Question

Questions 1–2: Read the following example paragraph (with each sentence numbered) and then answer the questions.

(1) Although Aristotle was Plato’s student, the two philosophers had very different ideas of what made a person good. (2) For Plato, goodness was knowing the right thing to do in every situation. (3) If someone has the right knowledge, he or she will always do the right thing. (4) If someone does the wrong thing, it is because he or she doesn’t understand what “right” really is. (5) Plato died at age 80 in 348 BC. (6) His student, Aristotle, thought that being good was less about knowledge and more about action. (7) A person with a good character will perform good actions. (8) To develop good character, a person should live moderately.

Which sentence is the topic sentence of the paragraph?
Which sentence is irrelevant to the paragraph?
What structural order does the paragraph use?
Questions 4–8: Indicate the type of order that would be most effective— spatial order, chronological order, order of importance, or comparison and contrast—to develop a paragraph on each of the following topics.

My Summer Vacation
How to House-Train Your Dog
The Pros and Cons of Home Ownership
The Well-Organized Office
Project Feasibility Report
Questions 9–11: Answer the following questions.

Define the topic sentence, including its primary purpose.
Some paragraphs build up to a main idea, so the topic sentence is at the _____.
Words and phrases like in conclusion, additionally, however, and for example are _______ words and phrases you can use to make one sentence flow smoothly into the next.

answers

1

5

Comparison and contrast

Chronological order

Chronological order

Comparison and contrast

Spatial order

Order of importance

A topic sentence is a statement of the main idea or point of a piece of writing. It tells the reader what the rest of the paragraph will be about.

end

transitional

Answer 1

1 (1)

2 (5)

3 Comparison and contrast

4 Chronological order

5 Chronological order

6 Comparison and contrast

7 Spatial order

8 Order of importance

9 A topic sentence is a statement of the main idea or point of a piece of writing. It tells the reader what the rest of the paragraph will be about.

10 end

11 transitional

Step-by-step explanation:

Answer 2

1. The topic sentence is Sentence (1).

2. Sentence (5) is irrelevant to the paragraph.

3. The structural order that the paragraph uses is Comparison and Contrast.

4 - 8. The most effective order for developing a paragraph on each of the following topics is:

Topic Effective Structural Order

My Summer Vacation Chronological order

How to House-Train Your Dog Order of importance

The Pros and Cons of Home Ownership Comparison and contrast

The Well-Organized Office Spatial order

Project Feasibility Report Order of importance

9 - 11. The topic sentence is the sentence that contains the main idea of a paragraph. It is a combination of the topic and the controlling idea behind the topic.

middle

linking

Step-by-step explanation:

When you read the topic sentence, it shows the main point that the writer wants to convey to her readers. The reader is focused on what the remaining passage is discussing. The topic sentence unifies the paragraph based on the paper's thesis.