Well begun is half done是大家耳熟能詳的英語諺語。也就是說，一個漂亮的開頭，往往是文章寫作成功的一半。尤其在新托福寫作考試中，好的開頭往往能夠在瞬間吸引考官眼球，留下良好的第一印象。那么，我們怎樣才能寫漂亮的引言段呢?首先，我們要做到開門見山，明確寫作話題和目的。如何才能做到開門見山?我們可以采用以下幾種方式：

1. 采用統計數字引出話題，把問題呈現在讀者面前;

2. 提出有爭議性的問題，激發讀者興趣，使其積極參與討論;

3. 以新穎的觀點，吸引讀者注意力;

4. 呈現該話題正反方的觀點;

5. 引用名人名言、諺語等作為文章的開頭;

6. 對將要討論的話題進行定義。

其次，要善于運用復合句，從而使引言段簡潔明了，開宗明義。下面我們將探討雅思與新托福各種題材和體裁文章引言段的寫作方法。 引用數據呈現討論的話題，說明問題的嚴重性或者重要性，引起讀者的關注。下面我們結合幾道雅思和新托福作文話題進行實戰演練。

我們在寫關于體罰的話題文章時，可以這樣開頭：It is reported that a boy in Zhuhai was beaten to death by his father on Father" Day. Ample evidence also shows that children who are frequently abused by their parents or teachers tend to be introverted, pessimistic, indifferent and even world-weary. Recently, there has arisen a fierce argument on whether corporal punishment should be abolished. Teachers, parents and experts take diverse attitudes towards this issue.(據報道，在父親節那天，珠海有個小男孩被老爸揍死了。充分的證據也顯示，經常遭父母或老師虐待的小孩往往比較內向、悲觀、冷漠甚至厭世。近來，關于是否應該廢除體罰出現了一場激烈的爭論，老師、家長和專家各執一詞。)

而我們在寫關于該不該禁煙的話題時，可以這樣開頭：A recent study conducted by Zhongshan University has found that the number of smokers has been increasing sharply over the past five years. Research findings also reveal that the incidence of smoking-related conditions has soared. As a result, the ban on smoking has been in the spotlight. (中山大學最近做的一個研究表明，在過去五年里，吸煙者人數急劇上升。研究結果同時顯示，吸煙導致的疾病發病率也急劇增長。因此，禁煙成了個熱點話題。