Introduction to English Writing Lesson

Types of Compositions

There are four (4) basic types of compositions (paragraphs and essays) written in academia and life:

TYPES	CHARACTERISTICS
1.  Narrative	§  Tells a story of a person who overcomes a problem.
2.  Descriptive	§  Describes a person, place, thing or event appealing mostly to the senses.
3.  Persuasive	§  Convinces readers with a strong argument to accept a held opinion.
4.  Expository	§  Informs readers through explanation.

Organisational Patterns

Organisational patterns in writing are used to arrange and develop ideas for compositions.

þ  We use these 4 to arrange the ideas in all 4 types of compositions:

Types	Definition	Examples
Chronological	Narration: order that presents events as they happen in time. Use wherever time and sequence are important,	Story, narrative poem, explanation of process, bibliography, history
Spatial	Description: order that describes objects according to location. Use when it’s necessary to describe physical reality and spatial relationships between persons, things or parts of things.	Descriptions (near to far, back to front, left to right, top to bottom)
Importance	Evaluation: order that gives details from least to most important or reverse.	Persuasion, description, evaluation
Logical/Expository	Classification: order that relates items and group	Definitions, etc.

þ  These 7 are an extension of the logical/expository order used to develop paragraphs for persuasive and expository compositions:

1.       Cause and effect

2.       Classification

3.       Definition

4.       Comparison  and contrast

5.       Process

6.       Illustration

7.       Problem-solution

Paragraph Review

What a PARAGRAPH?

A paragraph includes several sentences that support the single thought expressed in the topic sentence.

                           

What MAKES UP the Paragraph?

The paragraph is like a sandwich that has three distinct yet collaborating elements:

                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                    

 What makes a paragraph a paragraph?

A paragraph is so classified because of 3 characteristics. Without them your writing would fail to be a sensible or acceptable paragraph.

Characteristic	Definition	Example
Unity	This means that only One idea is treated at a time. When unity is maintained, the reader is not distracted by irrelevant details.	If paragraph is about the sweetness of love, then a sentence about the pains of love will destroy unity.
Coherence	This is the logical and consistent arrangement of ideas which ensures that details flow seamlessly from one to the other.	Use synonyms and transitions to connect ideas
Adequate development	This means that sufficient details are provided about the main idea so that reader clearly understands what you are writing about.	Give sufficient details through elaborating sentences.