Essentially, topic sentences will state the main idea of your paragraphs and give your readers a sense of direction for the paragraphs. A specific topic sentence allows the writer to effectively control the other information in the paragraph and the reader to easily understand the writer’s point for the paragraph.

Steps in creating a Topic Sentence

1. Read your first sub-question again, in order to remind yourself what the question was asking.
2. Read all of the quotes that you said helped answer sub-question1.
3. Using the information from those quotes, write a single sentence answer to the question.

The topic sentence is the sentence in the paragraph that gives the reader not only the general topic, but also the main idea, or what the paragraph is trying to say about the topic. The other sentences in the paragraph provide supporting facts.

The Three Parts of a Paragraph: Topic Sentences, Support Sentences, & Conclusions A paragraph has three main parts . The first part is the topic sentence . It is called the topic sentence because it tells the topic or main idea of the paragraph. The second main part of the paragraph is the supporting sentences .

The main idea is the point of the paragraph. It is the most important thought about the topic. The author can locate the main idea in different places within a paragraph. The main idea is usually a sentence, and it is usually the first sentence. The writer then uses the rest of the paragraph to support the main idea.

Generally, the topic sentence appears at the beginning of the paragraph. It is often the paragraph’s very first sentence. A paragraph’s topic sentence must be general enough to express the paragraph’s overall subject.

Contents

1. Introduction.
2. A Clearly Stated Position.
3. Types of Positions.
4. Identify Your Position.
5. Draft Your Position Statement.
6. The Introduction.
7. Provide Context for the Argument.
8. Establish Credible Authority.

This summary is used when it is necessary for the summary writer to fully explain an author’s idea to the reader. The key point summary involves a full accounting and complete representation of the author’s entire set of ideas.

It is easy to identify a main idea that is directly expressed in the text. Main ideas are often found at the beginning of paragraphs. The first sentence often explains the subject being discussed in the passage. Main ideas are also found in the concluding sentences of a paragraph.