Paragraph:

Main idea and Supporting

Idea
Arry Purnama
Sostek FSRD ITB
[Link]@gmail.c
om
 A Legendary Discussion
• How many people are familiar with
this discussion?
• How many people are still remember
this discussion?
• How many people recognize the
importance of learning this
discussion?
• What is this discussion for?
What is paragraph?
Paragraph is a set of sentences about
a topic (subject). Its parts are
sentences that carry a main idea and
supporting ideas. These sentence are
put together with linking (transitional)
words, phrases, and sentences.
An ideal body paragraph should
consist of 11-14 sentences long, and
around 275 words

A paragraph has three principle parts

1. Topic sentence
2. Supporting sentences
3. Concluding sentence (optional)
 Topic
VS
Main Idea
VS
Topic Sentence
The subject or what the
text is about
 Topic
A topic can be expressed as a noun or
a noun phrase.
Some examples of topics include
– Recycling
– Mammals
– Trees of Ontario
 Main Idea
An idea is what you say about a topic.
Ideas are expressed as sentences.
Some examples of main ideas include:
– Recycling is expensive in the short term,
but yields long-term savings.
– All mammals are the same in certain
ways.
– The trees of Ontario are the most
beautiful in the world.
 TOPIC SENTENCE
The sentence containing main
idea or the sentence
explaining your topic
 Topic Sentence
Usually the topic sentence is the first
sentence in a paragraph.
Topic sentences are useful in determining
the relationship between main ideas
and supporting details.
More importantly, it is the most general
sentence.
 Thesis Statement?
• Additional term in expert-reading
skills.
• Main idea for the whole passage
• Each topic sentence should refer to
thesis statement
Try to examine these
elements!
Page 45
 It is really important to select a good
topic for your writing!
It will determine your quality of writing

Page 51
 Once you choose you topic, deliver
your idea about topic in topic sentence.
You can write your topic sentence
variably, but at the first sentence is the
best!

Page 57
 Stated Implied
main
idea
vs main
idea

The writer tells The writer gives

the topic only the
through topic sentences with
sentence supporting idea
 Find the main idea!
Niagara Falls is one of the most
beautiful sights in North America. It is
on the Niagara River halfway between
Lake Ontario and Lake Erie. Niagara
Falls is located on the American and
Canadian border. The American Falls is
167 feet high. On the Canadian side,
the Horseshoe Falls is 161 feet high.
Find the topic and the main
idea!
Researchers who study the “science” of shopping note that men always move faster 
than women through a store’s aisle. Men spend less time looking, too. They usually 
don’t like asking where things are, or any other questions. When a man takes clothing 
into a dressing room, the only thing that stops him from buying it is if it doesn’t fit. 
Women, on the other hand, try things on as only part of the consideration process, and 
garments that fit just fine may still be rejected on other grounds. Here’s another 
contrast: 86 percent of women look at price tags when they shop. Only 72 percent of 
men do. For a man, ignoring the price tag is almost a measure of his masculinity. As a 
result, men are far more easily encouraged to buy more expensive versions of the same 
product than are women shoppers. They are also far more suggestible than women—
men seem so anxious to get out of the store that they’ll say yes to almost anything.

The topic of the paragraph:

Men and women shoppers

The Main idea of the paragraph:

Men and women shoppers behave differently
when shopping
 Paragraph:
Element and
Development
Arry Purnama
Sostek FSRD ITB
[Link]@[Link]
 Develop your
Paragraph!
Formal English writing uses a number of different patterns
of organization. Using patterns of organization familiar to
readers will help you communicate with an English-
speaking audience more effectively.
 Examples Consider!
Literature gives us many examples of 1. Is there a topic sentence in
jealousy, but a look at daily life yields an ample which the main idea is
supply closer at hand. Take the three-year-old child expressed? If so, which
who lives upstairs. His parents have just brought sentence is it?
home a newborn baby sister, and the three-year-old 2. How many examples are used
acts as if an enemy had entered the house. He is to make the writer’s point?
jealous of his sister. Or look at the wife whose What are they?
husband seems in talking to the woman, the more 3. Is the paragraph complete?
unattractive and irritated his wife feels. The wife is Are there enough examples
jealous. For another example, picture a young and do they make the
computer programmer considered a genius, meaning of jealousy clear?
appreciated and praised by his co-workers and boss. Explain!
In comes a new programmer, who starts to share 4. If there are so “many
some of the attention and praise that were formerly
examples of jealousy” in
given to the first programmer. The first programmer
literature, why didn’t the
feels jealous. In all three cases, the people feel their
writer use them here?
relationships threatened by a rival: They feel jealous.
(Consider the audience)
5. Does the author use real
examples of hypothetical
ones? If hypothetical, are they
believable?
 Cause-Effect Consider!
An anthropological look for causes has led some 1. Is the topic sentence in the
experts to conclude that jealousy is biological—that it is normal position as first
instinctive behavior, in other words. A more interesting sentence? Which is the topic
approach might be to look at why some people are more
sentence?
jealous than others. In surveys, psychologists have
discovered three personality characteristics that the very 2. How many causes does the
jealous have in common. The first is insecurity in writer give? What are they?
relationships, stemming from low self-esteem. The jealous 3. How many causes different from
person does not see him- or herself as worthy of the love examples?
and attention of other person, perhaps. Another 4. Does the writer list all the causes
characteristic of the jealous person is a greater than normal of jealousy? Is the paragraph
discrepancy between how that person is and how he or she
complete?
would like to be. Looking at it another way, we could say
this person was quite dissatisfied with him- or herself. The 5. Not every paragraph has a
last characteristic is that the very jealous tend to see worldly conclusion, especially if it is part
items such as wealth, fame, popularity, and physical of a longer piece of writing. This
attractiveness as very important. These are, of course, paragraph has one. What is its
important to most people but not to the same degree that function? Would the paragraph
they are to the very jealous. That we might call these be as strong without it?
personality traits causes of jealousy is possible only because
 
those with the characteristics exhibit abnormal levels of
what is a normal human emotion, jealousy.
(Note: In one paragraph, it is difficult
to discuss both causes and
effects. As a writer, focus on one
or the other as the author of
paragraph 2 has done.)
 Definition Consider!
Although a subject of many songs and much 1. Is there a topic sentence that
literature, jealousy is not a topic that has a long life span in expresses the main idea of this
most daily conversations. What is this unmentionable paragraph? If so, what is it?
emotion that all people feel at times, many suffer agony 2. What definition does the writer
over, and some are led to crime by? Jealousy is the feeling of give of jealousy?
fear, unhappiness, or even ill will that arises when a person 3. To consider this paragraph one
feels that an important relationship with someone is of definition, we have to look
threatened. The negative feelings are a reaction to loss— the author’s purpose in writing
real, potential, or imagines—of someone important in our
it. Is the purpose to make
lives. Some psychologists believe that the origin of jealousy
jealousy clearer by giving
lies in biology, that is that jealousy is an instinctive response
examples of it, as in paragraph
in humans. Others see an economic basis for jealousy; there
1 in this exercise? What is the
is a limited amount of care a parent can give a child and a
writer’s purpose?
limited amount of emotional and sexual energy a spouse can
give a partner. A new child in the family or a lover intrudes
on these attentions. Still other theories exist to explain
jealousy, the emotion difficult to talk about because it
poisons the very relations that one wants to keep and
nurture.
 Comparison and Contrast Consider!
The term jealousy and envy are often used in 1. What is the topic sentence? Is
place of each other, but there is a basic distinction to the writer’s purpose to
be made between them. Envy is the feeling that we compare (show similarities) or
want to have something that we do not have. It could to contrast (show differences)?
be the neighbor’s car or the classmate’s high score on
2. What examples are used here?
a test. Jealousy, on the other hand, is the feeling or
thought that we might lose something (more usually
If this is a comparison/contrast
someone) that we already have. A jealous husband paragraph, why are there
fears he will lose his wife; a jealous child fears losing a examples?
parent’s love to a new sibling. If the distinction does 3. In what two ways are jealousy
not seem important, consider that society’s reaction to and envy different?
the two is very different. Western society accepts 4. There are two ways to
jealousy but rejects envy. Westerners sympathize with organize a
the jealous lover’s situation and may even secretly comparison/contrast
approve of the lover’s rash actions against a rival. paragraph: you can (1) discuss
However, pity the person who is envious of a
the items being compared
neighbor’s swimming pool. That person is covetous*
according to Western religious and cultural values and point by point with each other,
receives no sympathy. or (2) discuss one item
completely and then the
second item completely (often
in separate paragraphs). How
did this writer organize the
paragraph?
 Narrative Consider!
The first time I remember feeling jealous 1. Narration tells a story by
was many years ago when I was three or four. I carefully choosing details to
had been carefully choosing the right crayons to make a point. Does this
color pictures in a new coloring book on the floor in paragraph paint a picture of
the dining room. Satisfied that I had done a good jealousy that you understand?
job, I wanted to show my new masterpieces to my 2. Is there a topic sentence here?
mother, who was busy with morning chores in the If so, which sentence is it?
kitchen. My father, too, might like the pictures, but 3. Which detail (or sentence)
I thought he was sleeping. So into the kitchen I does not seem particularly
went carrying the new pictures. I found my mother relevant to the paragraph?
there, but to my dismay, she was not waiting to Can it be omitted? Why or why
“ooh” and “aah” at my artwork. Instead, she was in not?
the arms of my father, who was kissing her. My 4. A narrative is organized with
attempt to interrupt this nonsense was met by, the events in chronological
“We’re busy, can’t you see?” from my father. There
order, or the order in which
was no response from that woman—that woman
they happened. Without
who preferred him to me, that nonsense to my
looking at the paragraph, can
masterpieces. I ran to my room brokenhearted.
you retell the events of this
narrative paragraph in order?
 Description Consider!
John had no idea what to do about his 1. At first glance, this description
feelings. He was ashamed of himself for how he felt might seem like a narrative
when his wife spoke to another man, even the mail paragraph. How is it different
carrier or a clerk at the store. He could feel his from a narrative?
anger building, like a bomb about to explode. 2. There is no topic sentence in
Underneath the anger was an emptiness, a feeling this paragraph, but certainly
that perhaps there was nothing in him to love. Were there is a main idea. Write out
other men better looking than he was? Somehow the main idea in your own
more attractive to his wife? He couldn’t actually talk
words.
3. In description, details, “paint a
to her about it because she would think it was silly
picture” that convey the
for feeling jealous. More often, he would just turn
writer’s message.
away so that she couldn’t read the jealousy in his 4. Good descriptive details often
eyes. The one time he had confronted her with his appeal to the senses of sight,
feelings, she didn’t know what he was talking about. hearing, smell, and feeling.
And when she had found him snooping in her purse What details does this writer
(was he looking for a telltale note or some sign of use to describe a jealous
another lover?), her reaction was a soft sigh of person? Which ones appeal to
disbelief and then a look of confusion. Could he end the senses?
this agony before it ended his marriage? 5. Write a topic sentence for this
paragraph, one that leads the
reader to expect a description.
 Classification Consider!
Though the basic feelings involved in jealousy may be 1. On the surface a
the same no matter what the cause, it can be useful to look at the classification paragraph
different faces jealousy can wear. All cases of jealousy probably
fall into one of four categories. The first, the one that probably can seem like an
pops into most people’s minds when jealousy is brought up, is example paragraph.
sexual jealousy, the jealousy between husband and wife or What the differences are
between lovers. Another kind of jealousy, found within the family
unit, is jealousy among brothers and sisters. All children, with the
there between the two?
possible exception of the youngest, have probably felt this kind of 2. A good classification
sibling rivalry. Professional jealousy is yet another kind jealousy. should account for all
Her we are talking not only about the jealousy that can exist possible occurrences of
among employees in relation to their boss or coworkers but also
about the jealousy that often exists between athletes on the same the thing being
team or students in the same class. Last, and perhaps the least classified. Can you think
apparent to many people, is jealousy between friends, which of a type of jealousy that
develops when one friend feels threatened by another friend’s
other friendships. This kind of jealousy or possessiveness would does not fit into the four
even include a husband who feels jealous because much of his categories named
wife’s time and affection for him is now going to a new baby. That above? Can you think of
we even attempt to classify jealousy is not to imply that the a better way to classify
jealous feeling is different in people from one classification to
another. Rather, how a jealous person might try to deal with the jealousy?
jealousy is very likely influenced by its classification.