7 TH GRADE PERSUASIVE ESSAY

PERSUASIVE WRITING CLAIM---What’s wrong? What should be changed? Etc.. THESIS --- A Clearly stated sentence saying what you specifically want to have happen. REASONS---support your ideas and opinions with facts, & statistics, expert opinions, etc. EVIDENCE ADDRESS COUNTER-ARGUMENT --- Find out what your opposition would argue and counter that with your facts, reasons.. CALL TO ACTION ---Tell your reader what you want them to do.

SOME TOPIC IDEAS………. SCHOOL UNIFORMS (PRO OR CON) A NEED FOR NEW COURSE OFFERING AT HMS LATER SCHOOL (DAILY) START TIME FINES FOR NOT RECYCLING STRICKTER LAWS AGAINST PUPPY MILLS, ANIMAL ABUSE, etc. CALLING ON PEOPLE NOT DISCRIMINATE …… PRO/CON SINGLE GENDER CLASSES OR SCHOOLS PRO/CON YEAR-ROUND SCHOOL PERSUADING THE USE OF A CERTAIN PRODUCT BUILDING A NEW ENTERTAINMENT CENTER FOR TEENS INCREASING/DECREASING AGE FOR DRIVING, VOTING, etc.

WHAT WILL YOU DO? CHOOSE A TOPIC/ISSUE THAT INTERESTS YOU—that you have a PASSION for….. DEVELOP A CLAIM ABOUT THAT TOPIC OR ISSUE--- WRITE A STRONG THESIS STATEMENT THAT STATES YOUR CLAIM---This should be your last sentence in the first introductory paragraph. CLAIM EXAMPLE: Not every child in the United States gets to go to kindergarten, and the means that some students will have an advantage over others and some will show up to first grade not as ready to learn as others. THESIS EXAMPLE: “The Federal Government should mandate all-day, everyday kindergarten for every child in the United States.”

What will you do ??? (cont.) SUPPORT YOUR CLAIM WITH 2 BODY PARAGRAPHS. IN THESE TWO PARAGRAPHS INCLUDE 2-3 OF THE BEST, SOLID REASONS BACKED BY AT LEAST 2-3 FACTS, STATISTICS, OR DIRECT QUOTES THAT ARE NOT YOUR OWN AND TELL WHERE YOU GOT Them with CONTEXTUAL REFERENCES. ALONG WITH YOUR RESEARCHED FACTS, USE YOUR OWN IDEAS/LANGUAGE TO CONVINCE & PERSUADE YOUR READER TO BELIEVE AS YOU DO.

What will you do? (cont.) IN A 3 rd BODY PARAGRAPH, USING YOUR RESEARCH, STATE WHAT WOULD BE THE STRONGEST COUNTERARGUMENT TO YOUR CLAIM. WRITE YOUR RESPONSE/FACTS AND WORK TO CONVINCE US WHY THAT COUNTERARGUMENT IS NOT AS STRONG AS YOUR CLAIM. LASTLY, IN YOUR LAST PARAGRAPH, WRITE A CONCLUSION REVIEWING YOUR BEST POINTS, RE- STATING WHAT YOU WANT TO HAPPEN OR WANT US TO BELIEVE……..AND A CALLING US TO ACTION!!

REQUIREMENTS 5 PARAGRAPHS—EACH DEVELOPED WITH AS MANY SENTENCES AS IT TAKES TO SUPPORT YOUR TOPIC SENTENCE IN EACH PARAGRAPH. INTRODUCTION PARAGRAPH---THREE BODY PARAGRAPHS---CONCLUSION PARAGRAPH READ AND RESEARCH. FIND TWO BEST REASONS TO SUPPORT YOUR CLAIM. DEVELOP THE FIRST TWO BODY PARAGRAPHS WITH NOT ONLY YOUR OWN REASONS AND OPINIONS, BUT ALSO INCLUDE AT LEAST TWO FACTS. STATISTICS,EXPERT OPINIONS, DIRECT QUOTATIONS, ETC. GIVE CREDIT TO YOUR SOURCES WITH CONTEXTUAL CITATIONS—AT LEAST ONE PER PARAGRAPH. READ AND RESEARCH WHAT YOUR BEST OPPOSITON AND PRESENT, IN YOUR THIRD BODY PARAGRAPH, YOUR BEST COUNTER TO THEIR ARGUMENT. WRITE A CONCLUSION PARAGRAPH. ROUGH DRAFT IS WRITTEN IN HASTINGS APPS FINAL DRAFT IS TYPED WITH PROPER HMS FORMAT

Introduction (first) Paragraph Get our ATTENTION!!! ….A fact, statistic, shocking statement, anecdote, etc. EXAMPLE: If you knew that your child was not as prepared as others when entering first grade, and he or she may very well stay behind in his or her skills, would you want to do something to change that? State the CLAIM—KIDS in Minnesota ALL need the same advantages as they enter first grade, and they need to get a strong base and start in their learning through all-day, everyday kindergarten. THESIS STATEMENT—last sentence in first paragraph….clearly states your claim/argument—”The Minnesota legislature needs to pass legislation to fund all-day, everyday kindergarten.”

BODY PARAGRAPHS 2 BODY PARAGRAPHS FULL OF YOUR REASONS AND RESEARCHED FACTS ---IN EACH PARAGRAPH, INCLUDE AT LEAST ONE STRONG REASON/FACT/QUOTATION AND CITE WITH A CONTEXTUAL REFERENCE CITATION. EXAMPLE: In the December 17, 2012 issue of TIME magazine, the article “Our Children Must Be Ready,” written by William Carter, states that a Harvard study found, “Children who have attended all-day, everyday kindergarten consistently score points higher on standardized testing all the way through third grade.”

Counterargument & Contextual Reference THIRD BODY PARAGRAPH---COUNTERARGUMENT AND YOUR RESPONSES! Some claim that kindergarten for all Minnesota’s children is not feasible or cost-effective, and therefore we should not make it law. However, the research shows that the money invested on the front end when kids are young, greatly increases the economic benefits down the road in a stronger economy. An article by leading education specialist Judith Kowalski supports this claim. In the article “Equal Education For All” in the July 2013, issue of Education Monthly, Kowalski’s research says that communities with a history of investing in all-day, everyday kindergarten, tend to also have stronger general economies and fewer people on welfare. Kindergarten is an INVESTMENT, and we can’t afford NOT to offer it in Minnesota if we want to continue our great way of life here!

Conclusion Paragraph Restate your claim and summarize your major points Leave readers with a CALL TO ACTION!!! (what do you want us to do from here on out…?) Leave us thinking and wondering— maybe even ready to act!!

Conclusion EXAMPLE All-day, everyday kindergarten should be mandatory in Minnesota. It is an important part of a child’s education. Students need to be ready for learning when they enter first grade. They need to be able to be on a level playing field with the rest of their classmates, and the research shows that all-day, everyday kindergarten helps kids and helps our economy down the road. Please contact your state legislators. Help them understand that we need to prepare our kids in the best way possible for the complex world they are going to live in. We can’t afford not to have the most highly educated people in the nation!

POSTER & PRESENTATION Design a poster (max. 12x18) depicting your ideas. Include your THESIS, REASONS & EVIDENCE, drawings/pictures related to the issue, & CALL TO ACTION. This should be an “advertisement” for your claim and should be colorful, show efforts in design, organization, and general visual appeal. You can use the back to jot down a few notes for when you give your 1 minute presentation. 15 points (10 for poster/5 for pres

REVIEW---WHAT WILL YOU DO? DO ALL WORK IN HASTINGS APPS. CHOOSE A TOPIC/ISSUE THAT INTERESTS YOU—that you have a PASSION for….. DEVELOP A CLAIM (what you think should change, happen, etc.) WRITE A STRONG THESIS STATEMENT THAT STATES YOUR CLAIM---This should be your last sentence in the first introductory paragraph. EXAMPLE: “The state of Minnesota should make all-day, everyday kindergarten mandatory for every child in this state.”

What will you do ??? (cont.) SUPPORT YOUR CLAIM WITH REASONS. INCLUDE AT LEAST ONE FACT, STATISTIC, OR DIRECT QUOTE THAT IS NOT YOUR OWN AND TELL WHERE YOU GOT THAT (Use contextual reference). INCLUDE 2 BODY PARAGRAPHS----CONVINCING DETAILS, REASONS, EXAMPLES, TO PERSUADE YOUR READER TO BELIEVE AS YOU DO. INCLUDE A COUNTERARGUMENT AND RESPONSE TO THAT OPPOSING VIEW (S). CONCLUDE WITH A SUMMARY STATEMENT THAT RE- STATES WHAT YOU WANT TO HAPPEN OR WANT US TO BELIEVE……..AND A CALL TO ACTION!!