Designed for middle school students, the lesson can be used in the classroom for a unit on argument writing. The lesson includes a guide for teachers as well as a packet for students. Additional resources include background information about the Declaration of Independence and the American Revolution, and photos and multimedia.
Students will be able to articulate the difference between making an argument and having an argument in order to prepare for writing an argumentative essay.
Students will identify areas of improvement in their own school in order to make an argument for change.
Students will be able to match quotes from the Declaration of Independence to the parts of an argument in order to prove that the document is an argument for independence.
Students will be able to develop claims in order to draft an argumentative essay.
Students will be able to explore a variety of sources to identify evidence for their claim in order to prepare for writing an argumentative essay.
Students will be able to locate counterclaims for their arguments in order to prepare to draft their argumentative essay.
Students will be able to draft an argumentative essay that includes all the parts of an argument in order to demonstrate their understanding of argumentative writing.
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Developing Evidence-Based Arguments from Texts
About this Strategy Guide
This guide provides teachers with strategies for helping students understand the differences between persuasive writing and evidence-based argumentation. Students become familiar with the basic components of an argument and then develop their understanding by analyzing evidence-based arguments about texts. Students then generate evidence-based arguments of texts using a variety of resources. Links to related resources and additional classroom strategies are also provided.
Research Basis
Strategy in practice, related resources.
Hillocks (2010) contends that argument is “at the heart of critical thinking and academic discourse, the kind of writing students need to know for success in college” (p. 25). He points out that “many teachers begin to teach some version of argument with the writing of a thesis statement, [but] in reality, good argument begins with looking at the data that are likely to become the evidence in an argument and that give rise to a thesis statement or major claim” (p. 26). Students need an understanding of the components of argument and the process through which careful examination of textual evidence becomes the beginnings of a claim about text.
- Begin by helping students understand the differences between persuasive writing and evidence-based argumentation: persuasion and argument share the goal of asserting a claim and trying to convince a reader or audience of its validity, but persuasion relies on a broader range of possible support. While argumentation tends to focus on logic supported by verifiable examples and facts, persuasion can use unverifiable personal anecdotes and a more apparent emotional appeal to make its case. Additionally, in persuasion, the claim usually comes first; then the persuader builds a case to convince a particular audience to think or feel the same way. Evidence-based argument builds the case for its claim out of available evidence. Solid understanding of the material at hand, therefore, is necessary in order to argue effectively. This printable resource provides further examples of the differences between persuasive and argumentative writing.
- One way to help students see this distinction is to offer a topic and two stances on it: one persuasive and one argumentative. Trying to convince your friend to see a particular movie with you is likely persuasion. Sure, you may use some evidence from the movie to back up your claim, but you may also threaten to get upset with him or her if he or she refuses—or you may offer to buy the popcorn if he or she agrees to go. Making the argument for why a movie is better (or worse) than the book it’s based on would be more argumentative, relying on analysis of examples from both works to build a case. Consider using resources from the ReadWriteThink lesson plan Argument, Persuasion, or Propaganda: Analyzing World War II Posters
- The claim (that typically answers the question: “What do I think?”)
- The reasons (that typically answer the question: “Why do I think this?”)
- The evidence (that typically answers the question: “How do I know this is the case?”).
- Deepen students’ understanding of the components of argument by analyzing evidence-based arguments about texts. Project, for example, this essay on Gertrude in Hamlet and ask students to identify the claim, reasons, and evidence. Ask students to clarify what makes this kind of text an argument as opposed to persuasion. What might a persuasive take on the character of Gertrude sound like? (You may also wish to point out the absence of a counterargument in this example. Challenge students to offer one.)
- Point out that even though the claim comes first in the sample essay, the writer of the essay likely did not start there. Rather, he or she arrived at the claim as a result of careful reading of and thinking about the text. Share with students that evidence-based writing about texts always begins with close reading. See Close Reading of Literary Texts strategy guide for additional information.
- Guide students through the process of generating an evidence-based argument of a text by using the Designing an Evidence-based Argument Handout. Decide on an area of focus (such as the development of a particular character) and using a short text, jot down details or phrases related to that focus in the first space on the chart. After reading and some time for discussion of the character, have students look at the evidence and notice any patterns. Record these in the second space. Work with the students to narrow the patterns to a manageable list and re-read the text, this time looking for more instances of the pattern that you may have missed before you were looking for it. Add these references to the list.
- Use the evidence and patterns to formulate a claim in the last box. Point out to students that most texts can support multiple (sometimes even competing) claims, so they are not looking for the “one right thing” to say about the text, but they should strive to say something that has plenty of evidence to support it, but is not immediately self-evident. Claims can also be more or less complex, such as an outright claim (The character is X trait) as opposed to a complex claim (Although the character is X trait, he is also Y trait). For examples of development of a claim (a thesis is a type of claim), see the Developing a Thesis Handout for additional guidance on this point.
- Modeling Academic Writing Through Scholarly Article Presentations
- And I Quote
- Have students use the Evidence-Based Argument Checklist to revise and strengthen their writing.
More Ideas to Try
- This Strategy Guide focuses on making claims about text, with a focus on literary interpretation. The basic tenets of the guide, however, can apply to argumentation in multiple disciplines—e.g., a response to a Document-Based Question in social science, a lab report in science.
- For every argumentative claim that students develop for a text, have them try writing a persuasive claim about the text to continue building an understanding of their difference.
- After students have drafted an evidence-based argument, ask them to choose an alternative claim or a counterclaim to be sure their original claim is argumentative.
- Have students use the Evidence-Based Argument checklist to offer feedback to one another.
- Lesson Plans
- Professional Library
- Student Interactives
- Strategy Guides
Students prepare an already published scholarly article for presentation, with an emphasis on identification of the author's thesis and argument structure.
While drafting a literary analysis essay (or another type of argument) of their own, students work in pairs to investigate advice for writing conclusions and to analyze conclusions of sample essays. They then draft two conclusions for their essay, select one, and reflect on what they have learned through the process.
The Essay Map is an interactive graphic organizer that enables students to organize and outline their ideas for an informational, definitional, or descriptive essay.
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Evidence-Based Argument Lesson plans and teaching resources
200 Prompts for Argumentative Writing Prompts by category for the student who can't think of anything to write about.
Are You My Mother? An Opinion Writing Unit This 5-lesson unit uses the Langston Hughes poem "Mother to Son" and a portrait to emphasize facts and opinions. Includes writing task. Designed for grade 2.
The Classical Argument Handout detailing introduction, narration, confirmation, refutation and concession, and summation. Two pages, Adobe Reader required.
Decoding text types: One of these things is not like the others This blog explains the difference between opinion writing, persuasive writing, and argument.
Developing Evidence-Based Arguments from Texts This guide provides teachers with strategies for helping students understand the differences between persuasive writing and evidence-based argumentation. Students become familiar with the basic components of an argument and then develop their understanding by analyzing evidence-based arguments about texts. Students then generate evidence-based arguments of texts using a variety of resources. Links to related resources and additional classroom strategies are also provided. Designed for grades 6-12.
Evaluating an Argument: Chevy Volt Commercials This activity introduces students to analyzing an argument.
Five Ways of Looking at a Thesis Using The Princess Bride and other works as models, this page presents five aspects of a good thesis statement.
I Dont Think So: Writing Effective Counterarguments In this lesson students analyze the work of winners of the New York Times Learning Network's 2014 Student Editorial Contest as well as professional models from the Times editorial pages to learn how writers effectively introduce and respond to counterarguments. Then they write their own position pieces, incorporating counterarguments to strengthen their claims.
Identifying Voice This 3-page handout asks middle school students to read an article, respond, and identify the voice. It includes a graphic organizer. Requires Adobe Reader or compatible application for access.
Logic in Argumentative Writing This resource covers using logic within writing — logical vocabulary, logical fallacies, and other types of logos-based reasoning. Follow the links on the left for the complete resource. Part of the Online Writing Lab at Purdue University, this resource is appropriate for high school students and older.
Making an Argument: Effective use of Transition Words Students explore and understand the use of transition words in context and write their own persuasive essay using transition words. Includes printable handout. This lesson is designed for grades 5-8.
The Midnight Ride of Paul Revere: Literature v. History Over the course of three lessons the students will compare and contrast two different versions of one of the most iconic events in American history: the midnight ride of Paul Revere. The comparison will be made between the poem "Paul Reveres Ride" by Henry Wadsworth Longfellow and a description of the event written by Paul Revere himself. Students will use textual evidence from these two sources to draw their conclusions and write an argumentative essay.
Narrative, Argumentative and Informative Writing About Baseball Students read a New York Times article about the use of sabermetrics in radio broadcasts of baseball games. They write a persuasive response. This writing task is the second of four prompts here. Common Core Standards indicated. Don't miss the link to Abbot and Costello's "Who's on First?"
Position Papers Links to strategies and prompts.
Pros and Cons of Controversial Issues Looking for a resource that presents both sides of an issue? Try this one!
Researching the Argument High school students develop research skills by investigating a case being heard by the Supreme Court.
Teaching Argument for Critical Thinking and Writing: An Introduction This article discusses and provides a model for teaching argument. Adobe Reader required.
Teaching the Thesis Sentence Five models designed by college instructors. Scroll down for 10 additional tips.
Simple Questions lead to Complex Learning Questions about the value of a zoo lead to informational text, research-based writing, and critical thinking.
State of the Union Creative Assignment Introduction and 5 activities supporting study of the State of the Union Address: edit the speech, support or defend one statement from the speech, evaluate the topics chosen, write a critical response, write a catch phrase.
A String of Beads Through constructing a necklace students visualize a plan for including the central idea, supporting facts, and a clincher sentence in a paragraph.
Using an Op-Doc Video to Teach Argumentative Writing Students learn how authors support an argument using different types of evidence. The class watches the Op-Doc "China's Web Junkies" (link included) and notes how the filmmakers build their argument. Designed for ninth grade.
Verification Junkie A directory of tools for verifying, fact checking and assessing the validity of social media and user-generated content.
What's Your Fifth Element? This writing assignment asks students to choose something that is important in this modern world and write an organized case that persuades others of their item's significance as a Fifth Element; helping the rest of us comprehend its "essential magnitude."
Writing an Argument In addition to defining "argument," this site includes an exercise in avoiding logical fallacies.
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VIDEO
COMMENTS
A Step-by-Step Plan for Teaching Argumentative Writing
Argumentative Essay Writing A Step-by-Step Guide Name
My done-for-you Argumentative Writing Unit scaffolds how to write an argumentative essay for you and your students. The unit includes 23 full lesson plans, slide presentations, notebook pages for students, teacher keys and examples, student references pages, and more for a well-rounded unit. Plus, this unit goes through the exact process I ...
How to Teach Arguments and Claims in Middle School
I teach students how to write a step-by-step 5 paragraph argumentative essay consisting of the following: Introduction: Includes a lead/hook, background information about the topic, and a thesis statement that includes the claim. Body Paragraph #1: Introduces the first reason that the claim is valid. Supports that reason with facts, examples ...
Overview. Prepare students for persuasive writing by introducing them to the concept of making an argument. Students discover there's a difference between "arguing" and making an argument in support of a position, and that making an argument is a learned skill that doesn't depend on how you feel about an issue.
Call on students to respond to the statement and to list their reasons. When they give a reason (for example, "Dogs are more fun"), press them to provide evidence (such as, "Dogs can be trained" or "Dogs can fetch"). Do this several times, making up new statements that you think will inspire your students. ("Beyonce is the best ...
Teaching Argumentation and Persuasion: 6 Engaging Activities
Olivia Franklin. CommonLit's argumentative writing units engage students with interesting topics and activities that build argument skills and encourage student choice. Our comprehensive ELA curriculum, CommonLit360, has highly-engaging argumentative units that put the crucial skill of argumentative writing at the forefront of each lesson.
Strategies for Teaching Argument Writing
Here are four ways to build your students' ability to write arguments through close reading. Choose Text Wisely. I don't think I can say it enough: The most important part of planning close reading is choosing the text. If you want students to be able to create and support an argument, the text has to contain evidence—and lots of it.
4. Identify claims and evidence. Related Article Tim Lahan. The Common Core Standards put argument front and center in American education, and even young readers are now expected to be able to ...
Can You Convince Me? Developing Persuasive Writing
Argumentative Writing Unit
Follow our step-by-step lesson plan and accompanying teaching resources to help your students decide where to draw the line when it comes to privacy. Try Junior Scholastic for Free. Once your students master the art of debating and writing argument essays, you'll know why so many teachers use Junior Scholastic in their middle school ...
Many of these skills might be new to your students, so it is important to go slow, keep it simple, and make it very clear. Today we are going to be looking at 5 tips and tricks to help you teach the argumentative essay to your students in a fun, clear, and simple way! 1. Mentor Texts are Golden 2. Structure is Everything 3.
Designed for middle school students, the lesson can be used in the classroom for a unit on argument writing. The lesson includes a guide for teachers as well as a packet for students. Additional resources include background information about the Declaration of Independence and the American Revolution, and photos and multimedia.
Argumentative Essay Lesson Plan. Instructor Daniel Burdo. Cite this lesson. Argumentative essays are those persuading the reader to a defined perspective on a topic using specially chosen language ...
Developing Evidence-Based Arguments from Texts
Elements of Argument & Persuasion Mini-Lessons ...
Engaging Strategies for Teaching Persuasion, Argument ...
This 5-lesson unit uses the Langston Hughes poem "Mother to Son" and a portrait to emphasize facts and opinions. Includes writing task. Designed for grade 2. The Classical Argument. Handout detailing introduction, narration, confirmation, refutation and concession, and summation. Two pages, Adobe Reader required.
Write an argumentative essay that argues whether Freeganism should or should not be supported on a larger scale. Develop your essay by providing evidence from both passages. Manage your time carefully so that you can plan your argument and do some pre-writing. Be sure to: - use information from both passages. - avoid over relying on one passage.
Whew! That was a lot of argumentative essay topics for students - high school and college students alike will find tons of inspiration to write their best essay ever! Tips for Writing a Compelling Argumentative Essay. Once you've chosen your topic from the list, it's time to start crafting your argument.