English Grammar and Composition chapter 18: Writing Paragraphs

Part II

Composition

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Unit Eighteen

Writing Paragraphs

What is a paragraph?

A. Look at the following short composition :

A Magnificent Place to Visit

The Sundarbans is a wonderful place to visit because of its variety of animals and trees. Visitors to the Sundarbans can find many different types of animals. They can find fierce tigers in the dense forest; also they can find timid deer beside the streams. They can find places which are very charming for their greeneries. Thus visitors can find the varied wildlife in the forest. They can find mangroves and low dells. They can also find its beautiful rivers and a beautiful coast. So the sundarbans is one of the most wonderful places to visit for its natural beauty.

This is a paragraph. A paragraph is a group of sentences organized around an important topic. The sentences in a paragraph are connected with each other.

A paragraph usually consists of one topic sentence, some developers (supporting sentences), and a terminator (a concluding sentence).

1. Topic Sentence: The central idea of a paragraph is called the topic. The topic sentence introduces the main idea of your paragraph.

2. Developers: The developers are the sentences placed between the topic sentence and the last sentence in a paragraph. They develop the topic sentence through elaboration, exemplification, classification, and so forth. That is, they expand and support the idea stated in the topic sentence.

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3. Terminator: The terminator is the last sentence in a good paragraph. It logically concludes the ideas developed through the developers of the paragraph. In other words, the terminator can restate the ideas put in the topic sentence .It can also present a quick summary of what has already been discussed. Actually, the terminator completes the writer’s description of the subject or topic.

In the above paragraph the first sentence introduces the central idea. So, it is the topic sentence. The next six sentences support the topic sentence; they are the developers. The last sentence restates the idea of the topic sentence and completes the writer’s description. So, it is the terminator.

Now we will learn how to develop a paragraph by answering questions.

Write a paragraph on ‘your mother’ answering the following questions:

How old is your mother?

What is her occupation?

How many brothers and sisters do you have?

What does your mother do for you in the whole day?

What are your duties to your mother?

My Mother

My mother is a wonderful person. She is about 38 years old. She is a school teacher. She comes from a respectable family. She is sober and affectionate. I have one brother and one sister. I am the youngest. Mother takes great care of our education, food and clothing. Her anxiety knows no bound when any of us becomes sick. My mother says her prayers regularly. Every now and then, she cooks delicious food and prepares different kinds of sweets. She keeps the

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house neat and clean. She always gives us good advice and suggestions. She advises us not to quarrel with anybody, not to steal and never to tell a lie. She tells us to love our country and our relatives. I always try to help my mother in her work. We should obey and love our mother as she is doing her best for us. To me, she is the best person.

B. Read the following paragraphs based on the given questions :

1. Topic : A Bus Stand

Questions:

a) What type of place is a bus stand?

b) Why do people wait at a bus stand?

c) What type of people do you find at a bus stand?

d) What type of difficulties do you find at a bus stand?

e) What type of hawkers do you find at a bus stand?

A Bus Stand

A bus stand is a very important place to those who travel by bus from one place to another. It is a place where buses stop for some time to help passengers to get in and off. Especially the bus stands in a city or town always remain busy. Passengers are always found waiting there. When a bus stops at such a stand, there is an unusual bustle and hurry among the passengers. Some others hurry to get down from the bus, while passengers waiting for the bus want to get into it. As a result, there is always a great rush of passengers. In such a situation the old and the weak find it difficult to get into or get off the bus. The scene often goes so far that passengers seem hostile with one another. Taking advantage of this situation pickpockets sometimes pick the pockets of the passengers. Moreover, shouts of conductors, bus-helpers make the place noisy. These are

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the usual sights of a bus stand during the busy hours of the day. Besides, hawkers are often found busy selling their goods like cigarettes, betel-leaves, newspapers, fruits and so on. A bus stand is always a busy place.

2. Topic : My Favourite Bird

Questions :

a) What is your favourite bird and where do you meet it?

b) How does a sparrow look?

c) Where does it make its nest?

d) Why do you like a sparrow?

e) What does a sparrow like to eat?

My Favourite Bird

A sparrow, peeping through my window, is something that makes me very happy. Every morning, when I wake up, I see the sparrow, playing in the tree, outside my window. I have been hearing its sound ever since I was a child. So it has become my favourite bird. The sparrow has a brown and white body with a tiny head. This makes it a lovely and sweet bird. It has a short, strong and sharp beak, which helps it to collect food and make nests in trees and in the corners of the houses. It likes to live in ventilators of a house, where it builds its home. It gathers tiny and light material for its home. It eats insects and worms. I hope Mr. Sparrow continues to visit my window every day of my life.

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3. Topic : Preparing a Cup of Tea

Questions :

a) What will you do first to make a cup of tea?

b) What will you do next?

c) How much time do you need to prepare a cup of tea?

d) Why do some people have saccharin instead of sugar?

e) Do all types of people prefer the same kind of tea?

Preparing a Cup of Tea

It is an easy task to prepare a cup of tea. First, pour a cup of water in a pot, then put it on fire and bring it to boil. When it is boiled for a while, put one tea-spoon of tea-leaf or tea-powder in it and continue to boil it for a little longer. Then put the liquor in a tea-cup through a strainer. Then add one or two tea-spoons of milk and sugar as you like. The tea is prepared. But there may be varieties of tea for varieties of tastes. Some people may prefer tea without milk or sugar or may have them in different proportions. Some may add a little lemon juice to liquor instead of sugar and milk. Some may have either dark liquor or light liquor. Some would have saccharin instead of sugar for health reasons. It mostly takes five to ten minutes to prepare a cup of tea.

4. Topic: How to Make a Garden

Questions:

a) What will you do first when you decide to make a garden?

b) What will you do regularly to keep your plants lively?

c) What makes your garden healthy?

d) How do you increase the fertility of your garden?

e) Why do you need a fence?

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How to Make a Garden

To make a garden you have to follow certain procedures. First, select a suitable piece of land. It can be in front of your reading room. Shovel, loosen and level the soil with a garden spade. Next, fence the land so that naughty boys and animals are unable to harm it. After that you should sow the seeds of different flowers of different seasons and plant many kinds of flower plants in it. Good seeds and plants are needed for a healthy garden. Finally you should work in the garden every morning and afternoon. Water the plants frequently. Weed your garden regularly to keep it neat and clean. Apply manure to the plants regularly to keep the soil fertile. Use pesticides so that harmful insects cannot do any harm to the plants and flowers. In city life, pot planting is a common way for city dwellers to have their gardens in a small space. All they need is a deck, a roof, or a tiny patch of well-lit space to start their own small garden following the same process.

5. Topic: Perseverance

Questions:

a) What is perseverance?

b) How do you acquire perseverance?

c) Why should we practice perseverance?

d) What should we do to practice perseverance?

e) Name a great person who practiced perseverance in life.