The document provides tips for effective introductions and conclusions in essays. For introductions, it recommends including a grabber, transition, and thesis statement. Examples of grabbers given are anecdotes, quotations, interesting claims/facts, questions, and surprises. The conclusion should not simply restate what was already covered but rather discuss the significance, leave a question for the reader, or call to action. Bookending by referring back to the introduction is also suggested.

1. Introductions and Conclusions
Tips and Techniques

2. Introductions
 Best Opening Scenes

3. Introductions
Introductions bring the reader into the world of your essay
and spark their interest in the topic.
They should have three components:
1) Grabber, or Hook
2) Transition
3) Thesis Statement

4. Introductions
The grabber or hook draws your reader in. It should be both
interesting and relevant to the topic.
The transition moves the reader from the grabber to the thesis
statement by showing the relationship between the two.
The thesis statement is your main idea in one or two
sentences. Everything in the paper should relate back to the
thesis.

5. Anecdote
This is a short story that illustrates the point you want to make in
the thesis:
When I was a boy, my parents bought me a set of The World Book
Encyclopedia. The 22 burgundy-and-gold volumes lined the shelves above my
bed. I would reach for a book and lose myself for hours in its endless pages of
maps, photographs, and text. Even when I had a purpose in mind — say for
instance, a homework assignment on salamanders — I would invariably find
myself reading instead of Salem and its witch hunters or of Salamis, where the
Greeks routed the Persians in the fifth century BC Like all encyclopedias of the
day, it was arranged alphabetically, based on sound and without regard to
subject. As a child, I saw it as a system wondrously whimsical and exquisitely
inefficient. The world my two young sons inherit is a very different place. That
same encyclopedia is now online. It is more efficient by far, but the efficiency
of technology can also limit our capacity for undirected exploration.
Hook: a specific example or
story that interests the reader
and introduces the topic.
Transition: connects the hook
to the thesis statement
Thesis: summarizes overall
claim of the paper

6. Quotation
Make sure your quotation directly relates to the topic and is
not from the dictionary.
"People paid more attention to the way I talked than what I said!"
exclaimed the woman from Brooklyn, New York in the movie
American Tongues. This young woman’s home dialect interferes with
people taking her seriously because they see her as a cartoonish
stereotype of a New Yorker. The effects on this woman indicate the
widespread judgment of nonstandard dialects. This type of judgment
can even cause some to be ashamed of or try to change their language
identity.
Hook: a specific example or
story that interests the reader
and introduces the topic.
Transition: connects the hook
to the thesis statement
Thesis: summarizes overall
claim of the paper

7. Interesting Claim or Fact
Try to contradict a common perception, highlight a major
problem, or otherwise intrigue them to read more:
When we think about professional athletes, our minds conjure images
of sweaty men and women running through rows of tires, muscled
bodies lifting weights, and the intense looks of players on their fiftieth
wind sprint. Just as in the world of professional sports, the world of
competitive eating also features great athletes. Competitive eating, or
“speed eating,” is an activity in which participants compete against each
other to consume large quantities of food in a short period of time.
Many professional competitive eaters undergo rigorous personal
training in order to increase their stomach capacity, speed, and
efficiency with various foods. Competitive eaters who want to become
world champions must actually train and practice their technique in
order to succeed in competition.
Hook: a specific example or
story that interests the reader
and introduces the topic.
Transition: connects the
hook to the thesis statement
Thesis: summarizes overall
claim of the paper

8. Question
 Have you ever considered that this grabber is becoming overused? You would be right!
Beginning with a question can still be an effective grabber, but it should be a legitimate question
that is answered in the essay:
Is American Sign Language (ASL) really a language? Can
ASL be written? Do you have to be born deaf to understand
ASL completely? To answer these questions, one must first
understand exactly what ASL is. Many people know that ASL
is the predominant sign language of deaf communities in the
United States; what fewer people realize is that ASL is a
common second language that can serve as a lingua franca
across world cultures.
Hook: a specific example or
story that interests the reader
and introduces the topic.
Transition: connects the
hook to the thesis statement
Thesis: summarizes overall
claim of the paper

9. Surprise!
Use humor, shock value, or clever description to surprise the
reader
Let’s talk about the F-word. Yes, that’s right: feminism. Why
does this word, considerably more than four letters long,
frighten and offend? Feminism has become a dirty word in our
culture, but I would argue that even many of those who eschew
the term are actually feminists. Indeed, we should all be
feminists.
Hook: a specific example or
story that interests the reader
and introduces the topic.
Transition: connects the
hook to the thesis statement
Thesis: summarizes overall
claim of the paper

10. Conclusions

11. Conclusions
The conclusion to any paper is the final impression that can be
made. It is the last opportunity to get your point across to the
reader and leave the reader feeling as if he or she learned
something. Here’s what to do (and what not to do).

12. Avoid Summary
Unless your paper is extremely long (over 25
pages), there is no need to repeat what you
have already said
Kill this remnant of the five-paragraph essay

13. Bookend
This conclusion ends the competitive eating essay introduced
above:
 Aside from these training techniques and game-time tactics,
competitive eating is largely a matter of willpower. Like all
successful athletes, the men and women who want to be
world-champion professional competitive eaters must work
hard to train their bodies and minds while preparing for the
next challenge.

14. Discuss Significance
The conclusion is the best place to discuss the significance of
your findings. Why do they matter? Why should readers care?
Famines used to attract broad interest in the West. Rock stars
led relief campaigns, and television networks produced special
documentaries. U.S. nongovernmental organizations are
looking for ways to similarly galvanize the country this
summer. Millions of lives may depend on whether they can.

15. Real or Rhetorical Question
Rather than handing the conclusion over, you can leave the
reader with a question that causes him or her to draw his own
conclusions.
As we can see, mainstreaming deaf students is not always as
effective as educating them in a dedicated classroom. Deaf
students learn better on a more one-on-one basis, as they
can find in a school or program specially designed for them.
Why, then, are schools for the deaf becoming a dying species?

16. Call to Action
The writer suggests that the reader do something in the way of
support for a cause or a plea for them to take action
We have advanced technology that allows deepwater offshore
drilling, but we lack the advanced technology that would manage
these spills effectively, As such, until cleanup and prevention
technology are available, we should, as gatekeepers of our coastal
shores and defenders of marine wildlife, ban offshore drilling.