Akademické písanie

Here are the general characteristics of a well written paragraph:

• A paragraph develops one main idea.
• This main idea is identified in a clear topic sentence.
• The following sentences develop and support this idea clearly.
• Transition words and other transition devices aid in identifying the information and leading the reader through the information presented.
• A concluding sentence sums up the points made, and can often lead to the next paragraph in a paper.

Most paragraphs should be from three to ten sentences long, or approximately five to fifteen lines.However, this varies depending on the topic and scope of the information.

The topic sentence should guide the content of a paragraph. It has two parts: it tells the reader not only whatsubject the paragraph will cover, but also what the reason for or focus of theinformation will be — the main idea.

To develop the main idea, you need to give supporting evidence, almost like a lawyer at a trial. To prove the point being made, a writer can add examples, comparisons, explanations, facts and statistics, causes and effects, and other comments which prove the point. In research papers, quotes and/or paraphrases of information from sources are the bulk of the evidence presented.

The supporting evidence in your paper needs to belinkedto the information before and after it; these links indicate to the reader what kind of information you are presenting and why.There are several ways to add coherence to a paper.The simplest one is transition words which are often added at the beginning of a sentence, but can be added in the middle or at the end too. These words indicate to the reader what kind of information is in the sentence, making logical connections to the information before and after it.