Everything’s an Argument It’s time to argue for what you believe in. It’s time to make your voice heard.

Presentation Overview: ESSAYS Purpose: Claim/Thesis Development: FUNCTION of Paragraphs Arrangement: SEQUENCING and PLACEMENT of Paragraphs Style: Choices Will your voice truly be heard?

Purpose: Claim/Thesis What’s the point? All writing makes an ARGUMENT by way of its CLAIM Examples Oreo cookies are better than hot chips. Beyonce’s voice is better than J Lo’s. No one should ever be seen wearing Crocs shoes. High stakes testing is the death of learning. Technology makes people stupid.

Development: FUNCTION of paragraphs Each paragraph of an essay has a FUNCTION. In order to figure out the FUNCTION of a paragraph, ask yourself, -What is the purpose of this paragraph? -What is the author doing in this paragraph?

Development: FUNCTION of paragraphs Ways Paragraphs Can FUNCTION Grab reader’s attention State claim Address opposition/refute opposition Concession Establish ethos Appeals to Pathos State Reasons or Examples (logos) Writers state REASONS to support their claims. Writers give EXAMPLES to support their reasons. Writer presents REASONS and EXAMPLES through PATTERNS OF DEVELOPMENT PATTERNS of DEVELOPMENT

Development: FUNCTION of paragraphs Writers use PATTERNS of DEVELOPMENT to approach essay topics. They may use just one, but typically, they rely on a mix of the patterns to establish their claim: Narrative: tells a story or recounts a series of events. Compare/contrast: juxtaposes two things to highlight their similarities and differences. Description: emphasizes the senses by describing how something looks, sounds, smells, tastes, or feels. Definition: defining a term Division and classification: Division: breaking of a larger whole into smaller parts Classification: categorization of objects into a larger whole Process: involves giving directions or telling the reader how to do something. Cause and Effect: analyzing the causes that lead to a certain effect or, conversely, the effects that result from a cause.

Arrangment: SEQUENCING/PLACEMENT of paragraphs When reading and writing arguments, it’s also important to pay attention to HOW a writer develops his/her argument through sequencing. When analyzing sequencing and the placement of paragraphs, ask yourself, -How does the previous paragraph relate to the current paragraph? -How does the following paragraph relate to the current paragraph? -WHY does the author put this paragraph here?

Arrangement: SEQUENCING/PLACEMENT of paragraphs Placement/Organization Strategies Establish credibility early on Address opposition in the beginning/middle/end State claim at the beginning/middle/end Start with the strongest reason or example Save the strongest example/reason for last Provide examples to support argument in the body of the essay The most logical sequence of examples

STYLE: Choices The choices writers make are RHETORICAL CHOICES Just as writers choose to include an emotional or logical appeal, they choose how to present information and how to develop that information. Everything in writing is a CHOICE: Words, syntax, even punctuation!

Activities Small group discussions Large group discussions Journaling One analysis exam Two essays (writer’s choice) Vocabulary Quizzes (continued)

So what? In the following weeks, we will be reading several small texts (essays, articles, etc.) Based on today’s presentation, what should you be thinking about as you read, question, prepare, and discuss the texts for class? On a separate sheet of paper, answer the following: Journal Entry #1: What are topics, issues, or ideas that you think are worth exploring in our class? What topics do YOU feel strongly about?