Draft an outline. Before you write the introduction, you should know exactly what you want to say in your essay. This way the essay reflects your theme, as opposed to being undefined.
Write lead-in sentences. The ideal introduction paragraph is three to five sentences in length, and the thesis statement should be last. The lead-in sentences should give broad information on what you are writing; specifics (such as statistics) should be saved for the body paragraphs.
Add your thesis statement. The thesis statement should be the last sentence of the introduction and it should be clearly worded; the audience should understand the argument that your essay is going to be about after reading the thesis.