Formatting and Revising your Argumentative Paper

Add a heading In the UPPER LEFT corner Your Name Blain/Cryderman LA10 Date (should be written as 2 November 2017) ** This should only be on the first page. It is NOT in the header section. It is double spaced!

Appearance Double space the entire text of paper Choose a plain font (Times New Roman or Arial) The entire paper is size 12—no bigger, no smaller Make sure you have standard margins (1 inch)

Format your title Centered Capitalize important words Not bolded Not underlined No wordart Same font and size as the rest of the essay

Indent your paragraphs Use the TAB key Don’t put extra space between paragraphs

Claim Put a STAR next to your claim (what you are trying to prove) Candy/soda should/should not be in schools OR Sentence stating that you need to break up with someone or something

Evidence Underline your evidence Multiple pieces of logical/relevant evidence – count the pieces of evidence for your claim AND write this in the margin (You should have 2-3)

Counterclaim Use a squiggly line to underline your counterclaim Did you argue AGAINST your claim? Do you have at least 1-2 pieces of evidence to support it? Underline your evidence – If you don’t have evidence, be sure to add this

Rebuttal Underline your refutation with a dashed underline Did you REFUTE the counterclaim? Do you have 2-3 pieces of evidence to support the rebuttal? Underline your evidence – If you don’t have evidence, be sure to add this

Call to Action This should be at the end of your paper - put a check mark next to this ✓ What do you want your audience to do? OR What action should be taken?

Rhetorical Devices You need 5 DIFFERENT rhetorical devices: Imagery Rhetorical question Allusion Parallel structure Repetition Figurative language Anecdotes Loaded language Highlight AND label the 5 devices used in your paper – Don’t have these? Add them

Rhetorical Appeals Label ALL 3 appeals in your paper: Logos (facts, stats, etc.) Pathos (look at your rhetorical devices) Ethos (look at your concession, experts, etc.)

Check for run-ons and fragments Start at the end of your paper (yes, I said the end) Read each sentence separately—listen for sentence structure problems Is there an incomplete thought? Fix these! Do you have two or more sentence squished together? Fix these!

Check for LA10 Non-Negotiables Use your narrative as a guide – specifically look for the Non-Negotiables that YOU missed Your/You’re Its/It’s There/Their/They’re Then/Than Lose/Loose Apostrophe Errors