In one sentence, describe what the following article is about: Find out as much as you can about your family history. Look through old photo albums, and ask your family members what they know. Ask for the names of grandparents, great-grandparents, and other relatives, as far back as they can remember. Determine the names, locations, and timelines of the ancestors you want to know about. Make sure to get the exact spelling. Learn about any spelling changes that may have taken place over the years. Perhaps your ancestors changed their names when they moved to a new country or community. Family members can be the simplest way to the past. Do not assume that your parents, grandparents, and other relatives have already told you everything that they know. Older relatives may remember further back. Find out whether your family has done any genealogy research before. Look for any existing (online or physical) documents that tell about your family. Also, look for pictures that can give you a sense of what life was like back when the photo was taken. Look for family trees, records, and research projects that might give you a solid starting point. Start with yourself, and map out everything that you know about your family history. Trace the chain of ancestry backward through your parents, your grandparents, your great-grandparents, and beyond. Add birthdays, death dates, marriages, locations, and any other relevant information. Branch into the past from you to your mother and father, then their parents, and then their grandparents By the time you list your great-grandparents, you already have 15 people on your "tree". To start your quest, find out as much as you can about those 15 people. Try running a simple web search. Find out when and where these ancestors were born. Note when these people married, and how many children they had. Figure out when and where these people died.
Summary: Ask questions. Build on prior research. Make a family tree to organize what you know. Make a simple "direct route" list first.

A hook is the way you get a reader interested in your essay. For a discussion essay, you could use a quotation from someone whose viewpoint you agree with, for instance. For an example or anecdote, start by telling a short story about something relevant to your topic. For instance, you might write the following for an essay on immigration, "When I was 4-years-old, my parents told me we were going on a long trip. After a bus ride, we spent nights walking, my dad carrying me most of the way. One day, we crossed a river. That day marked our first day in our new country." In the next few sentences, you'll move from your hook, which is broad, to your thesis statement, which is narrow. As you go, you'll bring up the main topic of your essay to give your readers an idea of where you're headed. You should present both sides of the issue in a neutral way before stating your thesis. For example, you might write, "Immigration is a highly-debated issue. It is controversial because some people fear how it affects the resources of the country the people are immigrating to, while others believe the improved quality of life for immigrants is what's most important." After your transition sentences, you'll add your much narrower thesis statement, which tells the reader what you plan to argue. You may want to include some phrases the help the reader understand what you'll cover as your main points. For instance, your thesis statement might be, "Immigration is good for the country because it increases diversity, infuses the country with new talent, and broadens the population's perspective, and it should be encouraged with a few basic safeguards in place."
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One-sentence summary -- Begin with a hook such as a quotation or anecdote to engage readers. Introduce your topic in your transition sentences. Work on a thesis statement to establish your argument.

Problem: Article: Children respond well to visual tools that help them understand addition concepts. Any easily handled object may be used, from beads or blocks to Cheerios. Start with a small number of items and use a variety of tactics to demonstrate number relationships: Give the child two small groups of items -- say, a group of two blocks and a group of three blocks. Have the child count the number of blocks in each group. Have the child combine these two groups of objects and count the total number of blocks. Explain that he or she has "added" these groups together. Provide a set number of objects -- six Cheerios, for example -- and ask your child how many ways he or she can combine groups of Cheerios to make six. She might create one group of five Cheerios, for example, and one group of one. Demonstrate how you can "add" to a group of objects by stacking. Start with a stack of three pennies, for example, and add two more to the stack. Ask your child to count how many pennies are now in the stack. " In a classroom setting, take advantage of your young students' need to move around regularly by using them as human manipulatives. Utilize tactics similar to those you'd use with objects to group and combine students and have them count themselves in different configurations. (Stacking students is not recommended!) Use modeling clay to create manipulative objects, or combine your addition lesson with an art lesson in using scissors to create a collection of paper shapes. Dice lend themselves easily to beginning addition games. Have students roll two dice and practice adding the resulting numbers. You may also use playing cards or dominoes. When working with groups of students with varying abilities you may tailor this game to provide an extra challenge for quick learners. Instruct them to add the results of three or more dice or playing cards. Use money to practice adding ones, fives, tens, and even intervals of 25. This tactic teaches money skills in addition to addition, and has the added benefit of demonstrating the practical advantages of learning addition.
Summary:
Use objects to demonstrate how addition works. Group children and use their bodies as human "manipulatives. Consider having children create their own manipulatives. Employ game pieces in new ways to create addition games. Count with coins.