Cause and Effect Paragraphs

WHAT IS A CAUSE? WHAT IS AN EFFECT? Cause and effect depend on each other. You can’t have one without the other. A plane crashed. That is the effect. What are the possible causes? Was it a mechanical or human error? Was it due to the weather? Obviously there are many possible causes. Cause and Effect writing analyzes why something happens. Some effects are caused by multiple causes. Some causes, in turn, can result in multiple effects.

Cause and Effect writing typically uses the following questions: Writers use Cause/Effect writing to explain why something happens and/or the results of an event. Cause and Effect writing typically uses the following questions: "What are the causes of X?" "What led to X?" "Why did X happen?" "Why does X happen?" "What would be the effects of X?"

A very cold weather will make people stay in-doors. Activity 1: Identify the causes or effects in each of the following sentences: A very cold weather will make people stay in-doors. Economic growth creates many jobs which in turn make many families live in better conditions. According to experts, new agricultural methods will help solve many problems. Necessity is the mother of invention. As a result of his injury, he could no longer play tennis. The government spends a lot of money to provide food for the needy. I had a cold, so I did not go to class. I did not go to class because I had a cold. Higher prices are often the result of an increase in consumption. Bad roads conditions caused the car accident.

Steps in Writing a Cause/Effect Paragraph? Decide whether you want to examine the cause or effect. STEP 2 Examine each cause and effect thoroughly, using sufficient evidence to prove your points. You should support all causes or effects with: Good examples Definition Description Narration, and/or Comparison

Causal Patterns Effect Cause Cause Effect Chain reasoning (Cause Effect Effect)

Effect Cause Bad road infrastructure Careless driving Lack of law enforcement Car accidents

Cause Effect Climatic changes Danger to coastal regions Change in weather patterns. Greenhouse emissions

Chain reasoning Global warming Negative effects on natural resources Greenhouse emissions Global warming Negative effects on natural resources Changes to agriculture Endangerment to species

Signal Words Cause and Effect Degrees of Certainty Levels of Importance As a result Certainly Above all, Because May Equally important, Consequently Necessarily Most importantly, Due to Perhaps First, If … then Possibly Initially, Leads to Probably Last, Therefore Undoubtedly Primarily, Thus Unquestionably Second, As a consequence Undeniably Finally,

We turned on the heat __________________________. Activity 2: Complete following sent. Make sure you include a transition signal: We turned on the heat __________________________. _______________________ when I fell off my bike. Because I helped my mother, _____________________. ____________________it was a very cold day yesterday. Huda spilled some milk on the floor ________________. She was very tired last night ______________________. Adam forgot to come to class early today ____________. Our teacher was surprised ________________________. ______________________, the football team was angry. When the cat is away, ___________________________.

Multiple causes effect Topic Sentence: Air pollution is caused by the following factors: exhaust gases from cars, uncontrolled factory releases, and burning of low-quality coal for heating. I. Exhaust gases from cars A. government does not have enough control B. citizens do not have keen awareness of the problem II. Uncontrolled factory gases A. no regular checks on gases released B. factories are inside the borders of residential areas III. Burning of low-quality coal for heating A. no governmental control B. other forms of energy too expensive

Multiple causes effect Topic Sentence: Watching too much TV has many effects on the physiology and psychology of people. I. Eating disorders A. TV meals B. obesity II. Communication problems A. more violence B. no interpersonal talk

Some students fail in their study Activity 3: Provide three brief causes/effects for the following statements: Some students fail in their study Effects of being organized in learning a language Children watch too much violence on television

There are several possible reasons why my father is in excellent health, even though he is over seventy years of age. First, he is in excellent condition because he has stopped smoking cigarettes. He quit smoking cigarettes since whenever he climbed stairs, he would quickly stop several times and cough loudly. He also has good health as a result of stopping eating the wrong kinds of foods. For example, whereas before he would eat fatty red meat and deep-fried dishes several times a week. Nowadays he seldom does so. He is also in good physical shape, for he exercises a lot. He swims three times a week at the local gym, and on sunny days he prefers to walk home rather than take the bus. In conclusion, my father is in better shape than some of his children are!

Activity 4: Complete the following paragraph providing reasons and examples: The rise of the internet has had profound effects on our daily lives. First, email is now is very familiar to us. For instance, many of us can communicate with their friends, relatives and colleagues using emails. Moreover, many of us now turn to webpages rather than to newspapers or TV for the latest news, sports scores or stock quotes. In addition, _______________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________. In conclusion, it is great to live in the age of the internet because of the great benefits it has had on our daily lives.