1. T OPIC S ENTENCES And Evidence Gathering

2. E LEMENT - BY - ELEMENT MODEL (5- PARAGRAPH ) You need three topic sentences Focus on the element and BOTH characters

3. T OPIC S ENTENCES COME DIRECTLY FROM YOUR THESIS Thesis Sample: Although Ariel’s reason for leaving home is due to curiosity and Mulan’s reason is to save her father’s life, both Arial and Mulan’s journeys were successful because they each matured in the end.

4. T OPIC NUMBER ONE: REASON FOR LEAVING HOME Turn this into your first topic sentence. EXAMPLE: Ariel leaves her home under the sea because she wants to expand her knowledge of the world and experience how people live on land, but Mulan leaves home because her elderly father is summoned to go to war and she wants to take his place to spare his life.

5. T OPIC NUMBER TWO: JOURNEYS WERE SUCCESSFUL Turn this into your second topic sentence SAMPLE: Because Ariel and Mulan found ways to survive and flourish outside their homes, both were successful in their individual journeys.

6. T OPIC NUMBER THREE: B OTH MATURED IN THE END Turn this into your third topic sentence SAMPLE: At the end of Arial’s journey she begins to mature by realizing that her decision to leave home without telling her father was selfish, while Mulan’s journey ends with great maturity by sacrificing a rare position on the Emperor's staff in order to simply go back home to bring honor to her family.

7. N OW FOR THE FOUR - PARAGRAPH You need two topic sentences Focus on the one character and ALL THREE elements Topic Sentence Sample: Ariel leaves her home under the sea because she wants to expand her knowledge of the world and experience how people live on land, and is successful in her journey because she matures by realizing that leaving home without telling her father was wrong. Your second topic sentence will be about Mulan and the same three elements.

8. E VIDENCE GATHERING After you write your topic sentences, it is time to go through the short story and the movie to find evidence that PROVES what you say in the topic sentences.

9. W HERE IN THE MOVIES T HE L ITTLE M ERMAID AND M ULAN IS THIS PROVEN ? Ariel leaves her home under the sea because she wants to expand her knowledge of the world and experience how people live on land, but Mulan leaves home because her elderly father is summoned to go to war and she wants to take his place to spare his life. Being curious about the life of humans for a very long time, Ariel finally makes her decision to leave the life of the sea and explore land when she swims to the surface of the sea one evening and catches a glimpse of Prince Eric on his ship. How about Mulan? How would YOU summarize this?