Best Opening for a Paragraph
Question
Which opening best introduces a paragraph that explains how solar panels generate electricity?
Answer choices
- A solar panel converts sunlight into electricity through a process called the photovoltaic effect.
- Many homeowners find solar panels expensive to install.
- Solar panels are increasingly common on residential rooftops.
- Solar panels were first developed in the 1950s.
A Correct answer: A) A solar panel converts sunlight into electricity through a process called the photovoltaic effect.
The paragraph will explain how solar panels generate electricity. The opening that best sets that up names the underlying process — the photovoltaic effect — so the rest of the paragraph can explain it. The other options open paragraphs about price, history, or popularity.
The other options either introduce a grammatical error or change the intended meaning. The ACT consistently rewards the most concise, grammatically correct option.
Read the sentence with each option substituted in. The version that preserves meaning while obeying the underlying rule is the correct answer; on the ACT, that is almost always the shortest option that still works.
The underlying rule
A paragraph that explains a process should open with a sentence that names that process. Background sentences (cost, history, prevalence) belong in different paragraphs.
Why each wrong answer is wrong
- B) Many homeowners find solar panels expensive to install.: This opening introduces a tangent (cost, prevalence, history) that does not lead into a description of how the panels actually work.
- C) Solar panels are increasingly common on residential rooftops.: This opening introduces a tangent (cost, prevalence, history) that does not lead into a description of how the panels actually work.
- D) Solar panels were first developed in the 1950s.: This opening introduces a tangent (cost, prevalence, history) that does not lead into a description of how the panels actually work.
Study tip
"Best introduces a paragraph that..." questions always test whether the opening matches what comes next. Read the rest of the paragraph before picking.
More Hard Organization & Strategy
- Best Placement for a SentenceWhich is the best placement for the sentence "The renovation took six months from start to
- Best Order of ParagraphsA four-paragraph essay describes (P1) a problem, (P2) a proposed solution, (P3) the histor
- Deleting an Underlined SentenceThe biologist trained for three years before her first solo expedition. She also enjoye
- Best Opening for a ParagraphWhich opening best introduces a paragraph that explains how solar panels generate electric
- Best Concluding SentenceA paragraph has discussed how the festival doubled in attendance, expanded to three days,