Topic Sentences

In our next class we will take a look at writing the first sentence of a paragraph. This sentence(usually the first or second) is called a topic sentence. This sentence is made of two parts: a topic and a controlling idea.

The topic sentence has two parts: the topic and the controlling idea.

The topic should be the subject of your paper. The controlling idea should be what you are going to focus on about your topic. Let's look at some examples.

TOPIC                                    CONTROLLING IDEA

         Whit teacher                                                            keeps a blog.

Topic sentence= Whit teacher keeps a blog.

I am the main topic: Whit teacher. The controlling idea is my blog. The rest of the paragraph will be about my blog.

Let's look at another example:

          TOPIC                                    CONTROLLING IDEA

             Daegu                                                                      is a great city.

Topic sentence= Daegu is a great city.

Daegu is the main topic. The controlling idea is "a great city." The rest of the paragraph will be about why Daegu is a great city.

Make sure that the rest of the paragraph supports the controlling idea.

Acceptable sentences for: Whit teacher keeps a blog.

His blog is helpful because it helps us review our classwork.  

The blog has a nice design and is fun to read. 

These sentences above are good because it stays on the topic and the controlling idea: my blog.

Unacceptable sentences for: Whit teacher keeps a blog.

Whit teacher is from America.

English class is difficult for me. 

These sentences above are not good because they do not say anything about my blog.

Can you think of two examples of acceptable sentences and two examples of unacceptable sentences for "Daegu is a great city."??? If you can, write them in your notebook and I will give you 7 extra points for reading this blog and doing the assignment!

Be prepared to do some writing in class tomorrow. Bring your READING AND WRITING BOOK and your JOURNAL/NOTEBOOK!

Still not clear? Try watching this explanation. Only 3 minutes!