Introductions
Follow ANT!
Makes you want to read more …
Do you remember what book starts with the
following ATTENTION getter?
“Where’s Papa going with that ax?”
said Fern to her mother as they were
setting the table for breakfast.
Answer: Charlotte’s Webb by E.B. White
Makes you want to read more …
Do you remember what book starts with the
following ATTENTION getter?
There is no camp at Camp
Green Lake.
Answer: Holes by Louis Sachar
Makes you want to read more …
Do you remember what book starts with the
following ATTENTION getter?
If you were going to give a medal to the
least delightful person on Earth, you
would have to give that medal to a person
named Carmelita Spats, and if you didn’t
give it to her, Carmelita Spats was the sort
of person who would snatch it from your
hands anyway.
Answer: The Austere Academy (Series of Unfortunate
Events – Book 5) by Lemony Snicket
What if you had to write an
attention getter for the following
prompt …
Select a job you can do and write an
essay that persuades an adult to hire
you.
 You could start with …
 I want to be a baby sitter.
 If you need a baby sitter, hire me.
 Baby sitting is a fun job.

But that would be so
What did you come up with?
 Take down that “Help Wanted”
sign because you just found
your new waitress.
What did you come up with?

It’s Friday night, and you and your
husband want to go out for the
evening. However, you can’t just
trust anyone to watch your child.
What did you come up with?

As a teen, not many careers are yet
available to me. However, as
companies begin targeting teens
more with their products, they will
need a teen’s thoughtful perspective,
which is something I can provide.
Now you are asked to write an
attention getter for your IBP …

You could start with …

Dogsong by Gary Paulsen is an
adventure book.
chose Dogsong for my
Independent Book Project.
I
But that would be so
boring and wrong!
Attention Getter

Get the reader’s attention by using …
 Relevant
quote from an outside
source
 Relevant quote from the story
 Fact or Statistic
 Description of initial response to the
work
 Shocking or amusing generalization
Attention Getter

Get the reader’s attention by using …

Relevant quote from an outside source
The miracle or the power that elevates
the few is to be found in their industry,
application, and perseverance under the
prompting of a brave, determined spirit.
These words spoken by Mark Twain
capture the spirit of Russell Susskit, the
protagonist in Gary Paulsen’s adventure
novel Dogsong.
Attention Getter

Get the reader’s attention by using …
 Relevant
quote from the story
“it is time to leave,” Oogruk said simply.
It is my time. But there is a thing you
must do now to become a man. You
must not go home.” With those words,
fourteen-year-old Russel Susskit, the
main character in Gary Paulsen’s
realistic fiction book Dogsong, begins
his journey.
Attention Getter

Get the reader’s attention by using …
 Fact or Statistic
In 2006, the U.S. Census Bureau
estimated that about 1.0 percent of
the U.S. population was of Eskimo or
Alaska Native descent. A glimpse into
the life of an Eskimo is depicted in
Gary Paulsen’s adventure novel
Dogsong.
Attention Getter

Get the reader’s attention by using …
 Description
of initial response to
the work
Upon turning the final page of
Gary Paulsen’s adventure novel
Dogsong, readers will cheer this
moving and beautifully
portrayed rite of passage.
Attention Getter

Get the reader’s attention by using …
 Shocking
or amusing
generalization
Imagine enduring the possibility of
frostbite, starvation and hypothermia
on a daily basis. These are the
conditions that Russell Susskit, the
main character in Gary Paulsen’s
realistic fiction book Dogsong, has to
deal with every day.
Necessary Information

Author’s full name (Gary Paulsen)

Title of Story (Dogsong)

Setting (small Eskimo village)

Brief plot summary – 2-5 sentences!
Necessary Information

After your Attention Getter, add the
Necessary Information. You could do
this…
The author of Dogsong is Gary Paulsen.
The setting is an Eskimo village. The
story is about a boy and how he
wants to write his song.
But that would be so
boring and wrong!
Necessary Information
 Important
tip: Answer the
questions but do so in an
interesting way!!
 Combine short, choppy
sentences for better flow!
Necessary Information


Revised …
Here’s our attention getter, which includes some
of the Necessary Information (author, book title,
name of main character).
Imagine enduring the possibility of frostbite,
starvation and hypothermia on a daily
basis. These are the conditions that
Russell Susskit, the main character in Gary
Paulsen’s realistic fiction book Dogsong,
has to deal with every day.
Necessary Information

Revised …We could add the following …
Russell lives in a small Eskimo village by the coast
where hunting is a way of life. Russell lives with
Oogruk, a wise advisor, who teaches Russell how
to hunt and to lead a dogsled team. Oogruk
also teaches Russell about a person’s song,
which is the defining moments of a person’s life
constructed into a poem. In Russell’s culture, it
is customary to go on a northern journey to
prove that you that you can survive by yourself.
Therefore, Russell leaves his hometown with the
dogs and begins his quest to discover and to
write his song.
Necessary Information

Important Tip: Use the present tense
when summarizing your plot summary.
Russell lives in a small Eskimo village
by the coast where hunting is a way
of life. Russell lives with Oogruk, a
wise advisor, who teaches Russell
how to hunt and to lead a dogsled
team. Oogruk also teaches Russell
about a person’s song, which is the
defining moments of a person’s life
constructed into a poem.
Thesis

Is your character Static or Dynamic?

This is your judgment of the character.

You could do this …
Russell is a dynamic character.
But that would be so
boring and wrong!
Thesis

Revised ….
Based on his journey, Russell goes
through a drastic metamorphosis
throughout Dogsong where he
evolves into an impressive young
man.
Thesis

Important Tips:
Although you are trying to express your
ideas in an interesting way, you should
make certain that you clearly express
the idea that your character either
changed (dynamic) or stayed the same
(static) over the course of the novel.
 The thesis is the last sentence of your
Introduction. It’s what you are trying to
prove with your body paragraphs.

Done for now!!!
 Any
questions? This will be
posted on my webpage. Please
feel free to refer back to it as you
begin to write your first draft of
your essay!