Today we are going to look at layering evidence in our main body paragraphs. The aim with layering evidence is to make your paragraphs richer and more detailed.
In the past we have focused on TEEL (Topic Evidence Explanation Link), when you layer and extra piece of evidence into you paragraphs the structure looks more like TEEEL (Topic Evidence Explanation Evidence Link).
In reality, you can have three of four bits of evidence in a pragraph, but you have to make sure that you don’t over do it and end up running out of time to complete your essay in the exam.
Example
PK learns many lessons, growing up in South Africa, from the people he meets. Discuss
TEEL
PK develops a deep understanding of the importance of using his head to solve problems. His mentor Geil Pete tells him to think ‘first with the head, then with the heart’ when trying to explain how being small isn’t necessarily a bad thing. Geil Pete illustrates this to PK when he calmy swaps his bucket of tobacco for an empty one just before being asked to empty it by Sgt. Boorman. Geil Pete was in a very tricky situation and may well have been caught with the tobacco, if he hadn’t held his nerve and thought his way out of the situation. PK learns about the value of using his head from the wise people he encounters; it is this which allows him to develop into such a wise young man himself.
TEEEEL
PK develops a deep understanding of the importance of using his head to solve problems. His mentor Geil Pete tells him to think ‘first with the head, then with the heart’ when trying to explain how being small isn’t necessarily a bad thing. Geil Pete illustrates this to PK when he calmy swaps his bucket of tobacco for an empty one just before being asked to empty it by Sgt. Boorman. Geil Pete was in a very tricky situation and may well have been caught with the tobacco, if he hadn’t held his nerve and thought his way out of the situation. This ability to recognise when stealth is the best approach against brute force comes out in PK himself when caught talking to Gideon Dima; PK understands the best way to avoid trouble with the police is to treat Gideon with the disrespect the police do, thus making them believe he is as racist as they are. PK learns about the value of using his head from the wise people he encounters; it is this which allows him to develop into such a wise young man himself.