Personal Narrative Essay Introduction Paragraph

Sentence #1: Attention Grabber Ask a question Have you ever gone swimming with the dolphins? “Paint a Picture” The cool blue water soothed my skin; the sun soaked my hair; the squeaky voice of my new dolphin friend filled my ears. Startling Statement Dolphins can understand over 100 human words and phrases.

Sentence #2: Lead-in This sentence will connect your attention-grabber to your thesis statement (which states the main idea of your essay). Let’s see how we can build on each of the attention grabbers we have already written.

Example Lead-in Sentences Have you ever gone swimming with the dolphins? Well, I did when I visited my grandma in Florida last summer. The cool blue water soothed my skin; the sun soaked my hair; the squeaky voice of my new dolphin friend filled my ears. These memories fill my head when I think of Florida. Dolphins can understand over 100 human words and phrases. This was just one of many interesting facts I learned on my trip to Florida.

Sentence #3: Thesis Statement The thesis is one sentence that states the main idea of your essay. It tells what the essay will be about. Here is an example: My vacation in Florida brought many exciting adventures and new experiences that will always be special to me.

Complete Intro Paragraph #1 Have you ever gone swimming with the dolphins? Well, I did when I visited my grandma in Florida last summer. My vacation in Florida brought many exciting adventures and new experiences that will always be special to me.

Complete Intro Paragraph #2 The cool blue water soothed my skin; the sun soaked my hair; the squeaky voice of my new dolphin friend filled my ears. These memories fill my head when I think of Florida. My vacation in Florida brought many exciting adventures and new experiences that will always be special to me.

Complete Intro paragraph #3 Dolphins can understand over 100 human words and phrases. This was just one of many interesting facts I learned on my trip to Florida. My vacation in Florida brought many exciting adventures and new experiences that will always be special to me.

One More Time…. Sentence #1: Attention Grabber Sentence #2: Lead-in to Thesis Sentence #3: Thesis (main idea) statement

Sentence #4 and #5 These should be transition sentences Transition to your first body paragraph (sentence 5) If you get stuck, just start writing!!!! Write what comes to your mind and we can EDIT later! 

BRAINSTORM **Every writer needs time to brainstorm a topic. Take some time to think about a topic that interests you! ON A SHEET OF NOTEBOOK PAPER, LIST 10 TOPICS THAT YOU WOULD WANT TO WRITE ABOUT. CIRCLE YOUR TOP 3 STAR THE ONE YOU ARE GOING TO WRITE ABOUT!!