UNDERSTANDING
PARAGRAPHS
INTRODUCTION
• A paragraph is a group of sentences. Every sentence
in a paragraph is about the same topic.
• Example of a GOOD paragraph:
• A doctor’s job is not easy. Doctors often spend
many hours with patients. There are usually
more patients waiting. So doctors don’t have
much free time during the day. They often have
to work all night in the hospital, too. They must
also read about new ways to taking care of
patients, and they must write reports about
people in their care.
BAD PARAGRAPH 
• Violins are made of wood. The best old
pianos were made in Germany. Musicians
spend a lot of time practicing. Sometimes
they play for eight hours a day. Most
violinists stand up when they play alone.
Taking music lessons can be expensive.
The kind of wood in a violin is important.
Many famous musicians started to study at
an early age.
Is this a good paragraph?
• In the United States, sports stars make a lot
of money. It’s not unusual for a basketball
player to get $6 million a year. Some
baseball players are also paid millions of
dollars. These sports stars also get extra
money from sporting equipment companies.
For example, manufacturers pay sports stars
to wear the shoes they make.
Is this a good paragraph?
• In some countries, students can go to
college for free. It’s often difficult to get a
good job in a small town. Students often
leave small towns to study in the city. The
populations of most countries are growing
quickly. Many families have five or six
children. In the winter, there is always a lot
of snow in Maine.
Choosing the Best Topic
• A good reader always asks, “What is this
paragraph about? What is the topic?”
• The best topic is not too specific (small) and
not too general (large).
• You should always ask yourself, “What is it
about?”
• Miami is a popular place for tourists,
especially in winter. In fact, this part of
Florida always has warm, sunny weather.
Miami is on the seaside, and it has beautiful
beaches. These beaches are one important
reason shy people go to Miami. But the city
is also fun to visit. There are brightly
colored homes and hotels along many
streets. There are many interesting
museums, and there are dozens of
restaurants with great food.
What is the topic?
• A. Restaurants in Miami?
• Too specific (small) There is only one
sentence in the paragraph that is about food.
• B. Popular places for tourists?
• Too general (big) The paragraph is not about
every popular place for tourists. It’s only
about Miami.
• Why tourists like Miami?  YES!
• The Everglades is in the center of south
Florida. It is a wild area with no towns or
houses. The Everglades is famous for its
wildlife and plants. Some of these plants
and animals live only in the Everglades.
They live there because of the warm climate
and water. In fact, the Everglades has lots
of water. In the middle of the Everglades is
a very wide river, called the “River of
Grass.” It changes with the seasons. In the
rainy season it is 50 miles wide in some
places.
What is the topic?
• A. The climate in Florida
• B. The Florida Everglades
• C. Plants and wildlife
B is the correct answer. A and C are both too
general (big).
Main Idea
• The Main Idea of a paragraph is usually
stated in one sentence. It tells the writer’s
idea about the topic. The main idea
sentence is important. There can be many
paragraphs about the same topic, but they
do not all have the same main idea.
Main Idea
• Example: The topic is elephants. The three
sentences are three different main ideas
about the topic, elephants.
• Elephants live in Africa and Asia.
• Elephants are killed for their ivory tusks.
• Elephants can cause serious problems for
farmers.
•
The topic is bicycles:
In some parts of the world, many people use
bicycles for transportation. First of all, they
are much cheaper than cars. They also do not
need gas to make them go. Any bicycles are
easy and cheap to fix. In cities, bicyclists
don’t have to wait in traffic. They can always
go around a traffic jam. Finally, bicycles
don’t need parking spaces. They can be
parked anywhere.
What is the author’s main idea about bicycles?
A. Bicycles are cheaper than cars.
B. Bicycles are a problem in traffic.
C. Bicycles are good for transportation.
Your Turn
• Clothes can tell you a lot about a person. Some people like
very colorful clothes. They want everyone to look at them
They want to be the center of things. Other people like to
wear nice clothes, but their clothes are plain,, not colorful
or fancy. They don’t like people to look at them. There
are also some people who wear the same thing all the time.
They don’t care if anyone looks at them or not They don’t
care what anyone thinks about them.
• A. Some people wear colorful clothes.
• B. Clothes can tell you a lot about a person.
• C. Some clothes are nice, but very plain.
• It’s important to bring the right clothes when you ravel. If
you’re traveling to a cold country, you should bring warm
clothes. Be sure you have a hat and gloves, too. If you’re
going to a hot country, you need different clothes. You
don’t want heavy or dark clothes. In hot weather, light
clothes are best. If you’re going to a city, you may need
some nice clothes. You may want to go to a special
restaurant or a concert. It’s different if you’re traveling by
bicycle in the country. Then you’ll want comfortable
clothes. One rule is the same for all travelers, however.
Do not bring too many clothes!
• A. The right clothes are important when you travel.
• B. Warm clothes are very important.
• C. Be sure to bring enough clothes when you travel.
• Today’s clothes are different from the clothes of the 1800s.
One difference is the way they look. For example, in the
1800s all women wore dresses with long skirts. Today
women don’t always wear dresses with long skirts.
Sometimes they wear short skirts, and sometimes they
wear pants. Another difference between the 1800s and
today is the cloth. In the 1800s, clothes were made only
from natural kinds of cloth, such as cotton, wool, silk, and
linen. Today, there are many kinds of man-made cloth,
such a nylon, rayon, and polyester. A lot of clothes are
made from these kinds of cloth.
• A. Clothes of the 1800s looked very different from today’s
clothes.
• B. A lot of clothes are made of man-made cloth today.
• C. Clothes today are different from the clothes of the 1800s