Body Paragraph Development

Structuring Your Body Paragraphs



If you look at the Scrabble word above, you may think, "Hmph, not many points for such a long WORD. Look at all of those one-point letters." Sometimes in life, things are not always what they seem, though. This is actually an excellently structured word to get the maximum points for so many one-point tiles.
Each of those one-point letters is connected to the beginning letter (worth 4 points), and a closing letter (worth 2 points). Those are good numbers. However, the most important part of putting down this word is not each of the individual letters themselves. It is their POWER when put together. Together, they are a 7-letter word. From the Official Scrabble Rules manual, we learn that "Exciting rewards can come when players use all seven tiles to create a word on the board. When this happens, players will receive a 50-point bonus, in addition to the value of the word (Scrabble Pages)". Wow! All of those one-point letters connected just right to a 4-point tile and a 2-point tile can lead to a 50-point BONUS. The word WRITING is worth 61 points! See what a little planning can do?
The same structure can result in a well-structured and developed body paragraph for your essay.  
Think of this Scrabble WORD like a basic paragraph.  
  1. It starts off really strong (4 points) with a clear topic sentence.  
  2. There are 5 sentences that follow, all staying on the same topic, and all adding one-by-one to the overall point through clearly laid-out details.  
  3. Then, the paragraph ends with a brief wrap-up sentence that reflects back to the topic sentence (worth 2 points).  
Altogether, these sentences might not seem like much; however, once put together, these seven sentences create a BONUS! They create a well-organized, properly developed paragraph that is easy for the audience to follow.  That is the goal of every body paragraph in your academic writing.
The BONUS = 
a well-crafted, organized, and developed paragraph.

W tile = Topic sentence
R.I.T.I.N tiles = detail, explanation, and supporting sentences
G tile = Closing Sentence
_____________________________________
This equals a well-developed paragraph!  BONUS!


What goes into a body paragraph?  
When thinking about the body paragraphs of any writing, keep these ideas in mind:
  • The purpose of the body paragraph is to assert or explain.  This means that the meat of your writing goes there. Do not start making your argument in the introduction. Save the full details for the body paragraphs. 
  • Each body paragraph is a unique, small nugget of information focused on one concept.  This means that you could read any of the body paragraphs and learn about one idea as it follows a prescribed flow.
  • The first sentence of a body paragraph is the topic sentence.  It must directly relate to the thesis, and it must assert the viewpoint that will be the focus of the paragraph.  If you read your paragraph and go back to the topic sentence, the topic sentence should clearly present an overview of what was expressed in the details sentences. If it doesn't, then add a new sentence to the very beginning of the paragraph that does this.
  • It is easiest to think of body paragraphs as mini-essays.  They have 3 parts: topic sentence, details, and closing sentence.
  • Body paragraphs will be a minimum of 5 sentences, so you will have at least 3 sentences of development in the 'detail' section of the paragraph.
  • Body paragraphs will never have any questions in them.  Your goal is to present information.  Do not ask the audience questions.
  • If sources are used to lend credibility or support to your ideas, you must not 'drop' the quotes from the sky. You must lead into a quote with transitional content and an introduction to the source the information came from.  You must also end the sentence with the in-text citation followed by the end punctuation. See THIS handout.
  • Unless your assignment clearly says you can use 1st-person-voice, you must stay in 3rd-person-voice.
Minimum Content:

  • TOPIC SENTENCE (one sentence)
  • DETAILS (multiple sentences--3 minimum)
  • WRAP-UP THE PARAGRAPH BY REFLECTING (one sentence)




What is the official structure of a body paragraph?  
For an argument paper, the main thing to keep in mind is that most of the body paragraphs will be your words, assertions, and beliefs.  This content must remain in 3rd person voice, but it is still your opinion, your argument.  Do not use personal stories to argue your viewpoint unless you can stay professional and in 3rd person voice.
Understanding that your view dominates an argument's body paragraph is the first step in knowing how to structure your body paragraphs.  The second comes in the form of logical order.  See the chart and the attached handout posted below to help you more in this area.  Consider this organizational pattern a typical body-paragraph structure though.
The basics for a body-paragraph structure (1-2 sources):
  • TOPIC SENTENCE (one sentence)
  • PERSONAL ARGUMENT DEVELOPMENT (multiple sentences)
  • SOURCE MATERIAL TO DEFEND THE POINT OF THE PARAGRAPH (one sentence, maybe two)
  • EXPLAIN & ELABORATE THE IMPORTANCE OF THE SOURCE (multiple sentences)
  • WRAP-UP THE PARAGRAPH ARGUMENT (one sentence)


A full body-paragraph structure for writing with more than 2 sources:
  • TOPIC SENTENCE (one sentence)
  • PERSONAL ARGUMENT DEVELOPMENT (multiple sentences)
  • SOURCE MATERIAL TO DEFEND THE POINT OF THE PARAGRAPH (one sentence, maybe two)
  • EXPLAIN & ELABORATE THE IMPORTANCE OF THE SOURCE (multiple sentences)
  • SOURCE MATERIAL TO DEFEND THE POINT OF THE PARAGRAPH (one sentence, maybe two)
  • EXPLAIN & ELABORATE THE IMPORTANCE OF THE SOURCE (multiple sentences)
  • WRAP-UP THE PARAGRAPH ARGUMENT (one sentence)





The quote from the Scrabble rules book comes from https://scrabblepages.com/scrabble/rules/

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