Introductory Paragraphs

1. Grabber Opening or Hook

2. Explanation of the Hook

3. Thesis sentence – what the paper is going to be about

Strong introductory paragraphs include:

Grabber Openings/Hooks

Ways to make a good first impression!!

Conversation/Dialogue

“The wetlands are SOOOO cool!” They really are, but they are quickly disappearing due to human development. The wetlands are worth saving because…

Begin with a Question

Have you wondered what our world would be like with out wetlands? If we continue to destroy them at the pace we are, we just might find out. The wetlands are worth saving because…

Begin with a fact or quote

Wetlands once covered 10 million acres of Wisconsin soil. Today, that number is only 2.5 million acres. The reduction has come because of development by humans. The wetlands are truly worth saving because…

SOUND EFFECTS

Quack, quack, quack… That’s the sound of a Wood Duck searching for a nesting spot in Wisconsin. They are becoming harder and harder to find to man’s development of their habitat – the wetland. Wetlands are worth saving because…

The soothing rustle of the cattails seemed to lull the Great Blue Heron to sleep as it stood on the clump of marsh grass. What a peaceful sight. If we don’t begin to take care of wetlands though, this scene may be nothing but a memory. The wetlands need to be preserved because…

Thoughts and Feelings

Grabbers

Dialogue Question Fact or Quote Sound Effects Thoughts/Feelings

Explanation of Hook

Wetlands once covered 10 million acres of Wisconsin soil. Today, that number is only 2.5 million acres. The reduction has come because of development by humans.

Explain the hook so that the reader knows why you chose to hook the reader in the way you did.

Thesis

Wetlands once covered 10 million acres of Wisconsin soil. Today, that number is only 2.5 million acres. The reduction has come because of development by humans. The wetlands are worth saving because…

Thesis sentences ARE: - the main idea sentence for the whole paper -like a topic sentence for the whole paper