Topic Sentences??

[natalie.shaw]

Hi guys,

So when writing essays we have to follow the TEEAL structure for body paragraphs:
T-topic sentence
E-expand/explanation
E-examples
A-analysis
L- link sentence

If anyone has any help on how to start a topic sentence, that would be great.

Thank you

[GradReady]

No need to overthink a topic sentence too much. It should introduce the reader to the subject of that paragraph, and nothing more. For example, if your prompt is "Discuss the significance of tomatoes in Bolognese sauce", one topic sentence could be: "In addition to their unique flavour, tomatoes are predominantly responsible for the reddish colour for which Bolognese sauce is known."

There shouldn't be too much philosophical magic or nuance to a topic sentence. It's a compass that enables the reader to navigate the paragraph without too much mystery about its underlying point.

[meganrobyn]

Make sure that your topic sentence is not factual or objective, however. Your TS gives your reader the argument you will be making in that paragraph - ie the relevant point of interpretation you will be using evidence from the text to justify and support. If your TS is factual, you have nothing to prove in your paragraph, and it will probably just be descriptive, expository or 'telling the story'. Figure out what you want to convince your reader of (give it a slightly persuasive flavour), and then tell them that.