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Watch: What is a paragraph?

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Paragraphs are a collection of sentences.

They are used in writing to introduce new sections of a story, characters or pieces of information.

Paragraphs help readers to enjoy what has been written because they break text up into easy-to-read sections.

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Find out how paragraphs can be used to improve speeches

In a piece of writing, such as a thank you letter, paragraphs can be used to separate:

  • the introduction

  • the different reasons why you are thankful

  • concluding statements

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Rules for paragraphs

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Follow these rules for perfect paragraphs.

  • All the sentences within a paragraph should be about the same person, place, time or topic.

  • When the person, place, time or topic changes, you should start a new paragraph.

  • Every new paragraph should start on a new line.

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Activity 1

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Activity 2

Using the Little Red Riding Hood sheet, read the paragraphs carefully.

They have been muddled up and you will need to write down the order they should go in.

You can check your answers with this

Little Red Riding Hood
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Activity 3

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You are going to write a report about what happens to plants and trees through the seasons.

You will base your report on the video below which shows what happens throughout a year. The clip goes through spring, summer, autumn and winter.

First you will plan what you are going to write by making notes as you watch the video.

Get a piece of paper and split it into four sections. Write spring, summer, autumn and winter at the top of each box.

Watch the video and write notes in each box about what you can see is happening in each season.

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See what happens to different landscapes through the four seasons

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Top tip!

  • You can watch the video as many times as you need to. You can pause the video to give you time to write.

  • Remember, in spring the flowers start to bloom, summer all the flowers are out, autumn the leaves turn brown and winter gets colder. This will help you spot each season in the video.

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Activity 4

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Now you are now going to write your report using your notes from Activity 2.

Your report needs:

  • a clear title

  • an introduction paragraph - to introduce what you will be writing about

  • four main paragraphs - you need to decide what each paragraph will be about

  • a conclusion paragraph - to sum up what you have found

It is important that your paragraphs show cohesion. This means that they flow nicely from each other. They are not just four separate chunks of writing.

To achieve this you can start the first sentence of each paragraph using a conjunction that links back to the previous paragraph.

For example: after, after that, next, following on, as time passes

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