Now that your planning stage is complete, you can begin writing your draft. Your writing should be organized, developed, accurate, and original. As you draft, be careful to make sure you are not arguing for which topic is better; you are simply comparing them.
1 Exercise: Match supporting sentences to a topic sentence.
Use the topic sentences below to decide which paragraph supporting sentences A-E belong in.
Body Paragraph #1
Some Americans think that Chinese take-out and Mexican take-out food represent authentic food from China and Mexico.
Body Paragraph #2
Both Chinese take-out and Mexican take-out food are typically made with American ingredients instead of authentic ingredients and appeal to American consumers
- Authentic Mexican food frequently uses ingredients only found in Mexico rather than the substitutes used in Mexican take-out.
- Many Americans will tell you they’ve eaten real Chinese food, even though they have only gone to Panda Express in the U.S.
- Many Americans think fortune cookies are customary at the end of a meal in China, but they were actually created for Chinese take-out restaurants in America.
- Beef and Broccoli are both popular ingredients in many Chinese take-out restaurants because Americans like the taste, even though these ingredients are not very popular in a typical Chinese diet.
- Nachos, burritos, and hard shell tacos are all foods that many Americans think come from Mexico because they have eaten them in a “Mexican” restaurant in the U.S.
2 Exercise: Write a developed body paragraph.
Use the topic sentence to write a developed body paragraph on a piece of paper.
Learning grammar in your first language is very different from learning grammar in your second language.
3 Exercise: Analyze conclusion paragraphs.
As you draft your conclusion, review the information in chapter 1 about writing a good conclusion paragraph. Read these conclusion paragraphs. Which is most effective?
- Even though they started out as the same country, now there are clear differences between South Korea and North Korea in politics, economy, and language. First, the two countries have different politics. For example, people in South Korea can vote for their leaders, but people in North Korea don’t. They each have different economic systems because South Korea is capitalist and North Korea is communist. Finally, the language is different because they have distinct vocabulary. It is clear that much more than a physical border separates these two countries from each other.
- Even though they started out as the same country, now there are clear differences between South Korea and North Korea in politics, economy, and language. These differences are evident in the election of their leaders, their economic systems, and the different vocabulary words that have developed. People need to be aware of these differences because it helps them to appreciate and understand news about Korea or the Korean people they meet. It is clear that much more than a physical border separates these two countries from each other.
- Even though they started out as the same country, now there are clear differences between South Korea and North Korea in politics, economy, and language. Many people that live in other parts of the world may be unaware of the major differences between these countries and think that they are the same. It is clear that much more than a physical border separates these two countries from each other.