essay patterns of organization

Writing based on Texts

Structuring support: patterns of organization.

Some basic patterns—and ways of ordering support in an essay—include the following:

You often think in terms of pros and cons when you analyze the merits or characteristics of a thing, person, or idea (e.g., buying a new refrigerator, whom to vote for, whether you’re in favor of or against an increase in school taxes). An essay using a pro/con structure does not necessarily just have two topic sentences, one for pro and one for con. Instead, you may need to structure multiple pro/con topic sentences and units of support to fit your needs. You may want to present pros and cons equally, with multiple topic sentences and units of support for each side. You may opt to focus more fully on either pros or cons, and so would have many topic sentences for the side you emphasize. You may want to address particular points and alternate between pros and cons. Organize your topic sentences and units of support in a way that makes sense given your thesis and purpose.

Problem/Solution

Articulating a problem and offering a solution/s is also a common human thought process (e.g., how to keep the deer from eating out of your garden, how to juggle working from home and homeschooling your children during a pandemic). An essay using a problem/solution pattern usually starts with a topic sentence and unit of support that presents the problem. Then there may be many topic sentences and units of support that analyze and evaluate different possible solutions or that present many aspects of one overall solution.

An essay using a process pattern is often straightforward, as it usually presents a series of steps in chronological order. However, a college essay that uses a process pattern needs to offer more than a list of steps. College writing about a process needs to make a point about that process (e.g., Baking bread, while relatively simple, still involves a number of complexities, variables, and just plain things that can go wrong.). And each topic sentence needs to make a point about that portion of the process. Ideally, a college essay that uses process analysis should emphasize “analysis” as well as “process” by explaining the importance of the steps, their relationship to one another, and/or their use in solving a problem. Process analysis in college essays, while using a relatively simple organizational structure, should involve some depth of thought.

Comparison and Contrast

Comparison and contrast is a thought process that you most likely have gone through many times (e.g., how do these two makes of car compare? which dessert is the best to bring to the party? how can my two children be so different?) In college writing, you may be asked to compare or contrast two theories, concepts, approaches, etc. in order to show similarities or differences and evaluate each. Note the repetition of the word “two.” Comparison and contrast pattern evaluates two things against one another. Also note the repetition of the word “evaluate.” As you compare and contrast, you’ll be expected not only to describe the characteristics of the two things, theories, concepts, or approaches, but also to offer some assessment or analysis, as part of your thesis’ and topic sentences’ angles and supporting evidence.

There are two different, equally useful, organizational patterns for comparison and contrast:

Side by side – Offer all of the information for one thing first before moving to the second. However, within each side, structure the points of comparison/contrast in the same order. With side by side structure, you may end up with only two topic sentences, or you may end up with general topic sentences to introduce each side, and then a series of more specific topic sentences for each point.
Point by point – Deal with each point of the comparison/contrast in an order that makes sense given the two things being compared. However, under each point, the same side always needs to come first.

Chart showing hierarchy; Top element=Thesis; branching from Thesis are "Side 1 Topic Sentence" and "Side 2 Topic Sentence"; branching from each side's topic sentence are "Point 1," "Point 2" and "Point 3"

Division and Classification

When you divide and classify, you break something down into its component parts, offering an insight or analysis into the thing you’re breaking down. You actually use division and classification thinking a lot, perhaps without realizing it (e.g., different personality types of the people you know, different types of cars, different types of activities for your children). Remember that when using this pattern of organization, you still have to create a thesis sentence that offers an analytical insight (e.g., Of all the sixteen personality types that Myers-Briggs identify, the ___ type is the best to hire in a ___ type of job, for a number of reasons.) Your then have topic sentences and units of support for each group or class. The topic sentences themselves should have angles that relate back to the main angle in the thesis.

Cause and Effect

Cause and effect is just what it says. Writing about causes and effects deals with identifying “reasons why” and/or “results.” The important thing to remember is that this pattern calls for logical inference in dealing with causes, and logical probabilities in explaining effects. Don’t fall into a logical fallacy by assuming simple and/or incorrect causation. Instead, make sure that you link causes and effects carefully, considering both evidence and probability. As usual, your thesis, topic sentences, and units of support should show some complexity and offer insights into causes and/or effects, insights which you developed based on your reading.

View the following video for a good summary of patterns of organization. Toward the end, the video includes five sample paragraphs so that you can self-test your ability to recognize different patterns of organization as a reader. Considering patterns of organization as a reader will also give you insight into how to apply them as a writer.

Final Thoughts on Structuring Support/Patterns of Organization

Sometimes understanding a pattern can help you circle back and develop support. For example, if you’re comparing two items in a side by side comparison, you may realize that you do not have parallel information for each side and need to circle back to developing additional support.
It’s important to remember, though, that you should not force-fit your thoughts and your support into a pattern. Patterns should be organic to your thesis and purpose for writing.
A clear organizational structure helps your reader follow and understand your thoughts, whether or not the reader is conscious of the structure you used. You experienced that yourself as a reader when you read articles in which ideas were presented clearly and logically.
Finally and most importantly, keep in mind that you need to review your topic sentences and units of support and make conscious choices about their order. You should be able to articulate your rationale for structuring your support in a certain way.

Review the short article “ How Crisco Toppled Lard .”

What overall pattern of organization does the author use for the whole article?
What pattern/s of organization does the author use specifically in the section on King Crisco ?
The overall pattern of organization for the whole article is sequential, like a process pattern. The author takes a historical, chronological approach.
The section on King Crisco uses comparison and contrast, showing similarities and differences between Crisco and other products. Certain words cue you, as a reader, to expect a comparison and contrast pattern: “differently,” “like, ” “in contrast,” and “unlike.” The section on King Crisco also uses cause and effect, presenting reasons why Crisco hid its ingredients.
Structuring Support: Patterns of Organization, includes information adapted from College Writing; attribution below. Authored by : Susan Oaks. Project : Introduction to College Reading & Writing. License : CC BY-NC-SA: Attribution-NonCommercial-ShareAlike
College Writing, pages on Patterns of Development Overview, Process Analysis, Comparison and Contrast, Classification and Division, Cause and Effect. Authored by : Susan Oaks. Located at : https://courses.lumenlearning.com/suny-esc-wm-englishcomposition1/ . Project : College Writing. License : CC BY-NC-SA: Attribution-NonCommercial-ShareAlike
image of puzzle pieces fitting together in a pattern. Authored by : drvr. Provided by : Pixabay. Located at : https://pixabay.com/photos/puzzle-icon-blue-sky-ecology-2198142/ . License : CC0: No Rights Reserved
video Organizational Patterns - Text Structure. Authored by : M Ehlers. Located at : https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8XZK8-SJ-XQ . License : Other . License Terms : YouTube video

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We are thankful to be welcome on these lands in friendship. The lands we are situated on are covered by the Williams Treaties and are the traditional territory of the Mississaugas, a branch of the greater Anishinaabeg Nation, including Algonquin, Ojibway, Odawa and Pottawatomi. These lands remain home to many Indigenous nations and peoples.

We acknowledge this land out of respect for the Indigenous nations who have cared for Turtle Island, also called North America, from before the arrival of settler peoples until this day. Most importantly, we acknowledge that the history of these lands has been tainted by poor treatment and a lack of friendship with the First Nations who call them home.

This history is something we are all affected by because we are all treaty people in Canada. We all have a shared history to reflect on, and each of us is affected by this history in different ways. Our past defines our present, but if we move forward as friends and allies, then it does not have to define our future.

Learn more about Indigenous Education and Cultural Services

The Writing Process
Stage 2: Drafting/Writing
Paragraph Structure

Therefore, there are several organizational patterns to know in order to find the one that best fits the written work.

Chronological

A chronological pattern organizes information according to the sequence of time. Each section or paragraph represents a certain moment in time and the sub-points can explain the important events that occurred within that moment. This pattern is especially beneficial when writing a historical essay or a biography.

Sequential/Process

A sequential or process pattern arranges the ideas in a step-by-step process. Each sentence or section represents a different step. This is beneficial when giving instructions or explaining the steps taken to conduct an experiment.

When it is necessary to articulate how things fit together, a spatial pattern of organization would help. This pattern will help the reader to visualize how something appears physically; for example, it would be beneficial to use this pattern to describe a physical space.

Cause-Effect

Sometimes, if you are writing about a particular problem, you might find that your argument is pointing out the particular root causes of that problem. You might even be identifying the effects. If this is what you find, then the pattern of organization to use would be cause-effect. There are two main ways to structure this kind of pattern. You can have two main sections identifying all of the causes in one section and all of the effects in the other. Alternatively, you could separate each section or paragraph by the cause and its subsequent effect.

Problem-Solution

Much like the cause-effect pattern, the problem-solution pattern describes a problem and its solution(s). Commonly used in persuasive writing, this pattern can convince the reader to form an opinion on a particular problem and take action towards the solution(s). This pattern can be organized with two main sections identifying all of the problems in one section and all of the solutions in the other. On the other hand, it could have one section or paragraph designated for each problem and its subsequent solution(s).

Compare and Contrast

When you are comparing-contrasting two or more items or ideas, this pattern will obviously work the best. You can separate each item and describe each in detail, leaving the reader to identify the similarities and/or differences. Alternatively, you can separate each section/paragraph by each similarity and/or difference you identify. If you choose the latter, all items should be discussed under each particular similarity or difference.

For additional help on writing compare-contrast papers, download the Compare-Contrast Paper tip sheet.

Advantages-Disadvantages

When illuminating the advantages and disadvantages of two or more things, this pattern of organization will help the reader to understand both sides of an issue. There are a variety of ways to organize this pattern; however, the most effective would be to separate the advantages from the disadvantages.

Most of the time, when writing does not fit into the above-mentioned categories, it requires a topical organizational pattern. With this pattern, writers arrange the sections or paragraphs according to different topics, keeping in mind what would make the most sense to the reader. If you remember these patterns during the planning stages of your writing, your decision about how to structure your written assignment should become easier.

Most Common Book or Essay Organization Patterns

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To improve your ability to understand a difficult book or passage, you might start by finding the organization pattern. This may sound more difficult than it is. There are a few ways that writers can choose to organize their work , and the organization depends very much on the topic.

If you were writing a description of your bedroom, for example, you would most likely use a spatial organization pattern. In other words, you would most likely start by describing one "space" and move on to another space, and keep going until you've covered the entire room.

Spatial organization would be a suitable type of pattern for real estate professionals to use when describing a property.

Then again, if you were required to describe the events that led up to a certain event in history, your most likely organization pattern would be chronological . Chronological refers to the order that things happen in time. You might describe the legislation that set the stage for a particular event, followed by the public response to that legislation, and followed again by social conditions that changed because of the previous events.

So, one of the first things you should do when trying to understand a difficult text is to figure out the particular organization pattern. This helps you frame the entire work in your brain or on paper, as when you're writing an outline.

Chronological Organization

A chronological organization is used by writers when they want to describe what happened or happens in a particular order. Your entire history book is most likely written in a chronological patter. Some of the types of work that might follow this patter include the following. You can see that this type of organization is best when describing things that happen over time.

History chapters
Biographies
Summer vacation essays
Legal case studies

Logical Organization

A logical organization might be used in many ways. Logical organization refers to works that express a point or position using evidence.

Argument essays
Comparison essays

Functional Organization

A functional organization system is used to explain how or why things work. The following types of writing might use this organization pattern most effectively.

How-to essays
Step-by-step essays
Instruction manuals

Spatial Organization

Spatial organization is used in essays that describe or give direction concerning a physical location.

Descriptions
Anatomy essay
Descriptions in fiction

The purpose of developing and understanding organization patters is to help our brains set the stage and know what to expect. These patterns help us to build a framework in our minds and place information in the correct "places" on that framework. Once you determine the overall organization of any text, you'll be better equipped to process information as you read.

When writing your essays and chapters, you should keep your intended organizational pattern in mind as you work, to provide your readers with a clear message that is easily processed.

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The Essay: History and Definition
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9.3 Organizing Your Writing

Learning objectives.

Understand how and why organizational techniques help writers and readers stay focused.
Assess how and when to use chronological order to organize an essay.
Recognize how and when to use order of importance to organize an essay.
Determine how and when to use spatial order to organize an essay.

The method of organization you choose for your essay is just as important as its content. Without a clear organizational pattern, your reader could become confused and lose interest. The way you structure your essay helps your readers draw connections between the body and the thesis, and the structure also keeps you focused as you plan and write the essay. Choosing your organizational pattern before you outline ensures that each body paragraph works to support and develop your thesis.

This section covers three ways to organize body paragraphs:

Chronological order
Order of importance
Spatial order

When you begin to draft your essay, your ideas may seem to flow from your mind in a seemingly random manner. Your readers, who bring to the table different backgrounds, viewpoints, and ideas, need you to clearly organize these ideas in order to help process and accept them.

A solid organizational pattern gives your ideas a path that you can follow as you develop your draft. Knowing how you will organize your paragraphs allows you to better express and analyze your thoughts. Planning the structure of your essay before you choose supporting evidence helps you conduct more effective and targeted research.

Chronological Order

In Chapter 8 “The Writing Process: How Do I Begin?” , you learned that chronological arrangement has the following purposes:

To explain the history of an event or a topic
To tell a story or relate an experience
To explain how to do or to make something
To explain the steps in a process

Chronological order is mostly used in expository writing , which is a form of writing that narrates, describes, informs, or explains a process. When using chronological order, arrange the events in the order that they actually happened, or will happen if you are giving instructions. This method requires you to use words such as first , second , then , after that , later , and finally . These transition words guide you and your reader through the paper as you expand your thesis.

For example, if you are writing an essay about the history of the airline industry, you would begin with its conception and detail the essential timeline events up until present day. You would follow the chain of events using words such as first , then , next , and so on.

Writing at Work

At some point in your career you may have to file a complaint with your human resources department. Using chronological order is a useful tool in describing the events that led up to your filing the grievance. You would logically lay out the events in the order that they occurred using the key transition words. The more logical your complaint, the more likely you will be well received and helped.

Choose an accomplishment you have achieved in your life. The important moment could be in sports, schooling, or extracurricular activities. On your own sheet of paper, list the steps you took to reach your goal. Try to be as specific as possible with the steps you took. Pay attention to using transition words to focus your writing.

Keep in mind that chronological order is most appropriate for the following purposes:

Writing essays containing heavy research
Writing essays with the aim of listing, explaining, or narrating
Writing essays that analyze literary works such as poems, plays, or books

When using chronological order, your introduction should indicate the information you will cover and in what order, and the introduction should also establish the relevance of the information. Your body paragraphs should then provide clear divisions or steps in chronology. You can divide your paragraphs by time (such as decades, wars, or other historical events) or by the same structure of the work you are examining (such as a line-by-line explication of a poem).

On a separate sheet of paper, write a paragraph that describes a process you are familiar with and can do well. Assume that your reader is unfamiliar with the procedure. Remember to use the chronological key words, such as first , second , then , and finally .

Order of Importance

Recall from Chapter 8 “The Writing Process: How Do I Begin?” that order of importance is best used for the following purposes:

Persuading and convincing
Ranking items by their importance, benefit, or significance
Illustrating a situation, problem, or solution

Most essays move from the least to the most important point, and the paragraphs are arranged in an effort to build the essay’s strength. Sometimes, however, it is necessary to begin with your most important supporting point, such as in an essay that contains a thesis that is highly debatable. When writing a persuasive essay, it is best to begin with the most important point because it immediately captivates your readers and compels them to continue reading.

For example, if you were supporting your thesis that homework is detrimental to the education of high school students, you would want to present your most convincing argument first, and then move on to the less important points for your case.

Some key transitional words you should use with this method of organization are most importantly , almost as importantly , just as importantly , and finally .

During your career, you may be required to work on a team that devises a strategy for a specific goal of your company, such as increasing profits. When planning your strategy you should organize your steps in order of importance. This demonstrates the ability to prioritize and plan. Using the order of importance technique also shows that you can create a resolution with logical steps for accomplishing a common goal.

On a separate sheet of paper, write a paragraph that discusses a passion of yours. Your passion could be music, a particular sport, filmmaking, and so on. Your paragraph should be built upon the reasons why you feel so strongly. Briefly discuss your reasons in the order of least to greatest importance.

Spatial Order

As stated in Chapter 8 “The Writing Process: How Do I Begin?” , spatial order is best used for the following purposes:

Helping readers visualize something as you want them to see it
Evoking a scene using the senses (sight, touch, taste, smell, and sound)
Writing a descriptive essay

Spatial order means that you explain or describe objects as they are arranged around you in your space, for example in a bedroom. As the writer, you create a picture for your reader, and their perspective is the viewpoint from which you describe what is around you.

The view must move in an orderly, logical progression, giving the reader clear directional signals to follow from place to place. The key to using this method is to choose a specific starting point and then guide the reader to follow your eye as it moves in an orderly trajectory from your starting point.

Pay attention to the following student’s description of her bedroom and how she guides the reader through the viewing process, foot by foot.

Attached to my bedroom wall is a small wooden rack dangling with red and turquoise necklaces that shimmer as you enter. Just to the right of the rack is my window, framed by billowy white curtains. The peace of such an image is a stark contrast to my desk, which sits to the right of the window, layered in textbooks, crumpled papers, coffee cups, and an overflowing ashtray. Turning my head to the right, I see a set of two bare windows that frame the trees outside the glass like a 3D painting. Below the windows is an oak chest from which blankets and scarves are protruding. Against the wall opposite the billowy curtains is an antique dresser, on top of which sits a jewelry box and a few picture frames. A tall mirror attached to the dresser takes up most of the wall, which is the color of lavender.

The paragraph incorporates two objectives you have learned in this chapter: using an implied topic sentence and applying spatial order. Often in a descriptive essay, the two work together.

The following are possible transition words to include when using spatial order:

Just to the left or just to the right
On the left or on the right
Across from
A little further down
To the south, to the east, and so on
A few yards away
Turning left or turning right

On a separate sheet of paper, write a paragraph using spatial order that describes your commute to work, school, or another location you visit often.

Collaboration

Please share with a classmate and compare your answers.

Key Takeaways

The way you organize your body paragraphs ensures you and your readers stay focused on and draw connections to, your thesis statement.
A strong organizational pattern allows you to articulate, analyze, and clarify your thoughts.
Planning the organizational structure for your essay before you begin to search for supporting evidence helps you conduct more effective and directed research.
Chronological order is most commonly used in expository writing. It is useful for explaining the history of your subject, for telling a story, or for explaining a process.
Order of importance is most appropriate in a persuasion paper as well as for essays in which you rank things, people, or events by their significance.
Spatial order describes things as they are arranged in space and is best for helping readers visualize something as you want them to see it; it creates a dominant impression.

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30 Patterns of Organization and Methods of Development

Patterns of organization can help your readers follow the ideas within your essay and your paragraphs, but they can also work as methods of development to help you recognize and further develop ideas and relationships in your writing. Here are some strategies that can help you with both organization and development in your essays.

Major Patterns of Organization

Now take the pie out of the oven and let it cool on the stovetop.
Mix the dry ingredients with the liquid ingredients.
Set the pie crust aside while you make the filling.

How did it feel to read the above list? A bit confusing, I would guess. That’s because the steps for making a pie were not well organized, and the steps don’t include enough detail for us to know exactly what we should do. (Like what are the dry and liquid ingredients?) We all know that starting instructions from the beginning and giving each detailed step in the order it should happen is vital to having a good outcome, in this case a yummy pie! But it’s not always so simple to know how to organize or develop ideas, and sometimes there’s more than one way, which complicates things even further.

First, let’s take a look at a couple of ways to think about organization.

General to Specific or Specific to General

It might be useful to think about organizing your topic like a triangle:

Two triangles. The first is an inverted pyramid for General to Specific, the second is a pyramid for Specific to General.

The first triangle represents starting with the most general, big picture information first, moving then to more detailed and often more personal information later in the paper. The second triangle represents an organizational structure that starts with the specific, small scale information first and then moves to the more global, big picture stuff.

For example, if your topic is traffic in Vancouver, British Columbia, an essay that uses the general-to-specific organizational structure might begin this way:

Many people consider Vancouver, British Columbia, to be a relaxed place to live. They would be shocked to know how bad the traffic is traveling major arteries into the city and even driving around the city itself.

An essay that uses the specific-to-general structure might start like this:

Transit is crowded, parking is expensive, and vehicles stop and go through the main streets of the city of Vancouver, British Columbia, and that is just once travelers brave the crowded arteries to enter the city; Vancouver’s traffic problem does not lend itself to the relaxed atmosphere many believe the city to have.

What’s the difference between these two introductions? And how might they appeal to the intended audience for this essay in different ways? The first introduction is looking at the big picture of the problem and mentions pollution’s impact on all citizens in Portland, while the second introduction focuses on one specific family. The first helps readers see how vast the problem really is, and the second helps connect readers to a real family, making an emotional appeal from the very beginning. Neither introduction is necessarily better. You’ll choose one over the other based on the kind of tone you’d like to create and how you’d like to affect your audience. It’s completely up to you to make this decision.

Does the Triangle Mean the Essay Keeps Getting More Specific or More Broad until the Very End?

The triangle is kind of a general guide, meaning you’re allowed to move around within it all you want. For example, it’s possible that each of your paragraphs will be its own triangle, starting with the general or specific and moving out or in. However, if you begin very broadly, it might be effective to end your essay in a more specific, personal way. And if you begin with a personal story, consider ending your essay by touching on the global impact and importance of your topic.

Are There Other Ways to Think about Organizing My Ideas?

Yes! Rather than thinking about which of your ideas are most specific or personal or which are more broad or universal, you might consider one of the following ways of organizing your ideas:

Most important information first (consider what you want readers to focus on first)
Chronological order (the order in time that events take place)
Compare and contrast (ideas are organized together because of their relationship to each other)

The section on Methods of Development, below, offers more detail about some of these organizational patterns, along with some others.

Choose one of the following topics, and practice writing a few opening sentences like we did above, once using the general-to-specific format and once using the specific-to-general. Which do you like better? What audience would be attracted to which one? Share with peers to see how others tackled this challenge. How would you rewrite their sentences? Why? Discuss your changes and listen to how your peers have revised your sentences. Taking in other people’s ideas will help you see new ways to approach your own writing and thinking. Topics:

Facing fears
Safety in sports
Community policing
Educating prisoners
Sex education

Methods of Development

The methods of development covered here are best used as ways to look at what’s already happening in your draft and to consider how you might emphasize or expand on any existing patterns. You might already be familiar with some of these patterns because teachers will sometimes assign them as the purpose for writing an essay. For example, you might have been asked to write a cause-and-effect essay or a comparison-and-contrast essay.

It’s important to emphasize here that patterns of organization or methods of developing content usually happen naturally as a consequence of the way the writer engages with and organizes information while writing. That is to say, most writers don’t sit down and say, “I think I’ll write a cause-and-effect essay today.” Instead, a writer might be more likely to be interested in a topic, say, the state of drinking water in the local community, and as the writer begins to explore the topic, certain cause-and-effect relationships between environmental pollutants and the community water supply may begin to emerge.

So if these patterns just occur naturally in writing, what’s the use in knowing about them? Well, sometimes you might be revising a draft and notice that some of your paragraphs are a bit underdeveloped. Maybe they lack a clear topic, or maybe they lack support. In either case, you can look to these common methods of development to find ways to sharpen those vague topics or to add support where needed. Do you have a clear cause statement somewhere but you haven’t explored the effects? Are you lacking detail somewhere where a narrative story or historical chronology can help build reader interest and add support? Are you struggling to define an idea that might benefit from some comparison or contrast? Read on to consider some of the ways that these strategies can help you in revision.

Cause and Effect (or Effect and Cause)

Do you see a potential cause-and-effect relationship developing in your draft? The cause-and-effect pattern may be used to identify one or more causes followed by one or more effects or results. Or you may reverse this sequence and describe effects first and then the cause or causes. For example, the causes of water pollution might be followed by its effects on both humans and animals. You may use obvious transitions to clarify cause and effect, such as “What are the results? Here are some of them…” or you might simply use the words cause , effect , and result , to cue the reader about your about the relationships that you’re establishing.

Problem-Solution

At some point does your essay explore a problem or suggest a solution? The problem-solution pattern is commonly used in identifying something that’s wrong and in contemplating what might be done to remedy the situation. There are probably more ways to organize a problem-solution approach, but but here are three possibilities:

Describe the problem, followed by the solution.
Propose the solution first and then describe the problems that motivated it.
Or a problem may be followed by several solutions, one of which is selected as the best.

When the solution is stated at the end of the paper, the pattern is sometimes called the delayed proposal. For a hostile audience, it may be effective to describe the problem, show why other solutions do not work, and finally suggest the favored solution. You can emphasize the words problem and solution to signal these sections of your paper for your reader.

Chronology or Narrative

Do you need to develop support for a topic where telling a story can illustrate some important concept for your readers? Material arranged chronologically is explained as it occurs in time. A chronological or narrative method of development might help you find a way to add both interest and content to your essay. Material arranged chronologically is explained as it occurs in time. This pattern may be used to establish what has happened. Chronology or narrative can be a great way to introduce your essay by providing a background or history behind your topic. Or you may want to tell a story to develop one or more points in the body of your essay. You can use transitional words like then , next , and finally to make the parts of the chronology clear.

Comparison and Contrast

Are you trying to define something? Do you need your readers to understand what something is and what it is not? The comparison-and-contrast method of development is particularly useful in extending a definition, or anywhere you need to show how a subject is like or unlike another subject. For example, the statement is often made that drug abuse is a medical problem instead of a criminal justice issue. An author might attempt to prove this point by comparing drug addiction to AIDS, cancer, or heart disease to redefine the term “addiction” as a medical problem. A statement in opposition to this idea could just as easily establish contrast by explaining all the ways that addiction is different from what we traditionally understand as an illness. In seeking to establish comparison or contrast in your writing, some words or terms that might be useful are by contrast , in comparison , while , some , and others .

These four methods of development—cause and effect, problem-solution, chronology or narrative, and comparison and contrast—are just a few ways to organize and develop ideas and content in your essays. It’s important to note that they should not be a starting point for writers who want to write something authentic—something that they care deeply about. Instead, they can be a great way to help you look for what’s already happening with your topic or in a draft, to help you to write more, or to help you reorganize some parts of an essay that seem to lack connection or feel disjointed. Look for organizational patterns when you’re reading work by professional writers. Notice where they combine strategies (e.g., a problem-solution pattern that uses cause-and-effect organization, or a comparison-contrast pattern that uses narrative or chronology to develop similarities or differences). Pay attention to how different writers emphasize and develop their main ideas, and use what you find to inspire you in your own writing. Better yet, work on developing completely new patterns of your own.

Text Attributions

This chapter was adapted from “ Patterns of Organization and Methods of Development ” in The Word on College Reading and Writing by Carol Burnell, Jaime Wood, Monique Babin, Susan Pesznecker, and Nicole Rosevear, which is licensed under a CC BY-NC 4.0 Licence . Adapted by Allison Kilgannon.

Media Attributions

“ Peach and lavender pie ” by Heather Joan is licensed under a CC BY-NC-ND 2.0 Licence .
“General to Specific vs. Specific to General Triangles” by Carol Burnell, Jaime Wood, Monique Babin, Susan Pesznecker, and Nicole Rosevear is under a CC BY-NC 4.0 Licence .

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Chapter 7: Drafting and Writing a Paper

Patterns of Organization and Methods of Development

Patterns of organization can help readers follow the ideas within your writing and also work as methods of development to help you recognize and further develop ideas and relationships in your writing.

General to specific or specific to general

It might be useful to organize your topic like a triangle. In Figure 7.5 , the arrow on the left side of the triangle represents starting with the most general, big-picture information first, and then later moving to more detailed and more personal information. The arrow on the right side of the triangle represents starting with the specific information first and then moving to the more global, big-picture stuff. The triangle is a general guide, and you can move around within it. For example, each paragraph might be its own triangle, starting with the general or specific and moving out or in. However, if you begin your paper very broadly, it might be effective to end it in a more specific, personal way. If you begin your paper with a personal story, consider ending by touching on the global impact and importance of your topic.

Figure 7.5: Organizing topic like a triangle

Other ways to organize ideas

Instead of organizing ideas based on whether they are broad or specific, you could organize them using one of the following ways:

Chronological order (the order in time that events take place).
Compare and contrast (ideas are organized together because of their relationship to each other).
Most important information first (consider what you want readers to focus on first).

Note that order of importance is a particularly good choice when you are trying to persuade and convince the reader. Most papers move from the least to the most important point, and the paragraphs are arranged in an effort to build the essay’s strength. Sometimes, however, it is necessary to begin with your most important supporting point, such as in an essay that contains a thesis that is highly debatable or when writing persuasively.

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Content from this page was remixed with our own original content, and adapted, with editorial and organizational changes, from:

The Word on College Reading and Writing by Carol Burnell, Jaime Wood, Monique Babin, Susan Pesznecker, and Nicole Rosevear, licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial 4.0 International License , except where otherwise noted.Download for free at: https://openoregon.pressbooks.pub/wrd/

Content from the last paragraph was adapted from:

Writing for Success 1st Canadian Edition by Tara Horkoff is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-ShareAlike 4.0 International License , except where otherwise noted. Download for free at: https://opentextbc.ca/writingforsuccess/

The Scholarship of Writing in Nursing Education: 1st Canadian Edition Copyright © 2019 by Jennifer Lapum; Oona St-Amant; Michelle Hughes; Andy Tan; Arina Bogdan; Frances Dimaranan; Rachel Frantzke; and Nada Savicevic is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 International License , except where otherwise noted.

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Chronological
Cause and Effect

Common Core State Standards Related to Text Structure

CCSS.ELA-Literacy.CCRA.R.5 – Analyze the structure of texts, including how specific sentences, paragraphs, and larger portions of the text (e.g., a section, chapter, scene, or stanza) relate to each other and the whole.

ELA Standards: Informational Texts

CCSS.ELA-Literacy.RI.4.5 – Describe the overall structure (e.g., chronology, comparison, cause/effect, problem/solution) of events, ideas, concepts, or information in a text or part of a text. CCSS.ELA-Literacy.RI.5.5 – Compare and contrast the overall structure (e.g., chronology, comparison, cause/effect, problem/solution) of events, ideas, concepts, or information in two or more texts. CCSS.ELA-Literacy.RI.6.5 – Analyze how a particular sentence, paragraph, chapter, or section fits into the overall structure of a text and contributes to the development of the ideas. CCSS.ELA-Literacy.RI.7.5 – Analyze the structure an author uses to organize a text, including how the major sections contribute to the whole and to the development of the ideas. CCSS.ELA-Literacy.RI.8.5 – Analyze in detail the structure of a specific paragraph in a text, including the role of particular sentences in developing and refining a key concept. CCSS.ELA-Literacy.RI.11-12.5 – Analyze and evaluate the effectiveness of the structure an author uses in his or her exposition or argument, including whether the structure makes points clear, convincing, and engaging.

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Well, it’s really up to you.

You could do problem and solution, describing how some fans can’t afford seats and how price caps on tickets would solve that.

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i coudnt find what i wanted but im writting an essay and dont know this question (what pattern will you use in your essay?)

Well, an essay will most likely use many different patterns. In one paragraph you may compare and contrast two things. In another you may propose a solution to a problem. In yet another, you may describe a cause and effect or multiple causes and / or effects. The structure of a text will vary from paragraph to paragraph. A single paragraph may even use multiple structures.

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Home » Literacy Lines » Patterns of Organization

Patterns of Organization

Expository text typically incorporates five common patterns of organization, and transition words and phrases often signal the use of these patterns in text. These patterns are sometimes referred to as text structures . They are more commonly found in informational and opinion types of writing, but may also be used in narratives. The topic web graphic organizer below identifies the five patterns with a brief description below each. They are presented left to right from simplest pattern to most difficult.

Beyond grade 4 and into high school, much of the text that students read will incorporate multiple patterns of organization within the same text, possibly within the same paragraph. A news article, for example, might begin with a description of an event, then chronicle the sequence of details related to the event, and then end with an explanation of the effect that was caused by the event. When introducing a pattern of organization to students in these grades, try to find text samples that clearly show how the pattern is used in isolation. Then have them emulate the use of the pattern in their own writing. As students become more familiar with the differences among the patterns, they can then be shown model text that mixes the patterns.

Transitions

Transition words and phrases, also called linking words , are useful for connecting sentences, paragraphs, or sections of text. They also provide “clues” while reading about the pattern of organization used in the text, and can similarly be used by the student when writing to signal a pattern of organization. The Common Core State Standards include writing standards across grades 1 through 12 that require students to use transitions.

Keys to Literacy provides free access to two transition lists, one for primary grades and one for grades 4-12, as shown below. Click here for the primary list. Click here for the 4-12 list.

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I need a great book to teach “patterns of organization” to middle schoolers. I need practice sheets, as well.

Debra, We have chapters that focus on text structure (including patterns of organization and associated transition words) in our Keys to Content Writing book and Key Comprehension Routine book. They can be accessed at the Keys to Literacy store: https://keystoliteracy.com/store/

Thank you so much for creating this site. I found it helpful in preparing my kids for the English II EOC. As I was browsing, I noticed that the link for organizational pattern task cards is a broken link. Again, thanks so much. I just attended a session on Keys to Literacy. Anything specific to the NC English II EOC would be great to suggest.

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7.1: Patterns of Organization and Methods of Development

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Patterns of organization can help readers follow the ideas within a text, but they can also work as methods of development to help readers recognize ideas and relationships. Here are some strategies that can help you identify organization in texts.

Major Patterns of Organization

Read the following sentences:

Now take the pie out of the oven and let it cool on the stovetop.
Mix the dry ingredients with the liquid ingredients.
Set the pie crust aside while you make the filling.

How did it feel to read the above list? A bit confusing, I would guess. That’s because the steps for making a pie were not well organized, and the steps don’t include enough detail for us to know exactly what we should do. (For example, what are the dry and liquid ingredients?) We all know that starting instructions from the beginning and giving each detailed step in the order it should happen is vital to having a good outcome, in this case a yummy pie! But it’s not always so simple to know how to organize or develop ideas, and sometimes there’s more than one way, which complicates things even further.

First, let’s take a look at a couple of ways to think about organization.

General to Specific or Specific to General

It might be useful to think of a triangle when determining how a reading is organized:

Figure 8.7. 1

For example, if an author's topic is air pollution in Portland, Oregon, an essay that uses the general-to-specific organizational structure might begin this way:

Many people consider Portland, Oregon, to be an environmentally friendly, pollution-free place to live. They would be shocked to know how many pollutants are in the air causing a multitude of health problems in Portland’s citizens.

An essay that uses the specific-to-general organizational structure might start like this:

When Nancy moved to Portland, Oregon, with her husband and two kids, she expected to find a clean, pollution-free city. She was shocked and angered when her daughter was diagnosed with asthma caused by air pollution.

What’s the difference between these two introductions? And how might they appeal to the intended audience for this essay (Portland voters) in different ways? The first introduction is looking at the big picture of the problem and mentions pollution’s impact on all citizens in Portland, while the second introduction focuses on one specific family. The first helps readers see how vast the problem really is, and the second helps connect readers to a real family, making an emotional appeal from the very beginning. Neither introduction is necessarily better.

There are Other Ways Authors Organize Their Ideas

Authors may also include some of the following ways of organizing their ideas, along with signal words for those patterns of organization:

as a result
for this reason
consequently
hence
first, second, third
before, after
later
similar(ly)
in the same way
bigger than, smaller than
is defined as
is described as
is called
in addition
a number of
for example
finally
over, under
north, south, east, west

License and Attributions:

CC licensed content, Previously shared:

The Word on College Reading and Writing. Authored by: Carol Burnell, Jaime Wood, Monique Babin, Susan Pesznecker, and Nicole Rosevear. Located at: https://human.libretexts.org/Workshops/Workshop_University/draft_ENG101/04%3A_Writing/4.08%3A_Patterns_of_Organization_and_Methods_of_Development License: CC BY: Attribution.

Adaptions: Reformatted, some content removed to fit a broader audience.

Unit 6: Argumentative Essay Writing

39 Patterns of Organization for Argumentative Essays

There are three typical ways to construct the body of an argumentation essay. Each type meets the expectations for an argumentative essay. The motivation for choosing any particular type, however, is different.

1 “You First ”

This essay is called “You First” because the writer starts with the other side’s arguments and ends with their own arguments. The body begins with a paragraph that outlines the main counterargument. At the end of this paragraph, there needs to be an acknowledgement of the full or partial validity of the opposing viewpoints. After that paragraph, you can begin your arguments for your perspective.

2 “Me First ”

This essay is called “Me First” because the writer starts with their own arguments and ends with the other side’s arguments. The paragraph that outlines the main counterargument comes at the end of the discussion of your arguments. This paragraph is formed and developed exactly the same as the 1st body paragraph in a “You First.” The only difference is that the counterargument/refutation paragraph in “Me First” occurs after one’s own arguments

3 “Point-by-Point ”

In a Point-by-Point essay, each body paragraph lists a single counterargument. After describing this opposing argument, there needs to be a transition before starting the detailed refutation of the counterargument. In the Point-by-Point essay, your refutation serves as your argument of each point you want to make. In other words, you deal with each counterargument separately, whereas “You First” and “Me First” essays group all the counterarguments together and develop one’s own arguments separately.

For this course you are recommended to use the “you first” or “me first” patterns.

Which pattern should I use?

In order to answer this question, you need to answer some questions:

What are the strongest counterarguments? (It might be helpful to spend some time with a person or people who believe the opposite of you so that you can hear why they believe what they do.)
What do your readers generally believe about this topic? How strongly do they believe that? (You might need to ask a sample of people what they think about your topic.)

There are three basic scenarios that typically arise:

Your readers are against your position.
Your readers are for your position.
Your readers have not made up their mind yet.

*Which pattern of organization does the writer use in the model essay?

Introduction
(Argument 3)
Counterargument
Refutation (=Argument 3 or 4)

Point by Point Pattern

Refutation (= Argument 1)
Refutation (= Argument 2)
Refutation (= Argument 3)

You First Pattern

(Argument 4)

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Patterns of Organization and Methods of Development

Major Patterns of Organization

Read the following sentences:

Now take the pie out of the oven and let it cool on the stovetop.
Mix the dry ingredients with the liquid ingredients.
Set the pie crust aside while you make the filling.

First, let’s take a look at a couple of ways to think about organization.

General to Specific or Specific to General

It might be useful to think about organizing your topic like a triangle:

a diagram that shows a triangle with the point at the bottom to represent "general to specific" organization and a triangle with a point at the top to represent "specific to general" organization

For example, if your topic is air pollution in Portland, Oregon, an essay that uses the general-to-specific organizational structure might begin this way:

An essay that uses the specific-to-general structure might start like this:

Does the Triangle Mean the Essay Keeps Getting More Specific or More Broad until the Very End?

Are There Other Ways to Think about Organizing My Ideas?

Yes! Rather than thinking about which of your ideas are most specific or personal or which are more broad or universal, you might consider one of the following ways of organizing your ideas:

Most important information first (consider what you want readers to focus on first)
Chronological order (the order in time that events take place)
Compare and contrast (ideas are organized together because of their relationship to each other)

The section on Methods of Development, below, offers more detail about some of these organizational patterns, along with some others.

Facing fears
Safety in sports
Community policing
Educating prisoners
Sex education
A book or movie that impacted you
One thing you would change about your community
Beauty standards
Toxic masculinity
How the media affects identity formation
Gender roles
Race in America
The value of art in society
Travel as part of a well-rounded education
Drugs and alcohol
Advice to new parents
Advice to teachers
The value of making mistakes
How you’d spend a million dollars
What a tough day at work taught you about yourself or others.

Methods of Development

Cause and Effect (or Effect and Cause)

Here’s an example article from the New York times, “ Rough Times Take Bloom Off a New Year’s Rite, the Rose Parade ,” that explores the cause and effect relationship (from 2011) between Pasadena’s budgetary challenges and the ability of their Rose Parade floats to deck themselves out in full bloom.

Problem-Solution

Describe the problem, followed by the solution.
Propose the solution first and then describe the problems that motivated it.
Or a problem may be followed by several solutions, one of which is selected as the best.

Here’s an example article from the New York times, “ Monks Embrace Web to Reach Recruits ,” that highlights an unexpected approach by a group of Benedictine monks in Rhode Island; they’ve turned to social media to grow their dwindling membership. Monks on Facebook? Who knew?

Chronology or Narrative

Here’s an example article from the Center for Media Literacy (originally published in the journal Media & Values ): “ From Savers to Spenders: How Children Became a Consumer Market .” To encourage his readers to think about why and how children are being marketed to by advertisers, the author uses a historical chronology of how the spending habits of children changed over a number of decades.

Comparison and Contrast

Here’s an example article from the New York times: “ Who Wants to Shop in a Big Box Store, Anyway? ” The author explores some interesting differences between the average American and average Indian consumer to contemplate the potential success of big box stores in India and also to contemplate why these giant big box corporations, like Walmart or Target, might have to rethink their business model.

These four methods of development—cause and effect, problem-solution, chronology or narrative, and comparison and contrast—are just a few ways to organize and develop ideas and content in your essays. It’s important to note that they should not be a starting point for writers who want to write something authentic—something that they care deeply about. Instead, they can be a great way to help you look for what’s already happening with your topic or in a draft, to help you to write more, or to help you reorganize some parts of an essay that seem to lack connection or feel disjointed. Look for organizational patterns when you’re reading work by professional writers. Notice where they combine strategies (e.g a problem-solution pattern that uses cause-and-effect organization, or a comparison-contrast pattern that uses narrative or chronology to develop similarities or differences). Pay attention to how different writers emphasize and develop their main ideas, and use what you find to inspire you in your own writing. Better yet, work on developing completely new patterns of your own.

The Word on College Reading and Writing Copyright © by Carol Burnell, Jaime Wood, Monique Babin, Susan Pesznecker, and Nicole Rosevear is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial 4.0 International License , except where otherwise noted.

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Many types of writing follow some version of the basic shape described above. This shape is most obvious in the form of the traditional five-paragraph essay: a model for college writing in which the writer argues his or her viewpoint (thesis) on a topic and uses three reasons or subtopics to support that position. In the five-paragraph model, as illustrated below, the introductory paragraph mentions the three main points or subtopics, and each body paragraph begins with a topic sentence dealing with one of those main points.

SAMPLE ESSAY USING THE FIVE-PARAGRAPH MODEL

Remember, this is a very simplistic model. It presents a basic idea of essay organization and may certainly be helpful in learning to structure an argument, but it should not be followed religiously as an ideal form.

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Paragraph Organization & Flow

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This vidcast talks about major components of paragraph-level writing such as unity, coherence, and development. Solid, clear paragraphs that are well-connected create a foundation for an argument and contribute to what writers often call "flow." The handouts on patterns of paragraph organization, flow in scholarly writing, and transition words examine various aspects of a document that contribute to a sense of flow and share detailed information about patterns of paragraph organization. They should be used in conjunction with this vidcast.

Note: Closed-captioning and a full transcript are available for this vidcast.

Patterns of Paragraph Organization

There is no one perfect way to organize your paragraphs. However, depending on the genre and size of the document you're working on, there are a number of logical ways to organize your text. Here you'll find a number of possible options. Note that while this resource talks specifically about writing a rhetorical analysis, the information is applicable beyond this genre.

Flow in Scholarly Writing (PDF)

Flow in writing refers to how easily readers move past the text itself and into a reading experience where they are connecting with the ideas presented within the text. This handout talks about the notion of flow and explains what well-flowing writing looks like at the sentence, paragraph, and textual levels.

Transition Words & Devices

Good transitions can connect paragraphs and turn disconnected writing into a unified whole. Instead of treating paragraphs as separate ideas, transitions can help readers understand how paragraphs work together, reference one another, and build to a larger point. The key to producing good transitions is highlighting connections between corresponding paragraphs. This resource offers a list of some common transitional devices.

COMMENTS

Organization and Structure
Organization and Structure. There is no single organizational pattern that works well for all writing across all disciplines; rather, organization depends on what you're writing, who you're writing it for, and where your writing will be read. In order to communicate your ideas, you'll need to use a logical and consistent organizational ...
7.2: Use patterns of organization and development
It's important to emphasize here that patterns of organization or methods of developing content usually happen naturally as a consequence of the way the writer engages with and organizes information while writing. That is to say, most writers don't sit down and say, "I think I'll write a cause-and-effect essay today.".
Structuring Support: Patterns of Organization
An essay using a process pattern is often straightforward, as it usually presents a series of steps in chronological order. However, a college essay that uses a process pattern needs to offer more than a list of steps. ... There are two different, equally useful, organizational patterns for comparison and contrast: Side by side - Offer all of ...
Patterns of Organization
A chronological pattern organizes information according to the sequence of time. Each section or paragraph represents a certain moment in time and the sub-points can explain the important events that occurred within that moment. This pattern is especially beneficial when writing a historical essay or a biography.
Most Common Book or Essay Organization Patterns
Spatial organization would be a suitable type of pattern for real estate professionals to use when describing a property. Then again, if you were required to describe the events that led up to a certain event in history, your most likely organization pattern would be chronological. Chronological refers to the order that things happen in time.
2.4.7: Patterns of Organization and Methods of Development
Patterns of organization can help your readers follow the ideas within your essay and your paragraphs, but they can also work as methods of development to help you recognize and further develop ideas and relationships in your writing. ... An essay that uses the specific-to-general structure might start like this: When Nancy moved to Portland ...
9.3 Organizing Your Writing
A strong organizational pattern allows you to articulate, analyze, and clarify your thoughts. Planning the organizational structure for your essay before you begin to search for supporting evidence helps you conduct more effective and directed research. Chronological order is most commonly used in expository writing.
Patterns of Organization and Methods of Development
Patterns of organization can help your readers follow the ideas within your essay and your paragraphs, but they can also work as methods of development to help you recognize and further develop ideas and relationships in your writing. Here are some strategies that can help you with both organization and development in your essays.
Patterns of Organization and Methods of Development
Patterns of Organization and Methods of Development ... Most papers move from the least to the most important point, and the paragraphs are arranged in an effort to build the essay's strength. Sometimes, however, it is necessary to begin with your most important supporting point, such as in an essay that contains a thesis that is highly ...
How to Structure an Essay
The basic structure of an essay always consists of an introduction, a body, and a conclusion. But for many students, the most difficult part of structuring an essay is deciding how to organize information within the body. This article provides useful templates and tips to help you outline your essay, make decisions about your structure, and ...
Patterns of Organization
Though requirements vary from state to state, in many states, students are required to accurately identify the text structure in specific passages. We will cover seven common types of patterns of organizations or text structures: Chronological. Compare and Contrast. Order of Importance. Sequence.
Patterns of Organization
Awareness of patterns of organization supports reading comprehension and improves the quality of student writing. Children in the primary grades can be introduced to them during read aloud by showing how authors incorporate patterns of organization in model text. At the earliest grades, it's best to introduce one pattern at a time, starting ...
7.1: Patterns of Organization and Methods of Development
Patterns of organization can help readers follow the ideas within a text, but they can also work as methods of development to help readers recognize ideas and relationships. ... Oregon, an essay that uses the general-to-specific organizational structure might begin this way: Many people consider Portland, Oregon, to be an environmentally ...
Organizational Patterns in Writing
An organizational pattern with similar logic is the topical pattern. In the topical pattern, the piece is divided into sections that each discuss a different subtopic of the piece's overall subject.
39 Patterns of Organization for Argumentative Essays
1 "You First". This essay is called "You First" because the writer starts with the other side's arguments and ends with their own arguments. The body begins with a paragraph that outlines the main counterargument. At the end of this paragraph, there needs to be an acknowledgement of the full or partial validity of the opposing viewpoints.
Patterns of Organization and Methods of Development
Patterns of organization can help your readers follow the ideas within your essay and your paragraphs, but they can also work as methods of development to help you recognize and further develop ideas and relationships in your writing. Here are some strategies that can help you with both organization and development in your essays.
Organizing an Essay
Organizing an Essay. Organizing ideas and information clearly and logically in an essay, so that readers will understand and be able to follow the writer's thinking, is an essential stage of the writing process, but one that often proves to be more difficult than it sounds. When people write, ideas tend to come out in whatever order they occur ...
FIVE ORGANIZATIONAL MODELS Center for Writing and Speaking
The genre you are working with will help determine your organizational structure. These five basic organizational models (sequence, description, cause and effect, compare and contrast, and problem and solution) may help you consider how to organize your essay or story. Sequence uses time or spatial order as the organizing structure.
Paragraph Organization & Flow
Paragraph Organization & Flow. This vidcast talks about major components of paragraph-level writing such as unity, coherence, and development. Solid, clear paragraphs that are well-connected create a foundation for an argument and contribute to what writers often call "flow." The handouts on patterns of paragraph organization, flow in scholarly ...
PATTERNS OF ORGANIZATION
Patterns of Organization. The link between clear, logical organization and effective communication is powerful, both for the "sender" and the "receiver." For the writer, a well organized outline of information serves as a blue print for action. It provides focus and direction as the writer composes the document, which helps to ensure that the ...
PDF Organizational Patterns for the Comparison/Contrast Essay
This organizational pattern is most effective when used on longer essays, such as a comparison of two articles, short stories, or novels. The body of such an essay is organized by discussing one point at a time and how it applies to each subject before moving on to the next point. For long works, at least three points should be examined if not ...
PDF Essay Organization writingcentre.stu
Essay Organization writingcentre.stu.ca An essay has 3 parts: an introduction, body, and a conclusion. Introduction • the first paragraph in an essay • provides some background information on the topic • starts general and gradually gets more specific • ends in a thesis statement • thesis statement: = "map" to the rest of your essay
Full article: Organizational culture: a systematic review
2.1. Definition of organizational culture. OC is a set of norms, values, beliefs, and attitudes that guide the actions of all organization members and have a significant impact on employee behavior (Schein, Citation 1992).Supporting Schein's definition, Denison et al. (Citation 2012) define OC as the underlying values, protocols, beliefs, and assumptions that organizational members hold, and ...

Writing based on Texts

Problem/Solution

Comparison and Contrast

Division and Classification

Cause and Effect

Final Thoughts on Structuring Support/Patterns of Organization

Patterns of Organization

Chronological

Sequential/Process

Cause-Effect

Problem-Solution

Compare and Contrast

Advantages-Disadvantages

Most Common Book or Essay Organization Patterns

Chronological Organization

Logical Organization

Functional Organization

Spatial Organization

9.3 Organizing Your Writing

Chronological Order

Writing at Work

Order of Importance

Spatial Order

Key Takeaways

30 Patterns of Organization and Methods of Development

Major Patterns of Organization

General to Specific or Specific to General

Does the Triangle Mean the Essay Keeps Getting More Specific or More Broad until the Very End?

Are There Other Ways to Think about Organizing My Ideas?

Methods of Development

Cause and Effect (or Effect and Cause)

Problem-Solution

Chronology or Narrative

Comparison and Contrast

Text Attributions

Media Attributions

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Patterns of Organization and Methods of Development

General to specific or specific to general

Other ways to organize ideas

Attribution statement

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Patterns of Organization

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Common Core State Standards Related to Text Structure

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ACCESSING KEYS TO LITERACY PD DURING SCHOOL CLOSURES

7.1: Patterns of Organization and Methods of Development

Major Patterns of Organization

General to Specific or Specific to General