Exploring Writing 2nd Edition by John Langan

Exercise 11

Read the following two paragraphs. Then outline each one in the space provided. Write out the topic sentence in each case and summarize in a few words the supporting points and details that fit under the topic sentence.
1.
Why I'm a Stay-at-Home Baseball Fan
I'd much rather stay at home and watch ball games on television than go to the ballpark. First, it's cheaper to watch a game at home. I don't have to spend twenty-five dollars for a ticket and another ten dollars for a parking space. If I want some refreshments, I can have what's already in the refrigerator instead of shelling out another six dollars for a limp, lukewarm hot dog and a watery Coke. Also, it's more comfortable at home. I avoid a bumper-to bumper drive to the ballpark and pushy crowds who want to go through the same gate I do. I can lie quietly on my living-room sofa instead of sitting on a hard stadium seat with noisy people all around me. Most of all, watching a game on television is more informative. Not only do I see all the plays that I might miss from my twenty-five-dollar seat, but I see some of them two and three times in instant replay. In addition, I get each play explained to me in glorious detail. If I were at the ballpark, I wouldn't know that the pitch our third baseman hit was a high and inside slider or that his grand-slam home run was a recordsetting seventh in his career. The other fans can spend their money; put up with traffic, crowds, and hard seats; and guess at the plays. I'll take my baseball lying down-at home.
Topic sentence: _______________________________________________________________________
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(1) _______________________________________________________________________
a. _______________________________________________________________________
b. _______________________________________________________________________
(2) _______________________________________________________________________
a. _______________________________________________________________________
b. _______________________________________________________________________
(3) _______________________________________________________________________
a. _______________________________________________________________________
b. _______________________________________________________________________
2.
Why Teenagers Take Drugs
There are several reasons why teenagers take drugs. First of all, it is easy for young people to get drugs. Drugs are available almost anywhere, from a school cafeteria to a movie line to a football game. It is also easy to get drugs because today's teens have spending money, which comes from allowances or earnings from part-time jobs. Teens can use their money to buy the luxuries they want-music, makeup, clothes, or drugs. Second, teens take drugs because the adolescent years are filled with problems. For a teenager, one of these problems is the pressure of making important life decisions, such as choosing a career path. Another problem is establishing a sense of self. The teen years are the time when young people must become more independent from their parents and form their own values. The enormous pressures of these years can make some people turn to drugs. A final, and perhaps most important, reason why teenagers take drugs is peer pressure to conform. Teens often become very close to special friends, for one thing, and they will share a friend's interests, even if one interest is drugs. Teenagers also attend parties and other social events where it's all-important to be one of the crowd. Even the most mature teenager might be tempted to use drugs rather than risk being an outcast. For all these reasons, drugs are a major problem facing teenagers.
Topic sentence: _______________________________________________________________________
___________________________________________________________________________________
(1) _______________________________________________________________________
a. _______________________________________________________________________
b. _______________________________________________________________________
(2) _______________________________________________________________________
a. _______________________________________________________________________
b. _______________________________________________________________________
(3) _______________________________________________________________________
a. _______________________________________________________________________
b. _______________________________________________________________________