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3. COLLECTION OF DESCRIPTIONS
Collection of descriptions — (information organized by a simple listing of facts or ideas relating to the same
topic)
Words that are clues or signal words of a collection of descriptions:
some, others, many, a few, other, also, first, second, third, finally, in addition, lastly, all.
4. CAUSE AND EFFECT
Cause and Effect — (information organized by showing the cause or causes of an event or situation, of the
effects of some event or situation, or both).
Words that are clues or signal words of a cause/effect pattern:
result, cause, effect, lead to, due to, consequently, because of, create, become, come about.
Exercise:
Below are four paragraphs about Sir Isaac Newton.
A. Read each paragraph, and then choose one sentence from the extra sentences below and write the letter
for that sentence next to the paragraph in which it would fit best. One of the sentences will not be used.
B. Label each paragraph according to the system by which the sentences are ordered (use the four labels
given above «Time Order»; «Comparison/Contrast»; «Collection of descriptions»; or «Cause and Effect»).
Paragraph 1
Sir Isaac Newton worked on many important scientific problems. First, there was his development of the
laws of motion. He also made important discoveries about optics and the nature of color. His other work
included ideas about astronomy, chemistry, and logic. And finally, he produced the Principia, a book which
explained his law of universal gravitation.
Paragraph 2
Isaac Newton was born in England in 1642.
He went to Trinity College, Cambridge University, in 1661 at
the age of 18. In 1665, the plague swept through England, and Newton left school and returned to his family
home in Woolsthorpe. It was there that he began most of his best work.
He published his famous book, the
Principia, in 1682. And in 1699 he was made the director of the English Mint. Sir Isaac Newton died in 1727
and he is buried in Westminster Abbey.
Paragraph 3
Although the two men were both geniuses, Isaac Newton and Albert Einstein have very little else in
common. True, they both did their most important and famous work before the age of 26. But there are great
differences between them. «Proper behavior» was most important to Newton, while Einstein liked to be
different. Newton spent his later years working for the government, while Einstein spent his entire life doing
science.
Paragraph 4
Newton did most of his best work during his stay in Woolsthorpe from 1665 to 1668. Many writers have
tried to find out what caused him to produce all of those great ideas in such a short time. Was it the peace and
quiet of the small town that caused his creative powers to increase? The causes may never be known, but the
effects of Newton's genius are still felt today.
Extra sentences:
a. Some people think that a falling apple caused Newton to think of the law of universal gravitation.
b. Present-day physicists have discovered limits to the mechanical universe which Newton described.
c. In addition, he invented differential and integral calculus.
d. They say Isaac Newton never smiled, but Albert Einstein had a great sense of humor.
e. In fact, by age 26, he had alredy completed most of his best work.