Review of Topic Sentences and Concluding Sentences

Topic Sentences and Concluding Sentences

What is a topic sentence?

• A topic sentence identifies (and introduces) a topic.
• It is usually the first sentence or near the beginning of the paragraph.
• It tells what your paragraph is about.
• It is general; it doesn’t give details.
• It has general introduction words, such as: several things, some important things, a number of reasons.
• It has nouns, not pronouns.

What is a concluding sentence?

• A concluding sentence ends (and sums up) a topic.
• It is usually the last sentence in a paragraph.
• It tells what the paragraph was about.
• It is general; it doesn’t give details.
• It has summarynoun phrases,such as:thisinformation, these ideas, those reasons.
  OR

It has summary adjectives, such as: important, difficult, excellent.

• The conclusion is almost like the topic. It has many of the same words as the topic sentence.

Example Topic Sentences: [from October Sky]

Topic 1: Something happened at the coal mine.

Topic 2: Homer did several things to help his family.

Topic 3: Homer learned some things about working in a coal mine.

Example Concluding Sentences: [from October Sky]

Conclusion 1: These terrible things happened at the coal mine.

Conclusion 2: Homer did these things to help his family.

Conclusion 3: From this experience, Homer learned about the difficult work in the coal mine.

Example Topic Sentences: [from Pollock]

Topic 1: Several things happened in Pollock’s life.

Topic 2: Lee Krasner was important in several ways.

Topic 3: We learned some things about Sande Pollock.

Example Concluding Sentences: [from Pollock]

Topic 1: These important things happened in Pollock’s life.

Topic 2: In all of those ways, Lee Krasner was a very important person.

Topic 3: We learned this information about Sande Pollock.

Example Topic Sentences: [from NCW 3]

Topic 1: In NCW part 3, Tyler learned some important things about life in the Arctic.

Topic 2: In NCW part 3, Tyler and the wolves began to do some of the same activities.

Example Concluding Sentences: [from NCW 3]

Topic 1: Tyler learned to keep warm and to make a safe shelter in the Arctic.

(IMPORTANT: This conclusion only works if your paragraph told about – how he kept warm and how he lived in his camp.)

Topic 2: Tyler and the wolves marked their own areas and ate the same food.

(IMPORTANT: This conclusion only works if your paragraph told about – how Tyler and the wolf both urinated to mark their territory and both ate mice.)