For example, if you had an assignment to develop a topic sentence for a process paragraph where you need to outline the steps in the rock cycle, the topic sentence might look something like this: There are three steps in the rock cycle—igneous, sedimentary, and metamorphic.
Step 1. Decide on a controlling idea and create a topic sentence. Paragraph development begins with the formulation of the controlling idea. This idea directs the paragraph's development. Often, the controlling idea of a paragraph will appear in the form of a topic sentence.
I. Double underline the topic and underline the controlling idea in each of the following topic sentence. 1. College students take many kinds of tests. 2. Good roommates have four characteristics. 3. Small cars have several advantages. 4. A baseball player must master several skills. For example, one of the most common patterns in academic writing is outlined below. Topic sentence. A topic sentence introduces the main point of the paragraph. It should contain a main idea and a controlling idea which support the thesis statement and unify the content of the paragraph.

In the topic sentences provided in the other examples on the previous page, the controlling ideas are: The subjection of children to forced labour through trafficking has age and gender dimensions. The ILO alone cannot respond to all the recommendations of the Commission's report.

Every topic sentence has two parts: a topic (what the paragraph is about) and a controlling idea (the direction the paragraph will take). Take a look at these topic sentence examples in which the topic is bold and the controlling idea is in italics. For this activity, do the following: Select the word or phrase that reveals the controlling idea of the paragraph. This controlling idea will be part of the topic sentence. Click on the Show Solutions link to check your answers. Example 1.
The example topic sentence suggests the paragraph topic is "the economy," and the controlling idea about the economy is how it "plays a role in an increase" in opioid addition. The signal word "also" connects this topic as an additional example or contributing factor to the opioid epidemic, the focus of the paper.
A good topic sentence contains both a topic and a controlling idea or opinion. Weak example. In this paragraph, I am going to discuss the rising suicide rate among young professionals. (This topic sentence provides a main idea, but it does not present a controlling idea.) Stronger example. .
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  • topic sentence and controlling idea examples