一、文章的组成
文章一般由三个部分组成：开头( Introduction）、正文（Body）和 结尾(Conclusion)。开头部分主要用来引出文章的话题，列出事实，介绍现状，提出观点，使读者了解文章要谈什么问题。正文可以为单独一段，也可分为若干个段落，每一段落有各自围绕文章主题的一个中心思想。正文用来提供具体细节，对事实、现状等进行分析，说明原因。结尾对全文进行概括、总结，提出结论性的意见、要解决的问题或解决问题的方法等。
二、开头段的写作
文章的开头是文章的一个重要部分。开头应能吸引读者的注意,使其对文章内容产生兴趣。开头一般都较简短，可以是一句话，也可以是一段话。开头用于引出文章的主题。开头的写法很多，不同内容的文章会有不同的开头，但常见的有以下几种类型。
1.背景法
介绍事件发生的时间、地点、情景等背景情况，然后引出主题。例如：
A Visit to London
A mile or so before they reached Oxford, George, Tom and Anne stopped the car on top of a hill from which they could see the whole of the city spread out before them: The college walls and towers looked as peaceful as when they were first built，hundreds- of years ago.
2.主题句法
提出观点或论点作为文章讨论的主题。例如：
A Country on the Move
Mobility is an important part of American life because few Americans live in one place for longer than five years.The movement of Americans is not only from one state to another；it is within the states，counties，and cities.
3.人物法
交代文章所要描述的主要人物。例如：
Marco Polo
Marco Polo（1254-1324)，the greatest of all travelers of the Middle Ages, was born in 1254 of a noble family in Venice，an independent city-state in northern Italy.His: famous travel book, Marco Polo Travels，shows，that he was a careful observer.Yet he was only 17 years old when he started on his journey to China.
4.数据法
采用已被证实的某些统计数据作为开头来引出话题。例如：Teaching Children at Home
Record numbers of children are being taken out of school and taught by their parents at home.Up to 100 children a month are leaving the claroom because parents are not satisfied with schools.Around 15,000 families now teach their children at home，a rise of 50 percent from last year，according to the latest figures.5．问题法
以提出问题的方式引出文章主题，引起读者的兴趣。例如：
What is so special about Oxford andCambridge, the two oldest universities in England? Why do so many students want to study there?
6．定义法
常见于对文章的标题下定义，然后再详细说明。例如：
Hobbies
A hobby is an interesting way of spending your free time.It\'s an activety you turn to for pleasure, not something that you have to do, like helping with the dishes.It\'s more like a special friend that you choose for yourself.You spend your free time with it because it interests you and because you enjoy it.
7.故事法
叙述一段故事作为引言，然后接着往下展开情节。例如：
That day Mother did not light the stove.，Evening came and a cold wind was blowing.There was a knock at the window.Then another.Mother was used to such knocks，but this time she gave a little start of joy.Throwing a shawl (围巾)over her shoulders，she opened the door.
8.引用法
在文章的开头中引用名人名言或习语，谚语等。例如：
A Visitor to the British Way of Life
There is a commonly quoted saying in, Britain，\"an Englishman’s
home is his castle\"，which sums up the importance we give to our own bit of private territory.If you are living in a British home or are invited to visit or stay with someone it is important to act thoughtfully and not to offend others.
三、正文的写作
正文是文章的主体部分。它用于展开主题陈述，一般由多个段落组成，有时也只有一个段落。正文的各段落所论述的都是文章主题的一个方面，每个段落要围绕段落主题进行叙述，并要保持文章的整体性和连贯性。中间段的写法很多，参见段落扩展的方法。
四、结尾段的写作
1.总结全篇
总结、概括全文的内容，提出带有结论性的意见，进一步肯定文章的中心思想或作者观点。例如：
It seems，then，that these two branches of science are mutually dependent and interacting，and that the so-called division between the pure scientist and the applied scientist is more apparent than real.
2.提出展望或期望
对未来提出展望或期待诱者一起投人行动。例如：
There are many other ways to help you with your study.Only, a few have been mentioned here.You will probably discover many others after you have tried these.Talk with your clamates about their ways of studying.Share with them some of the methods you have found to be
helpful.Improving your study habits will improve your grades.
3.使用引语
用名言、谚语或习语等结束全文。例如：
Today the Great Wall has become a place of interest to people from all over the world as well as to the Chinese people.Many of them have come to know the famous Chinese saying：“He who does not reach the Great Wall is not a true man.”
4.重复主题
回到文章开头阐明的中心思想或主题句上，以起到再次肯定或强调的作用。例如：
These five steps of the SQ3R Method--Survey，Question，Read，Recite and Review，should result in the student’s reading faster，picking out the important points，and fixing them in memory.
5.设问
通过设问或反问来结束全文。例如：
Granted that many animals seem to be highly sensitive to various signals aociated with earthquakes, the basic question of how this behavior an be put to use in earthquake prediction remains.Can we learn just what stimuli（刺激）particular species are reacting to? Can we then design instruments of similar discrimination and sensitivity? Only further experimentation will provide the answers.
