WAF4 Construct paragraphs and use cohesion within and between paragraphs;  

Key questions paragraphs

1. What is a paragraph?2. How do I structure a paragraph?3. How do I know when to start a new paragraph?

What is a paragraph?

• A paragraph is a group of sentences about one main idea.

• It can be as short or as long as you like, as long as the idea you have been writing about has been fully explored.

• There is a simple and easy way to remember how to structure a paragraph.

• It’s called the traffic light system!

How to structure a paragraph

• Each colour stands for a different part of the paragraph.

• There is a simple and easy way to remember how to structure a paragraph.

• It’s called the traffic light system!

How to structure a paragraph

• Each colour stands for a different part of the paragraph.

• The topic of a paragraph is introduced by a key sentence.

• This is often called a topic sentence.

• This contains the main idea of the paragraph.

• It often comes at the start of a paragraph.

Topic Sentences

• "There are three reasons why Britain is one of the best countries in the world. First, Britain has an excellent transport system. Second, Britain has a high standard of education. Students are taught by well-trained teachers and are encouraged to continue studying at university. Finally, Britain's cities are clean and efficiently managed. As a result, Britain is a desirable place to live."

• They come after the topic sentence, making up the body of the paragraph.

• Each sentence needs to be about your topic• What do they do? They give details to develop

and support the main idea of the paragraph. • You should give supporting facts, details and

examples.

Supporting sentences

• "There are three reasons why Britain is one of the best countries in the world. First, Britain has an excellent transport system. Second, Britain has a high standard of education. Students are taught by well-trained teachers and are encouraged to continue studying at university. Finally, Britain's cities are clean and efficiently managed. As a result, Britain is a desirable place to live."

Ending Sentences

• Ending sentences close or finish the paragraph.

• Ending sentences can:

a) repeat the topic sentence in a different way

b) express how we feel about the topic

c) express what we think about the topic.

• "There are three reasons why Britain is one of the best countries in the world. First, Britain has an excellent transport system. Second, Britain has a high standard of education. Students are taught by well-trained teachers and are encouraged to continue studying at university. Finally, Britain's cities are clean and efficiently managed. As a result, Britain is a desirable place to live."

Paragraph Traffic Lights

Topic Sentence

Supporting Sentences

Ending Sentence

Introduces what the paragraph is about.

These sentences add details to the topic sentence.

This concludes or closes the paragraph.

• Look at your sheet of paragraphs again.

• Read through each paragraph.

• Use coloured pencils to colour in the topic sentence, supporting sentences and ending sentences.

How do I know when to start a new paragraph?

• There is another simple method you can use to remember when to start a new paragraph.

TiP ToPTime

Place Topic

Person

What do you need to remember? 

What do you need to

remember?

Paragraphs1. What is a

paragraph?2. How do I

structure a paragraph?

3. How do I know when to start a new paragraph?