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Building educators' capacity to produce
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The Debatifier - Our thought-leading education blog Argument-Centered Education in Action Educator Testimonials

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Jeff Zwiers resources for Argument and Constructive Conversations

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Jeff Zwiers resources for Argument and Constructive Conversations

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All about Thinking Skills - summary, classroom resources, links, books and clips

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Developing Thinking, Reasoning and Problem Solving Skills

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For seven years, I was a writing teacher. Yes, I was certified to teach the full spectrum of English language arts-literature, grammar and usage, speech, drama, and so on-but my absolute favorite, the thing I loved doing the most, was teaching students how to write.

Most of the material on this site is directed at all teachers. I look for and put together resources that would appeal to any teacher who teaches any subject. That practice will continue for as long as I keep this up. But over the next year or so, I plan to also share more of what I know about teaching students to write. Although I know many of the people who visit here are not strictly English language arts teachers, my hope is that these posts will provide tons of value to those who are, and to those who teach all subjects, including writing.

So let's begin with argumentative writing, or persuasive writing, as many of us used to call it. This overview will be most helpful to those who are new to teaching writing, or teachers who have not gotten good results with the approach you have taken up to now. I don't claim to have the definitive answer on how to do this, but the method I share here worked pretty well for me, and it might do the same for you. If you are an experienced English language arts teacher, you probably already have a system for teaching this skill that you like. Then again, I'm always interested in how other people do the things I can already do; maybe you're curious like that, too.

Before I start, I should note that what I describe in this post is a fairly formulaic style of essay writing. It's not exactly the 5-paragraph essay, but it definitely builds on that model. I strongly believe students should be shown how to move past those kinds of structures into a style of writing that's more natural and fitting to the task and audience, but I also think they should start with something that's pretty clearly organized.

So here's how I teach argumentative essay writing.

Step 1: Watch How It's Done

One of the most effective ways to improve student writing is to show them mentor texts, examples of excellent writing within the genre students are about to attempt themselves. Ideally, this writing would come from real publications and not be fabricated by me in order to embody the form I'm looking for. Although most experts on writing instruction employ some kind of mentor text study, the person I learned it from best was Katie Wood Ray in her book Study Driven (links to the book: Bookshop.org | Amazon).

Since I want the writing to be high quality and the subject matter to be high interest, I might choose pieces like Jessica Lahey's Students Who Lose Recess Are the Ones Who Need it Most and David Bulley's School Suspensions Don't Work.

I would have students read these texts, compare them, and find places where the authors used evidence to back up their assertions. I would ask students which author they feel did the best job of influencing the reader, and what suggestions they would make to improve the writing. I would also ask them to notice things like stories, facts and statistics, and other things the authors use to develop their ideas. Later, as students work on their own pieces, I would likely return to these pieces to show students how to execute certain writing moves.

Step 2: Informal Argument, Freestyle

Although many students might need more practice in writing an effective argument, many of them are excellent at arguing in person. To help them make this connection, I would have them do some informal debate on easy, high-interest topics. An activity like This or That (one of the classroom icebreakers I talked about last year) would be perfect here: I read a statement like "Women have the same opportunities in life as men." 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. This ultimately looks a little bit like a debate, as students from either side tend to defend their position to those on the other side.

Every class of students I have ever had, from middle school to college, has loved loved LOVED this activity. It's so simple, it gets them out of their seats, and for a unit on argument, it's an easy way to get them thinking about how the art of argument is something they practice all the time.

Step 3: Informal Argument, Not so Freestyle

Once students have argued without the support of any kind of research or text, I would set up a second debate; this time with more structure and more time to research ahead of time. I would pose a different question, supply students with a few articles that would provide ammunition for either side, then give them time to read the articles and find the evidence they need.

Next, we'd have a Philosophical Chairs debate (learn about this in my discussion strategies post), which is very similar to "This or That," except students use textual evidence to back up their points, and there are a few more rules. Here they are still doing verbal argument, but the experience should make them more likely to appreciate the value of evidence when trying to persuade.

Before leaving this step, I would have 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. This lays the groundwork for what's to come.

Step 4: Introduction of the Performance Assessment

Next I would show students their major assignment, the performance assessment that they will work on for the next few weeks. What does this look like? It's generally a written prompt that describes the task, plus the rubric I will use to score their final product.

Anytime I give students a major writing assignment, I let them see these documents very early on. In my experience, I've found that students appreciate having a clear picture of what's expected of them when beginning a writing assignment. At this time, I also show them a model of a piece of writing that meets the requirements of the assignment. Unlike the mentor texts we read on day 1, this sample would be something teacher-created (or an excellent student model from a previous year) to fit the parameters of the assignment.

Step 5: Building the Base

Before letting students loose to start working on their essays, I make sure they have a solid plan for writing. I would devote at least one more class period to having students consider their topic for the essay, drafting a thesis statement, and planning the main points of their essay in a graphic organizer.

I would also begin writing my own essay on a different topic. This has been my number one strategy for teaching students how to become better writers. Using a document camera or overhead projector, I start from scratch, thinking out loud and scribbling down my thoughts as they come. When students see how messy the process can be, it becomes less intimidating for them. They begin to understand how to take the thoughts that are stirring around in your head and turn them into something that makes sense in writing.

For some students, this early stage might take a few more days, and that's fine: I would rather spend more time getting it right at the pre-writing stage than have a student go off willy-nilly, draft a full essay, then realize they need to start over. Meanwhile, students who have their plans in order will be allowed to move on to the next step.

Step 6: Writer's Workshop

The next seven to ten days would be spent in writer's workshop, where I would start class with a mini-lesson about a particular aspect of craft. I would show them 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. Once each mini-lesson was done, I would then give students the rest of the period to work independently on their writing. During this time, I would move around the room, helping students solve problems and offering feedback on whatever part of the piece they are working on. I would encourage students to share their work with peers and give feedback at all stages of the writing process.

If I wanted to make the unit even more student-centered, I would provide the mini-lessons in written or video format and let students work through them at their own pace, without me teaching them. (To learn more about this approach, read this post on self-paced learning).

As students begin to complete their essays, the mini-lessons would focus more on matters of style and usage. I almost never bother talking about spelling, punctuation, grammar, or usage until students have a draft that's pretty close to done. Only then do we start fixing the smaller mistakes.

Step 7: Final Assessment

Finally, the finished essays are handed in for a grade. At this point, I'm pretty familiar with each student's writing and have given them verbal (and sometimes written) feedback throughout the unit; that's why I make the writer's workshop phase last so long. I don't really want students handing in work until they are pretty sure they've met the requirements to the best of their ability. I also don't necessarily see "final copies" as final; if a student hands in an essay that's still really lacking in some key areas, I will arrange to have that student revise it and resubmit for a higher grade.

So that's it. If you haven't had a lot of success teaching students to write persuasively, and if the approach outlined here is different from what you've been doing, give it a try. And let's keep talking: Use the comments section below to share your techniques or ask questions about the most effective ways to teach argumentative writing.

Want this unit ready-made?

If you're a writing teacher in grades 7-12 and you'd like a classroom-ready unit like the one described above, including mini-lessons, sample essays, and a library of high-interest online articles to use for gathering evidence, take a look at my Argumentative Writing unit. Just click on the image below and you'll be taken to a page where you can read more and see a detailed preview of what's included.

Keep in touch.
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A Step-by-Step Plan for Teaching Argumentative Writing

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The art of persuasion is an essential life skill. It also happens to be part of the required curriculum for many, many teachers. In this post, I'll share my method for teaching argumentative writing.

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Science and Engineering PracticesEngaging in Argument from Evidence

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The NSTA Next Generation Science Standards Hub offers information, resources, news, professional learning opportunities, and expert advice in understanding and implementing the Next Generation Science Standards - NGSS

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Engaging in Argument from Evidence | Next Generation Science Standards

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Evaluate the evidence supporting claims that changes in environmental conditions may result in (1) increases in the number of individuals of some species, (2) the emergence of new species over time, and (3) the extinction of other species.

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Infusion web site for integrating thinking skills

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INFUSION. Integrating thinking skills instruction into the regular curriculum; infused programs are commonly contrasted to SEPARATE programs, which teach thinking skills as a curriculum in itself.

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Open source INTRODUCTION TO LOGIC course materials

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Oxford University Press USA publishes scholarly works in all academic disciplines, bibles, music, children's books, business books, dictionaries, reference books, journals, text books and more. Browse our more than 30,000 titles on www.oup.com/us.

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SuperKids has created as small collection of classic mind-challenging games that focus on spatial reasoning. They're fun, they're addictive, and best of all, they're free!

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Kids are open and willing to learn new fundamental skills as long as they are taught in a fun and entertaining manner. JumpStart's critical thinking activities are therefore a great way to engage students and encourage critical thinking and logical reasoning skills in them!

Importance of Critical Thinking Skills

Critical thinking enables kids to reason better. It helps them base conclusions on facts rather than emotions. From to activities that require analytical reasoning, there are a variety of ways to encourage kids to use and develop their problem-solving skills.

Our critical thinking exercises for kids are fun and stimulate thought. They can serve as a valuable resource for homeschooling parents as well as teachers who are looking to engage the little ones with productive activities. You can also come up with simple activities of your own that can be used in class or even at home. Provoking kids to think out of the box and come up with solutions to challenging activities will always have long-term benefits.

Free Critical Thinking Activities

It is easy to find a variety of free critical thinking worksheets and activities online. Activities like these are sure to excite the little ones and teach them important reasoning and thinking skills at the same time!

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critical thinking activities for students

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Kids are open and willing to learn new fundamental skills as long as they are taught in a fun and entertaining manner. JumpStart's critical thinking activities are therefore a great way to engage students and encourage critical thinking and logical reasoning skills in them! Critical thinking enables kids to reason better.

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Problem Solving for building logic skills

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Take a guided, problem-solving based approach to learning Logic. These compilations provide unique perspectives and applications you won't find anywhere else.

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Mathematical reasoning: activities for developing thinking skills | STEM

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Please be aware that resources have been published on the website in the form that they were originally supplied. This means that procedures reflect general practice and standards applicable at the time resources were produced and cannot be assumed to be acceptable today.

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Mathematical Practice - Measurement and Data