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Reading and Writing 6-8 / Week 08 / Thursday
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Week 08 · Explanatory Writing

Thursday

Transitions and the conclusion
// Explain something clearly, section by section
⏱ about 20 min

Thursday: Transitions and the Conclusion

Raven reads Rocket's two sections aloud. Each sentence lands like a brick dropped on the table.

"The ramp has two sides. The low side is for beginners. The tall side is for experienced skaters. A yellow line keeps them apart."

"All true," Rocket says. "All from the notes."

"All bricks," Raven says. "What do you notice is missing between them?"

Rocket listens again. "Mortar."

Nova hovers over the page, her light tapping the gaps between sentences. "Transitions," she says. "Also. For example. Because. They tell the reader how one fact leans on the next."

"And then the ending," Raven adds. "Not a new fact. The reason the facts matter."

Learn it: transitions and conclusions

A transition is a word or phrase that links one idea to the next. Also and in addition add a fact. For example gives a detail. Because and so show a cause. Finally signals the last point.

A conclusion is the ending. It does not add a new fact. It follows from the explanation and tells the reader why the topic matters.

Raven thinks aloud: "The mentor text ends with Together, these four parts turn a porch corner into a newsroom. So the conclusion gathers the parts and says what they add up to."

  • Read two sentences side by side. Ask how they connect: adding, example, cause or last point.
  • Choose the transition that names that connection.
  • For the conclusion, reread your topic sentence and answer: so what?

Read it: a mentor text with transitions

This explainer ran in this week's Signal. Each transition is the first word or phrase of its sentence.

Read it
Why the Porch Lamp Stays On
The reading lamp on the porch stays lit until dinner for two reasons.
First, many drafts are read aloud in the evening, and a reader needs light to catch a small pencil check.
Also, neighbors picking up an issue at dusk can see the basket on the steps.
For example, on a cloudy Friday last month the basket emptied only after the lamp came on.
However, the lamp is switched off at dinner, because the crew goes inside and the porch is empty.
Finally, the switch sits by the door so the last person out can reach it.
In short, the lamp is not decoration. It is the part of the Signal Desk that lets the work run past sunset.
Which transition in the mentor text adds a second reason? Type the one word.
Which transition introduces a detail that shows the reason? Type the two-word phrase.
Which transition signals a contrast? Type the one word.
CHOOSE THE TRANSITION
  • Read the question.
  • Tap your answer.
The low side is for beginners. ___, the tall side is for experienced skaters. Which transition fits?
The sign lists three rules. ___, helmets must stay on. Which transition fits?
Rocket checks the drain after every rain ___ the bottom stays dry. Which word fits?
Which sentence is the best conclusion for the ramp explainer?
About transitions and conclusionsTrue or false?
A conclusion should introduce a brand new fact.?
Also and in addition both add a fact.?
However signals a contrast.?
A conclusion answers the question: so what??
WHY THIS EXERCISETransitions are the mortar between facts, and the conclusion is the roof that shows why the walls were built.
BUILD THE ENDING, IN ORDER
  • ?Name the three sections in one phrase each.
  • ?Say what the three parts add up to for the reader.
  • ?Reread your topic sentence.
  • ?Check that no new fact or opinion slipped in.
WHY THIS EXERCISEA conclusion that follows from the explanation leaves the reader with one clear idea.
In the mentor text, which transition begins the conclusion? Type the two-word phrase.
WHY THIS EXERCISEIn short tells the reader the explanation is being gathered up, which is the job of a conclusion.
Try it
Read your two sections aloud and pause at every gap between sentences.
At each gap, say the transition you would add before you write it.
Checklist
Every pair of sentences that needs a link has a transition.
I used at least three different transitions.
My conclusion gathers the three sections and adds no new fact.
My conclusion tells the reader why the ramp works.

Mortar between the bricks, and a roof on top. Tomorrow Nova reviews the whole explainer with you.

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