Movie Trailers: What makes them good?

THE HOOK Grabbing the Reader’s Attention

The Hook Probably the most important part of the essay Should catch your reader’s attention like a hook catches a fish 4 different types of hooks: 1. Story 2. Startling statistic 3. Well-known quotation 4. Thought-provoking question

1. Tell a Story Connect your topic to your life through a story, OR, if you can’t find a connection, imagine how your topic might impact the lives of your readers For example, if you are writing an essay on hunger in Africa, you could begin your essay by making the readers feel as if they were experiencing hunger firsthand. Let’s take a look:

1. Tell a Story It’s a beautiful African morning with the sun on the horizon and the air already thick as oil. A four-year-old boy wakes up to the sound of his baby sister crying. She is hungry. He is also hungry, but there is no food to feed their family. His stomach growls; it has not been fed for more than three days. His mother will do what she can to find food for her starving family. Their empty bellies are something nearly impossible for us to imagine in the United States. Your turn: take a moment to work with your group and write a story hook to start answering the prompt: should there be more guns in schools?

2. Give a Statistic or Fact Make sure it’s verifiable (can be looked up and found to be true). Out of all the states in America, there was only one that didn’t grow in population over the last decade. According to the U.S. Census Bureau, Michigan lost 0.6 percent of its population between 2001 and Although Michigan may be lacking in population growth, it has plenty to offer future residents and tourists from out of state.

3. Use a Quotation Hop on the Internet: There are many websites out there to find quotes by famous people. “How wonderful it is that nobody need wait a single moment before starting to improve the world.” Most would think that a young Jewish girl hiding from Nazi soldiers would be the last person worried about improving the rest of the world, but in the midst of crisis, Anne Frank jotted down those exact words. She saw the urgency of improving the world, and she can serve as an inspiration to the rest of us.

4. Ask a Question Make sure the question is thought-provoking, not a common question with an obvious answer. Have you ever been sad? What about miserable? Have you ever felt like your entire world was falling apart and that there was nothing you could do about it? Millions of people feel this way every single day because of depression. Your turn: take a moment to work with your group and write a question hook to start answering the prompt: should there be more guns in schools?

THE THESIS STATEMENT Where You’re Going

The Thesis Statement The central position of your essay Answers all parts of the prompt A “road map” for your reader Preview of the claims, in order Position + claims = thesis statement Teachers should not have guns in school because it will provide more opportunities for accidents, create liability, and teachers can’t be adequately trained for a mass shooting.

THE BRIDGE Making Sure It Makes Sense

The Bridge Take a few sentences to make sure your reader understands what your hook has to do with your thesis statement. Your ideas should flow naturally from your hook to your thesis statement. Have you ever been sad? What about miserable? Have you ever felt like your entire world was falling apart and that there was nothing you could do about it? Millions of people feel this way every single day because of depression. However, health insurance companies nationwide don’t cover the costs of antidepressants. Health insurance should cover the costs of antidepressants because depression affects so many people, can lead to greater health problems, and can hurt the economy.

Putting It All Together Hook + Bridge + [Position + Claims] = Introductory paragraph Have you ever been sad? What about miserable? Have you ever felt like your entire world was falling apart and that there was nothing you could do about it? Millions of people feel this way every single day because of depression. However, health insurance companies nationwide don’t cover the costs of antidepressants. Health insurance should cover the costs of antidepressants because depression affects so many people, can lead to greater health problems, and can hurt the economy.