First Grade · Writing · week 21

A Topic Sentence Introduces Your Facts

Write a topic sentence that names the subject, followed by two supporting facts about it.

A TOPIC SENTENCE tells the reader exactly what your writing is about, right at the start. "Ants are tiny but strong insects" is a topic sentence about ants.

After your topic sentence, add facts that support it -- true details that teach the reader more about your topic.

📋 For the teacher
Teach it (10–15 min):
  • Model writing a topic sentence about a topic of your own first, out loud, so the pattern is clear.
  • Check that each fact truly connects to the topic sentence -- an interesting but unrelated fact can be saved for another time.
  • Encourage specific facts (numbers, names, details) over general statements.
  • Read the three sentences in order and ask if a listener would understand the topic from just the first sentence.
Talk about it:
  • What job does a topic sentence do?
  • How do your two facts connect back to your topic sentence?
  • Could a stranger understand your topic from your first sentence alone?

Mastery looks like: They write a clear topic sentence followed by two specific, connected supporting facts.

Common stumbles: Writing a fact that is interesting but does not actually relate to the stated topic sentence.

See it visually

Interactive, spoken-aloud tools that show this idea in motion.

Sentence BuilderDrag word tiles into a real sentence, with a capital and end mark.try →Paragraph BuilderStack a paragraph: topic sentence, details, closing.try →
Homework for this lessonType it, write it with a stylus, or print it for pencil & paper.open →
Records attendance + 15 min of Writing for this learner.
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