Classification paragraph exercise

1 Introduction to classification paragraphs

For classification paragraphs, there are different ways of organizing them. As a writer, you can choose existing criteria that readers will recognize and accept; or you can choose your own criteria that provide a useful insight into the topic. For example, as an exercise, think about how you could classify different languages of the world (next page), or fictional alien religions in a science fiction universe (next section). Discuss these as a group, and create an informal outline. You can follow the pattern below (but with whatever numbers or levels that you find appropriate).

Main idea (thesis):

1. Body Paragraph 1/Category 1

1. 1. Item 1
   2. Item 2
   3. Item 3

1. Body Paragraph 2/Category 2
   1. Item 1
   2. Item 2
   3. Item 3

1. Body Paragraph 3/Category 3
   1. Item 1
   2. Item 2
   3. Item 3

2 Classification exercise #1: Languages

Here is a list of the most commonly spoken languages in the world, with rank, major language family, family subbranch, general or approximate region, number of native or first language speakers (L1), and second language (L2) speakers. Feel free to add other languages that you are familiar with.

Rank	Language	Family	Branch	Region	L1	L2
1	English	Indo-European	Germanic	UK, US, IE, AU, NZ	369.9 M	978.2 M
2	Mandarin Chinese	Sino-Tibetan	Sinitic	China	921.2 M	198.7 M
3	Hindustani	Indo-European	Indo-Aryan	India	411.2 M	419.3 M
4	Spanish	Indo-European	Romance	ES, Americas	471.4 M	71.5 M
5	Standard Arabic	Afro-Asiatic	Semitic	Arab nations	—	274 M
6	Bengali	Indo-European	Indo-Aryan	Bangladesh	228.7 M	39.0 M
7	French	Indo-European	Romance	FR, BE	79.6 M	187.4 M
8	Russian	Indo-European	Balto-Slavic	Russia	153.7 M	104.3 M
9	Portuguese	Indo-European	Romance	PT, BR	232.4 M	25.2 M
10	Indonesian	Austronesian	Malayo-Polynesian	ID	43.6 M	155.4 M
11	German	Indo-European	Germanic	DE, AT, CH	76.6 M	58.5 M
12	Japanese	Japonic	—	Japan	126.3 M	121,500
13	Marathi	Indo-European	Indo-Aryan	India	83.1 M	16.0 M
14	Telugu	Dravidian	South-Central	India	82.6 M	13.0 M
15	Turkish	Turkic	Oghuz	Turkey	82.2 M	5.9 M
16	Tamil	Dravidian	Southern	India	77.5 M	8.0 M
17	Yue / Cantonese Chinese	Sino-Tibetan	Sinitic	China, HK	84.9 M	402,000
18	Wu / Shanghai Chinese	Sino-Tibetan	Sinitic	China	81.7 M	63,000
19	Korean	Koreanic	—	Korea	77 M	—
20	Vietnamese	Austroasiatic	Vietic	VT	76.1 M	745,000
21	Hausa	Afro-Asiatic	Chadic	Nigeria	48.6 M	26.3 M
22	Iranian Persian	Indo-European	Iranian	IR	56.3 M	17.9 M
23	Egyptian Arabic	Afro-Asiatic	Semitic	EG	—	—
24	Swahili	Niger–Congo	Bantu	KE, TZ, RW, UG, BU	16.3 M	52.9 M
25	Javanese	Austronesian	Malayo-Polynesian	ID	—	—
26	Italian	Indo-European	Romance	IT	64.8 M	3.1 M
27	Western Punjabi	Indo-European	Indo-Aryan	India	—	—
28	Gujarati	Indo-European	Indo-Aryan	India	56.9 M	5.0 M
29	Thai	Kra–Dai	Zhuang–Tai	TH	20.7 M	40.0 M
30	Kannada	Dravidian	Southern	India	43.6 M	15.0 M
31	Amharic	Afroasiatic	Semitic	Ethiopia	32.3 M	25.1 M
32	Bhojpuri	Indo-European	Indo-Aryan	IN, NP	52.3 M	160,000
33	Eastern Punjabi	Indo-European	Indo-Aryan	India	48.6 M	3.6 M
34	Min-nan / Hokkien Chinese	Sino-Tibetan	Sinitic	China, TW	48.4 M	387,000
35	Nigerian Pidgin	English Creole	—	Nigeria	—	—
36	Jin Chinese	Sino-Tibetan	Sinitic	China	—	—
37	Filipino / Tagalog	Austronesian	Malayo-Polynesian	PH	—	45.0 M
38	Hakka Chinese	Sino-Tibetan	Sinitic	China, TW	—	—
39	Yoruba	Niger–Congo	Atlantic–Congo	Nigeria	—	—
40	Burmese	Sino-Tibetan	Tibeto-Burman	MY	—	—
41	Sudanese Arabic	Afro-Asiatic	Semitic	Sudan	—	—
42	Polish	Indo-European	Balto-Slavic	Poland	—	—
43	Odia	Indo-European	Indo-Aryan	India	—	—

3 Exercise 2: The Religions of Znarf (simple version)

Below is information on the various religions of the planet Znarf, with different categories of information. Their society and culture is of great interest to scientists and leaders from other planets, so you need to write some basic descriptions of their religions so others can learn more about the Znarfians.

Select one category around which to organize a paragraph, and write an outline for such a paragraph. Decide how you will organize your outline – what criteria or standard will you use to organize the information? After submitting an outline, you will write a paragraph or two based on your outline.

Outlines usually consist of the following levels:

I. Roman numerals (I, II, III, IV, V, VI...)

A. capital letters (A, B, C...)

1. numerals (1, 2, 3...)

a. lower-case letters (a, b, c...)

The planet Znarf is located about 60,000 light years from earth. It consists of five continents: North Znarfia, South Znarfia, East Znarfia, West Znarfia, and Central Znarfia. (Dates are given in Znarf years; one Znarf year = 1.5 earth years.)

Vespuccian refers to a dominant ethnic group of Znarfians who belong to a higher socio-economic group than many other groups in some areas. The Vespuccian faiths (whose members are largely, but not entirely, ethnic Vespuccians) appeal to those in upper social and economic levels, and with higher education. Boinkism and Aaowwism are more popular with less educated and lower socioeconomic classes. Elvissism is more popular among uneducated Znarfians, while Anti-elvissism is more popular among the educated classes; both began after Elvis songs were first imported 25 years ago.

Religion	# of members	Origin	Main rituals and/or beliefs	Geographic distribution
Boinkism	17 million	teachings of the Bonk & Boink brothers, 2500 years ago	Walking backwards in rainstorms; Worship various rain deities	worldwide
Freddism	8.7 million	teachings developed by a group of Vespuccian college students at South Znarfian universities, 1200 years ago	Wearing one shoe on the head; Believe the world was created by a man named Fred, after he had too much to drink one night	South Znarfia, North Znarfia, Central Znarfia (a few members on the other continents)
Fritzism	4.2 million	teachings of a Vespuccian sect in Central Znarfia, 900 years ago	Wearing a pot or frying pan on the head; Believe the world was created by a man named Fritz in his kitchen	Central Znarfia, East Znarfia (a few members on the other continents)
Bireebokism (Binikeism)	3.4 million	teachings of a Vespuccian sect in East Znarfia, 700 years ago	Wearing two shoes on the head; Believe that Fritz and Fred both created the world	East Znarfia, West Znarfia (a few members on the other continents)
Elvissism	185,000	25 years ago	Listening to and chanting Elvis songs	West Znarfia
Anti-elvissism	192,000	24 years ago	Believe that Elvis is an evil spirit	West Znarfia
Aaowwism	21 million	ancient origins; 4200 years ago	Worship various deities associated with rocks and trees; no central creed. When they injure themselves by running into rocks or trees, they scream “Aaoww!” to appeal to the rock or tree deities for mercy	worldwide

3.1 Answer key: one possible outline

The Religions of Znarf: Outline

1. Religions according to beliefs and practices

A. Religions with man/ men as creator of the world 1. Freddism a. beliefs & rituals i. wear one shoe on head ii. world created by Fred b. popularity c. distribution d. # of members 2. Fritzism a. beliefs & rituals i. wear pot/ pan on head ii. world created by Fritz b. popularity c. distribution d. # of members 3. Bireebokism a. beliefs & rituals i. wear two shoes on head ii. world created by Fred & Fritz b. popularity c. distribution d. # of members

B. Polytheistic religions 1. Boinkism a. beliefs & rituals i. walking backwards in rainstorms ii. worship various rain deities b. popularity c. distribution d. # of members 2. Aaowwism a. beliefs & rituals i. worship deities of rocks & trees ii. scream “aaoww!” b. popularity c. distribution d. # of members

C. Elvis based religions 1. Elvissism a. beliefs & rituals i. Elvis songs b. popularity c. distribution d. # of members 2. Anti-elvissism a. beliefs & rituals i. Elvis is evil spirit b. popularity c. distribution d. # of members

2. Religions according to geographical region

...

3. Religions by chronology

...

4 Exercise 3: The Religions of Znarf (longer version)

Below is information on the various religions of the planet Znarf, with different categories of information. Their society and culture is of great interest to scientists and leaders from other planets, so you need to write some basic descriptions of their religions so others can learn more about the Znarfians.

Select one category around which to organize a paragraph, and write an outline for such a paragraph. Decide how you will organize your outline – what criteria or standard will you use to organize the information? After submitting an outline, you will write a paragraph or two based on your outline. Outlines (in English or European style) can consist of levels like these, but you can use whatever works for you.

• I. Roman numerals (I, II, III, IV, V, VI...)

• A. Capital letters (A, B, C...)

• 1. Numerals (1, 2, 3...)

• a. Lower-case letters (a, b, c...)

4.1 Znarf

The planet Znarf is located about 65,000 light years from earth. It consists of five continents: North Znarfia, South Znarfia, East Znarfia, West Znarfia, and Central Znarfia. (Dates are given in Znarf years; one Znarf year = 1.5 earth years.)

Vespuccian refers to a dominant ethnic group of Znarfians who belong to a higher socio-economic group than many other groups in some areas. The Vespuccian faiths (whose members are largely, but not entirely, ethnic Vespuccians) appeal to those in upper social and economic levels, and with higher education. Boinkism and Aaowwism are more popular with less educated and lower socioeconomic classes. Bireebokism has some appeal to some among the educated and professional classes of Znarf. Elvissism is more popular among younger, less educated Znarfians, while Anti-elvissism is more popular among the educated classes; both began after Elvis songs were first imported 25 years ago. The majority of Vespuccians live in South and Central Znarfia, but a number of others live on other continents; some have lived there since times of ancient military conquests (when South Znarfia conquered parts of other continents – parts which are now independent of South Znarfian control), but most Vespuccians on other continents have moved there for business reasons, since the so-called MPEG (modern period of enlightenment and globalization, starting 180 years ago). The other continents are dominated by other ethnic groups and cultures: the Naidanac and Ukaeyan in North Znarfia; the Doytche in West Znarfia, and the Silurians in East Znarfia.

4.2 Znarfian religions & belief systems

Religion	Members & distribution	Origin	Main rituals and/or beliefs
Aaowwism	325 million, worldwide; uneducated and low socio-economic classes	ancient origins; about 4000-5000 years ago	Worship various deities associated with weather, rocks and trees; no specific, central creed. When they injure themselves by running into rocks or trees, they scream “Aaoww!” to appeal to the rock / tree deities for mercy
Boinkism	817 million, worldwide	teachings of the Bonk & Boink brothers, 2500 years ago	Believe that the world developed from a cosmic rainstorm that was sent by rain deities. Rituals consist of walking backwards in rainstorms to commemorate the original cosmic rainstorm event, and worshiping various rain deities
Freddism	158 million: South Znarfia, North Znarfia, Central Znarfia (a few members on the other continents)	teachings developed by cynical Vespuccian college students at South Znarfian universities, 1200 years ago	Believe the world was created by a deity named Fred, after he had too much to drink one night; Freddists are skeptical or cynical about the existence of rain deities – hence, tensions exist between Freddists and Boinkists. Emphasis on personal pleasure, personal & aesthetic creativity, and enjoyment of life, since Fred is viewed as a creative, fun-loving deity; some emphasize pleasure more, leading to careless, apathy or hedonism in life. Rituals: wearing one shoe on the head (as they believe that Fred, while drunk, wore a shoe on his head);
Fritzism	24.5 million: Central Znarfia, East Znarfia (a few members on the other continents)	teachings of a Vespuccian sect in Central Znarfia, 900 years ago	Believe the world was created by a deity named Fritz in his kitchen; Emphasis on pleasure, creativity, and enjoyment of life, especially regarding food and cooking, as Fritz is viewed as a culinary deity; some take the emphasis on pleasure to the extreme of gluttony or hedonism; Rituals: Wearing a pot or frying pan on the head (which they believe Fritz did when drunk); weekly religious rituals involving spices and condiments
Bicalceism (Bisoccism)	13.4 million: East Znarfia, West Znarfia, and some educated persons on all the continents	teachings of a Vespuccian sect in East Znarfia, 700 years ago	Believe that Fritz and Fred both created the world together; since Fritz and Fred cooperated in creating the world, they emphasize cooperative and collective social values, and social harmony, in addition to pleasure and enjoyment of life. Rituals: Wearing two shoes on the head; weekly rituals involving what they believe to be “harmonious” combinations of foods
Elvissism	1.8 million: West Znarfia, mostly among less educated or lower classes	25 years ago	Listening to and singing or chanting Elvis songs; believe that Elvis is “the King” in some religious sense
Anti-elvissism	1.9 million: West Znarfia, mostly among educated, professional and higher socioeconomic classes	24 years ago	Believe that Elvis is an evil spirit; prefer Beatles songs for aesthetic or spiritual inspiration; tensions exist between Elvissists and Anti-Evlissists.
Anti-znarfolatry	110-130 million, worldwide, especially among educated and professional classes	some since ancient times, but mostly since the modern period (MPEG)	No religious beliefs; agnostic or atheist, and essentially similar to humanism, or a belief in reason, social justice, humanitarianism, and morality based on altruism and the value of persons. They focus on social justice work, charity work, multiculturalism, or intellectual pursuits that bear social value. They tend to deride other religions (though they are more sympathetic to Anti-elvissists); hence, tensions exist between these agnostics and followers of most other religions.

5 Example: Contrast & comparison paragraphs

Naturally, comparisons focus on similarities, while contrasts focus on differences. One can follow a subject-by-subject contrast or comparison, that is, discussing one subject with its various qualities, followed by another subject, with its qualities. Or one can follow a point-by-point pattern, systematically going point by point and comparing or contrasting the particular qualities of both subjects. For example, one could compare computer operating systems with either organizational pattern.

Subject pattern	Point-by-point comparison
1. MS Windows A. Cost B. Expertise C. Versions D. Office software E. Interoperability 2. Linux A. Cost B. Expertise C. Versions D. Office software E. Interoperability	1. Cost A. Windows B. Linux self-install C. Linux server with professional support 2. Expertise A. Windows Productivity software Server management Security B. Linux Productivity software Server management Security 3. Versions A. Windows B. Linux Debian-based, Arch-based … 4. Office software A. Windows B. Linux 5. Interoperability A. Windows B. Linux Samba, networking

5.1 Exercise

Pick either the language classification exercise or the alien religion exercise (the religions of Znarf). Imagine you have to write a short essay on one of these topics, starting with the information provided here. How would you choose to organize it — what criteria or basis for organizing the data would you choose? What might a thesis or main objective of the essay sound like (in one sentence)? Then create a rough outline to show how you would organize the body paragraphs. Your outline should have at least two levels of hierarchy , like so.

Thesis statement: … … …

I. Something A. Detail B. Detail 2 C. Detail 3 D. Detail 4

II. Something #2 A. Detail 1 B. Detail 2 C. Detail 3

III. Something #3 A. Detail 1 B. Detail 2

The particular symbols that you use (like I, II, III...; A, B, C ...; 1, 2, 3... ; a, b, c...; α, β, γ...) do not matter, as long as you are consistent.