Day 153: Place the thesis statement at the beginning or end of your introduction.

The thesis statement introduces your major topics in a paper. One question that often arises is where to put it.

English teachers may have told you to put your thesis statement at the beginning of the first paragraph. This is one option. The thinking behind this rule is as follows: tell the reader what you are going to write about, and then write about it. In this way, the thesis statement is part of the context you provide. Using this technique, you provide the main point before providing the evidence or arguments.

The second option is to conclude your first or second paragraph with the thesis statement. Using this technique, you first provide context for the topic, you then provide information, evidence, etc., and then you conclude with the main point. This technique mimics the way people think. It leads your reader to your thesis statement. When you provide the thesis statement, the reader is able to understand it.