Writing Skills 1
Paragraph Analysis
Writing Skills 1
• Paragraph Analysis: The following paragraphs have been taken from blogs. They are in public domain and have
been written by actual people who want to communicate a certain idea or convey a message to actual readers.
Please analyze them; try to understand which sentences are topic sentences, which are major ideas, which are minor ideas and finally which are conclusive statements.
One or more of these components might be missing.
Reflect on how you are effected as a reader in cases of missing components.
• Good Luck
Writing Skills 1
• The list of nutrients that appear on the food label has been updated. Vitamin D and potassium will
now be required; vitamins A and C will no longer be required, since deficiencies of these vitamins are
rare today. Calcium and iron will continue to be required. Manufacturers must declare the actual amount, in addition to percent daily value, of
vitamin D, calcium, iron, and potassium. In the old
food label, manufacturers only needed to include
percent daily value of these nutrients.
Writing Skills 1
Daily values are reference amount of nutrients to
consume or not to exceed, and are used to calculate the daily value percentages on the label. This can
help the consumer use the nutrition information in the context of a total daily diet. They are based on 2,000 calories, which is a reference number of
calories for general advice. Individuals may need less
or more than 2,000 calories per day depending upon
their specific needs.
Writing Skills 1
• Parents sometimes use phrases like “be smart” or
“make good decisions,” though these terms may have very different meanings to different people.
For example, a parent who says, “Be smart!” may think he is asking his child not to drink, while the child may interpret the instructions as, “Don’t drink enough to black out.” So, be specific. If you mean,
“You can go out with your friends as long as you can
assure me you will not use marijuana,” then say it
that way.
Writing Skills 1
• As adults we very much want to impart as much wisdom as we can to help young people avoid the same mistakes that we made. But, it is probably more useful to draw out their innate curiosity and encourage them to seek out answers on their own. Consider beginning by asking a question like, “Tell me, what do you know about marijuana?” Teens who feel like their point of view is valued may be more willing to engage in a conversation. In response to what your child says, use nonjudgmental reflective statements to make sure she feels listened to, then follow up with a question. For example: “So you’ve heard that marijuana is pretty safe because it is natural. Do you think that is correct?” You don’t need to agree with everything your teen says; you just need to make it clear you are listening. For more guidance on active listening skills, see
this resource from The Center for Parenting Education.
Writing Skills 1
• Much of the underlying vulnerability to developing substance use disorders is passed down genetically. Exposure to substance use in the home is also a major risk factor. Both may affect children with a first- or second-degree relative (like a parent, grandparent, aunt, or uncle) with a substance use disorder. While we know from studies that the genetic heritability of addiction is strong, it is also complex, passed on through a series of genes and generally not limited to a
single substance. In other words, children who have a relative with an
opioid use disorder may themselves develop a cannabis or sedative
use disorder. Honest conversations about unhealthy substance use,
addiction, and the family risk of substance use disorders can help
provide teens a good, solid reason for making the smart decision not
to start using in the first place.
Writing Skills 1
• Despite the fact that number of hours of sleep, when averaged, may approach the seven to nine hours per night recommended by most professional societies, the “average” can hide some truths. The daily
amount, quality, and regularity of bed/wake time all seem to matter too. A recent paper in Current Biology shows that our sleep is not very forgiving of being moved around to more convenient times. Researchers found that subjects who cut their sleep down by five hours during the week, but made up for it on the weekend with extra sleep, still paid a cost. That cost
included measurable differences: excess calorie intake after dinner,
reduced energy expenditure, increased weight, and detrimental changes in how the body uses insulin. Although sleep debt was resolved on paper, the weekend catch-up subjects had similar results (though there were some differences) to those who remained sleep-deprived across a weekend without catch-up sleep.
Writing Skills 1
• First, sleep deprivation, even if only during the workweek, likely has real health consequences. Sleep is often an overlooked factor when
considering chronic disease risk, including
hypertension, diabetes, heart disease, and even death. There’s ample
data, including a recent review in Sleep Medicine, suggesting that too little sleep is a risk factor for these conditions, as well as obesity.
Unfortunately, this new study suggests that extending sleep on the weekend doesn’t seem to undo the impact of short sleep. Second, whether the health impact is due to the decreased sleep alone, or
additionally due to changes in timing of sleep on the weekend — an at- home “jet lag” — is unknown. The impact of essentially jumping time zones by staying up later and sleeping later on weekends, may add to the problem. Other behaviors, such as eating or drinking later on weekends, also confuse the body’s rhythm.
