How to Write an Essay: Introduction Paragraph (with Worksheet)
TLDRThis video script is the first in a four-part series on essay writing. It focuses on crafting the introduction paragraph, detailing the hook, background information, and thesis statement. The hook grabs reader attention, background sets the context, and the thesis statement outlines the essay's main idea and supporting reasons.
Takeaways
- 📚 An essay is a group of paragraphs that explain an idea, typically consisting of three to five paragraphs.
- 📝 A prompt is a question or statement that the essay answers, guiding the essay's content and focus.
- 📌 The essay structure includes an introduction, body paragraphs, and a conclusion, each clearly indicated by empty lines or indentation.
- 🎣 The introduction paragraph starts with a 'hook', an interesting sentence designed to catch the reader's attention and make them want to read more.
- 📈 Hooks can be a surprising fact, an interesting question, a wise quote, a contradiction, or a statement about the topic's importance.
- 🌟 Background information follows the hook, providing context and preparing the reader for the main message, such as facts, numbers, opinions, or history.
- 📜 The thesis statement is the most important sentence in the essay, summarizing the main idea and providing three supporting reasons or points.
- 🔍 The thesis statement answers the essay prompt in one sentence, outlining the essay's argument and guiding the reader through the essay's structure.
- 📚 Body paragraphs expand on the thesis statement, each focusing on one of the reasons or points, providing evidence and explanation.
- 🔖 The conclusion paragraph summarizes the main points and reinforces the thesis, often restating the importance of the topic.
- 📖 Citations and bibliographies are crucial for essays that include specific information, like facts and statistics, and are discussed as an advanced topic in essay writing.
Q & A
What is the purpose of an essay?
-An essay is a group of paragraphs that explain an idea. It typically answers a prompt, which is a question or statement.
How many paragraphs are typically in an essay?
-An essay usually consists of three to five paragraphs.
What is a prompt in the context of an essay?
-A prompt is a question or statement that the essay is meant to answer or address.
What are the two ways to show where each paragraph begins in an essay?
-The two ways to show where each paragraph begins are by using an empty line after each paragraph or by indenting the first word of each paragraph.
What is the first part of an introduction paragraph called?
-The first part of an introduction paragraph is called the hook.
Why is the hook important in an essay?
-The hook is important because it catches the readers' attention and makes them want to read more of the essay.
What are some examples of hooks that can be used in an essay?
-Examples of hooks include a surprising fact or statistic, an interesting question, a wise quote, a contradiction, and a sentence that tells why the topic is important.
What is the role of background information in an introduction paragraph?
-Background information provides context and prepares the readers for the main message about the topic. It can include facts, numbers, group opinions, or history.
What is a thesis statement and where does it appear in an essay?
-A thesis statement is the most important sentence in an essay. It appears at the end of the introduction paragraph and contains the main idea about the topic along with three reasons or supporting points.
How does a thesis statement answer the essay prompt?
-A thesis statement answers the essay prompt in one sentence, including the main idea and three reasons or steps that support or explain the main idea.
What are some examples of thesis statements for different prompts?
-Examples include: 'Everyone should eat lots of vegetables, for vitamins, minerals and fiber' for a prompt about what everyone should do; 'Getting a driver's license requires a few steps, including to learn rules, practice driving, and pass exams' for a prompt about how to get a driver's license; 'The human brain has three main parts, including the cerebrum, cerebellum, and brain stem' for a prompt about the parts of the human brain.
Why is it important to not use the word 'important' when stating why a topic is important in a hook?
-Using the word 'important' can oversimplify the sentence and make it sound too basic. It's more effective to directly state why the topic is important without relying on this word.
How can a writer ensure their essay is well-structured and clear?
-A writer can ensure their essay is well-structured and clear by using a clear format that includes a hook, background information, and a thesis statement in the introduction, and by following the format required by their teacher.
Outlines
📚 Introduction to Essay Writing
This paragraph introduces the video series on essay writing, focusing on the structure of an essay and how to write an introduction paragraph. It explains that an essay consists of an introduction, body paragraphs, and a conclusion. The narrator discusses the importance of prompts, which are questions or statements that the essay answers. The essay example provided is titled 'The Best Exercise,' and it is used to illustrate the essay structure. The paragraph also covers the formatting of paragraphs, such as using empty lines or indentations, and emphasizes the need to follow the teacher's required format. The introduction paragraph is further broken down into the hook, background information, and the thesis statement, with the hook being the first sentence designed to catch the reader's attention.
🎣 Crafting the Hook and Background Information
This paragraph delves into the specifics of writing the introduction paragraph, starting with the hook. The hook is described as an interesting sentence about the topic that grabs the reader's attention. The narrator provides examples of different types of hooks, such as surprising facts, interesting questions, wise quotes, contradictions, and simple statements about the topic's importance. It is noted that specific information like facts and statistics may require citations. The paragraph then moves on to discuss background information, which can include facts, numbers, opinions, or history. Examples of background information are given, emphasizing the need to prepare readers for the main message. The narrator advises on selecting relevant background information that closely relates to the essay's topic.
📜 The Thesis Statement and Essay Structure
The final paragraph of the script focuses on the thesis statement, which is the most crucial sentence in an essay. It contains the main idea about the topic and three supporting reasons or elements. The narrator explains that the thesis statement answers the prompt and sets the stage for the essay's content. Examples of thesis statements for different prompts are provided, demonstrating how they include a main idea and three reasons or steps. The paragraph concludes with an example of an introduction paragraph and thesis statement for the essay 'The Best Exercise,' illustrating how the hook, background information, and thesis statement work together to introduce the essay's topic and main argument.
Mindmap
Keywords
💡Essay
💡Introduction Paragraph
💡Hook
💡Background Information
💡Thesis Statement
💡Paragraph
💡Body Paragraphs
💡Conclusion Paragraph
💡Citation
💡Work Cited Page/Bibliography
💡Main Idea
Highlights
This video is part one of four on how to write an essay step by step, focusing on writing the introduction paragraph.
An essay is defined as a group of paragraphs that explain an idea.
Typically, an essay consists of three to five paragraphs.
A prompt is a question or statement that the essay answers.
The essay structure includes an introduction, body paragraphs, and a conclusion.
Clear paragraph demarcation can be achieved through empty lines or indentation.
The introduction paragraph begins with a hook, an interesting sentence to catch the reader's attention.
There are five types of hooks: surprising facts, interesting questions, wise quotes, contradictions, and statements of importance.
Hooks can include specific information, requiring citations and a bibliography for verification.
Background information in the introduction provides context and prepares the reader for the main idea.
Background information can include surprising statistics, definitions, opinions, history, or trends.
The thesis statement is the most important sentence in the essay, containing the main idea and three reasons.
The thesis statement answers the prompt in one sentence, outlining the essay's argument.
Examples of thesis statements are provided for different prompts, illustrating how to incorporate a main idea and reasons.
The essay titled 'The Best Exercise' serves as an example, demonstrating the structure and content of an introduction paragraph.
The hook for the example essay emphasizes the importance of exercise for health.
Background information in the example includes facts about daily exercise recommendations and the inconvenience of certain activities.
The thesis statement for the example essay argues that walking is the best exercise due to its ease, convenience, and outdoor nature.
The video concludes with a summary of the introduction paragraph components and a preview of the next video on writing body paragraphs.
Transcripts
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