Paragraph Development

As long as you need it to be. A paragraph is just a series of sentences about one topic, so as long as you have given enough information about that topic, then you have used the correct number of sentences.

There is no magic formula that states "X words = 1 paragraph" or "X sentences = 1 paragraph."

• Just start writing as if you were telling the information to a friend or explaining it to someone who has never heard of it before. Keep writing until you have explained everything or talked about all of your points.
• One note: it is almost impossible to properly explain anything in less than three sentences, so all of your paragraphs will likely be over three sentences. Also, sometimes a teacher will assign a certain number of sentences for you.
• You cannot measure a good paragraph by how many words it has. A paragraph does not have any set number of words - use as many as you need in order to explain whatever you are explaining, then change to a new paragraph. Instead of trying to figure out how many words you have written, concentrate on whether or not you have explained your subject well enough - pretend you are teaching someone else, and they will have to take a quiz, and explain it well enough so that they can pass.There is absolutely no definitive answer to your question. Note that the question you asked is itself a paragraph. As of course is this answer. A paragraph should convey a complete idea. A paragraph can be as litte as one word. Consider what paragraph you would write if asked if your name was John Jacob Jingleheimer Schmidt. You would simply write, "No."
• Don't get too hung up on paragraph construction though; paragraphs are a relatively modern addition to language and they do very little to change the meaning of the thoughts you are trying to convey.
• As long as it needs to be. There is no special formula for how many sentences to put into a paragraph. You begin your paragraph, you tell what you need to tell, and you end the paragraph. And you use as many sentences as you need. In general, however, it should be mentioned that you usually need more than one sentence to explain something, so paragraphs do have more than one sentence. And sometimes your teacher will assign a specific number of sentences for you to write. A paragraph usually deals with only one idea. It may help to think of the break between paragraphs as a signal from the writer to stop and be sure you understand what you just read.

It is a technique to structure your paragraphs.

To use inductive order, start your paragraph with a specific detail that immediately engages the reader. Following the first sentence, include several sentences that present further ideas. Every sentence that you write up to this point includes details that back up the topic sentence of the paragraph. The topic sentence acts as the concluding sentence that presents that main theme of the paragraph. Although inductive order isn't used as often as deductive order, it is an effective technique if you want to entice the reader into reading more.

The other technique is called deductive order.

One way to act in a professional manner is to do your own work and not try to get someone to write it for you.

WikiAnswers will not write your paragraph for you, but we WILL help you learn how to do it yourself! Click on the Related Questions for even more information.

Write sentences the way you speak - just pretend you are telling this to a friend, and write down what you would say. What would you tell them about this topic? What does this phrase mean to you? What examples can you give to your friend about acting in a professional manner?

If you just start writing, you will be through with your assignment before you know it!