TEACHING ESSAY WRITING USING COLOUR CODES

WRITING THE ESSAY

As a writing teacher, I personally feel it is easier to teach developmental paragraphs first.

 STAGE 1- DEVELOPMENTAL PARAGRAPHS

THE TOPIC SENTENCE:

·         Usually (not always-but for beginner-best to make it a rule ) is the first sentence of the paragraph.

·         It is a sentence that tells the reader “afterwards the paragraph will be about this!”

·         However, if the topic sentence merely announces the topic  (in the example- the topic is “ALIKE”) then the whole paragraph can go non-stop about ALL the similarities. So it is convenient to mention in the topic sentence the controlling ideas (sometimes one, sometimes two or even three).

·         Then the paragraph should be expanded according to the order the controlling appears in the topic sentence for flow of thought from the reader.

·         It is convenient for the reader to see the paragraph comes to an end with  a reminder as to what the paragraph covered-“oh, that was what the paragraph was about!”

Edward and Jacob are alike because both are non human and brave. Jacob is a wolf and Edward is a vampire. Although they are non-human,  they look like  human and they can change their identity if they want. Both of them are alsobrave. They protect Bella to make sure Bella is safe. The scenes showing Jacob’s and Edward’s fighting  clearly depict their strength and abilities. They have one similar mission-they do not want Bella to die. So, both characters have similar characteristics.

STAGE 2

THE INTRODUCTORY PARAGRAPH

·         The last sentence (although not always), can be a sentence that the reader says “oh, the whole essay will be about this!”-and this sentence is called the THESIS STATEMENT.

·         The first few sentences of the introductory paragraph should talk about the broad areas leading to the main points in the thesis sentence.

Movies that can attract viewer are those that tell about adventure, mystery, tragedy and love. Movies like ‘Twilight,’ ‘New Moon’, ‘Eclipse’ all centre around love and sacrifice ‘Twilight Saga’. ‘Breaking Dawn Part One’ is an interesting movie that shows the life of a group of vampires and werewolves. Edward and Jacob are two main characters in “Breaking Dawn”. Edward and Jacob are alike in many ways; however, they are also different in certain ways.

STAGE 3

THE CONCLUDING PARAGRAPH

·         The paragraph begins with a sentence (preferably the first sentence) that says “can you remember, that was what the paragraph was about!”

·         It is also wise to start with the last point-first. This means the last main point in the developmental paragraph is mentioned first because the readers have just stopped reading that last developmental point.

·         The remainder sentences wraps up the development points, with extra input from the writer’s stand towards the points in the developmental paragraphs.

·         The last few sentences talks about the title in general.

In conclusion, both Edward and Jacob can be different in characters, however; they are also alike in many ways. The story is interesting with the combination of different characters. The characters of vampire who is patient and loyal to his clan compared to the werewolf who is bad tempered and rebels against his clan. These contrasting cahracteristics make the movie different from others. However, they have alike characters that make many people love to watch. Both of them are non human. They are also and brave and they protect Bella. Lastly, this movie is considered interesting because the audience get to peep into the lives of vampires and werewolves and watch the sacrifice shown by Edward and Jacob for Bella.