Word Paragraph Margins
Page margins define the margin size for the entire document. Paragraph margins define the indentation of single paragraphs, how much space is before and after the paragraph, and the line spacing for the paragraph. At the point where the page margin is located is zero, with indents for a paragraph going from that point on. Even though a margin may be set to one or some other number, the paragraph considers it zero. For example, you might be writing a research paper or report with double spacing and standard one inch margins. You need to inset a specific paragraph to .5 and single space it, with a blank line before and after. Settings for "Paragraph" allow you to set these measurements, for the individual paragraph. Do the following activity to change the indentation and line spacing for a paragraph. When you are finished, move to the link at the bottom of this page titled "BACK" to go to the "Word Processor Lessons" web page.
1. Open Word. If you are using Word 2013, hit the Escape key or Enter key one time to open a blank document.
2. Type "This is paragraph one" (without the quotes).
3. Hit the Enter key one time.
4. Hit the Alt key one time.
5. Right arrow to the "Page Layout" ribbon.
6. Down arrow one time.
7. Hit the Tab key again-and-again until you hear something like "Indent Left."
8. Up arrow to the ".5" item.
9. Tab one time and you will hear "Right."
10. Up arrow to the ".5" item.
11. Tab one time and you will hear "Before."
12. Up arrow to the "6 pt" item.
13. Tab one time and you will hear "After."
14. Down or up arrow to the "6 pt" item.
15. Tab one time and you will hear "Paragraph Settings."
16. Hit the Enter key one time.
17. You are in a combo box titled "Alignment" and are on the "Left" setting. You can use down or up arrow keys to change this setting, if required for your paper.
18. Hit the Tab key one time and you will be placed in a combo box titled "Outline" level, and will be on the "Body Text" item. You can down arrow to change this setting (levels 1 through 9), or leave it as it is.
19. Hit the Tab key again-and-again to move through the "Indentation" and "Spacing" areas (you have already set these in the ribbon). Tab until you hear "Line Spacing."
20. In the "Line Spacing" combo box you can use your up and down arrow keys to select from six items: "Single, 1.5 Lines, Double, At Least, Exactly and Multiple." Arrow to the item you need.
21. Hit the Tab key one time and you will be in the "At" combo box.
22. Use your down and up arrow keys to explore the numbers in the "At" combo box. Move to the number you want.
23. Hit the Tab key again-and-again until you are on the "OK" button.
24. Hit the Spacebar one time and the settings for the paragraph you are working with are set to your specifications.
NOTE: If you are working with a paragraph in the middle of a report or paper, type the text of the report until you come to where you need to change the indent of the paragraph. Hit the Enter key two times and type a word. Up arrow one time and set the single paragraph settings. Type that paragraph. Down arrow to the word you typed earlier. Highlight that word, and then continue typing your report or paper. This technique saves you from having to reset the settings for paragraphs, after you made the special settings for the single paragraph.