Page 35 - ENGLISH FOR CONSTITUTIONAL LAW

The Supporting Sentences

The supporting sentences discuss or clarify the topic sentences. These more in-depth
concepts come after the main sentence. Considering the reader's potential question to your
topic sentence is a good way to construct your logical supporting sentences.

Parts in a Paragraph Outline Ideas
Topic sentence Young people should not live in their parent’s
house after college graduation.
Question: Why not?
Supporting Sentence 1 Practice independence in daily life.
Details 1 cooking, cleaning, money, my struggles to be
mature
Supporting Sentence 2 experience the real meaning of life
Details 2 make decisions, take risks, manage time, my
involvement in community service
Supporting Sentence 3 learn to appreciate parents
Details 3 their teaching, their love, giving them time to
rest, joy in visiting my parents

Various kinds of supporting sentences

Good supporting sentences incorporate interesting elements like:

Facts – numbers, universal, and scientific truths – also elaborate on the main topic.
Reasons – logical explanation.
Expert comments, research results, statements from scholars.
Examples include a story about a famous person, anecdotes about your own life,
and personal quotes.

The Concluding Sentence

The concluding sentences may be found in the last sentence of a paragraph. It can finish
a paragraph by repeating the main idea or just giving a final comment about the topic.

Exercise 4. Read the following topic sentences. Identify the topic, controlling idea, and
predictors.

Example:

I miss my high school life for three reasons: friends, sports, and time for myself.

Topic: my high school life.

Controlling idea: miss for three reasons

Predictors: friends, sports, time for myself

1 Students in college benefit from taking online classes in three important ways.
.
.
2 Before becoming independent in 1960, Nigeria adopted a few laws from its colonial
overlords.

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