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BODY PARAGRAPHS
Strategies for Writing a Body Paragraph:
Link to the papers thesis
Offer a single, focused idea
Support that idea with multiple pieces of research
Begin with a topic sentence
Provide research with analysis
Conclude and transition to the next paragraph
Should effectively explain, prove, and support your
papers thesis statement

BODY PARAGRAPHS
Parts of a Body Paragraph:
- Topic sentence
- Examples/evidence
- Analysis
- Conclusion

BODY PARAGRAPHS
Topic Sentence:
- Should be led into by the previous paragraph
- Explains what is going on in the paragraph
- Strengthens the coherence and development of
your essay by connecting ideas to the thesis
- Should not include elements of research or
examples; these will come later
- May require several sentences of enhancement in
order to effectively introduce examples and
evidence; this will provide a deeper level of detail
than your topic sentence

BODY PARAGRAPHS
Examples/Evidence:
-

Expand on the topic sentence to introduce your evidence

Briefly contextualize your example by building up to it before you insert

the detail

Choosing appropriate quotes and examples is in itself a skill (poor

examples will lead to poor analysis)

Can be quotes, statistics, figures, facts, paraphrasing of source material,

summaries of source material, etc.

Readers should be able to move from your words to your evidence

without feeling a logical or mechanical jolt

When crediting a source, use words like asserts, believes, claims,

comments, confirms, declares, defines, describes, explains, indicates,
makes clear, proposes, etc. to introduce the quoted material. Always be
sure to use correct parenthetical citations when citing an outside source.

Unpack your evidence: explain what the quote means and why its
important to your essay. You should establish that you know what the
author is saying, or what the example means, to establish credibility as a
writer.

BODY PARAGRAPHS
Analysis:
- Extend and refine knowledge using inference,
comparison, and abstraction
- What does your example mean, what does it
infer, and what is its significance?
- How does this evidence prove the point you are
trying to make in this paragraph and/or your
paper as a whole?
- Connect your reasoning and support to your
thesis

BODY PARAGRAPHS
Conclusion:
- Summarizing main points of paragraph
- Apply knowledge meaningfully to offer
unique insights into subject matter
- Should reassert how your paragraph
contributes to the development of your
essay as whole, as well as how it
connects to your thesis
- Set up for the next paragraph

BODY PARAGRAPHS
Example:
While there is little doubt that extracurricular opportunities at UT are a positive
and critical component of students overall development, providing students
with time management skills is equally important. One only needs to look at
past alumni to see the validity of this claim. As famous alum George W. Bush
states, I sometimes overdid it when I was at UT, missing out on valuable
academic opportunities. Fortunately, I buckled down in my senior year and
managed to make a C average and things have worked out fine since (227). In
this example, George W. Bush is arguing that the detrimental effects of
extracurricular excesses can be rectified in the senior year of college. While
George W. Bush is certainly correct when he implies that it is never too late for
a student to try to raise his or her GPA, it is probably better for students to
attempt to balance academic and other activities early in their college career.
Also, Bush assumes that all students can achieve what they want with a C
average, but many students need higher GPAs in order to apply to professional
school, graduate school and for graduate-entry jobs. While extracurricular
activities are often a positive and critical component of student life at UT,
administrators should consider instigating a time management education and
awareness course for all incoming freshmen. After all, not every UT graduate
will be as lucky as George W. Bush; if our students are going to succeed in
business and higher education, we need to first ensure they understand the
importance of time management.