Ashby's Organizer for Descriptive Paragraph:
For this assignment, you will describe something in a well-crafted pararaph. You might describe an item, such as an article of clothing, a piece of jewelry, or your
favorite chair. You might also choose to describe Pistol Pete (our OSU mascot), or a tatoo, your dog, your car, or even your Facebook page. Anything is fine, as
long as you use the basic paragraph organization of: attention getter, topic sentence which does the three jobs of a topic sentence, three main idea sentences
with their accompanying support sentences, and a conclusion sentence. An example (with possibly way too much explanation!) is below. This assignment must
use proper Modern Language Association (MLA) format; check out page 322 of your textbook. It's good to learn this format, because you will use it for many
college assignments. You do not need to reference sources for this paragraph. You are required to have at least 125 words in your paragraph, and your
paragraph must include at least one compound sentence and at least one complex sentence. This may sound like a long piece of writing, but the example
paragraph, which may not seem very long, even when all the required sentences are included, is 191 words long. The structure of your paragraph will look
something like this:
Attention Getter (full sentence)
Topic Sentence (gives subject, author’s opinion, and previews the organization of the paragraph by mentioning three main ideas)
First Main Idea Sentence (the first main idea mentioned in the topic sentence)
First Support Sentence for First Main Idea
Second Support Sentence for First Main Idea
Second Main Idea Sentence (the second main idea mentioned in the topic sentence)
First Support Sentence for Second Main Idea
Second Support Sentence for Second Main Idea
Third Main Idea Sentence (the third main idea mentioned in the topic sentence)
First Support Sentence for Third Main Idea
Second Support Sentence for Third Main Idea
Concluding Sentence
A note about prewriting: Your paragraph will be much easier to write (and likely much better!) if you take five minutes to do some prewriting. I typically use
a bubble diagram (called "clustering" in our book, on page 29), but you should use whichever method you find most effective. The difference is that when
we don't prewrite, we typically write about the first three main ideas (and the first few supporting ideas for them) that occur to us. When prewriting, we
come up with seven or eight main ideas, and choose the ones that best fit our current writing purposes. It's a bit methodical, but the results are better.
Explanation of the example paragraph: The subject is my favorite blue shirt. My opinion is that the shirt is unusual. The organization of my paragraph, foretold
in the topic sentence, will be three main ideas. The first main idea is the fabric. I will introduce the raw silk (an unusual material for today), from which the shirt
is made, in a “main idea” sentence, and then support the main idea sentence with one or two support sentences, perhaps describing characteristics of the fabric,
such as the slightly nubby feel of the material, or the strength of the silk; whichever details I use for support, they will be about whatever makes the fabric
unusual. The second main idea for this paragraph will be the design of the shirt. I'll introduce the “main idea” that the shirt has a design that is kind of
different, and then spend a couple of support sentences describing characteristics of the design of the shirt which I feel give it a unique look. The third main idea
to be expressed in a main idea sentence will be the unusually low cost of the shirt. The support sentences for this third main idea will describe how I found the
shirt for only a dollar at the thrift store; given prices of modern clothing, a nice shirt that costs only a dollar is very unique. Finally, I’ll write a conclusion
sentence which references all three main ideas.
Example paragraph: Do you have a favorite shirt? I do; it’s also kind of different. My favorite blue shirt is unusual because of its fabric, its design, and its
price. First, it’s made of raw silk. Raw silk is unusual in today’s world of mass-produced clothing; it has an “old world” feel. The slightly nubby cloth has an
amazing strength to it. The second thing that’s unusual about this shirt is how it’s designed. It’s tailored, and fits precisely; this makes the shirt stand out
from many of today’s loose-fitting, one-size-fits-all clothing. The rolled French seams down the sides of the shirt add to its dramatic appeal, and make the
seams stronger. This kind of workmanship is rare today, because French seams take twice as long to sew as regular seams. The last thing that makes my
shirt unique is that I only paid one dollar for it! I could hardly believe it when I spotted this gem on the rack at the thrift store. Buying a shirt of this quality in
a retail store would have set me back over a hundred dollars. I love the material, style, and amazing low cost of this shirt.
Example Paragraph, broken down into parts:
Attention Getters: Do you have a favorite shirt? I do; it’s also kind of different.
Topic Sentence: My favorite blue shirt is unusual because of its fabric, its design, and its price.
First Main Idea Sentence: First, it’s made of raw silk.
First Support Sentence for the First Main Idea: Raw silk is unusual in today’s world of mass-produced clothing; it has an “old world” feel.
Second Support Sentence for the First Main Idea: The slightly nubby cloth has an amazing strength to it.
Second Main Idea Sentence: The second thing that’s unusual about this shirt is how it’s designed.
First Support Sentence for the Second Main Idea: It’s tailored, and fits precisely; this makes the shirt stand out from many of today’s loose-fitting, one-size-fitsall clothing. (This is also a compound sentence, because it has more than one independent clause.)
Second Support Sentence for the Second Main Idea: The rolled French seams down the sides of the shirt add to its dramatic appeal, and make the seams
stronger.
Third Support Sentence for the Second Main Idea: This kind of workmanship is rare today, because French seams take twice as long to sew as regular seams.
(This is also a complex sentence, because it has at one independent clause and at least one dependent clause.)
Third Main Idea: The last thing that makes my shirt unique is that I only paid one dollar for it!
First Support Sentence for Third Main Idea: I could hardly believe it when I spotted this gem on the rack at the thrift store.
Second Support Sentence for Third Main Idea: Buying a shirt of this quality in a retail store would have set me back over a hundred dollars.
Concluding Sentence: I love the material, style, and amazing low cost of this shirt.
Worksheet to help you organize your Descriptive Paragraph:
One or Two Attention Getter Sentences: (Even though this section comes first, it may be easier to write last!) _________________________________________
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Topic Sentence (gives the subject, states your opinion, and previews the organization of the paragraph):
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Sentences for the body of the paragraph:
First, write a sentence that introduces your first main idea. Then, write one or two sentences that support this main idea.
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Secondly, write a sentence that introduces your second main idea. Then, write one or two sentences that support this main idea.
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Finally, write a sentence that introduces your third main idea. Then, write one or two sentences that support this main idea.
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Concluding Sentence (restate the topic sentence, in different words): __________________________________________________________________________
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Go back and take a look at the spots where you transition from one idea to the next. Be sure to add any transition words that you feel are necessary.
Your paragraph should be anywhere from 75 words to 125 (or more) words long. Longer is better than shorter!
Be sure to check out the grading rubric which you received along with this assignment sheet.