Argument Essay Tips and Tricks

Grading Scale Letter Grade Numerical Score A +15 B +10 C +7 D +5 F +0

Let’s Check… Topic Did you… MLA Include a citation for each quote AND/OR paraphrase? Do the internal citation correctly? Have a works cited? Format your heading correctly? Source(s) Did you use a credible source? Misc. Use you?  Use contractions?  Argument Use concessions?   (reminder: “riots” Use counterarguments and rebuttals?  

Did Not ‘Check’: Intro & conclusion B) Progression of argument C) Fully proved thesis

Grammatical Errors ONLY place a comma before a coordinating conjunction (FANBOYS) IF there is an independent clause (could be a complete sentence) on both sides!

MLA Mistakes When you are TYPING, please use italics instead of underlining titles. (On that note, many people wrote the title of the novel using quotation marks. THAT IS WRONG. It should be The Things They Carried.) Even if you PARAPHRASE, please still include the citation at the end of the sentence. If you do not do this, you will not receive credit for using your source. Place ending punctuation INSIDE the quotation mark. The exception is exclamation points and questions marks – which you really should not be using for this assignment.

For future reference… History.com is NOT a credible source. I would rather you cite your class notes. I am only semi-joking. Many of the other sources used for background material are not considered credible for an academic assignment. They may be used for checking to see if you are correct when you are in an debate with friends, but not for your AP Language and Composition paper. A college professor would laugh at you – not with you.  I will not take off on this current assignment, but next semester when we write the synthesis/research essay, these sources will not work! Before that paper, I will give a lesson on how to determine a credible sources. Make sure the current event article is from a reputable source. There is a list on the assignment sheet.

Common Writing Flubs Weak transitions between topic sentences and examples Developing the historical example to a point that the paper appears to be an expository essay Using multiple examples to prove the exact. same. point.

Argumentation Weaknesses Lacking a judgement in your thesis Purely identifying that unspoken rules lead to a feeling of belonging IS an arguable position– but is it compelling? Does your paper end up sounding more like a laundry list of instances/examples? Not considering the opposing viewpoints Anticipate what I will be thinking as I read your essay! It will make your argument stronger!