Persuasive Writing, Speaking, & Activities

Web Page Prepared by Kathleen Prody and Jean O'Connor
Helena High School
Helena, MT
August, 2001

Rationale:  Montana Pilots the ACT Writing Assessment for Juniors

Persuasion and the Montana State Standards

Table of Contents

• Position Statement, Argumentative Proposition, or Thesis Statement
• Utilize the Three Argumentative Appeals,  Aristotle's methods of convincing
• Form or Organization
• Lessons and Links for Persuasive Writing and Speaking
• R.A.F.T.S.
• Prompts for sophomore English modeled after the features of the Montana ACT writing prompts
• Links for Persuasive Writing and Speaking
• Lessons and Links for Persuasive Activities
• Links to Handouts

What is Persuasion?  Presenting the "Argument"

• The goal of argument is to win acceptance of one's ideas.
• Modern argumentation theory has roots in Greek and Roman thinking.
• We judge evidence, investigate carefully, state ideas accurately, and listen critically.

All good Persuasion includes the following elements:

Position Statement, Argumentative Proposition, or Thesis Statement

• State your opinion clearly, in a sentence or two, within the first paragraph.
• Define the scope of your argument.  (The scope is the situation specific to your argument.)  Then make an assertion that's open to debate. Example:  The school lunch period should be lengthened to allow ample time for clubs to meet.
• The assertion includes an element of uncertainty, to be proven to the reader/listener.
• Examples of Right and Wrong propositions given at this site.

Utilize the Three Argumentative Appeals,  Aristotle's methods of convincing:  Reason (logos), Ethics (ethos) or Emotion (pathos)

• Reason (logos) - support your general claims with concrete, specific data.
• Reason which begins with specifics and moves toward a generalization is inductive.  Example:  Several clubs have reported difficulty completing their business during lunch period.  This proves that lunch periods should be longer.
• Reason which starts with a general observation and moves to specifics is deductive.  Example:  When people hurry, inefficiency and poor communication are the results.  Under current conditions clubs must hurry at lunch time meetings.  Therefore, lunch period should be lengthened to allow for better club meetings.
• Use two or three different strong reasons to support your argument.
• Support your reasons with evidence. ( Click here for a detailed explanation of types of evidence and pitfalls in logic, with complementary activities and links, especially helpful for High School)
• Facts - can be proven.
• Expert opinions or quotations
• Definitions - statement of meaning of word or phrase
• Statistics - offer scientific support
• Examples - powerful illustrations
• Anecdote - incident, often based on writer's personal experiences
• Emotional appeals - to provide support for reasons, carefully chosen loaded words, carrying positive or negative connotations, sway readers' emotions
• Present opposition - and give reasons and evidence to prove the opposition wrong
• Conclude with call to action - urge the reader to do something
• Ethics (ethos) - convince your readers that you are fair, honest, and well informed.  They will then trust your values and intentions.
• Avoid over-use of negatively charged loaded words.
• Emotion (pathos) - a carefully reasoned argument will be strengthened by an emotional appeal.
• Use description or narrate an example, often from your own experience.
• Your point of view is demonstrated in an emotional appeal, and is important to the reader.
• Careful word choice presents your position accurately.
• See Mark Antony's speech from Julius Caesar as an example of emotional appeal.

  Form or Organization  (for more information, at this link, find "Form:  Tradition and Innovation") - a basic structural pattern that can be altered as needed   (See "Argumentative/Persuasive Writing Strategies" for more explanation of organization.)

Introduction (Exordium) - establish your argument, and clarify the importance of the issue.

Statement of the Case (Narratio) - tell story behind the argument, offering background information

Proposition Statement (Propositio) - carefully state central proposition, as a thesis statement would be given

Refutation (Refutatio) - refute opposition arguments, exposing faulty reasoning

Confirmation (Confirmatio) - develop your case, using examples, facts, statistics (logos)

Digression (Digressio) - appealing anecdote or description, offering ethos or pathos

Conclusion (Peroration) - finish with strong conviction; review main points, or suggest call to action

The traditional order - introduction, statement of case, refutation, confirmation, conclusion, may be altered to suit your needs. (At this link, choose "Adapting the Argumentative Pattern", under "Form: Tradition and Innovation" for an explanation of alternative orders.)

Sources:

Lessons and Links for Persuasive Writing and Speaking

R.A.F.T.S.  

Briefly:

    R = Role:               What is my role as the writer?  Who am I
    A = Audience:        To whom am I writing?  Should I write formally? Informally?
    F = Format:            Which format should I use while writing?
    T = Topic:              What is the topic? Is it sufficiently focused?
    S = Strong Verb:    What am I trying to do in this piece of writing?

(Source:  Adler, Richard.  Writing Together.  Kendall-Hunt: Iowa, 1989.)

    RAFTS assignments lend themselves readily to persuasive writing or speaking.  Consider the following examples.

World History RAFTS Examples:
        1. You are the great African emperor, Mansa Musa, in the year 1324.  Convince a king from far away in Northern Africa of your wealth, preparing a written scroll.
        2. You are an advisor to Nicholas Romanov, the last of the Russian Czars.  In a speech, persuade Nicholas to change his methods of government so he will retain his power.
        3. You are a Mayan ruler.  Convince your descendants of your power by writing down details of your kingdom and accomplishments, to be carved on a stelae.

American History RAFTS Examples:
        1. You are a plantation owner in South Carolina in the 1600s.  Convince other landowners that free labor could be more successful than slave labor, writing a newspaper editorial.
        2. You are a colonist (a Tory) who believes in English rule and King George.  Present your argument to your fellow colonists, writing a poster to be placed in the town hall in Boston, 1774.

English RAFTS Examples:
        1. You are Antigone in Sophocles' play.  Convince King Creon of your innocence, writing a letter from your imprisonment in the rock cave to which he has condemned you.
        2. You are Kino in The Pearl.  Persuade the townspeople that you are being discriminated against because you own the fabulous pearl, in a speech.
        3. You are Equality 7-2521 in Anthem.  Argue to the Council of Scholars that they should accept the inventions and ways of the old days.

    As can be seen, the opportunities to utilize RAFTS as a vehicle for persuasive writing and speaking are limitless.  Older students can be taught to use the RAFTS format and devise their own RAFTS writings.
 

Prompts for sophomore English modeled after the features of the Montana ACT writing prompts

• Fools Crow
You are a member of a multicultural committee assigned to study and to make a recommendation on the return of a ten thousand acre range of sacred ground to the Native Americans. The committee's decision will be based on the history of land ownership and Native American relations, as well as immediate economic and social impacts. Write a letter to the head of the Bureau of Indian Affairs supporting the return of the land to the Native Americans or supporting continued ownership by the federal government.  Clearly support and explain the rationale for your decision.
• Lord of the Flies
Write a letter to William Golding agreeing or disagreeing with his contention that each person has an inherent flaw that if left unchecked by the laws and morality of society will evolve and eventually corrupt the individual.  Be specific in your references as you accept or refute Golding's contention.
• Fahrenheit 451
The city commission has refused to release funds earmarked for technology updates in the community  library until the library agrees to install Internet screening software on all internet computers.  The commissioners believe that the software is important to protect the youth of the community from negative sites and to discourage misuse of community resources by adults. Write a letter to the city commission supporting or disputing their mandate.  Explain how your choice will best serve the needs of the community.
• To Kill a Mockingbird
Your community is sponsoring a summer program for all area youth ages 4 to 12.  The program will provide athletic activities, field trips, arts and crafts, and summer fun every day from 8 a.m. to 5 p.m.  The cost of the program will be $100.00 dollars per week per child.  The Department of Parks and Recreation will offer scholarships  for minority families based on need. Write a letter to the editor supporting the scholarship program or arguing against the scholarship program.  Your arguments should reflect the fairness of the scholarship program to all participants.

Links for Persuasive Writing and Speaking

• Traci's List of Ten Persuasive Writing Prompts.  Written to help students prepare for Texas's standardized tests, these prompts are similar to Montana's ACT Writing Assessment Prompts.  Information is given to help you present the prompts to your students.  Posted on NCTE-Talk page. See also # 13 on Traci's List, Ten Audience Analysis Exercises, for activities to help define the audience. (High School level)
• Persuasive Prompts.  A selection of 53 super prompts from Mrs. Barnard, Eagle Creek Elementary, Arlington, WA.
• The Power of Persuasive Writing.  A 3 week Web Quest, posted on VolWeb, a K-12 educational community for the State of Tennessee.  The Quest culminates in Web advertisements.  Many links are given for lesson plans for all levels. (Middle School on up)
• Persuasive Writing.  Activities for High School students. From Hampshire Unit School, Hampshire, TN.
• Teaching Persuasive Essay Writing.  Creating the Rubric for persuasive writings explained.  Directs you to sites, and coaches to create a rubric. From Bellingham Schools, WA.
• Persuasive Writing Through Reviews. After exploring "up to date" movie, music, restaurant, video game, and automobile reviews, students identify elements of persuasive language as well as facts and opinions; finally they create a persuasive review and post it to the web. A Trackstar presentation.
• Power Point.  A super outline prepared for teaching Persuasive writing.
• Framework for a Letter to the Editor.  From St. Joseph's Nudgee College, Virginia, Australia.
• Persuasive Writing Activities.  (Grades 5 - 8)  A written piece plus suggestions for a logo or slogan.  From Dee Dee Larkey, Fort Wayne, IN.
• Speech:  Preparing Informative and Persuasive Speeches.  From Whitman College Speech and Debate.  Clear, useable information guides the student through writing a speech.
• Effective Speaking in a Debate.  Confront stage fright through activities.  From Patsy Kretsch, Weiser HS, Weiser, ID.
• Power Point, short, informative. An introduction to Persuasive Speaking. By Michael Brydges.
• Persuasive Writing Rubric.  Clearly detailed, useful handout to be used as a rubric.
• Persuasive Prompts.  A selection of Prompts for various content material, rated as to difficulty.
• Persuasive Writing.  Well organized module designed to give students opportunities to analyze persuasive writing and develop their own argument for a persuasive piece;  activities included.
• Write a Persuasive Letter, for Grade 5, linked to Recycle City, a website created by the US Environmental Protection Agency in San Francisco, and a simulation game called "Dumptown".

Lessons and Links for Persuasive Activities

Links for Persuasive Activities

• The Power of Persuasion.  In groups, students define persuasive writing and critical reading.  Internet use, exercises, and group discussion make this a powerful learning tool.  Lesson posted by Harris Middle School, Shelbyville, TN.
• Lesson Plans, Activities for instruction in Persuasive Argument (rhetoric) - logos, ethos, pathos. From the Department of Language & Literacy, Vancouver, B.C.
• Project-Based Learning with Multimedia.  Activities which guide students to analyze multimedia projects.  They critically assess purpose, audience impact, and images in media.  Adaptable to persuasive media images.

Links to Handouts

• Graphic Organizer for Persuasive Piece (all levels, especially middle school or elementary).  Handout ready to use.
• RAFTS.  Details of this writing tool explained.
• Graphic Organizer for Pitfalls to Logical Thinking.  Ready to use tool to analyze types of appeals.
• Graphic Organizer for Evidence.  Handout to identify types of evidence.