Revising Checklist
When you revise, you look closely at five basic elements of your paragraph, listed in the following checklist:
TOPIC SENTENCE
• Does the topic sentence convey the paragraph’s controlling idea?
• Does the topic sentence appear as the first or last sentence of the paragraph?
DEVELOPMENT
• Does the paragraph contain specific details that support the topic sentence?
• Does the paragraph include enough details to explain the topic sentence fully?
UNITY
• Do all the sentences in the paragraph support the topic sentence?
ORGANIZATION
• Is the paragraph organized logically?
COHERENCE
• Do the sentences move smoothly and logically from one sentence to the next?
Revising the Topic Sentence and Supporting Details
Every paragraph has a topic sentence that states its controlling idea. The topic sentence gives direction to the rest of the paragraph. It consists of both a limited topic and a statement about that topic. Generally, the topic sentence is the first sentence in a paragraph, but occasionally it is the last sentence, as in particular-to-general organization. Details are the building blocks that you add to construct a paragraph. The details in your paragraph should be as specific as possible, and you should provide enough details to support your topic sentence. You should use concrete words in the