Miss Cook

1
Writing an Introduction

• Miss Cook
• English I

2
AT LEAST 5 SENTENCES

• Sentence 1 Hook
• Sentence 2 Explain the hook. Address the issue
  you are researching (bullying, loneliness, family
  relationships, or PTSD).
• Sentence 3 Explain why this issue is important.
• Sentence 4 Introduce the novel and the author.
  Mention how the issue is addressed in the novel.
• Sentence 5 Thesis Statement. THE MOST IMPORTANT
  SENTENCE IN THE ESSAY! BE SPECIFIC!!

3
THE HOOK

• get the reader INTERESTED by starting with
  something UNIQUE!
• A startling fact
• An anecdote (little story)
• A meaningful quote
• Interesting words or phrases

4
THE THESIS STATEMENT

• State your claim (list off your SUBTOPICS)
• Your subtopics will be addressed in your BODY
  PARAGRAPHS!
• Each body paragraph is about ONE of your
  subtopics
• USE THE SHAPING SHEET

5
Topic Bullying

• Suicide. Violent retaliation. Depression.
  Research suggests that these three serious things
  can be the results of school bullying. Teenagers
  worldwide are notorious for picking on other
  teenagers in malicious and hateful ways, making
  bullying an issue with severe consequences that
  needs to be addressed. Laurie Halse Anderson, an
  author who specializes in teen issues, explains
  how bullying affects one individual in her book
  Speak. The storys protagonist, Melinda, is
  isolated and picked on by her peers throughout
  the novel. The story accurately expresses high
  school relationships, including how low
  self-esteem, anxiety and suicidal tendencies are
  direct results of school bullying.

6
THE THESIS

• Based on the FINAL sentence of that paragraph
  (the thesis statement), what will the body
  paragraphs be about?
• Paragraph 2 self-esteem
• Paragraph 3 anxiety
• Paragraph 4 suicidal tendencies

7
Topic Loneliness

• Alone. All alone. Nobody, but nobody can make
  it out here alone. These lines from Maya
  Angelous poem Alone are expressive of human
  kinds need for companionship. Teenagers in
  particular are people who need the support of
  friends and family members in order to stay
  healthy. Loneliness is one of many issues
  addressed in Laurie Halse Andersons novel Speak,
  in which a teenager girl is isolated by nearly
  everyone on her high school campus. In life, as
  in Speak, loneliness results in low self-esteem,
  depression and even suicide.

8
THE THESIS

• Based on the FINAL sentence of that paragraph
  (the thesis statement), what will the body
  paragraphs be about?
• Paragraph 2 low self-esteem
• Paragraph 3 Depression
• Paragraph 4 Suicide