Illustrative Paragraph

Illustrative Paragraph

Use the writing process steps to develop a well-written illustration paragraph. Keep in mind that the three characteristics of a good paragraph are unity, support, and coherence.

The paragraph should be 250 to 350 words long, using Times New Roman or Calibri font, size 12, double-spaced. Your paragraph should also include a heading, a title, and an indent. 

The final draft of the paragraph, with all supporting work (reflection, prewriting notes, outline, and first draft), Please upload a single document containing all of your work.

Reflecting

At the top of your prewriting, write down two areas you wish to improve on or two goals you wish to accomplish in this assignment.

Step 1: Prewriting

An illustration paragraph uses specific examples to support a general point. Your first step is to decide what point you would like to support. See this week’s reading for possible topics. Once you have a topic, spend about 10 minutes gathering your thoughts about your topic. See the readings from Week 1 for tips on prewriting.

Ask yourself:

· What is the main point of the illustration?

· What are some ways you can support the main point?

· What are some specific examples that can be used to support the main point?

Step 2: Planning

Consider the material you gathered in your prewriting, and create an outline for your paragraph. Organize your ideas following the illustration template below. See this week’s reading for an example.

Topic sentence

Example 1

Support

Support

Example 2

Support

Support

Example 3

Support

Support

Conclusion

Check your outline for unity, development, and coherence by asking yourself:

· Is your main idea or topic sentence clear?

· Do your supporting points actually support the main idea? Delete anything off topic

· Do you have enough supporting points and examples? You should have at least three

· Are your supporting points organized in a logical order?

Step 3: Drafting

Using that outline, write the first draft.

· “Flesh out” the ideas from your outline

· Include transitional words and phrases to create a flow between sentences. See this week’s reading for a list of transitions for a descriptive paragraph

· Compose a title for your work

Step 4: Polishing

Ask yourself:

· Are my sentences too long or too short?

· Do I have enough sentence variety?

· Are my words appropriate for academic purposes?

· Do I have any major grammatical errors (e.g., fragments, comma splices, or run-on sentences)?

· Do I have any spelling or mechanical errors?

· Are my verb tenses or persons (first, second, third) consistent?

· Are there verbs or adjectives I could replace with better ones (e.g., nice = cordial, amiable, gracious; do = accomplish, undertake, perform)? Let  www.thesaurus.com (Links to an external site.)  become your new best friend.

Running the spell-checker is not a substitute for proofreading your work carefully.