Introductory paragraph:

The most important

paragraph.

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What introductions do:
 It’s is like greeting someone, it should be short and
to the point like saying, “Hello!”
 It sets the tone of the paper
 It informs the reader what the paper will be about
without getting into the meat of essay.

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Parts of an introduction
1. Hook/Attention Grabber: 1st few sentences that
make the reader want to read the paper.
2. Transition sentence ( not always necessary).
 Acts as a bridge between the hook and the thesis.
 Give back ground info, defines terms, ect
3. Thesis:
 Topic sentences of your essay.
 Last sentences in your introduction
 One sentences that state the (1)topic, (2)what you will
prove and (3)three reasons or arguments.

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Example 1
Today smoking is an
issue which is on everybody’s
mind. The whole country is
divided on this issue. Some
people believe that smoking
should be banned
everywhere while others are
not so harsh. Tobacco
should be outlawed because
smoking endangers
everyone’s health, pollutes
the environment, and drains
us of valuable energy.
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Example 2
What do you think about
banning smoking? The whole
country is divided on whether
smoking should be banned.
Smoking should be outlawed
because it endangers everyone’s
health; it pollutes the
environment, and it drains us of
valuable energy.

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  Do you think that college athletes should be
paid more than just tuition? Many people
believe that college athletes should get paid
while others believe they should not. College
athletes should be paid because they practice
long hours; the schools are profiting through
the athletes efforts, and this would make college
life much less stressful for the athletes.

Created by José J. González, Jr.

Spring 2002 6
Types of Hooks. . .
 Stating a fact or a strong opinion:
 Question:
 Quotation
 Description
 Anecdote ( Little story)

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Examples of Strong fact or opinion
hooks
 Almost every time that you turn on the television
you will find a number of shows which are
extremely violent.

 Many public schools have decided that their

students should use uniforms.

 In the United States of America the public burning

of our flag has become a common sight.

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Examples of question introduction
 Are you ever bothered by the excessive violence
on prime time television?

 Do you think that to improve our public school

education the students should be required to wear
uniforms?

 Should we allow citizens to burn the United States

flag in public?

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 Examples of Quotation
introduction ( Indirect Quote)
 A recent article in Time magazine states that
the viewing of extremely violent television
shows is the number one cause of violence in
our inner cities.
 The Monitor recently conducted a study and
concluded that students in public schools
where uniforms are mandatory have less
problems and perform better academically.
 A recent article in The Austin Statesman states
that most Americans are very much against flag
burning in public and are in favor of passing a
law banning this activity.

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Example of Description Hook
 A family sits around the TV. Mom, dad, and the kids.
They are ready for an evening of fun. But then the TV
explodes with gun fire and instantly the children start
to hit each other.
 The teacher in room 207 looks out at her class. All the
students are dressed in white polo shirts and tan pants.
They have smiles on their faces and they are eager to
learn.
 The American flag laid crumpled on the ground with
flames licking at the stars and stripes. The onlookers
turned away in disgust.

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Example of Anecdote
 Two young boys were watching a TV show where the
characters were shooting at each other. After the show, the
boys went into the parents bed room. One of the boys pulls
a gun out of his fathers night stand and points it at the
other yelling “bang bang”. The gun went off and the second
boy fell to the floor with a hole in his head.
 Jane gets up for school and goes to her closet. She pulls out
a newly pressed collared shirt and tan pants. At breakfast
she asks her mother to sign off on her homework. Jane is
proud of herself, this year she is earning all A’s/

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You know your introduction is good
when…
 It contains strong verbs ( to be and to have are not
strong)
 It places the reader in a time and space
 It has strong images the reader can see in their head
 It has details
 It creates a mood

Created by José J. González, Jr.

Spring 2002 13
Assignment: Write an introductory

paragraph for the following topic.

 Many high school seniors have many financial

obligations and need some form of income. Do you
think that seniors should be allowed to go half a
day to school and work half a day?

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