Hook the Reader — Drafting the Introduction

Mentor-text warm-up: teacher reads the first paragraph of a Sandra Markle informational book aloud (e.g., from 'What If You Had Animal Teeth?'). Children listen for the HOOK — what kind of opening did Markle use?

• Read with informational-narrator voice (clear, animated, slightly slower than narrative)
• Pause at the hook and ask 'what kind of hook?'
• Name the hook type by category (surprising-fact / question / vivid-image)

Today you draft your INTRODUCTION. An informational introduction has three jobs: HOOK the reader (pull them in), state the TOPIC clearly, and preview the ROADMAP (the three body-paragraph focuses). There are three kinds of HOOK we will use this term. HOOK 1 — SURPRISING FACT: 'Did you know that a single honeybee colony can have 80,000 bees in summer?' HOOK 2 — QUESTION: 'Have you ever wondered how a honeybee tells her sisters where the flowers are?' HOOK 3 — VIVID IMAGE: 'Picture a beehive on a July afternoon: the air thick with the sound of wings, the entrance crowded with workers, every bee with a job to do.' Watch the teacher build one introduction with each kind of hook (teacher writes 3 versions on the board). Notice the TOPIC STATEMENT comes after the hook — one sentence that names what the essay is ABOUT. Then the ROADMAP — one sentence that previews the three things the essay will cover. ROADMAP frame: 'In this essay you will learn ___, ___, and ___.'

• Notice the TOPIC and ROADMAP are the same — only the HOOK changes. Pick the hook that fits your topic and your audience.

  model SURPRISING FACT version: 'Did you know a single honeybee colony can have 80,000 bees in summer? Honeybees are amazing social insects. In this essay you will learn how honeybees live in colonies, how they communicate, and why they matter to us.' / QUESTION version: 'Have you ever wondered how a honeybee tells her sisters where the flowers are? Honeybees are amazing social insects. In this essay you will learn how honeybees live in colonies, how they communicate, and why they matter to us.' / VIVID IMAGE version: 'Picture a beehive on a July afternoon: the air thick with wings, the entrance crowded with workers. Honeybees are amazing social insects. In this essay you will learn how honeybees live in colonies, how they communicate, and why they matter to us.'

  prompt Teacher models 3 introduction versions for the same topic (honeybees) using each hook type.

• Name a hook type that would fit YOUR topic.
• What three things does an introduction do?

M-3-S-WR-02-A Chart

11x17 anchor showing the same topic (honeybees) with three different hooks side by side: SURPRISING FACT version (left, blue border), QUESTION version (middle, orange border), VIVID IMAGE version (right, green border). Each version has the hook highlighted in yellow and the rest (topic + roadmap) shown identical across versions. Dyslexic-friendly font. Print-ready.

• Pick your expert topic. Choose one hook type. Draft a 3-4 sentence introduction: HOOK, TOPIC STATEMENT, ROADMAP (3 focuses).

  scaffold Hook-type card deck at desk; MG-2 anchor; roadmap frame card
• Share your introduction with a partner. Partner names: hook type, topic, and the 3 roadmap focuses.

  scaffold Sentence frame: 'Your hook is ___. Your topic is ___. Your roadmap is ___, ___, and ___.'

M-3-S-WR-02-C Illustration

Reference image of a Grade-3 introduction draft (handwritten, single-line paper) with the HOOK underlined in red, the TOPIC STATEMENT underlined in blue, and the ROADMAP underlined in green. Topic is 'octopuses'. Three sentences total. Print-ready 8.5x11.

• Read your introduction aloud to a partner. Partner names the three parts (hook, topic, roadmap).
• Update your status-of-class tile (still RESEARCH, or move to ORGANIZE for tomorrow).

• Star your hook.
• Predict: tomorrow we meet the TDET body-paragraph routine.

• Read your introduction aloud to a family member. Ask: 'Could you guess what my essay will be about?' If they couldn't, your topic statement or roadmap may need to be more specific.