PrePALS Writing

When thinking about how to organize a paragraph, think of the paragraph components as parts of a sandwich...

Paragraph Organization

For the most part, we write paragraphs without a specific method or plan of organization. When you sit down to write, you don’t usually tell yourself, “I am going to write eight paragraphs that are four sentences long each.” Effective and mature writing is more organic. However, it is still important to consider the most effective way to structure each paragraph in a way that provides support for its topic sentence. A few popular structures include:

• Rank Order: Paragraphs can be organized to build toward a main point, with the most important part of the message coming at the end. This last point is sometimes the key/topic sentence, but not always. This method of organization is useful in building up to a problem or claim that will be further developed in later paragraphs.
• Spatial: Spatial organization for paragraphs makes sense for exposition or description. If you are describing the appearance of a sculpture or statue, it makes sense to write the description in a way that is analogous to the appearance of the statue itself.
• Chronological: Just like you would describe physical appearance using spatial paragraph organization, you would describe sequential events chronologically. If you were writing a paragraph about all the things you ate on Tuesday, it makes sense to start with breakfast and end with your midnight snack.  
• General to Specific: A good metaphor for the general to specific method of organizing a paragraph is the top part of an hourglass. The top of the hourglass has a lot of sand, but only a small amount of sand passes through the middle. For example, a writer begins by claiming that all roads in the U.S. can be improved. He gradually narrows this focus to state at the end of the paragraph that the main focus of this improvement should be dealing with the specific issue of steep grades on existing roads.

This video information about basic paragraph drafting methods.

Attributions:

"Paragraph Development" Youtube, uploaded by Professor Lukas, 3 Feb. 2016, https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=k0ZchFGjrFs&t=2s.

Permissions: YouTube Terms of Service

Practice identifying a few different types of paragraph organization styles.

Practice identifying the parts of a paragraph (PIE).

Write a PIE paragraph analyzing the impact of social media on academic performance among college students.

• Point: Clearly state your argument or position on how social media affects academic success.

• Illustration: Support your point with a statistic, study, personal observation, or real-world example.

• Explanation: Explain how the evidence supports your argument and why it is significant in a college context.

Be sure to include a clear topic sentence and a concluding sentence.

To check your understanding, we invite you to submit your writing to the Online Writing Center via this online Writing Center LINK.  The link will bring you to a form.  In the form, you may put "Pre-Pals" for the COURSE NAME, "None" for the INSTRUCTOR, and "Paragraph PIE Assessment" for the "Assignment Title."  You will receive feedback from the Writing Center.

Or, you may use the attached rubric to self-assess your own writing!