ATTENTION GETTERS

Choose one that best matches your purpose and can establish the mood.
o
Story: A story serves to engage the audience and causes them to think about
the situation you are describing. Touching stories or stories that make audience
members feel involved with the topic serve as good attention-getters. You
should tell a story with feeling and deliver it directly to the audience instead of
reading it o! your paper.
! It was the summer of 1925 and school was just released for 15 year old
Frances Robinson. Frances was hoping to see her crush, the young teacher
John Scopes, around her fathers drug store. However something was
going to be occupying Johns time that summer; he was on trial.
o
Rhetorical Question: Rhetorical questions are questions designed to arouse
curiosity without requiring an answer. Either the answer will be obvious, or if it
isn't apparent, the question will arouse curiosity until the presentation provides
the answer.
! Do you believe we have evolved from monkeys?
o
Quote: A quotation from a famous person or from an expert on your topic can
gain the attention of the audience. The use of a quotation immediately launches
you into the speech and focuses the audience on your topic area. If it is from a
well-known source, cite the author rst. If the source is obscure, begin with the
quote itself.
! We're in a revolution just over evolution. The battle of ages is on. Some
scientists have claimed We're human just by name, That monkeys and men
are the same. But Darwin's theory doesn't sound good to me. I might have
monkey manners But with him I can't agree. You cant make a monkey out
of me. These are lyrics from Billy Rose about the 1925 Scopes Trial over
evolution.
o Shocking Statistic: Another possibility to consider is the use of a factual
statistic intended to grab your listener's attention. As you research the topic
you've picked, keep your eyes open for statistics that will have impact.
! In a recent survey from the PBS website, 29% of people believe evolution
should be removed from state science standards, but in Dayton, Tennessee
during 1925 that statistic would be drastically greater.
INTRODUCE/SUMMARIZE TOPIC
Summarize the general information about the topic. Limit yourself to 4
sentences.
o Dayton, Tennessee was a quiet, conservative, and religious small town. Inside
the local drugstore, owner Fred Robinson read a newspaper advertisement from
the American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU) requesting a Tennessee teacher admit
that he or she taught evolution, which was against the law in Tennessee at the
time, so that the ACLU could defend him or her in a trial and hopefully get the law
revoked. Since Dayton could use a tourism boost, the town fathers asked local
teacher John Scopes to answer the ad. The rest, they say, is history.
Writing the Introduction
STATE THESIS
Connect to the question How accurate is the ction compared to the facts? and
state the three points you will be presenting.
o
Today I will show how accurate the novels character, setting, and plot matched
the actual facts of the Scopes Trial.
CONNECT THE THESIS TO THE BODY
Write a connecting, or transition statement, that brings the thesis to the rst
paragraph of the body.
o Lets begin by looking at the novel, Monkey Town, by Ronald Kidd. **pause**
Monkey Towns story is told through the viewpoint of Frances Robinson, the 15
year old daughter of the drug store owner.
EXAMPLE
In a recent survey from the PBS website, 29% of people believe evolution should
be removed from state science standards, but in Dayton, Tennessee during 1925 that statistic
would be drastically greater. Dayton, Tennessee was a quiet, conservative, and religious small
town. Inside the local drugstore, owner Fred Robinson read a newspaper advertisement from
the American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU) requesting a Tennessee teacher admit that he or
she taught evolution, which was against the law in Tennessee at the time, so that the ACLU
could defend him or her in a trial and hopefully get the law revoked. Since Dayton could use a
tourism boost, the town fathers asked local teacher John Scopes to answer the ad. The rest,
they say, is history. Today I will show how accurate the novels character, setting, and plot
matched the actual facts of the Scopes Trial. Lets begin by looking at the novel, Monkey
Town, by Ronald Kidd.
Monkey Towns story is told through the viewpoint of Frances Robinson, the 15
year old daughter of the drug store owner....
YOUR ATTENTION GETTER
YOUR TOPIC SUMMARY
YOUR THESIS
YOUR CONNECTING STATEMENT
Writing the Introduction