OVERVIEW

On this page, you will learn how to organize your ideas with an outline.

First, read the text and listen to audio of the text.
Then, study the example outline.

READ & LISTEN

Organizing ideas on a posterboard

Image by mist6ss, CC BY SA 2.0

Read:

When you want to write a paragraph, first you need to think about your ideas. Then, you need to organize your ideas. Finally, you can write sentences to explain your ideas.

A paragraph is a group of sentences about the same main idea. Look at your writing assignment again:

Write one (1) paragraph about stress. Write about one (1) cause of stress in your life, an effect in your life, and how you cope with this stressor. Type your paragraph in a Microsoft Word document. You will present your writing to a small group.

A paragraph has three (3) parts:

Introduction (also called topic sentence) -- What is this paragraph about?
Body (details and examples) -- What do you want people to know?
Conclusion -- Tell people the main idea again; this is not new information.

Listen:

Read:

You can organize your ideas by using an outline. An outline is a plan for your writing. To make an outline for this assignment, follow the Writing Assignment Checklist.

Write one sentence (or more) on each line of this outline to make a good paragraph.

Sample outline:

Paragraph

Topic: __________________________________________________
Body:

Cause: ______________________________________________

Effect: ______________________________________________

How to cope: _____________________________________

Conclusion: _____________________________________________

Your teacher gave you a copy of the Writing Outline handout in class.

Listen: