What is the goal of a thesis statement?
to establish focus and make a claim
to explain the author's point of view to the audience
to act as evidence supporting a claim
to summarize what the essay is about

Match the definition to the word for a better understanding of the paragraph. 1 money does not buy happiness or security. 2john ringling, one of the five brothers of the ringling brothers circus, started out in 1884 with a trained horse and a performing bear. 3for over forty years, he worked hard at the family enterprise, bought up smaller circuses, and imported new acts. 4in the 1920s, he was rated as one of the world's wealthiest men and owned every sizable circus in the country. 5over 5,000 people were on his payroll, and over 240 railroad cars were in his retinue each time the circus moved. 6at the time of his death, however, he was a nervous, unhappy man; he was also bankrupt and beset by lawsuits. 7his carefully built circus empire passed into alien hands. 8all those years of work had turned to dust. 1. business organization alien 2. group beset 3. without funds to pay debts retinue 4. troubled or harassed enterprise 5. strange; belonging to another person, place, country, or thing bankrupt

Read the following entries from the online etymology dictionary based on the information above, what does the world microcephaly most likely mean? a. dull or unintelligent b. worldly thinking c. having a large head d. bigger than usual

Match the term to its meaning 1. introduction 2. body paragraphs 3. conclusion - draws the readers attention - the key points in a few sentences - each with only one main idea