One idea, developed and proved. If you cannot say the idea in a phrase, you have two paragraphs or none.
The analytical shape
- Topic sentence — the claim, arguable, in your own words.
- Context — one sentence placing the evidence.
- Evidence — quoted, short, cited.
- Analysis — two or three sentences on what the evidence shows. This is the part that carries the mark.
- Link — back to the thesis, forward to the next paragraph.
What weak paragraphs do
| Symptom | What it means | Fix |
|---|---|---|
| The quotation is the longest sentence | Quotation dumping | Quote four words, not four lines |
| The last sentence repeats the first | No development | End with a consequence instead |
| Plot appears in three sentences | Summary | Cut it; the reader has read the text |
| Two claims in one paragraph | Two paragraphs | Split it |
Cohesion
Sentences hold together through repeated key terms, pronouns with clear owners, transitions, and — best of all — ending a sentence with the idea the next one begins from. That last move is what makes professional prose feel effortless.
Testing your own
Cover everything but the topic sentences and read them in order. If they tell the argument on their own, the essay is organised. If they read like a list of topics, it is not — yet.
Curriculum connection
C1.4
identify, sort, and order main ideas and supporting details for writing tasks, using a variety of strategies and organizational patterns suited to the content and the purpose for writing (e.g., use a clear statement of their topic or thesis to highlight the main points they plan to cover in a persuasive magazine article; identify appropriate classification categories and use them to itemize the characteristics of a protagonist in a story or play; use a cause-and-effect chart to organize an argument for an essay; develop an extended metaphor as a prompt for writing a poem; use a web diagram to show how quotations from a text support their argument in an opinion piece; classify images from song lyrics for a music review; use a timeline to trace the development of a tragic hero for an in-class essay)
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C2.4
write complete sentences that communicate their meaning clearly and accurately, varying sentence type, structure, and length to suit different purposes and making smooth and logical transitions between ideas (e.g., use a variety of sentence structures, including compoundcomplex sentences; use prepositional and participial phrases and adjectival and adverbial clauses to add details and/or qualifying information; insert rhetorical questions for emphasis in an argumentative essay; insert a sentence fragment to interrupt the flow in a paragraph for effect; use subject-verb inversion to vary sentence rhythm)
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C2.7
produce revised drafts of texts, including increasingly complex texts, written to meet criteria identified by the teacher, based on the curriculum expectations (e.g., adequate development of information and ideas, logical organization, appropriate use of form and style, appropriate use of conventions)
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C3.5
proofread and correct their writing, using guidelines developed with the teacher and peers (e.g., consult print and electronic resources to ensure that words with more than one connotation are used appropriately in the context; discuss with a partner how to correct identified problems)
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