Writing a Promotion Essay
Once you have selected a topic, formed an opinion, and organized reasons to support the opinion, you are ready to write a first draft of your essay. These writing activities will help you create a strong beginning, middle, and ending. You'll also read another student's promotion essay to see how all of the parts came together.
Writing the Beginning Paragraph
The first sentence is called the lead. It should capture your reader’s attention, introducing the cause in an interesting way.
Write a lead.
Review each lead-writing strategy and write an example of your own. Make a copy of this Google doc or download a Word template.
- Ask a provocative question about the topic.
What does a trumpet player sound like without a trumpet?
(Answers will vary.)
- Start with a surprising fact or detail about the topic.
The trumpet section of our band has ten players but only six trumpets.
(Answers will vary.)
- Tell a little story about the topic.
The first time I played my trumpet in concert, I realized I had made a friend for life.
(Answers will vary.)
Write your beginning paragraph.
Write your lead and then provide details as you work toward your opinion statement. Write the opinion statement as the last sentence in the beginning paragraph.