3. Bad traffic in Istanbul
Becoming a millionaire
Rainy weather
Hard work
Overpopulation
Don’t have to work
Narrow roads
Win the lottery
People are late to work
Marry someone rich
Ambulances can’t get to the
Friends always ask you for
hospitals quickly
Increased use of public
transport
money
Pay high taxes
4. Bad traffic in Istanbul
Becoming a millionaire
Rainy weather CAUSE
Work hard CAUSE
Overpopulation CAUSE
Don’t have to work EFFECT
Narrow roads CAUSE
Win the lottery CAUSE
People are late to work
Marry someone rich CAUSE
EFFECT
Ambulances can’t get to the
hospitals quickly EFFECT
Increased use of public
Friends always ask you for
money EFFECT
Pay high taxes EFFECT
transport EFFECT
BE CAREFUL!
Your writing must be about causes OR effects. For this preparatory program, you
mustn’t write about both in the same paragraph or essay.
6. CAUSE before EFFECT
Smoking LEADS TO cancer.
Burning of fossil fuels CONTRIBUTES TO global
warming.
Good nutrition GIVES RISE TO a strong immune
system.
The power has gone out. AS A RESULT, we
can’t do our work.
I’m hungry. THEREFORE, I really want to eat!
7. EFFECT before CAUSE
Lung cancer IS ONE EFFECT OF smoking.
Children can get lung cancer AS A RESULT OF
secondhand cigarette smoke.
Global warming IS DUE TO burning fossil fuels.
She is a millionaire BECAUSE she won the lottery.
I am tired ON ACCOUNT OF having insomnia.
The popularity of private courses ARISES FROM
the importance of standardized exams.
9. Write a cause or effect sentence.
Add more information with “because” or
“therefore” or another phrase.
10. Eating too much candy gives rise to
gaining weight; therefore you should
eat only small amounts.
Obesity is one result of eating a lot
of chocolate because chocolate has
high calories.
Because chocolate is high in fat, if
you eat too much candy, you will
probably gain weight.
11. Write a cause or effect sentence.
Add more information with “because” or
“therefore” or another phrase.
12. Forgetting your girlfriend’s birthday
can lead to getting slapped.
Many arguments arise from
boyfriends not remembering their
girlfriends’ birthdays.
Sarah was very angry on account of
Fred forgetting her birthday AGAIN!
If you want your girlfriend to be
happy, don’t ever forget her birthday.
13. Write a sentence showing cause or effect, but
try to use different verbs
(benefit, help, prevent, etc.)
14. Planting trees can benefit the
environment because trees add fresh
oxygen to the air.
One thing that can slow the progress
of global warming is planting trees.
If you want to help the environment,
one easy way is to plant trees.
16. A causes paragraph will mention
several causes of one effect.
The topic sentence must be very clearly about CAUSES. Examples:
Students may cheat on
exams for a variety of
reasons.
There are several reasons
why Facebook is a useful
tool for school.
18. Then, write an outline.
TOPIC: Why do people still go to the cinema even though there are
DVDs and movies on television?
TOPIC SENTENCE: There are three reasons why people still like to go to
the movies despite the existence of DVDs and TV movies.
SUPPORTING SENTENCE 1: First of all, the sound quality is better in the
cinema than at home.
SUPPORTING SENTENCE 2: Secondly, going to the cinema is a fun
social event.
SUPPORTING SENTENCE 3: Lastly, you can see the movie as soon as it
is released.
Now, brainstorm what details you could add to each supporting
section. Remember that you can use examples and explanations.
20. An effects paragraph will include
several effects of one cause.
The topic sentence must be very clearly about EFFECTS. Examples:
There are several
benefits of knowing a
foreign language.
(benefits = good
effects)
Living away from
your family can have
both good and bad
effects.
21. What IS good CONTENT?
Read this paragraph about the effects of traffic accidents and
identify the main subtopics.
There are several bad effects of traffic accidents. First of all,
you could be injured. Your legs could break, your back
could break, you might bleed or even have brain damage.
There are lots of possible injuries from a car accident.
Another effect of traffic accidents is that you could die.
What else can I say, this is the ultimate end. Nobody wants
this to happen. Finally, another effect of traffic accidents is
that you could injure or kill someone else. If another person
has a broken leg or brain damage or dies, this is almost
worse than having it yourself. To conclude, traffic accidents
can have really bad results, so be careful. (113 words)
22. What IS good CONTENT?
Main Subtopics:
There are several bad effects of traffic accidents. First of all,
you could be injured. Your legs could break, your back
could break, you might bleed or even have brain damage.
There are lots of possible injuries from a car accident.
Another effect of traffic accidents is that you could die.
What else can I say, this is the ultimate end. Nobody wants
this to happen. Finally, another effect of traffic accidents is
that you could injure or kill someone else. If another person
has a broken leg or brain damage or dies, this is almost
worse than having it yourself. To conclude, traffic accidents
can have really bad results, so be careful. (113 words)
23. What IS good CONTENT?
Main Subtopics:
Topic: Effects of traffic accidents
Subtopics:
1: you could be injured.
2: you could die.
3: you could injure or kill someone else.
Do you think these are good subtopics for this topic? Why
or why not?
24. What IS good CONTENT?
Read this paragraph on the same subject and identify the subtopics.
There are several bad effects of traffic accidents. First,
accidents often have bad physical effects, both for the
person who caused the accident and for the victims. People
can be injured very badly and also die. Secondly, accidents
usually have bad financial effects. Paying to fix the cars can
be very expensive. In addition, after an accident usually your
insurance costs will increase. Finally, there could be some
psychological effects after a car accident. It could make a
person phobic about being in a car. Even when the accident
is over, this trauma can last a long time. In conclusion, traffic
accidents can have some really bad effects so be careful on
the roads! (114 words)
25. What IS good CONTENT?
Main Subtopics:
There are several bad effects of traffic accidents. First,
accidents often have bad physical effects, both for the
person who caused the accident and for the victims. People
can be injured very badly and also die. Secondly, accidents
usually have bad financial effects. Paying to fix the cars can
be very expensive. In addition, after an accident usually your
insurance costs will increase. Finally, there could be some
psychological effects after a car accident. It could make a
person phobic about being in a car. Even when the accident
is over, this trauma can last a long time. In conclusion, traffic
accidents can have some really bad effects so be careful on
the roads! (114 words)
26. What IS good CONTENT?
Main Subtopics:
Topic: Effects of traffic accidents
Subtopics:
1: bad physical effects.
2: bad financial effects.
3: some psychological effects.
How do these subtopics compare to the first ones? Do
these subtopics make the paragraph easier to write? Do
they make it more interesting to read?
27. Do you remember the writing process
?
1. Choose a topic
2. BRAINSTORM for ideas
3. Create an outline to organize your ideas
4. Write!
Following this process will help you have good STRUCTURE
and CONTENT in your writing.
Now, on your own, or with a partner.
1. Choose a cause or effects topic.
2. Brainstorm ideas.
3. Write a topic sentence and 2-3 supporting sentences, using
good cause/effect sentence style.
4. Complete the paragraph with details. Give examples to make
your writing “alive”!
Hinweis der Redaktion
Corresponds to pages 20-22 in SAS3
For each header topic, ask your students if the ideas below are causes or effects. They should be able to differentiate causes from effects before starting to write their paragraphs.
Corresponds to pages 20-22 in SAS3
Get the students ideas and write them on the board.
