Fishing for READERS! Why is it important to write strong “hooks” or “leads”?

1. Fishing for READERS! Why is it important to write strong “hooks” or “leads”?

2. Has this ever happened to you??? You pick up something to read. Perhaps, you read a paragraph or two, and then decide to put it down. Of course it has, we’ve all had that experience! Readers enjoy what interests them. To determine our level of interest in a book, we usually read the beginning to see if we like it. When you think about creating a good beginning for a piece, there are THREE important things you should have…….

3. Recipe for a strong beginning • Catch the reader’s attention with a hook! • Make the reader want to read MORE. Hook your reader and REEL them in. Your beginning should have something that makes the reader curious about what is to come. • Appropriate to purpose and audience: Readers want to feel like the beginning of your piece is an invitation to an interesting and enjoyable experience. You don’t want to start your piece in a way that makes others feel disrespected.

4. How do we find great strategies for good beginnings? I do…WE do… YOU do!

5. Interesting Description(I do…) Ashes filled the air while we sat around the camp fire. Crackle, crackle it went. Suddenly, a stick snapped in the woods behind us. This uses sight and sound details that we might not normally think of to make the beginning effective!

6. Sound (I do…) “Gurgle! Grumble! Pop!” My stomach sounded like fireworks the period before lunch.

7. Start with a hint of something interesting to come (I do…) It all started on an average day. I didn’t think anything unusual was going to happen, but boy was I wrong! One of the best ways to hook your readers is to give them just a hint of something interesting without telling them what it actually is. This lead does a nice job of that because we can’t help but wonder what unusual thing happened that day!

8. Start with a simile or a metaphor… (I do…) Screech! Screech! The first time we tried to play the recorders it sounded like a lion running his claws down a chalk board. WE DO…Turn to your table mates. Sentence starter: Yikes! When Todd shoved a pencil up Bud Caldwell’s nose, Bud felt like… Let’s SHARE!

9. Start by “SHOWING” how someone feels. I sat at my desk, sweat dripping down my face. I shut my eyes tight, then opened them. I looked at my watch, 11:27. Three minutes! Three minutes until I heard a sound, a sound that would set me free for three months of total nothingness. This is a great description of a kid who can’t wait for the school year to end. Rather than just say something like, “I couldn’t wait for the school year to end,” the writer gives you an extended description that “shows” you how he feels.

10. Last, but not least… Start with a question(?) Have you ever had trouble finding an outfit for school in the morning? What if that was already done for you? Imagine waking up without the stress of worrying about what to wear each day. If you have felt this way countless days before, school uniforms are the key to solving your morning mix-ups!

11. Your task…YOU DO 1. Choose out of the following three topics for your independent persuasive piece, and consider your audience: *School Uniforms*Automatic Hand Dryers or Soap Dispensers in the bathroom* Taking an educational field trip once a month. 2. Use the recipe for a catchy and effective hook, today’s power point, and “A Glossary of Good Beginnings” to create 3 possible introductions for your essay using three different strategies. 3. Tomorrow, you will work with a partner to decide on your strongest introduction.

12. TICKET to LUNCH • Why is it important to write a strong beginning? • What strategy or strategies do you feel confident in using? • Is there a strategy that you would like to use, but need a little more practice with…??