The Introduction should…

1. The Introduction should… • GRAB your reader’s attention! • Slowly introduce the topic, and get the audience thinking about the BIG ideas you are talking about! • Contain your thesis-the direction your paper is going.

2. So how do you write one? • 4-6 sentences GENERAL STATEMENTS SPECIFIC: Thesis

3. Tips • I always have my thesis as a guide. It will go at the end, but it should already be written when you start your intro. • Think about what your audience needs to understand before moving on (what you specifically will be talking about/ what your topic means) • Each sentence should build on the previous, and transition towards the next.

4. Example Millions of parents trust their children in the hands of the American Public Education System for eight hours a day, five days a week, for about forty weeks in a year. However, this trust is wildly misplaced. • Thesis: The modern education system does not produce responsible and moral citizens, but instead spews out mindless consumers. (this will really be at the end, not beginning) HOOK- grab attention, challenge views, intro topic Though American Education had noble goals in its beginnings, since its dawn it has mutated, much like the rest of the United States, into a corporation-like machine. This system’s product is wave after wave of senseless consumer whose only mission is to keep the economy moving. Fill in w/ basic info, lead to claim Wise pedagogical practices have been replaced with “teaching to the test”; students are pushed through the system without passing realistically set standards; skills that are fundamental in a dead-end job are quickly learned, while those needed in a technical job are not even brushed over. Quickly sums up what paper will cover, basic info, explain how claim is justified

5. Example • Thesis: Shakespeare was the most influential writer in the English language. The English language is one of the most diverse and complicated languages on the planet. It is generally though of as a first-world, sophisticated language, and many of the most beautiful expressions of the human experience have been captured by countless poets and writers. Although there have been many contributions to the world of literature, one writer clearly stands out above all others. William Shakespeare wrote thirty-seven plays, 154 sonnets, and other narratives that effectively depict the emotional range of humankind. Shakespeare was the most influential writer in the English language.