Persuasive+Writing



In this unit, students will practice writing to persuade or convince someone of something. They will need to:

Introduce their topic Clearly state their opinion Provide at least 3 strong arguments supporting their opinion Use linking words Conclude their paragraph

Idea: At the beginning of the unit, students brainstorm ideas that they want to convince someone of, write them down and put them in a bowl. At the beginning of each day, a student picks one from the jar and reads it out loud. Students form into two groups and discuss their topics, opinions and arguments. Teacher then calls on one or two students from each side to state their opinion and arguments.

Possible topics of discussion:
 * Should we get a classroom pet?
 * Should we have school uniforms?
 * Children watch too much TV. Do you agree? Take a stand and support it.
 * Should you be made to do chores at home?
 * Should we have assigned seats in our classroom?
 * Should students miss recreation if they don't get their work done?
 * Should children be able to play video games during the school week?
 * Should people eat junk food?
 * Which is a better classroom pet? A turtle or a guinea pig?
 * Should children read every day at home?
 * Which is more fun? Playing a video game or having a friend over?
 * Should animals be in a zoo or should they be out in the wild?
 * Should students miss school to go hunting?
 * Should children your age have a bedtime?
 * Would you rather go to school for an extra hour every day or go to school during the summer?