1. Research Report Introductions  The purpose of the introductory paragraph is to grab the reader’s attention and to define your topic.  The introduction consists of three parts: 1.The grabber, or lead statement 2.Background information and a brief description of your animal 3.Thesis Statement  All elements must be present for a good introduction

2. Grabbers  You can begin your introductory paragraphs a number of different ways. (Remember, you are trying to grab the reader’s attention.)  Techniques (choose one): 1.An amazing or unusual fact 2.A quote, proverb, or saying 3.A bold opinion 4.A statistic 5.An anecdote or description

3. Example Grabbers  Bold Opinion– An albatross is the grandest living flying machine on Earth.  Statistic—Almost 75% of all UFO reports turn out to be a weather balloon, meteors, or the reflection of the sun.  Description— On this night—the final night—a fog swirled across the desert, as thick and impenetrable as a sandstorm.  Amazing fact— At up to 8,800 pounds, male elephant seals can be up to ten times larger than females.  Proverb- They say the early bird gets the worm, but this isn’t the case with the blue whale. Now write a grabber of your own. Practice with a couple different techniques. Remember, this is the first sentence of your report, so make it memorable.

4. Introductions— background information  After the grabber, include a bit of information that isn’t in the report, but that the reader may need to know about your animal.  Start with a basic description of your animal, including type of animal, size, and habitat.

5. Thesis statement  The thesis statement is the most important part of your introduction. It clues the reader in to what will be coming in the rest of the report.  The thesis statement is the last sentence in your introduction. If it is somewhere else in the introduction, you’ve written it wrong.  Sample Thesis statements:  Guanacos are unusual animals that are useful to humans but threatened by hunting.  Mountain gorillas are peaceful animals that live, reproduce and thrive in the mountains of southern Africa. Generic thesis: The __________ is a very _(adjective) ___(type of animal)______ that lives, reproduces, and thrives in a(n) ____(adjective)___ environment.

6. The Paragraph  Now put your introduction together  Start with the grabber, follow with the background information, and finally write the thesis statement  Remember: the thesis statement must be the last sentence of your introduction