5 Types of Essay Hooks for Middle School

Too often I see my students staring at their paper or their iPads with NO idea how to start their essays.

I've taught them different types of essay hooks, but they can never seem to remember when it's actually time to write!

I decided to play around with the names of the essay hooks so I could come up with a catchy acronym for them, and this is what I came up with:

Q.U.A.C.K.

I researched it online first to make sure quack isn't somehow the newest slang for something naughty (because . . . middle school), and as far as I could tell, it's clean! Hooray!

So here is the acronym with the five essay hooks:

Q - Quote

U - Unexpected Fact

A - Anecdote

C - Controversial Statement

K - Kidding Around

I actually have pet ducks in my backyard (I have 37 pets total), so maybe I can show my students a few pictures of the animals to grab their attention. We live in the middle of a city, so my students are always super intrigued by my farm animals. I'm looking forward to seeing how they react!

I put together posters with examples of each type of hook so my students can reference them as they write their own essays. Check them out!