1. Persuasive Writing: Introductions & Stating Your Position

2. How do I start? Purpose of Introduction: Give reader context
Brief introduction to the issue presented in the prompt
Grab the reader’s attention
Engage the reader in the issue head-on

3. How do I start? Introduction requirements:
No more than 5 lines (of the 26 lines available)
This is about 3 sentences
Last sentence is your THESIS statement

4. How do I start? Descriptive segment
a sentence or two describing your side of the prompt
uses imagery to draw the reader in
describes what the reader may see, feel, smell, taste, hear

5. How do I start?
Anecdote
a short and interesting story or an amusing event
a relevant personal experience
must directly support the prompt
short and sweet – only about 2 sentences

6. How do I start? Bandwagon statement
purpose of this technique is to make the audience think and act in a way that majority follows
Joining the “bandwagon” = I’m going to do/say/believe _______ because everyone else is doing/saying/believing ________.
Antony used this in his funeral speech to turn the people against Cassius and Brutus.

7. How do I state my position?
Persuasive prompts are written in a way for the writer to choose a position (or side) that they then have to defend.
Similar to an argument
choose your side and defend it with reasons and evidence/examples

8. How do I state my position?
Position statement = THESIS statement
Last sentence of introduction
Must be CLEAR and DIRECT
Must acknowledge the “other side”

9. Persuasive Writing: Providing Strong Reasons to Support your Position

10. How do I support my position?
The reasons you give to support your position statement can make or break your essay. These are very important!
Below are attributes (or characteristics) of strong reasons:
• matter to the audience
• sensible
• important
• usually expressed positively rather than negatively
• Each reason is different, not similar to one already discussed

11. How do I support my position?
Brainstorm!
T-chart
List reasons to support both sides
You need to know why people might support the “other side”
Choose the side that has the strongest reasons

12. Persuasive Writing: Strong Reasons
Strong reasons matter to the audience
reasons need to be aligned with the audience, as different things matter to different people (children vs. adults, politicians vs. citizens, etc.)
Make sure you know who your audience is before you choose your reasons!

13. Persuasive Writing: Strong Reasons
Strong reasons are sensible and important
think of reasons that are important and sensible to your reader/audience.
An example reason: Wearing uniforms decreases the amount of bullying in schools.

14. Persuasive Writing: Strong Reasons
They are usually expressed positively rather than negatively:
People are more likely to respond and agree to positive reasons over negative reasons
Example: Uniforms are a cheaper purchase for parents.

15. Persuasive Writing: Strong Reasons
Each reason is different, not similar to one already discussed:
Once you have your reasons you want to make sure all three are different and independent.
Example: Uniforms decrease bullying, are a cheaper purchase for parents, and create a sense of belonging and togetherness among the students.

16. Persuasive Writing: Supporting Details and Examples

17. How do I support my reasons?
the details you use to support those reasons give your essay “LIFE!”
Each reason that you give in your essay will need to be supported by evidence
Support/Evidence includes:
details, examples, facts, data and any other piece of information that shows why you believe in the reason you gave in your essay

18. How do I support my reasons?
persuasive writing can contain opinions.
However, those opinions must always be supported by facts and details.
make sure your evidence is relevant (or closely related) to the reason it should be supporting
If it is off-topic, it will make your essay seem unreliable and will work against you.

19. How do I support my reasons?
Example Position Statement: Our school should implement a mandatory uniform policy for all students.
Reason: It reduces the amount of disruptions in class
Reason: Uniforms create a sense of oneness and uniformity among all students
Reason: It raises students’ expectations of themselves in their appearance
Evidence:

20. How do I support my reasons?
Reason: It reduces the amount of disruptions in class
Reason: Uniforms create a sense of oneness and uniformity among all students
Reason: It raises students’ expectations of themselves in their appearance
Evidence: Students are unable to bully students based on what labels they wear and the focus on fashion will be shifted to where it should be, academics.
Evidence: As on athletic teams, uniforms are worn for immediate identification and to inspire a feeling of 'oneness.' A sense of loyalty emerges from inside, as does an extra effort to perform at the student's best...
Evidence: When dressed neatly and seriously, students tend to behave seriously. Students seem to feel more confident in the way they look, and so they have more confidence in themselves..."

21. How do I support my reasons?
Brainstorming is a two-step process with persuasive essays
The graphic organizer below can be used when brainstorming for evidence to support your reasons:
Reason 1
Reason 2
Reason 3
Detail/Example

22. How do I support my reasons?
Use HELP to bring in examples and details
H = History
Historical
Movements (Civil Rights, Women’s Suffrage)
Events (Pearl Harbor, 9/11)
People, Groups (MLK Jr., Founding Fathers)

23. How do I support my reasons?
Use HELP to bring in examples and details
E = Events
Current events – local, national, international
Life events – celebrations, losses (universal)
Personal Experiences – achieving a goal, hardships, etc. (individual)
Can overlap with historical events

24. How do I support my reasons?
Use HELP to bring in examples and details
L = Literature
Novels, plays, short stories read in or out of class
Movies
TV shows
Comic books

25. How do I support my reasons?
Use HELP to bring in examples and details
P = People
Celebrities (athletes, musicians, historical figures, etc.)
Pop culture Friends
Family members Historical Figures
People in the news
Coaches, mentors, teachers, youth leaders

26. Persuasive Writing: Counter-arguments- What do I do with those?

27. Counter-arguments What is a counter-argument?
A counter-argument is the viewpoint from someone who does not agree with your position on a specific topic.

28. Counter-arguments
If it shows the viewpoint of the side I DON’T agree with, why do I need to have it in my essay?
Showing the viewpoint of those who do not agree with your position shows that you have considered of both sides of the issue.
This helps strengthen your essay!

29. Counter-arguments
Here is one example of an opposing viewpoint and a counter-argument:
Opposing Viewpoint:
People like to express their feelings and creativeness through their clothes
Counter-Argument:
Creativity is important, but students can still express themselves through artwork, sports, hairstyles, and other mediums.

30. Counter-arguments
There are some specific transitions that we can use solely with counter-arguments.
Transitions and key words/phrases are important when writing counter-arguments.

31. Counter-arguments Ways to begin: It is understood that some
Even though some
Although some
Some people think/want
It may be that some
Some people may feel
Despite the belief that
The idea to _____ deserves some merit

32. Counter-arguments Can be one sentence or two. Ways to transition:
; however, ______________________.
, but in fact _____________________.
What this argument fails to consider is _____________.
This view sounds convincing at first but ____________.

33. Counter-arguments Some examples of these transitions used:
Some people think that kids should get paid for grades. I don’t agree. Parents already provide their children with a home and food. They spend their money on clothes and extracurricular things like after school organizations and entertainment, like movies. Kids should earn these things privileges through good grades.

34. Counter-arguments Some examples of these transitions used:
The idea to have school year round deserves some merit. Going to school more should make kids learn more. However, kids can learn not only just at school but also through life experiences. The summer time is a chance to travel and explore new places, to join fun new teams and clubs, and even spend more time with their family.

35. Counter-arguments Some examples of these transitions used:
While it is common for students to come to tutoring right before the test, there are better ways to prepare. The day before a test is the most busy for the teacher because there are often 50 students looking for last minute help. When this happens, the teacher can’t actually help many students well. For this reason, students should come to tutoring a couple times a week, each week and study on their own the day before a test. Because most students do not come to tutoring on a weekly basis, the students who do come will get one-on-one attention and learn more. They will not need the “last minute cram session” the day before the test.

36. Counter-arguments Some examples of these transitions used:
While it is common for students to come to tutoring right before the test, there are better ways to prepare. The day before a test is the most busy for the teacher because there are often 50 students looking for last minute help. When this happens, the teacher can’t actually help many students well. For this reason, students should come to tutoring a couple times a week, each week and study on their own the day before a test. Because most students do not come to tutoring on a weekly basis, the students who do come will get one-on-one attention and learn more. They will not need the “last minute cram session” the day before the test.

37. Persuasive Writing: Conclusion & Call to Action

38. How do I end my essay?
You’ve done all the “work” of the essay, so this should be the easiest part!
Two things left to do…

39. How do I end my essay? Restate your position
Do NOT introduce new information/reasons/evidence
Start with a conclusion cue word/phrase
Finally,
Clearly,
Once again,
It is clear that

40. How do I end my essay? Call to Action – last sentence of essay
Last chance to be persuasive
Tell the reader what you want from him/her
This is a statement of command – directing the reader to take action of some kind.

41. How do I end my essay? Call to Action – last sentence of essay
Examples: (various prompts)
Speak up for those who can’t, adopt a pet today!
Participate in your city’s recycling program.
Vote this fall to make sure your voice is heard!