When you're writing a paragraph, you know you need a key phrase. But how do you spell it? Here is some information to help you.
Steps
Step 1. Remember what a paragraph is
A paragraph is a group of sentences on a given topic, just one. In one paragraph, you state a main idea and explain it. Paragraphs are very important because they help organize information in a way that is easy for the reader to follow, plus they make your text smoother.
Step 2. Clearly express the main idea
This is the key phrase. It must include the topic ("gardening") and a predominant opinion or idea ("good exercise", "produce better organic food").
Remember that it's not just about announcing the topic. "Today I'm going to talk about the benefits of gardening" is not an effective key phrase. You should make your intentions clear without writing them explicitly
Step 3. Grab your reader's attention
One of the key tasks of the key phrase is to engage the reader. Get him to ask questions that you will answer. An effective way to do this is to catapult them directly into the central part of the speech. This is doable whether you are writing a short story or an essay, and there are many ways to do it:
- Describe a character. It can be a physical or emotional description.
- Use dialogue. If there is a relevant conversation that might attract the reader's attention, try using it to start your paragraph.
- It represents an emotion. Use the opening sentence to describe an emotion.
- Use the details. While there's no need to weigh down a sentence with too many details, it's a good idea to create interest by using sensory language in the key sentence.
- Avoid rhetorical questions. Even if you want the reader to ask questions, you don't have to ask them for them.
Step 4. Be clear and concise
The key phrase must anticipate your goal without forcing the reader to understand it on their own; long story short will help keep a clear tone. Plus it will make [Write a Paragraph | paragraph] smoother.
Step 5. Give a demonstrable opinion
The body of the paragraph serves to demonstrate the key phrase. Hence, the key phrase must express your thought or belief that can be backed up by hard evidence. Take, for example, the key phrase "Growing spices will increase your appreciation for fresh dishes." The phrase "will increase your appreciation" expresses something you are convinced of, and you can use the rest of the paragraph to explain what led you to build that belief.
Always avoid the known facts in the key phrase. They may be interesting, but they don't let the reader know what the paragraph is about and they don't get their attention. If you want to include one, also add your contribution based on the message you want to pass. For example, instead of writing "All dogs need food", try "Dogs need regular care, including healthy food, and children are best suited to care for it.". Alternatively, use the facts as evidence to support your thesis in the body of the paragraph
Advice
- Remember to elaborate the idea in the paragraph. Or that the key phrase is consistent with what you say. Rewrite it if necessary.
- Do not be too vague when expressing an idea or you will not be able to enclose it in a single paragraph. Example of a too general sentence: "The United States suffered a lot during the civil war".
- If you are writing a hypothesis, try to mention the various points you will touch on in your essay. For example, "You will eat better if you cook your own meals, grow vegetables and learn the basics of nutrition." (The key word here is "eat BETTER"). This way the reader will expect you to talk about these three aspects of a balanced diet, and you will know how to structure the paragraphs of your essay.
- Read other articles or term papers to see more examples.
- Always use the impersonal forms, but the first person.
- Don't write too long sentences. You will lose the reader's attention. An example of a sentence that is too long: "I like dogs because they love to play and I like dogs because they have fur in different colors such as brown and black and white and sometimes even blue.". Only use an "and" conjunction in each sentence unless you are an experienced writer.
- Don't be too concise. If there is not much to talk about, it is probably a very well known topic. This is too concise a sentence: "Usually cedars or firs are used to make Christmas trees.".
- Have your professor read a sentence and ask him if it would work as a key phrase.
