Concluding sentences
What do concluding sentences do?
Concluding sentences link one paragraph to the next and provide another device for helping you ensure your text is cohesive. While not all paragraphs include a concluding sentence, you should always consider whether one is appropriate.
Concluding sentences have three crucial roles in paragraph writing.
They draw together the information you have presented to elaborate your controlling idea by:
1- summarising the points you have made.
2- repeating words or phrases (or synonyms for them) from the topic sentence.
3- using linking words that indicate that conclusions are being drawn, for example, therefore, thus, resulting.
They often link the current paragraph to the following paragraph. They may anticipate the topic sentence of the next paragraph by:
1- introducing a word/phrase or new concept which will then be picked up in the topic sentence of the next paragraph.
2- using words or phrases that point ahead, for example, the following, another, other.
They often qualify the information or perspectives developed in the elaboration. They may qualify this information by:
1- using concessive conjunctions to foreground the importance of some perspectives and background others.
2- making comparisons and contrasts between perspectives.
3- using other language that clearly indicates the perspective they favour.
