Argumentative essay

Jennifer Gonzalez, a writing teacher, proposes seven steps to help students to write an argumentative essay. The objective of an argumentative essay is to try to convince your reader to think a certain way or to do a certain thing. Any piece of writing should have an introduction, a body which contains three main points in it, and a closure. Some students are afraid of the five paragraph essay:

Step 1: What how it´s done: Students are given a mentor text: examples of excellent writing within the genre students are about to attempt themselves. Students read these texts, compare them, and find places where the authors used evidence to back up their assertions. Students are asked to notice things like stories, facts and statistics, and other things the authors use to develop their ideas.

Step 2: Informal assessment, Freestyle: Students do some informal debate on easy, high-interest topics. The teacher reads a statement: students who agree with the statement move to one side of the room, and those who disagree move to the other side. Then they take turns explaining why they are standing in that position.

Step 3: Informal assessment, not so freestyle: It is a second debate; this time with more structure and more time to research ahead of time. The teacher poses a different question, supply students with a few articles that would provide ammunition for either side, she gives them time to read the articles and find the evidence they need. The experience should make them more likely to appreciate the value of evidence when trying to persuade. After the debate, students transfer their thoughts from the discussion they just had into something that looks like the opening paragraph of a written argument: A statement of their point of view, plus three reasons to support that point of view. 

Step 4: Introduction of the performance assessment: Students are shown their major assignment, the performance assessment that they will work on for the next few weeks. It’s generally a written prompt that describes the task, plus the rubric the teacher will use to score their final product.

Step 5: Building the base: Students consider their topic for the essay, drafting a thesis statement, and planning the main points of their essay in a graphic organizer. The teacher also begins writing her own essay on a different topic, starting from scratch, thinking out loud and scribbling down her thoughts as they come. When students see how messy the process can be, it becomes less intimidating for them.

Step 6: Writer´s workshop: Students are shown how to choose credible, relevant evidence, how to skillfully weave evidence into an argument, how to consider the needs of an audience, and how to correctly cite sources. Then students work independently on their writing while the teacher moves around the room, helping students solve problems and offering feedback on whatever part of the piece they are working on.

Step 7: Final assessment: The finished essays are handed in for a grade.