Introduction Methods (Example Topic: Housing for the Poor) underlined portions of the text are clarifications of the thesis
Opening with a Story (Anecdote) A good way of catching your reader's attention is by sharing a story that sets up your paper. Sharing a story gives a paper a more personal feel and helps make your reader comfortable.
		For example:	As Arlene Mathews drove up to the inner city construction site, she wondered what she’d gotten herself into. She saw homes in need of a paint jobs, lawns that needing cutting, and kids who seemed to live in the street. They must not have air conditioning, Matthews thought. When she got out of the car, one of her six colleagues who’d agreed to help on this service project, greeted her with a hammer and a construction apron. She knew that after today, she’d feel the sense of accomplishing for she was about to build a home for the less fortunate.
Specific Detail Opening (similar to story) Giving specific details about your subject appeals to your reader's curiosity and helps establish a visual picture of what your paper is about.
		For example:	Electric drill. Screw driver. Hammer and nails. Sheet rock and shingles. Cement for a sidewalk, wood for a porch. Volunteers. Teamwork. A sense of satisfaction. Hundreds of people each year give of themselves to an organization called Habitat for Humanity, a nonprofit, non-denominational organization who constructs houses for the underprivileged.
Open with a Quotation Another method of writing an introduction is to open with a quotation. This method makes your introduction more interactive and more appealing to your reader.
		For example:	”Homelessness and poverty are inextricably linked,” stated former President Jimmy Carter in his speech at the Habitat for Humanity’s annual fund drive dinner in Atlanta. Thousands of donors, celebrities and political candidates filled the city’s convention center. Carter said that poor people are “frequently unable to pay for housing, food, childcare, health care, and education and that difficult choices must be made when limited resources cover only some of these necessities.” That’s why Habitat for Humanity is a necessary and important organization in the United States.
Open with an Interesting Statistic Statistics that grab the reader help to make an effective introduction.
	For example:		After the mass layoffs in the aircraft industry in Wichita, Kansas, 15% of the jobless found themselves without a home. The Salvation Army, the United Methodist Food Bank, and Legal Aid reported drastic increases in patrons and requested emergency funding from the Wichita City Council and area business. Homeless can happen to anyone anywhere, but Habitat for Humanity can go anywhere and help anyone.
Question Opening Possibly the easiest opening is one that presents one or more questions to be answered in the paper. This is effective because questions are usually what the reader has in mind when he or she sees your topic.
	For example:		Do people who live in cardboard boxes have any hope beyond a Salvation Army cot, city sewers, bridges, and overpasses? Does one have to go through a period of unemployment to empathize with this growing part of our society? Or is there an organization nearby that promotes the gathering of volunteers to provide simple, affordable housing to the homeless? Yes, there is, Habitat for Humanity.
Thesis Statement Opening This is the traditional style of opening a paper. This is a "mini-summary" of your paper.
	For example:		Habitat for Humanity is a nonprofit, nondenominational Christian housing organization that builds simple, decent, and affordable housing. Volunteers of all ages all across the country join together to build a house in day.