Strong Topic Sentences: Claims
We call the first sentence in a paragraph the topic
sentence. It should be the start of the argument you plan
to make in your paragraph.
A strong topic sentence is a claim, meaning that it
expresses an opinion. A topic sentence is weak if it simply
states a fact or outlines the plan for the paragraph.
Strong Claim
The US government
should provide free cell
phones to every citizen
over the age of 14.
Not a Claim
Over 150 million US
citizens currently have
cell phones.