Sentences and Paragraphs
Ok, here’s a basic question: ‘What is a sentence?’
A common answer is: ‘A sentence is the expression of a complete thought.’
But let’s put that answer into the mind of a young person for a moment. What’s a complete thought? If I am writing about my favourite foods does that mean I have to put every food I can think of into the one sentence? Or do I put only one food in the sentence? And then I put another food in another sentence? And what about a paragraph? What do you mean when you say it has a ‘theme?’ If I am writing about playing a game of footy, is footy the theme? Or is every tackle a theme? Or is every run I make a theme?
Yep, writing instruction can quickly become complicated.
Here’s a tip that might help: use analogies that your young people can relate to. Here’s a popular one that I use. Imagine your whole story is a set of steps, and the end of the story is the top step. But before you get there, you must build the story. So, you need bricks (sentences) and steps (paragraphs). Here’s what you do.
- Lay bricks. Importantly, every brick combines with the bricks around it, so put together bricks that discuss the same topic. Once all the bricks covering the same topic are laid, they form a step. And this step leads to more bricks (sentences) and more steps (paragraphs) that push you towards the end of your story or piece of writing.
- Remember, you don’t have to cram everything about one topic into one brick (sentence), and nor do there have to be the same number of bricks (sentences) in every step (paragraph). Here’s an example using: ‘My Favourite Foods’
MY FAVOURITE FOODS
TOPIC ONE: Introduction of favourite foods.
Brick 1: I have five favourite foods.
Brick 2: They are chocolate, ice cream, apples, chips, and chicken.
Brick 3: I most like chocolate, ice cream, and apples because they are sweet, but sometimes there is nothing better than hot chips, and barbeque chicken.
Bricks 1-3 have built your first step (paragraph).
Now, let’s change the topic.
TOPIC TWO: When do I eat my favourite foods?
Brick 4: I mostly eat chocolate, ice cream, and chips when I am at parties with my friends, or we have special family occasions like Easter and Christmas.
Brick 5: I have at least one apple a day, and I eat chicken for dinner at least twice a week.
Brick 6: Sometimes I will eat all five of my favourite foods in the one day.
Brick Seven: That is so great!
Bricks 4-7 have built your second step (paragraph).
Now, let’s change the topic again.
TOPIC THREE: Not all my favourite foods are good for me.
Brick 8: Unfortunately, not all my favourite foods are good for me.
Brick 9: Mum says chocolate, ice cream, and chips are ‘sometimes foods’, which means I shouldn’t have them very often.
Brick 10: So, I try my best to eat healthy foods more than I eat ‘sometimes’ foods.
Bricks 8-10 have built your third step (paragraph).
Now, let’s change the topic again for a final paragraph.
TOPIC FOUR: SUMMARY
Brick 11: Scientists say that our tastes change throughout our lives.
Brick 12: When I get older, I mightn’t like sweet foods as much as I do now, or maybe I’ll like them more.
Brick 13: Who knows what the future will say?
Brick 14: For the moment, there is no doubt my five favourite foods make me happy.
Brick 15: Chocolate, ice cream, apples, chips, and chicken are all fantastic.
Bricks 11-15 have built your final paragraph. Now let’s put them all together.
My Favourite Foods
I have five favourite foods. They are chocolate, ice cream, apples, chips, and chicken. I most like chocolate, ice cream, and apples because they are sweet, but sometimes there is nothing better than hot chips and barbeque chicken.
I mostly eat chocolate, ice cream and chips when I am at parties with my friends, or we have special family occasions like Easter and Christmas. I have at least one apple a day, and I eat chicken for dinner at least twice a week. Sometimes I will eat all five of my favourite foods in the one day. That is so great!
Unfortunately, not all my favourite foods are good for me. Mum says chocolate, ice cream, and chips are ‘sometimes foods’, which means I shouldn’t have them very often. So, I try my best to eat healthy foods more than I eat ‘sometimes’ foods.
Scientists say that our tastes change throughout our lives. When I get older, I mightn’t like sweet foods as much as I do now, or maybe I’ll like them more. Who knows what the future will say? For the moment, there is no doubt my five favourite foods make me happy. Chocolate, ice cream, apples, chips, and chicken are all fantastic.
So, why not try using bricks and steps with some of your young people? The most challenging part is deciding on topics. This can take practice, but once a student grasps the concept, the results can be worthwhile.
Tag:#Blog, #Educators
