Topic outline

  • General

    notepad and pens Persuasive Writing

  • Topic 1

    What is Persuasive Writing?
    • dolphinsIn persuasive writing you must choose a position and make a thesis statement with supporting arguments about your choice. You must also consider and refute alternative arguments, and prove to the undecided reader that the choice you present is the best one. You must be aware of other sides and be fair to them; dismissing them completely will weaken your own argument.

      It is always best to take a position that you believe in, preferably with the most supporting evidence. However it can often be educational to adopt a different position from what you might normally choose (debating requires this kind of flexibility).

      Picture Credit: dolphins. dolphin51.jpg. confidential. Pics4Learning. 15 May 2008 <http://pics.tech4learning.com>

    • In class you read and discussed two persuasive writing samples. Click on the links below to read some more examples. While you are reading, look for the thesis statements and supporting arguments for the position taken by the author(s).

  • Topic 2

    Selecting Evidence and Using it to Support Persuasive Arguments
    • When writing to persuade someone to change his or her mind about an issue, the writer presents arguments to support his/her thesis statement. These arguments need to be backed up with evidence.

      In class you spent time looking at thesis statements, arguments and the supporting evidence for a few different topics. The activities in this section will help you learn more about forming arguments and supporting them with evidence.

    • Click on the link below to launch an interactive website where you can learn how to use transitional words and supporting examples. Knowing about these skills will help you with your persuasive writing.
    • Click on the links below to launch interactive activities where you can practice identifying supporting arguments for the thesis statements.

  • Topic 3

    Using an Online Forum to Present Persuasive Arguments
    • In class you have been learning about the use of arguments and supporting evidence to persuade others to agree with your position or thesis statement on a particular topic. In this lesson you are going to practice using a forum to make a thesis statement, supported by arguments and evidence, about a recent controversial decision relating to an athlete who used steroids.

    • Read the following articles about Marion Jones, an Olympic athlete who won 5 medals at the 2000 summer Olympics in Syndney, Australia. In October 2007, Marion admitted that she took steroids, a performance enhancing drug that is not allowed under Olympics rules. The Olympic Committee ordered Marion to return her 5 medals. One of the 5 medals she won was in the 400 Meter relay event. She had 3 other teammates that ran in this event and won medals. Marion has already returned all 5 of her Olympic medals. Should her three teammates from the 400 Meter relay have to return their medals also? Why or why not?

    • Marion Jones had all of the medals she won at the 2000 Olympics taken away because of illegal drug use. Should her teammates in the relay race also lose their medals?
      Post a thesis statement about this issue to the forum. Back it up with arguments and evidence from the articles. Respond to one or more postings made by your classmates.

  • Topic 4

    Guidelines for the Persuasive Essay
    • chewing gum In class you were given a copy of the "Persuasive Essay Outline" which is the format you will be using for your position paper. You also received a copy of the "Persuasive Essay Rubric" that will be used to assess your work. You worked together as a class using the rubric to assess a sample essay titled, "No Gum Chewing in School." Copies of these items are available below.
      Photo Credit:       Keeney, Carolyn. gum.jpg. Sep-00. Pics4Learning. 16 May 2008 <http://pics.tech4learning.com>

  • Topic 5

    Topic Overviews & Choosing a Topic
    • Read through each of the "Persuasive Topic Scenarios." After you have finished reading, click on the link for "Choose a Topic" and select the topic you would like to write about. If the topic is no longer available, select your second choice.

  • Topic 6

    Information Processing Skills
    Evaluating Information, Citing Sources & Taking Notes

  • Topic 7

    Research the Topics
    • The Persuasive Topics Forum contains the topic scenarios as well as links to web resources with information about each topic. Some of the web resources are NOT valid and reliable. Be sure to evaluate the information before deciding to use it.

      Read the resources to locate information that can be used as arguments and supporting evidence for the position you were assigned to research for your group's topic. Take notes on the information and use it when you are writing your forum posts.

      Students supporting the position will need to post a thesis statement for their position and then use the "Reply" feature of the forum to post the supporting arguments and evidence from the resources. Be sure to tell which resource you are referring to in your post. Students opposing the position will do the same.

      The information in these posts will be available to assist you in writing your essays.

  • Topic 8

    Practice Workshop
    • Learn how a Moodle Workshop works!
      You will work with your teacher and classmates in the "Practice Workshop" to use the peer response checklist to evaluate a sample persuasive essay about school uniforms.

      Later on you will use the same peer response checklist in a different workshop to review two of the persuasive essays written by your classmates.

  • Topic 9

    Workshop for Peer Review of Persuasive Essay Drafts
    • In this workshop you will be reviewing three persuasive essays. One essay is a sample essay about summer vacation that was written by "Jordan" and appears on the Write Source website. The other two essays you review will be ones submitted by your classmates.

      You will be using the same Yes/No checklist that we used together when we evaluated the essay about school uniforms. 80% of your grade will be based on how well you review your classmates' essays. The remaining 20% of your grade will come from the scores you receive for your essay.

      In order to be assigned other students' essays for review, you must first submit the draft of your own essay.

  • Topic 10

    Submit Final Versions of Persuasive Essays
    • Click the link below and then use the "Browse" button to locate the file for the the final version of your persuasive essay. Click "Upload this file" to finish submitting your essay. Check back later for your grade.

  • Topic 11

    Our Principal & the Issues
    Which issue/topic do you think our Principal will address first? Post your thoughts in the "Solving Our Issues" Forum.