Thinking in Threes: The Power of Three in Writing

This practical resource helps students see the importance of “the rules of three” in writing successful essays. The student-friendly activities in this book give students essay-writing strategies organized in easy-to-remember groups of three. The book includes many activities and games that help point out the importance of the number three in our language. With Thinking in Threes, powerful writing strategies are as easy as 1-2-3! Some of the rules of three explained in this book include: three steps for brainstorming, three “Ps” of a thesis statement, three parts of an essay, three paragraphs in the body of an essay, three ways to connect paragraphs and sentences, three types of evidence to support topic sentences, three qualities of a good example, three things to include in a quotation, three ways to hook the reader in an introduction, three ways to write fluent sentences, three ways to write successful conclusions, and three phrases for completing a timed writing assignment. The goal of Thinking in Threes is to empower students to write great essays in your classroom! Grade 5-Adult

Table of Contents:
A Note for Teachers The Power of Three Three, Three, Three Three Point Shot: Triplets Three Things to Say Three Point Shot: Just Three Words Brainstorming Three Steps for Brainstorming Brainstorming in Action Brainstorming Practice Three Point Shot: Advice in Threes Writing a Thesis The Three “P’s” of a Thesis Statement Parallelism in Action Practice with Parallel Form Practice Writing a Thesis Putting It Together Three Point Shot: Three Important Things Organizing an Essay Three Paragraphs in the Body of an Essay Three Ways to Connect Paragraphs and Sentences Threes in Action Saving the Best for Last Three Point Shot: Three-Peat After Me Supporting Topic Sentences Use Three Types of Evidence to Support Topic Sentences Examples Need Three Qualities Three Things to Include in a Quotation More About Quotations Practice With Quotations Hall of Fame Calling the Game Three Point Shot: Worn Out Words Writing Introductions Three Ways to “Hook” the Reader Beginning with Conflict Beginning with Mystery Beginning with Metaphor Three More Ways to “Hook” the Reader Yet Three More Ways to “Hook” the Reader Three Point Shot: Quotes with Three Writing Fluent Sentences Three Ways to Write Fluent Sentences Sentence Variety Variety in Sentence Lengths Parallelism Three Point Shot: Parallelism in Action Conclusions Three Ways to Finish Three Point Shot: Compound Word Triads Extras Divide Your Time Into Three Phases Timed Writing Practice Essay Planning Sheet Timed Essay Thirty-Three Terrific Topics Three Terrific Topics Power of Three: Guidelines at a Glance Essay Example #1 Essay Example #2 Answer Keys

About the Author :
Brian Backman grew up in Seattle, Washington. After high school, he served in the United States Army in Europe for three years. He then returned to Washington to attend Seattle Pacific University, where he earned a bachelor's degree in English and a master's in curriculum and instruction.