Using Transitions in Your Writing

1. Using Transitions in Your Writing Language Arts Mrs. Joines and Mrs. Beresford

2. Transitions are… • sentences that build a bridge, or create a logical connection, between ideas in a way that both reads smoothly and makes sense.

4. Here is a bad example… My sister and I have several things in common. We like soup. We like the movies. We like horses. We get along well.

5. Let’s discuss shall we? THINK!! Aside from being incredibly boring, what was something else that was wrong with that paragraph?

6. Now let’s try and fix it!

7. A better paragraph… My sister and I have several things in common. First, we like soup. We both also like the movies. A third thing we have in common is that we both like horses. Because we have these things in common, we get along well.

8. Another bad example… In the story “Duffy’s Jacket” , by Bruce Coville, Duffy is a forgetful person. “’Your glasses, Duffy,’ or ‘Your coat, Duffy,’” (Coville pg. 7). The narrator always feels responsible for reminding Duffy not to forget his things. Most of the time, he forgets really important items. Duffy even forgets something that gets the kids into some trouble. “When we got back Duffy didn’t have his jacket…” (pg. 9). The children are frightened when an unknown figure tries to return Duffy’s jacket. You might even say he was “scared straight”! This incident taught Duffy that remembering things is the responsible thing to do. It taught him it is essential for survival!

9. How can we make this better?

10. In the story Duffy’s Jacket , by Bruce Coville, Duffy is a forgetful person. For example, the narrator explains, that the family is always having to remind Duffy about things by saying, “’Your glasses, Duffy,’ or ‘Your coat, Duffy,’” (Coville pg. 7). The narrator always feels responsible for reminding Duffy not to forget anything. Most of the time, he forgets really important items. Duffy even forgets something that gets the kids into some trouble. For instance, Andrew tells, “When we got back Duffy didn’t have his jacket…” (pg. 9). The children are frightened when an unknown figure tries to return Duffy’s jacket. You might even say he was “scared straight”! This incident taught Duffy that not only is remembering your things the responsible thing to do, but it alsotaught him it is essential for survival!

11. Now you try!!