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Practice With Topic Sentence - Basic

The document provides instructions on identifying topic sentences within paragraphs. It includes examples of topic sentences and sentences that are too general, too specific, or incomplete. The topic sentence is the most general statement that encompasses the essential information in the paragraph.

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Mai Anh Le
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240 views

Practice With Topic Sentence - Basic

The document provides instructions on identifying topic sentences within paragraphs. It includes examples of topic sentences and sentences that are too general, too specific, or incomplete. The topic sentence is the most general statement that encompasses the essential information in the paragraph.

Uploaded by

Mai Anh Le
Copyright
© © All Rights Reserved
We take content rights seriously. If you suspect this is your content, claim it here.
Available Formats
Download as DOCX, PDF, TXT or read online on Scribd
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PARAGRAPH WRITING I.

TOPIC SENTENCE

I. Remember that a topic sentence is a complete sentence and is neither too general nor
too specific.

Step 1. Read the sentences in each group, and decide which sentence is the best topic sentence. Write
best TS (for “best topic sentence”) onthe line next to it.

Step 2. Decide what is wrong with the other sentences. They may be too general, or they may be too
specific, or they may be incomplete sentences. Write too general, too specific, or incomplete on the
lines next to them.

The first one has been done for you as an example.


Group 1
too specific a. A lunar eclipse is an omen of a coming disaster.
too general b. Superstitions have been around forever.
best TS c. People hold many superstitious beliefs about the moon.
incomplete d. Is made of green cheese.

Group 2
a. The history of astronomy is interesting. too general
b. Ice age people recorded the appearance of new moons by making scratches in animal bones. too
specific
c. For example, Stonehenge in Britain, built 3500 years ago to track the movement of the sun.
incomplete
d. Ancient people observed and recorded lunar and solar events in different ways. best TS
Group 3
a. It is hard to know which foods are safe to eat nowadays. best TS
b. In some large ocean fish, there are high levels of mercury. too specific
c. Undercooked chicken and hamburger may carry E. coli bacteria. too specific
d. Not to mention mad cow disease. incomplete
e. Food safety is an important issue. best TS
Group 4
a. Hybrid automobiles more economical to operate than gasoline-powered cars. incomplete
b. The new hybrid automobiles are very popular. too general
c. Hybrid cars have good fuel economy because a computer under the hood decides to run the
electricmotor, the small gasoline engine, or the two together. too specific
d. The new hybrid automobiles are popular because of their fuel economy. best TS
Group 5
a. The North American Catawba Indians of the Southeast and the Tlingit of the Northwest both see the
rainbow as a kind of bridge between heaven and earth. too specific
b. A rainbow seen from an airplane is a complete circle. too general
c. Many cultures interpret rainbows in positive ways. best TS
d. Rainbows are beautiful. too general
e. The belief that you can find a pot of gold at a rainbow’s end. Incomplete
II. Remember that the topic sentence is the most general statement in a paragraph.
Read the following scrambled paragraphs and decide which sentence is the topic
sentence.

Paragraph 1

a. A notes/memo function lets you make quick notes to yourself.


b. Other capabilities include word processing, spreadsheets, and e-mail.
c. A voice recorder that uses a built-in microphone and speaker works like a tape recorder.
d. Basic tools include a calendar to keep track of your appointments, an address and phone number
book, to-do lists, and a calculator.
e. MP3 playback lets you listen to digital music files, and a picture viewer lets you look at digital
photos.
f. Most personal digital assistants (PDAs) have tools for basic tasks as well as for multimedia
functions.
g. A few models also include a built-in digital camera and keyboard.

Paragraph 2
a. Twelve years after Sputnik, the United States caught up by becoming the first nation to land a man
on the moon.
b. The Europeans have joined the competition, vowing to land European astronauts on the moon by
2025 and on Mars by 2035.
c. The number of nations competing in the “space race” has grown since the early days of space
exploration.
d. China joined the competition in 2003 when it launched Shenzhou 5.
e. Initially, the former Soviet Union took the lead when it sent the first man into Earth orbit in the
spaceship Sputnik in 1957.
f. For almost 50 years, the United States and Russia were the only competitors in the contest to
explore space using manned spacecraft.

Paragraph 3
a. Another important change was that people had the freedom to live and work wherever they wanted.
b. The earliest significant change was for farming families, who were no longer isolated.
c. The final major change brought by the automobile was the building of superhighways, suburbs,
huge shopping centers, and theme parks such as Disney World in Florida.
d. The automobile revolutionized the way of life in the United States.
e. The automobile enabled them to drive to towns and cities comfortably and conveniently.
f. In fact, people could work in a busy metropolitan city and drive home to the quiet suburbs.

Paragraph 4
a. In time, this melted part rises as magma.
b. The formation of a volcanic eruption is a dramatic series of events.
c. As the plate sinks, friction and Earth’s heat cause part of it to melt.
d. The magma produces heat, steam, and pressure.
e. First of all, most volcanoes are formed where two plates collide.
f. Then one of the plates is forced under the other and sinks.
g. When the heat, steam, and pressure from the magma finally reach the surface of Earth, a volcanic
eruption occurs.

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