Persuasive Writing

How do we persuade?  Ethos – Ethical appeal  Connecting with someone’s morals or character  Examples?  Pathos – Emotional appeal  Connecting with someone’s emotions  Examples?  Logos – Logical appeal  Connecting with someone’s logic or reason using hard evidence  Examples?

Counterarguments  A counterargument (or counterclaim or rebuttal) is what someone might say against your argument.  It is important to give a counterargument so the audience knows you have really thought about your opinion.  It makes people more likely to believe what you say.  You MUST start a counterargument with a transition (like “Others might argue that…”). Otherwise, it will sound like you’re arguing against yourself.

Come-Back  When you mention a counterargument, you must have a come-back.  A come-back says, “I know people might say ____________________, but (my opinion) is still better because __________________________.”

Your mission!  Choosing a topic:  You are going to be choosing a problem that faces 7 th graders Homework 2. Bullying 3. Balancing time between school work and sports 4. Getting an allowance 5. Riding the bus  You are going to be writing a 3 paragraph/3 slide argumentative/persuasive essay based on the topic  You will need to write the topic you choose as the title of your paper

Organization  Your first paragraph will state the problem or state the issue  Your second paragraph will offer the solution  Your third paragraph will be a counterclaim (*review counterclaim slide for definition)  Let’s start by looking at a sample problem paragraph.

Example: Stating the Issue  Students are faced with many choices throughout their daily lives, but one choice that they cannot make is how they get to and from school. Most students have no other option than riding the bus which can make or break students’ day. The problem with riding the bus is that students have a hard time keeping themselves busy on the long ride each morning and afternoon. Riding the bus can be loud, boring, and very predictable; however, there are a few things that could be changed to make the ride more interesting.