Introduction Example, Body Paragraphs, and Counterclaim Information

Simon Anderson, a student at our local high school, suffers excruciating pain every day of his life. He has missed numerous days of school due to doctors’ appointments and therapy sessions. You are probably wondering what happened to Simon. Well, he had to carry more than 50 pounds of books to school each day because the school has no lockers. During the first semester, one of the disks in his spine split apart because of the weight of his books. Our local high school does not provide lockers for their students, and many have to carry heavy loads of books on their backs every day. Installing lockers at our school would involve a lot of time and money, and there are many people who don’t think we need them. However, lockers will eliminate possible back problems, and other students shouldn’t be hurt like Simon. Our school should get lockers for the students in order to relieve stress, improve grades, and avoid injuries.

Body Paragraphs and Topic Sentences Body paragraphs build upon the claims made in the introductory paragraph(s). Organize with the use of topic sentences that illustrate the main idea of each paragraph. Offering a brief explanation of the history or recent developments of topic within the early body paragraphs can help the audience to become familiarized with your topic and the complexity of the issue.

Body Paragraphs Paragraphs may be ordered in several ways, depending upon the topic and purpose of your argument: General to specific information Most important point to least important point Weakest claim to strongest claim

The lack of lockers is causing student failure The lack of lockers is causing student failure. Fewer and fewer students are bringing their heavy books to class. Many of them are choosing to leave their books at home. This situation is causing teacher frustration and a decline in students’ grades. According to a recent survey, 80% of the teachers at our school feel that they cannot teach effectively unless the students have the required books. When students are unable to refer to the text in class, the group discussions are adversely affected. Students can’t use accurate facts and details to support their ideas because they don’t have the proper reference materials. The National Teachers’ Association Guidebook states, “Having easy access to textual evidence increases a student’s ability to learn and better understand the material under discussion.” If students had lockers, they would be able to access their books throughout the day.

Offering a Counterclaim Addressing the claims of the opposition is an important component in building a convincing argument. It demonstrates your credibility as a writer – you have researched multiple sides of the argument and have come to an informed decision. It shows you have considered other points of view – that other points of view are valid and reasonable.

Effective Counterclaims Consider your audience when you address the counterclaim. Showing that you understand some of your opposition’s concerns can demonstrate respect for their opinions. Remain respectful yet firm. Using rude or harsh language can cause your audience to reject your position without carefully considering your claims.

What’s a claim? A claim is an arguable statement— For example: the claim shares your opinion and can be argued one way or another. For example: Students should be allowed to chew gum at school. There are two sides to this issue and I could argue that chewing gum at school is a good or bad idea!

There are two types of claims There is one main claim for your whole essay, in the introductory paragraph (also called a thesis) EX: Students should be allowed to chew gum Secondary claims (your reasons for the main claim) are woven into your body paragraphs. For example: Gum can help you focus If students could chew gum they’d be less stressed Gum can improve your mood and lead to students being nicer to each other.

What is a counterclaim? This is what your audience may say to disagree with you. You need to address your audiences concerns so you can refute them! To do this well you MUST know your audience!!! For Example: My teacher may say: Gum may cause a distraction if you chew it loudly My principal may say: Gum causes messes that take too much of our custodian’s time and makes our school look bad.

How do I respond to the counterclaim? With a rebuttal! The rebuttal is the “comeback” How will you shoot down their disagreement and bring them back to “your side” to see your vision and why you are correct. For example: If students weren’t afraid of being caught, they wouldn’t feel the need to stick gum to desks to hide it from their teachers.

Placement of a Counterclaim Counterclaims may be located at various locations within your body paragraphs. You may choose to: build each of your main points as a contrast to oppositional claims. offer a counterclaim after you have articulated your main claims.

There are several members of the school board who are against the proposal to add lockers to the school. They are concerned that it will be costly and take too much time to install. Their concerns about the budget are understandable; however, a student’s health should be more important than money. While the board is busy debating the issue, other students could suffer back injuries. Our school nurse, Mrs. Brevard, reports that more students have come to the clinic complaining of sore shoulders and backs. “Our school has 35% more clinic visits than nearby high schools, and, unlike our school, those other schools have lockers. I’m seeing more injuries due to heavy backpacks,” states Mrs. Brevard. Additionally, in the New England Journal of Medicine, Dr. Nolan Smith states, “Students who carry heavy loads on their backs run a greater risk of suffering permanent injury to their spinal columns.” It is clear that the human body wasn’t designed to carry a great deal of weight over long periods of time. Now, installing lockers may be expensive, but I believe they will actually save the school system money. It is far cheaper for our school to install lockers than to be stuck with students’ medical bills.

Research in Body Paragraphs Researched material can aid you in proving the claims of your argument and disproving oppositional claims. Be sure to use your research to support the claims made in your topic sentences – make your research work to prove your argument.