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Paragraph structure

Paragraphs are the building blocks of your written work, and a good essay or assignment will organise the content clearly at a paragraph level.

However, in a piece of academic writing paragraphs can be tricky to structure due to the complexity of ideas that you are likely to be working with.

The following model is not the only way to write a paragraph, but it is commonly used in academic writing to build sources and evidence into your writing in a critical and analytical way.

1. The topic sentence: States the main idea or area to be covered by the paragraph.
2. Explanation or definitions (optional): Can be used to clarify any difficult or uncertain terminology introduced in the topic sentence.
3. Evidence and examples: One or more sentences introducing key ideas, sources, quotes, case studies, evidence or data.
4. Comment: Explores what the evidence means, how it can be summarised or whether it needs to be challenged.
5. Concluding sentence: Relates the paragraph to your overall argument and links forward to the next paragraph.

The final sentence is often the most important part of a paragraph as it clarifies your interpretation of the topic area and identifies how it contributes to your overall argument.

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Comment and critical engagement

When writing for your comment on your chosen evidence and/or examples (see 4 above), you could:

• explain the source e.g. a complex concept, therefore showing your understanding
• evaluate the source e.g. argument, methodology/findings, other limitations, etc.
• express opinion about the source
• link the source to your essay question, thesis, context, etc.
• link the source to a different source by highlighting a similarity or difference in arguments, methods, findings, themes, etc., also known as synthesising

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Unity 

A paragraph will usually discuss only one idea as outlined in the first sentence, the topic sentence, which unusually consists of a topic (the general area under discussion) and a controlling idea (the aspect or perspective on that topic that the paragraph will consider). 

If you find a paragraph drifting away from your topic sentence, it is probably time to split it into more than one paragraph.

• The opening sentence of paragraph should outline the main idea (topic sentence), usually including a topic and controlling idea. For example:
  • The use of computers for drawing with preschool children (topic) is not new (controlling idea).
  • Skin-to-skin contact (topic) is a low-cost intervention that can be performed in many settings and is ideal particularly in the low-resource settings found in many developing countries (controlling idea).
  • The most challenging arena for robot applications (controlling idea) is robotic assembly (topic).
• Every supporting sentence should directly explain, refer back to, or build on the main idea using specific evidence and examples where possible.
• Use the final sentence(s) to refer back to the topic sentence and lead into the following paragraph.

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Flow and Connectivity

The skill of structuring your writing and building effective connections between paragraphs is one that will allow you to develop and sustain a compelling argument in your written work.

• At the planning stage, sketch out a structure for your essay using paragraph topic sentences to provide a skeleton for your writing.
• At the writing stage, consider whether you may need to split a paragraph or merge paragraphs to maintain a sense of unity.
• At the editing stage, consider whether your paragraphs create a coherent narrative flow. Do you need to add in any signposting words or phrases (Firstly, secondly, on the one hand, on the other hand, finally, in conclusion, etc.) to make this clear to your reader? 

By setting out your ideas and evidence with a natural flow, you will make your work much more readable. This important technique will help you work towards higher levels of attainment in assignments and help to improve the quality of your everyday writing.

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Useful Resources

Explore these self-study materials on building an argument and pay particular attention to section 7 - paragraph structure.

Watch this short video on paragraph structure to review and consolidate information introduced above

To improve your paragraph structure, among other writing skills, book a Writing Advisory Appointment where you can get feedback on your paragraphs and other aspects of writing.

Attend a workshop on Writing Effective Thesis Statements and Topic Sentences. 

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Top Tips

• Think about paragraph structure from the planning stage and map out how many paragraphs you need from the word count. 
• Make sure each paragraph has one main point
• Estimate how many sources you need to find and add them to your essay plan
• Make it clear (in your plan and your final essay) which sources align with your argument and which sources provide alternative viewpoints
• Link each paragraph to your main argument

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Next steps

• How to develop an academic argument
• How to paraphrase and quote
• How to write in an academic style