Learn how to write a sentence and paragraph!

This page was created for all students who find themselves at a loss for words when they are asked to write a sentence or a paragraph!

How to write an Orange
Let's start with sentences!

Do you go absolutely Bonkers when you are asked to write a sentence?

Does your pencil seem to grow and grow until it weighs a ton?

Are you barely able to think?

For relief from this common aliment...use the following tips!

Get your supplies in order:

A sharpened pencil

A decent eraser

A clean, unwrinkled, unbesmirched piece of paper

Whatever you do - Don't use spiral bound paper that has been ripped out of the notebook, that is just plain nasty!

Bring your brain!

Getting the supplies in order is easy but, where do you go now?

For starters.......Think ORANGE

Using "short" words, list three things you already know about an orange.

Your list might look like this:

	tastes good
	bumpy skin
	must peel to eat

Now S T R E T C H those words to make three sentences

	A cold orange tastes good on a hot summer day.
	An orange has a bumpy skin that smells good.
	You must peel an orange to eat it.

Don't forget to use a capital letter at the beginning of each sentence and a punctuation mark at the end!

Let's review the Orange Method for Sentence Writing!

*Begin by listing what you know -- use short words

*S T R E T C H your short words into good sentences

*Use a capital letter at the beginning of each sentence and use a proper punctuation to end the sentence.

Try it out on these samples

	write three sentences about a person you know.
	write three sentences about your school.
	write three sentences about your desk.

Now Let's use what we have learned about the Orange Method for Sentence Writing to help us write a whole paragraph about apples!

How to write an Apple
(paragraph)

Do you ever feel like you are going to explode when the teacher asks you to write a paragraph.

Do you feel your heart pounding or your face getting red if your teacher tells you to write a GOOD paragraph?

Don't despair...here is a way to do it painlessly and with excellent results.

To begin......consider the apple

Using "short" words list at least five things you already know about the apple.

Your list might look like this:

Apples

	eat them
	different colors
	grow on trees
	great in a pie
	some have worms

Now S T R E T C H the words on your list into at least five sentences.

You can eat an apple.
Apples come in different colors.
Apples grow on trees.
I ate an apple pie once.
Sometimes an apple has a worm in it.

Now let's put the sentences in a paragraph!

First, think about which sentence you want to come first, second, third etc...

How about this order?

	Apples come in different colors.
	Apples grow on trees.
	You can eat an apple.
	I ate an apple pie.
	Sometimes an apple has a worm .in it.

Ok, let's try it out! Let's connect the sentences into a paragraph with indention, capital letters at the beginning of each sentence and a punctuation mark at the end of each sentence.

..............Apples come in different colors. Apples grow on trees. You can eat an apple. I ate an apple pie. Sometimes an apple has a worm in it.

Well, our sentences are in a paragraph form. We have indented and remembered to use punctuation, but it isn't a good paragraph yet.

Consider what you remember about paragraphs!

Paragraphs have three parts: like a present

The box is like a topic sentence. The topic sentence "holds" the detail sentences




The detail sentences tell the reader information about the topic. Our topic is "apples" so each detail sentence should tell the reader more information about apples.


1.Detail sentence 2.Detail Sentence 3.Detail Sentence Add more detail sentences as needed

I don't think we have a topic sentence yet, do you? "Apples come in different colors." seems more like a detail sentence to me. A topic sentence should introduce the entire paragraph to the reader.

1. Apples come in different colors. 2. Apples grow on trees. 3. You can eat an apple. 4. I ate an apple pie. 5. Sometimes an apple has a worm in it.

How about this:

Let me tell you what I know about apples.

That seems like a better topic sentence, doesn't it?

Topic Sentence	Let me tell you what I know about apples.
Detail Sentence	Apples come in different colors.
Detail Sentence	Apples grow on trees.
Detail Sentence	You can eat an apple.
Detail Sentence	I ate an apple pie.
Detail Sentence	Sometimes an apple has a worm in it.
Conclusion or Closing Sentence

I noticed that two of the detail sentences start with the same word. I think we can change them into something more interesting by combining the two simple sentences into one compound sentence using the conjunction "and" like this:

Topic Sentence	Let me tell you what I know about apples.
Detail Sentence	Apples come in different colors.
Detail Sentence	Apples grow on trees.
Detail Sentence	You can eat an apple.
Detail Sentence	I ate an apple pie.
Detail Sentence	Sometimes an apple has a worm in it.
Conclusion or Closing Sentence

Apples come in different colors and they grow on trees.

Topic Sentence	Let me tell you what I know about apples.
Detail Sentence	Apples come in different colors and they grow on trees.
Detail Sentence	You can eat an apple.
Detail Sentence	I ate an apple pie.
Detail Sentence	Sometimes an apple has a worm in it.
Conclusion or Closing Sentence

Now look at detail sentences #2 and #3. Did you notice that the verb "eat" is used in a present tense (eat) in #2 sentence and past tense "ate" in #3?

As a good paragraph writer you have to be careful to make sure that you always have "verb agreement" throughout your paragraph. In other words, you have to make sure that everything in the paragraph takes place in the same time zone: past, present or future. I think we will choose to make our paragraph in the present tense, so that means we have to make a small change to detail sentence #3.

Topic Sentence	Let me tell you what I know about apples.
Detail Sentence	Apples come in different colors and they grow on trees.
Detail Sentence	You can eat an apple.
Detail Sentence	I ate an apple pie.
Detail Sentence	Sometimes an apple has a worm in it.
Conclusion or Closing Sentence

I ate an apple pie + present tense = I like to eat apple pie.

Topic Sentence	Let me tell you what I know about apples.
Detail Sentence	Apples come in different colors and they grow on trees.
Detail Sentence	You can eat an apple.
Detail Sentence	I like to eat apple pie.
Detail Sentence	Sometimes an apple has a worm in it.
Conclusion or Closing Sentence

I think we can combine those two small sentences into a nice complex sentence now with just a little thought.

You can eat an apple. I like to eat apple pie.

You can eat an fresh apple, but I like to eat them in apple pie.

Think: What kind of apple pie?

Dutch?

hot?

homemade?

These are adjectives that will make our sentence SHOW not TELL the reader what we want to say!

You can eat an fresh apple, but I like to eat them in homemade apple pie.

You can eat an fresh apple...

Wait a minute... what is wrong with that? It sounds funny.

Did you remember the article rule for "an"? An is an article (part of speech). You use "an" in front of words which begin with a vowel. Use the article "a" in front of words that begin with a consonant like "fresh".

so.....

You can eat a fresh apple, but I like to eat them in apple pie.

Now, let's have a look at sentence #4. We need to do a little work on it too. Let's rework the verb "has" to make it an action verb instead of a being verb.

Topic Sentence	Let me tell you what I know about apples.
Detail Sentence	Apples come in different colors and they grow on trees.
Detail Sentence	You can eat a fresh apple, but I like to eat them in homemade apple pie.
Detail Sentence	Sometimes an apple has a worm in it.
Conclusion or Closing Sentence

Sometimes a worm is living in the apple.

Good job! The words "is living" are present tense, just like the rest of the sentences in our paragraph!

CHECK IT OUT!

Topic Sentence	Let me tell you what I know about apples.
Detail Sentence	Apples come in different colors and they grow on trees.
Detail Sentence	You can eat a fresh apple, but I like to eat them in homemade apple pie.
Detail Sentence	Sometimes a worm is living in the apple.
Conclusion or Closing Sentence

Finally, we are ready for the Conclusion or Closing Sentence. It doesn't matter whether you call the last sentence of a paragraph a "conclusion" or "closing" sentence. they both mean the same thing. This is the end of your paragraph and you are letting the reader know it is the end.

Do you remember the "paragraph box" from above?

Paragraphs are like boxes. They have three parts: a topic sentence (which is like the box), detail sentences (which are the present inside the box), and the conclusion or closing sentence (which is like a bow that ties the whole thing together).

Our paragraph has a great "box" or topic sentence: Let me tell you what I know about apples.

Our paragraph has a great set of "presents" or detail sentences inside the box: Apples come in different colors and they grow on trees. You can eat a fresh apple, but I like to eat them in a homemade apple pie. Sometimes a worm is living in the apple.

We need a great conclusion sentence: here is a good clue...look at the topic sentence and think about how to "tie" it to the conclusion sentence.

Let me tell you what I know about apples. (topic sentence)

These are just a few things you should know about apples. (conclusion sentence)

Topic Sentence	Let me tell you what I know about apples.
Detail Sentence	Apples come in different colors and they grow on trees.
Detail Sentence	You can eat a fresh apple, but I like to eat them in homemade apple pie.
Detail Sentence	Sometimes a worm is living in the apple.
Conclusion or Closing Sentence	These are just a few things you should know about apples.

WE DID IT!

We created a paragraph with good sentences from ideas that we thought about in our own head!

The last part of writing our sentence is easy.

*Remember to indent the paragraph.

*Remember to capitalize each new sentence.

*Remember to end each sentence with the proper punctuation symbol.

..........Let me tell you what I know about apples. Apples come in different colors and they grow on trees. You can eat a fresh apple, but I like to eat them in homemade apple pie. Sometimes a worm is living in the apple. These are just a few things you should know about apples.

red = topic sentence it is like a box which holds the details

blue = detail sentences, they are like the present inside the box. Help the reader by SHOWING not TELLING with good adjectives.

purple = conclusion or closing sentence which is like a bow holding the details and topic sentence together. It "ties" the paragraph together!

Here are our original ideas:

	eat them
	different colors
	grow on trees
	great in a pie
	some have worms

Look what we created!

.......Let me tell you what I know about apples. Apples come in different colors and they grow on trees. You can eat a fresh apple, but I like to eat them in homemade apple pie. Sometimes a worm is living in the apple. These are just a few things you should know about apples.

Remember these simple steps to help you write a good paragraph!

	Decide on a topic
	List things you know--use short words
	Use your list of short words to create sentences
	Put the sentences in order
	Create a good topic sentence
	See what you can do to make your detail sentences SHOW not TELL the reader about your topic by combining sentences into complex or compound sentences, adding interesting adjectives and creating "mind pictures" for the reader
	Always make sure that spelling and especially verb agreement are in order
	Write a great conclusion or closing sentence by looking at the topic sentence and tying the detail sentences up in a neat box
	Don't forget to indent, capitalize beginning sentence words and always punctuate correctly
	Read your paragraph and be proud!

Let's make a rebus just for the fun of it!

.......................Let me tell you what I know about

pples come in different

and they grow on

. You can

a fresh apple, but I like to eat them in homemade apple

. Sometimes a

is living in the

. These are just a few things you should know about

Why don't you write a good paragraph about these topics?
Don't forget to use the skills you have practiced!
Review the skills here!

A great pet. My favorite food. A funny kid I know. The best holiday.

I would love to read your paragraph! Send it to me via email and I will read it with pleasure and glee! Don't forget your name and school! There will be prizes for best paragraphs!


Thank you for visiting this page!
created, maintained and jealously guarded by Susan b Anthony, TUSD 12/00

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