Making an Argument

Argument Writing

The test on this information will be Thursday, December 17th.

Multiple Select

Which of these are most important to you?

• Convincing your parents that you deserve more freedom

• Convincing your teachers to give you good grades

• Convincing your friends to do what you want to do when you're hanging out

• Convincing others to agree with you

Using an argument, you can persuade all of those people that you are right!

An argument is made up of both Facts and Opinions.

Facts can be proven to be true, and opinions cannot.

Multiple Choice

A fact is something that can be proven. Which of the following is a fact?

• Winter is my favorite season.

• There is always snow in the winter.

• Snow is made up of frozen water.

• A hat is the best way to keep your head warm.

Multiple Choice

An opinion is something that cannot be proven. Which of the following is an opinion?

• Mr. Melvin is 35 years old.

• Mr. Melvin is the best teacher at Stout Middle School.

• Mr. Melvin has a beard.

• Stout Middle school opened 1961.

In argumentative writing, the job of the author is to...

convince the reader to agree with his/her claim, using facts (evidence) as support.

A basic argument has three parts

• Claim

• Evidence

• Reasoning

The Claim

The claim is your position on the topic. Are you for it or against it? Is it a good idea or a bad idea?

When you are given a writing prompt, it's like your answer to the prompt.

Ex: Students should not have virtual learning days in place of snow days.

The Evidence

The evidence is facts which you've found to support your opinion. Evidence doesn't come from your own head, but from a text, written by a credible author.

Don't forget to give credit to the author! They probably get paid to study this topic, and for you to use their ideas as your own is like stealing. We call it plagiarism when you don't cite the author and source of your evidence, and it is a very big deal.

Ex: According to Edutopia, "having students do work at home eases the probelms that administrators face, but not the parents' need to sort out child care or take a day off themselves" (2).

The Reasoning

The reasoning is when readers get to hear your voice come through. Your job as the author is to connect the evidence back to the claim.

How does the evidence prove that your claim is correct?

Ex. If parents have to stay home to help students with school work, they may have to miss out on making money to pay for rent and food. Clearly, this is damaging to the child overall, since children need food and shelter to be successful academically. And students trying to do work by themselves, may practice incorrectly, learning bad habits.

Let's look at an example:

Dogs are a better choice for a pet than cats. This is true because, according to Canine Monthly magazine, "dogs have more energy than cats do" (Ruffington 39). Dogs are usually very excited to see their owners when they arrive home, and show their love with tail wags and licks. On the other hand, cats do not outwardly show their affection, and may be on the other side of the house sleeping when the owner arrives home. Because they are high-energy and affectionate, the best choice for a pet is a dog.

The next question will ask about which is in red: the claim, evidence, or reasoning.

Dogs are a better choice for a pet than cats. This is true because, according to Canine Monthly magazine, "dogs have more energy than cats do" (Ruffington 39). Dogs are usually very excited to see their owners when they arrive home, and show their love with tail wags and licks. On the other hand, cats do not outwardly show their affection, and may be on the other side of the house sleeping when the owner arrives home. Because they are high-energy and affectionate, the best choice for a pet is a dog.

Fill in the Blank

Which part of the argument is written in red? The claim, evidence, or reasoning?

The claim is in red, because it states the author's opinion on the topic.

Dogs are a better choice for a pet than cats. This is true because, according to Canine Monthly magazine, "dogs have more energy than cats do" (Ruffington 39). Dogs are usually very excited to see their owners when they arrive home, and show their love with tail wags and licks. On the other hand, cats do not outwardly show their affection, and may be on the other side of the house sleeping when the owner arrives home. Because they are high-energy and affectionate, the best choice for a pet is a dog.

The next question will ask about which is in green: the claim, evidence, or reasoning.

Dogs are a better choice for a pet than cats. This is true because, according to Canine Monthly magazine, "dogs have more energy than cats do" (Ruffington 39). Dogs are usually very excited to see their owners when they arrive home, and show their love with tail wags and licks. On the other hand, cats do not outwardly show their affection, and may be on the other side of the house sleeping when the owner arrives home. Because they are high-energy and affectionate, the best choice for a pet is a dog.

Fill in the Blank

Which part of the argument is written in green?

Claim, evidence, or reasoning?

The evidence is in green, because it supports the claim with facts, from a credible source.

Dogs are a better choice for a pet than cats. This is true because, according to Canine Monthly magazine, "dogs have more energy than cats do" (Ruffington 39). Dogs are usually very excited to see their owners when they arrive home, and show their love with tail wags and licks. On the other hand, cats do not outwardly show their affection, and may be on the other side of the house sleeping when the owner arrives home. Because they are high-energy and affectionate, the best choice for a pet is a dog.

The next question will ask about which is in blue: the claim, evidence, or reasoning.

Dogs are a better choice for a pet than cats. This is true because, according to Canine Monthly magazine, "dogs have more energy than cats do" (Ruffington 39). Dogs are usually very excited to see their owners when they arrive home, and show their love with tail wags and licks. On the other hand, cats do not outwardly show their affection, and may be on the other side of the house sleeping when the owner arrives home. Because they are high-energy and affectionate, the best choice for a pet is a dog.

Fill in the Blank

Which part of the argument is written in blue?

Claim, evidence, or reasoning?

The reasoning is in blue, because it explains the connection between the evidence and claim in my own words.

Dogs are a better choice for a pet than cats. This is true because, according to Canine Monthly magazine, "dogs have more energy than cats do" (Ruffington 39). Dogs are usually very excited to see their owners when they arrive home, and show their love with tail wags and licks. On the other hand, cats do not outwardly show their affection, and may be on the other side of the house sleeping when the owner arrives home. Because they are high-energy and affectionate, the best choice for a pet is a dog.

The reasoning is in blue, because it explains the connection between the evidence and claim in my own words.

Dogs are a better choice for a pet than cats. This is true because, according to Canine Monthly magazine, "dogs have more energy than cats do" (Ruffington 39). Dogs are usually very excited to see their owners when they arrive home, and show their love with tail wags and licks. On the other hand, cats do not outwardly show their affection, and may be on the other side of the house sleeping when the owner arrives home. Because they are high-energy and affectionate, the best choice for a pet is a dog.

What is the story behind this picture?

How do you know? Prove your story with evidence from the picture.

Here's another example:

It is clear that the girl in "The Shiner" was sent to the principal's office, because she was in a fight, which she won. Viewers can see that the girl has a black eye and a smile on her face. The principal and woman in the office are both looking out at the girl, and neither is smiling. Because of the black eye, one can infer that the girl fought another student, and got hit, causing her eye to swell up. In addition, the smile on her face shows that she probably won the fight. Usually the loser of a fight would feel upset or sad, not be smiling. Therefore, it is clear that the girl in "The Shiner" was sent to the principal's office as the result of winning a fight with another student, which is against school rules.

Poll

How do you feel about his information?

• Help! I'm very confused.

• This is VERY different from what I learned in elementary school, but I think I can figure it out.

• This is similar to what I learned in elementary school, but with different terms.

• I think I already understand it pretty well!

For more information, check out this video!

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EL_RpKGia1U

or practice IXL 5th Grade T.3

https://www.ixl.com/ela/grade-5/choose-reasons-to-support-an-opinion