1. What does a handshake say about a person?
Warm-up 1/13/14
What does a handshake say about a person?

2. Your Writing Handshake
Topic Sentences:
Your Writing Handshake

3. Bad Handshakes for Introductions:
 Dead Fish - Indifferent handshakes that feel like the person has no bones in their hand often indicate a passive, weak, reserved personality.
Finger Vice – When someone grabs your fingers and not your entire hand. There is a good chance you will crush somebody’s fingers!!!

4. A Close Look The Handshake:
What is the purpose of shaking someone’s hand?
What do you hope the person knows about you and you about them after you have shaken someone’s hand?

5. Bad Topic Sentences for Introductions:
Hello, my name is ______________, and today I’m going to tell you all about_________________________.
In this paper I’m going to tell you all about __________________________.
I’m going to write about _________________________________.

6. The Hand Shake The Introduction of a Paragraph
The topic sentence is called the “hand shake sentence”
This sentence should tell your reader WHO and WHAT you will be writing about in your paper
“Introducing the Guest” with a
handshake sentence

7. Level 1 Level 1 Introduction Examples: Cats make the best pets.
Learning to ride a bicycle is fun.
Do these introductions make you excited to find out more?

8. We’re shooting for higher level, interesting, topic sentences!!
Controller – You feel your hand being pulled toward the person  or strongly guided in a different direction, perhaps towards a chair. People who do this are controllers.
 Politician – Your hand is firmly grasped as in a normal handshake. However, their other hand may cover yours or be placed on your forearm or shoulder.

9. Level 2 Level 2 Introductions: Add a number statement
Number statements give the writer an idea of how many big ideas they need to include
Examples:
Cats make the best pets for several reasons.
Children learn to ride a bicycle by going through four specific steps.
The “Bro” Shake

10. Number Statements, Continued
Number statements are excellent to help all students get off to a good start with topic sentences.
As you grow older, people begin to judge you simply by how you shake their hand!!!

11. Examples Number Statement Examples: Specific: two, three, four
General: a couple of, a few, many, a plethora, myriad, numerous, oodles, some, several, various
Just like there are countless ways to greet a person, there are countless ways to start your writing

12. Avoid Avoid when doing number statements: Beware of the deadly duo:
There are
Here are
“There are” and “Here are” just don’t work as ways to effectively engage your audience.

13. Combining Tools Pushing it Closer to a Level 2
Combine a number statement with a question
The question is something you will answer in your paragraph:
Which household pet is the best for a family? A faithful dog is the obvious choice for several reasons.
How do children learn to ride bicycles? By focusing on 4 specific steps a new rider can learn to be flying down their street without much difficulty.
By combining a number statement with a question you are making your handshake more engaging

14. Expository Essay
The expository essay is actually one of the most straightforward assignments you will ever encounter.
Its purpose is simply to describe or explain a specific topic to the reader, using factual information.
You do not have to develop an argument or prove anything in an expository essay
An explanatory thesis statement tells your reader what it is you will explain and what aspects or parts of the topic will be considered.
For example, “Chinese labor played an important role in western railroad expansion.”

15. Make Sparks Fly:
The Level 3
Handshake!!!

16. Level 3 Thoughts Level 3 Handshakes
Level 3 introductions/ topic sentences rely on sentence fluency and complex sentence structure
They are complex sentences that have two parts
Level 2
Level 3
Level 1

17. Level 3 Tool: Situation Level 3 Tool
Create a situation and stance sentence
Part 1: Broadly introduces the topic (SITUATION)
Gives a general hint of what is to come
Opens the topic door a little bit
Cannot stand alone (dependent clause)

18. Level 3 Tool: Stance
Part 2: Clearly states viewpoint on the topic (STANCE)
Narrows the topic considerably
Flings the topic door wide open
Can stand alone

19. Examples
Even though I like all the holidays, the Fourth of July is my favorite.
Although teaching is a challenging profession, it is still very rewarding.
Because most people carry cell phones, it is important that they learn basic cell-phone etiquette.
Question: Is it possible to start with a thoughtful question and then follow that question with a situation response?

20. Starter Words Starter Words:
After, although, as, as long as, as soon as, because, before, even if, even though, if, in order to, once, since, so that, though, unless, until, when whenver, while

21. More Examples
When our family gathers for Thanksgiving, we enjoy several popular traditions.
As soon as I received a new bicycle, I was determined to ride it.
Although I have many special people in my life, my mother is my favorite.

23. Self-Check Self-Check
Highlight the two parts of the situation/stance topic sentence, using two different colors
Use a third color to circle the comma that separates the two parts.
Use the different colors to identify your situation, stand and comma