on one subject,
theme, or central idea.
In other words, a paragraph could be about an object such as a young boy. If the
paragraph starts out talking about the boy, it must stay the same throughout. For
example, if the writer were to talk about where a young boy lives and then go on to
describe what the boy looks like, these are two separate ideas. This is demonstrated
below:
John lived in San Francisco, California, with his two parents. He had his own
bedroom, which he decorated himself. He and his parents all lived comfortably in
the cozy apartment on the third floor. The apartments were only three blocks from
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where he attended J.U. High School.
John was only five years old, but he was extremely smart for his age. He wasn’t
that tall and he was a bit on the skinny side. He had big blue eyes, light brown
hair, rosy cheeks, and a friendly smile. Just looking at him he seemed like any
other kid-- quite normal. Yet, everyone in his class looked at him differently
because John could never be a normal kid. Instead, he wasn’t normal. No, he was
a genius.

In this example you can see that the first paragraph is about where John lives
and the second paragraph covers another topic or idea, which is what he looks like.
When examining a paragraph you can always ask yourself, what is the main idea in
this paragraph? If you see two ideas as in the above example you might have to
create two paragraphs. Although, in order to understand what a paragraph is and how
to write one, you need to know how a paragraph is constructed.
II, Elements of a paragraph
A paragraph should contain some structures and particular elements, which are listed
below in relative order:
1.A Topic sentence- motivates the reader to want to read more.
Every good paragraph has a topic sentence, which clearly states the topic and the
controlling idea of the paragraph.
A topic sentence is the most important sentence in a paragraph. It briefly indicates
what the paragraph is going to discuss. For this reason, the topic sentence is a helpful
guide to both the write and the reader. The writer can see what information to
include. The reader can see what the paragraph is going to be about and therefore
better prepare to understand it. For example, in the model paragraph on gold, the
topic sentence alerts the reader to look for two characteristics.
Gold
Gold, a precious metal, is prized for two important characteristics. First of all,
gold has a lustrous beauty that is resistant to corrosion. Therefore, it is suitable for
jewelry, coins, and ornamental purposes. Gold never needs to be polished and will
remain beautiful forever. For example, a Macedonian coin remains as untarnished
today as the day it was made 25 centuries ago. Another important characteristic of
gold is its usefulness to industry and science. For many years, it has been used in
hundreds of industrial applications, such as photography and dentistry. The most
recent use of gold is in astronauts’ suits. Astronauts wear gold-plated heat shields for
3

protection when they go outside spaceships in space. In conclusion, gold is treasured
not only for its beauty but also for its utility.

Here are three important points to remember about a topic sentence:
a, A topic sentence is a complete sentence; that is, it contains at least one subject
and one verb. The following are not complete sentences because they do not have
verbs:
Eg: Learning English at school.
How to cook a good meal.
b, A topic sentence contains both a topic and a controlling idea. It names the topic
and then limits the topic to a specific area to be discussed in the space of a single
paragraph.
Eg:
Gold , a precious metal, is prized for two important characteristics.
topic
controlling idea
Driving on freeways requires skill and alertness.
Topic
controlling idea
Participating in class discussions is a problem for several different groups of students
Topic
controlling idea
c, A topic sentence should be neither too general nor too specific. If it is too
general, the reader cannot tell exactly what the paragraph is going to discuss. If it is
too specific, the writer will not have anything to write about in the rest of the
paragraph.
Eg1: English has been influenced by other languages. -> This sentence is too
general. We don’t know how many languages English has been influenced
Eg2: Undercooked chicken and hamburger may carry E.coli bacteria.
->This sentence is too specific. It dedicates that undercooked chicken and hamburger

causes E.coli bacteria. It is too clear for us to continue our ideas.
Eg3: It is hard to know which foods are safe to eat nowadays.-> This is the best
topic sentence. It limits the paragraph to talk about only safe foods

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*Notice:
A topic sentence is usually (but not always) the first sentence in a paragraph.
Sometimes a topic sentence comes at the end. But the best spot is usually right at the
beginning. The reader who are used to the English way of writing want to know what
they will read about as soon as they begin reading.
2, Body: Supporting sentences
2.1, Supporting sentences:
- Supporting sentences develop the topic sentence. That’s, they explain or prove the
topic sentence by giving more information about it. One of the biggest problems in
student writing is that student writers often fail to support their ideas adequately.
They need to use specific details to be thorough and convincing.
- Good supporting sentences are specific and factual.
- There are several kinds of specific supporting details: examples, statistics, facts
and quotations.
Following are some of supporting sentences that explain the topic sentence about
gold.
First of all, gold has a lustrous beauty that is resistant to corrosion.
For example, a Macedonian coin remains as untarnished today as the day it was made
25 centuries ago.
Another important characteristic of gold is its usefulness to industry and science.
- Paragraphs in English often have more than two supporting ideas. At minimum, you
should have at least five to seven sentences in your paragraph
2.2, Unity:

- Supporting sentences must be directly linked to the topic sentence of the paragraph.
When the sentences in a paragraph are not consistent with the main idea provided by
the topic sentence, the paragraph lacks unity. Unity is a very important characteristic
of good paragraph writing. Paragraph unity means that one paragraph is about ONLY
ONE main topic. That is, all the sentences -- the topic, supporting sentences, the
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detail sentences, and (sometimes) the concluding sentence -- are all telling the reader
about ONE main topic. If your paragraph contains a sentence or some sentences that
are NOT related to the main topic, then we say that the paragraph "lacks unity," or
that the sentence is "off-topic."
Eg: paragraph 1
Adventure travel is the hot trend in the tourism industry. Ordinary people no
longer content to spend their two weeks away from the office resting on a sunny
beach in Florida. More and more often, they are choosing to spend their vacation
rafting down wild rivers, hiking through steamy rain forests, climbing the world’s
highest mountains, or crossing slippery glaciers.(People of all age are choosing
education study tours for their vacations.)
->This paragraph breaks the rule of unity because it contains one or more sentences
that are off the topic. The last sentence introduces a new topic.
- Every sentence in the paragraph should relate to the main idea. You achieve unity
by:
+ discussing only one idea in a paragraph.
+ always staying on the topic in your supporting sentences.
2.3, Coherence:
- Supporting sentences should be arranged in logical order and connected by
transitions to provide coherence (that other one!). The Latin verb cohere means
“hold together”. For coherence in writing, the sentences must hold together; that is,
the movement from one sentence to the next must be logical and smooth. There must

be no sudden jumps.
There are four ways to achieve coherence:
1. Repeat key nouns
2. Use consistent pronouns.
3. Use transition signals to link ideas.
4. Arrange your ideas in logical order.
- Arrangement of support sentences might be based on importance (usually least to
most), time (usually first to last), or even space (far to near, near to far) -- just about
anything, as long as it serves the writer's purpose. Transition words are often used to
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improve coherence and to reinforce the order in which supporting points are
presented. Sometimes writers use simple transitions such as these to connect support
sentences:
•

"My first challenge at Wilson High School . . . "
"The second challenge I encountered . . . "

•

"My final challenge in high school . . . "

•

These sentences not only use transition words (first, second, final), but also repeat the
key word challenge. This repetition of key words helps the reader keep in mind
the main idea of the paragraph.
a, Repeat key nouns:

- The easiest way to achieve coherence is to repeat key nouns frequently in your
paragraph. Read the model about gold to see how it uses this technique to smooth the
flow of sentences. The key words in this paragraph are gold.
Gold
Gold, a precious metal, is prized for two important characteristics. First of
all, gold has a lustrous beauty that is resistant to corrosion. Therefore, it is suitable
for jewelry, coins, and ornamental purposes. Gold never needs to be polished and
will remain beautiful forever. For example, a Macedonian coin remains as
untarnished today as the day it was made 25 centuries ago. Another important
characteristic of gold is its usefulness to industry and science. For many years, it has
been used in hundreds of industrial applications, such as photography and dentistry.
The most recent use of gold is in astronauts’ suits. Astronauts wear gold-plated heat
shields for protection when they go outside spaceships in space. In conclusion, gold
is treasured not only for its beauty but also for its utility.
b, Use consistent pronouns:
- Be consistent in point of view, verb tense, and number. Consistency in point of
view, verb tense, and number is a subtle important aspect of coherence. If you shift
from the mode of personal "you" to the impersonal “one,” from past to present tense,
or from “a man” to “they,” for example, you make your paragraph less coherent.
Such inconsistencies can also confuse your reader and make your argument more
difficult to follow.
- When you use pronouns, make sure that you use the same person and number
throughout your paragraph. Don’t change from you to he or she (change of person )
or from he to they( change of number).

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c, Use transition signals to link ideas.
- Now, look at this paragraph. Can you identify the main points?

Each of the U.S. manned space exploration projects had specific major goals.
The Mercury project was designed to test whether or not human beings could
survive and function in outer space. The Mercury project tested rockets with the
new Mercury space capsule, which could hold one person. The Gemini project was
intended to find out whether two people could work in the weightless environment
of space. Gemini astronauts took "spacewalks." They floated outside their
spacecraft in a spacesuit, connected to it by a tether. Gemini astronauts tried out
new flying skills. Some astronauts flew two spacecraft extremely close together;
this procedure was called "rendezvous." On some Gemini flights, astronauts
physically linked two spacecraft together. Linking, or "space docking," was a
major goal of the Gemini program. The Apollo project, with three astronauts, was
intended to test spacecraft and skills so that people could actually fly to the Moon
and land on it. Performing scientific experiments on the lunar surface and
collecting rocks for study on Earth were goals.
-Was this paragraph a little confusing to read? Now consider the same paragraph
with a few changes:
Each of the U.S. manned space exploration projects had specific major
goals. For example, the Mercury project was designed to test whether or not human
beings could survive and function in outer space. In addition, the Mercury project
tested rockets with the new Mercury space capsule, which could hold one person. As
another example, the Gemini project was intended to find out whether two people
could work in the weightless environment of space. One way of doing this was by
having Gemini astronauts take "spacewalks." That is, they floated outside their
spacecraft in a spacesuit, connected to it by a tether. Gemini astronauts also tried out
new flying skills. For example, some astronauts flew two spacecraft extremely close
together; this procedure was called "rendezvous." On some Gemini flights, astronauts
physically linked two spacecraft together. This linking, or "space docking," was a
major goal of the Gemini program. Finally, the Apollo project, with three astronauts,
had the goal of testing spacecraft and skills so that people could actually fly to the
Moon and land on it. Other goals included performing scientific experiments on the

lunar surface and collecting rocks for study on Earth.
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- Do you see which of the connectors above are major and which are minor?
The major ones are For example in the second sentence, which introduces the first
supporting point (the Mercury program); As another example, which begins the
second main point (the Gemini program); and the word Finally, which introduces the
third and last main point (the Apollo moon program).
- As for the minor connectors, we can divide them into three groups. The first group
of minor connectors provides coherence for the first main point (the Mercury
program). There is only one minor connector in this first group, In addition, although
it is possible to have more than one, depending on how many details you have to
support your first main point.
The second group of minor connectors consists of That is, also, and also the
phrase For example in the sentence, "For example, some astronauts..." Notice that
this last minor connector is the same as the major connector at the beginning of the
paragraph. However, the function of each is different, depending on the meaning of
the sentences.
The third group of minor connectors in this particular paragraph also has one
member, which are other goals included....
Here is a table of a few common connectors (also called transitions)
Relationship English Transition Words and Phrases
Adding
information
Comparing
ideas
Conceding a
point

also, and, as well, besides, equally important, finally, furthermore, in
addition, moreover, then, too,…
in like manner, in the same way, likewise, similarly,…
agreed, certainly, granted, obviously, of course, to be sure,…

at the same time, but, conversely, even so, even though, however, in
contrast, nevertheless, nonetheless, on the one hand, on the other
hand, still, yet,…
Providing an as an illustration, as can be seen by, for example, for instance, in
example
other words, namely, specifically, to illustrate,…
afterward, before, currently, eventually, finally, first, (second, third,
Relating time
fourth, fifth?), immediately, in the future, in the past, later, less
and order of
important, meanwhile, most important, next, often, sometimes, soon,
ideas
subsequently, then, today, when,…
Resulting
accordingly, as a result, consequently, so, thereby, therefore, thus,…
from the
Contrasting
ideas

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previous idea
Showing
relative

location
Summarizing
ideas

Adjacent, at the side, between, here, in the back, in the background,
in the distance, in the foreground, in the front, nearby, there, to the
side,…
finally, hence, in brief, in conclusion, in short, in summary, that is,
that is to say, to sum up,…

- Since support sentences can be somewhat general, they usually require the proof
provided by detail/example sentences, explanations, facts, and statistic
-It is not enough to say, "My first challenge at Wilson High School was studying
enough to make good grades and stay on the honor roll." This statement may support
the main idea of the paragraph, but the statement still needs to be proven. How much
was enough? Why was it a challenge? Can the writer give convincing details or
examples to prove it?
Consider this example:
[ topic sentence] My senior year of high school was challenging. [support sentence]
My first challenge at Wilson High School was studying enough to make good grades
and stay on the honor roll. [detail/ example] I often studied past midnight, even
though I had to get up at 6:00 a.m. to be ready in time to catch the school bus.
[detail/ example] When I was studying for my chemistry mid-term in Ms. Beasley's
class, I never went to bed at all -- but I made an "A" on the exam!
- Although this paragraph is unfinished, you can see how important the details are to
its development. Without them, the supporting points do not really mean much; they
do not seem as real or immediate to the reader. Notice the use of names, specific
times, and concrete details. You may have good ideas without providing the detail to
support them, but your goal is to convince your reader. Good use of details and
examples will help you get your main idea across.

-The short paragraph in this lesson is a fairly complete paragraph, but it lacks details.
Whenever possible, you should include enough details in your paragraphs to help
your reader understand exactly what you are writing about. In the paragraph about
Wheaton, three natural landmarks are mentioned, but we do not know very much
about them. For example, we could add a sentence or two about Wheaton river
concerning HOW wide it is or WHY it is beautiful.
Consider this revision (and note the additional details in bold):
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My hometown, Wheaton, is famous for several amazing natural features. First, it
is noted for the Wheaton River, which is very wide and beautiful. On either side
of this river, which is 175 feet wide, are many willow trees which have long
branches that can move gracefully in the wind. In autumn the leaves
of these trees fall and cover the riverbanks like golden snow. Second, on the other
side of the town is Wheaton Hill, which is unusual because it is very steep. Even
though it is steep, climbing this hill is not dangerous, because there are some
firm rocks along the sides that can be used as stairs. There are no trees
around this hill, so it stands clearly against the sky and can be seen from many
miles away. The third amazing feature is the Big Old Tree. This tree stands two
hundred feet tall and is probably about six hundred years old. These three
landmarks are truly amazing and make my hometown a famous place.
- If we wished, we could also add more details to the paragraph to describe the third
natural feature of the area, the Big Old Tree.
- Why are details important? Consider the example of the hamburger. If the
hamburger buns are the topic and concluding sentences, then the meat, the cheese,
the lettuce, and so on are the supporting details. Without the food between the
hamburger buns, your hamburger would not be very delicious! Similarly, without
supporting details, your paragraph would not be very interesting.
d, Arrange your ideas in logical order.

You can order your supporting sentences in different ways:
1. Chronological order /Time order
2. Logical division of ideas
3. Comparison/contrast
Eg:
Paragraph 1:
The process of machine translation of languages is complex. To translate a
document from English into Japanese, for example, the computer first analyzes an
English sentence, determining its grammatical structure and identifying the subject,
verb, objects, and modifiers. Next, the words are translated by an English- Japanese
dictionary. After that, another part of the computer program analyzes the resulting
awkward jumble of words and meanings and produces an intelligible sentence based
on the rules of Japanese syntax and the machine understands of what the original
English sentence meant. Finally, a human bilingual editor polishes the computerproduced translation.
 This paragraph uses chronological order
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Paragraph 2:
These are the differences between the traditional family and the modern one.
Firstly, The typical size of traditional family has more than two generations living
together. For example; a married couple could live with their relatives under one
roof whereas the modern family almost has from three to four people. Secondly, the
role of family members is different from each other. For instance, in traditional
family, the man is always the bread - winner while the woman is the housewife. The
woman has to do the housework, take care of their children and serve her parents-inlaw. Next, the role of the man and woman in modern one is equal. To illustrate, they
both work outside. They share their housework and their thoughts. Likewise, children
are brought up by their parents. Finally, the relationship of the traditional family is
different from modern family. In particular, the family lives and works together so
the family relationship is attached whereas the modern family has no time together.

The parents work all day and the children learn whole day. They rarely spend time
for other members. In short, the traditional family differs from the modern one on
many aspects. There are both good and bad differences between the families.
 This paragraph uses comparison
Why is order important?
- Random sentences cause confusion.
- Without organization of your sentences, it's hard to tell what your main idea is.
- Order helps you make your point, and helps the reader follow along from one
idea to the next one, until you prove your conclusion
3, The Concluding Sentence:
A concluding sentence serves two purposes:
- It signals the end of the paragraph
- It leaves the reader with the most important ideas to remember. It can do this in two
ways:
+ By summarizing the main points of the paragraph.
+ By repeating the topic sentence in different words.

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- You can understand concluding sentences with this example. Consider a
hamburger that you can buy at a fast-food restaurant. A hamburger has a top bun (a
kind of bread), meat, cheese, lettuce, and other elements in the middle of the
hamburger, and a bottom bun. Note how the top bun and the bottom bun are very
similar. The top bun, in a way, is like a topic sentence, and the bottom bun is like the
concluding sentence. Both buns "hold" the meat, onions, and so on. Similarly, the
topic sentence and concluding sentence "hold" the supporting sentences in the
paragraph. Let's see how a concluding sentence (in bold font) might look in our
sample paragraph about Wheaton:
My hometown is famous for several amazing natural features. First, it is

noted for the Wheaton River, which is very wide and beautiful. Also, on the other
side of the town is Wheaton Hill, which is unusual because it is very steep. The
third amazing feature is the Big Old Tree. This tree stands two hundred feet tall
and is probably about six hundred years old. These three landmarks are truly
amazing and make my hometown a famous place.
Notice how the concluding sentence, these three landmarks are truly amazing and
make my hometown a famous place, summarizes the information in the paragraph.
Notice also how the concluding sentence is similar to, but not exactly the same as the
topic sentence.
-Not all academic paragraphs contain concluding sentences, especially if the
paragraph is very short. However, if your paragraph is very long, it is a good idea to
use a concluding sentence.
* Note: Never introduce a new idea in the concluding sentence.
Eg:
In my opinion, there are a lot of subjects that interest me, but the one I like most
is English because of many reasons. First of all, English helps me communicate with
people from other countries easily. Therefore, I am sure I will not face any difficulty
if I study abroad. Besides, I can widen my knowledge of the world because of lots of
books and newspapers written in English on the Internet. Finally, I may get a good
job in the future thanks to this language. In reality, a large number of big companies
have the tendency to employ those speaking English well. To sum up, English is my
favorite subject due to the reasons mentioned above. (Besides I also like Maths.)
->The last sentence introduce a new idea, which breaks the unity of the passage

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SUMMARY

A PARAGRAPH

Topic sentence

Supporting sentences

Concluding sentence

Topic Controlling idea Examples Facts Statistics Quotations

Unity

and

coherence

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III. The differentiation between a paragraph and an essay.
-The principles of organization are the same for both:
Both a paragraph and an essay basically have 3 parts: an introduction, a body, and
conclusion. However, they also have different parts.
Paragraph
Have only one paragraph
The three parts of a paragraph:
1. A topic sentence:
The topic and the controlling idea

2,Body: Supporting sentences
(Give details/examples, statistics,

or quotations.)

Essay
Have about four or five paragraphs
The five paragraphs of an essay:
1. An introductory paragraph.
A. Hook(to capture your reader's) attention)
General information on assigned topic
B. Thesis (one-sentence statement of
main idea plus viewpoint)
2,Body:
Paragraph A: Sub-Point One
1. Topic sentence
2. Details supporting topic sentence
(Concluding sentence)
Paragraph B: Sub-Point Two
1. Topic sentence
2. Details supporting topic sentence
(Concluding sentence)
Paragraph C: Sub-Point Three
1. Topic sentence
2. Details supporting topic sentence
(Concluding sentence)

3. A concluding sentence.

3. A concluding paragraph

- Summarize the main points

A. Paraphrase of thesis

- Repeat the topic sentence in different
words.

B. Summary of viewpoint
C. General final statement/comment

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IV, Five criteria for a good paragraph
- Discuss the topic directly
- Have a good format( only one paragraph, have an indent at the beginning of a
paragraph )
- Unity and coherence
- Grammar and vocabulary (Don’t use many simple structures and
contractions. Use various vocabularies and different kinds of sentences.)
- Good ideas

PART II: PRACTICE

Exercise 1: Identify the sentences in the following paragraph by type: topic sentence,
support sentences, and detail/example sentences and transition signals.
(1) Four-year-olds are a challenge in every way. (2) First, they are a physical
challenge. (3) They move non-stop from the time they bolt out of bed at daybreak
until they are forced back into bed at night. (4) When did my daughter get to be so
fast? (5) Katelyn can dart away from me in a parking lot in a millisecond, zigzagging in and out of sight among a row of parked cars. (6) Next, of course, fouryear-olds are an emotional challenge, trying the patience of even their devoted
parents. (7) So, how does my daughter become so slow at times? (8) The path from
the front door to the car can stretch forever and involve inspecting the ground for

bugs, picking a flower, or stopping to jump on a nearby tricycle to take it for a quick
spin. (9) At bedtime, Katelyn can take as long as five minutes to squeeze the
toothpaste onto her toothbrush and even longer to choose her bedtime story and her
stuffed companion for the nights. (10)Finally, four-year-olds are a mental challenge,
especially for those of us whose mental abilities are on the wane as a result of four
years of harried days and sleepless night. (11) "Where do babies come from?" is one
of the easier questions posed by my four-year-old, the most difficult always being
"Why?"

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Exercise 2: Identify the sentences in the following paragraph by type: topic sentence,
support sentences, detail/example sentences and transition signals
These are the differences between the traditional family and the modern one. Firstly,
The typical size of traditional family has more than two generations living together.
For example, a married couple could live with their relatives under one roof whereas
the modern family almost has from three to four people. Secondly, the role of family
members is different from each other. For instance, in traditional family, the man is
always the bread winner while the woman is the housewife. The woman has to do the
housework, take care of their children and serve her parents-in-law. Next, the role of
the man and woman in modern one is equal. To illustrate, they both work outside.
They share their housework and their thoughts. Likewise, children are brought up by
their parents. Finally, the relationship of the traditional family is different from
modern family. In particular, the family lives and works together so the family
relationship is attached whereas the modern family has no time together. The parents
work all day and the children learn whole day. They rarely spend time for other
members. In short, the traditional family differs from the modern one on many
aspects. There are both good and bad differences between the families.
Exercise 3: Identify the sentences in the following paragraph by type: topic sentence,

support sentences, detail/example sentences and transition signals
Computers have brought about beneficial changes to human life. However, they also
have some disadvantages. First of all, face to face communication has been lost
because people spend too much time at their computers. For example, children
spend hours playing games, chatting and emailing on the net, and adults doing their
own things on computers. As a result, family members rarely talk to each other as
they used to in the past. In addition, computers make people have health problems.
As people spend too much time sitting at computers, they tend to be inactive. This
inactiveness has caused obesity and many other diseases. Finally, immediate access
to information on the net can be spiritually harmful and counter-educational. For
example, within just a few seconds, children watch or read bad websites that are too
violent or not intended for their age. Consequently, more and more children tend to
misbehave because they are misguided by poor-quality information. To sum up, we
should be aware of these downsides so as to use computers to our great benefits.

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Exercise 4: Identify the unity of the passage
People and their favorite pets
There are many types of pets in an average household. People will often even choose
pets according to their personalities. Some people like small dogs that are easy to
take care of and do not demand a lot of attention. Some owners prefer strong or
vicious dogs, like bulldogs for example. Other people might like cats because they
are independent and really need no attention at all. Birds provide people with a lot of
company; if you like bird songs, but their cages need a lot of cleaning. A fish tank is
great to look at but the tanks must be cleaned often as well. Some people even treat
their plants like pets and talk to them. In a zoo, large animals, like polar bears, are
left to themselves in their cages.
ANSWER: The paragraph is all about house pets and why people have different

types of pets and even prefer different types of pets. The last sentence about animals
in a zoo introduces a new topic and breaks the paragraph unity, because even if it is
about animals, it is no longer about house pets. Remember: one topic, one paragraph.

Exercise 5: Identify the unity and coherence
It is true that we like to wonder about the world around us, and this it what
Thomas writes about. He contrasts things as great as the planet Earth with bacteria.
He clearly thinks we need to be more careful about our environment; if we don’t, we
are threatening our future. Even a casual dinner party will sometimes find people
talking about very scientific things like a virus or beetle. I had a pet dog that died
after a virus attack of some kind. All children grow old and are different from one
another because of genetics. That’s the way it is
ANSWER: This paragraph makes some interesting points; it jumps around far too
much from one idea to another. It contains five or six potential topic sentences, each
of which could anchor a paragraph of its own. It is too general to be an introduction
paragraph. It clearly lacks unity and coherence. Remember, one idea, one paragraph.

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Exercise 6: Editing for unity
Read the paragraph below. Cross out the two sentences that are not about the
controlling idea.
Life in a new Place
I am a Thai girl living in the U.S., and there are many adjustments that I must
make. First of all, I must get used to a new kind of food. I am learning to eat a lot of
hamburgers they are not expensive and they are easy to buy. The people are different
and I am learning to meet new foreign friend. For example, two of my new friends
are from Pakistan.( Pakistan is also an interesting country to visit.) The weather
requires another kind of adjustment. Some days, it is hot just as in my country, but on

other days it is cold and this is very strange for me. I came to the U.S. to study and I
enjoy my classes and my teachers. I am adjusting living in the U.S. in many ways,
but it is not a problem for me because (I like to know about different places and
people.)

Exercise 7: Instruction: In groups of four, take turns reading these paragraphs
out loud. Together, determine if the paragraph has support, coherence and unity.
Vote for the best paragraph.
Paragraph 1
1 The punishment of criminals has always been a problem for society. 2
Citizens have had to decide whether offenders such as first-degree murderers should
be killed in a gas chamber, imprisoned for life, or rehabilitated and given a second
chance in society. 3 Many citizens argue that serious criminals should be executed. 4
They believe that killing criminals will set an example for others and also rid society
of a cumbersome burden. 5 On the other hand, other citizens claim that no one has
the right to take a life and that capital punishment is not a deterrent to crime. 6 They
believe that society as well as the criminal is responsible for the crimes and that
killing the criminal does not solve the problems of either society or the criminal.
Paragraph 2
1 It is a fact that capital punishment is not a deterrent to crime. 2 Statistics
show that in states with capital punishment, murder rates are the same or almost the
same as in states without capital punishment. 3 It is also true that it is more expensive
to put a person on death row than in life imprisonment because of the costs of
maximum security. 4 Unfortunately, capital punishment has been used unjustly. 5
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Statistics show that every execution is of a man and that nine out of ten are black. 6
So prejudice shows right through.
Paragraph 3:

1 Many educators believe that college students in the U.S. need writing courses
in addition to their regular university courses in order to succeed academically. 2
Nevertheless, since university students have the largest investment in their college
careers, they should be the ones to decide if they need additional writing help or not.
3 After all, it is they, not their professors, who face the consequences of poor
academic performance. 4 In addition, students in the universities should have the
opportunity to feel that their academic success is their own responsibility, and is the
result of their own decisions. 5 A good grade in a university course may represent
numerous sacrifices and overcoming of obstacles, from resisting the temptation to
spend time with friends instead of studying, to doing extensive reading and writing in
a language that is not one's own. 6 A final reason that students should be responsible
for deciding whether to take writing courses or not is that they can decide if their
majors require writing in the long run. 7 Students who are interested in fields such
fine arts, music and sports may not need writing in their career development. 8 For
these intricate issues to consider, it is for the best interests of the academia that
college students decide their writing needs.
Paragraph 4
1 According to many practicing engineers and scientists, they spend half of
their time writing memos and reports. 2 However, many college students in other
fields do not realize the importance of writing and show a native attitude. 3 You often
go into business think your secretaries will do all major writing tasks for you. 4 In
fact, many of us foolishly object to taking courses in writing. 5 Students going into
the technical or scientific fields may think that writing is something they seldom have
to do. 6 Young business people seldom have private secretaries. 7 Our notion that
only poets and novelists have to write is unrealistic. 8 Other things being equal, a
person in any field who can express ideas clearly is sure to succeed
Exercise 8: Correct students’ mistakes
Paragraph 1:

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In this passage students know how to use the connectors to link ideas and give the
ideas clearly.Supporting sentences prove and explain the topic.However, the
introdution is not good at expressing. Student uses contractions in this passage and
makes grammatical mistakes.

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Paragraph 2:

In this paragraph, student makes many mistakes: The format of a paragraph
grammartical structures and coherence and unity

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PART III: ACHIEVEMENT
Writing skill needs much time to practice. Teachers should encourage students to
spend more time practicing both at school and at home because teacher cannot guide
and correct all the students’ writing in 45 minutes. If students confirm the elements
of a paragraph, and know how to organize their ideas, their writing will become
better. After guiding the students the ways of writing a paragraph, my students feel
more confident in their writing. They are no longer passive in writing paragraph.
They know how to arrange detailed sentences with the coherence and unity to
support the main idea. As a result, many students get good grades for their
paragraphs and their writing skill improves day by day. I hope my study will help
students write paragraphs well.
Lập Thạch, ngày 01/11/2015

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