How to Tackle an Argument Prompt for the AP Exam and SAT Test:

1. Identify the premise of the prompt and restate it in your own words.

2. Decide whether you will defend, challenge, or qualify the premise.

3. Write down three examples to support your position. Look for

A. Me: a personal anecdote

B. The World: a political example

C. History: a historical example

D. Literature: a literary example or one that comes from a classy movie.

Note: You may have more than one example from each category. You do not need to have one example from each category, but you should always go with the strongest, most relevant examples you have!

4. Consider your premise and conclusion. In your intro you will enter the conversation. Acknowledge that this is a historical and on-going debate. Pick a side and start your thesis statement with the word “Although”. *See formula slide later on*

5. Always make a concession. This means you need to acknowledge and anticipate the counterargument. Consider using an example that seems to suggest the counterargument is true and then dispel or discount the example. Consider using the phrase, “Reasonable people counter this claim by asserting_, but what they fail to recognize is ___.” Try to assert this concession at the top of the 2nd body paragraph.

Example Argument Prompt (Ms. Sample made this one up!)

G.K. Chesterton once claimed, “I owe my success to having listened respectfully to the very best advice, and then going away and doing the exact opposite.” Think about the way some people are held back by their adherence to the beliefs of the majority while others reject the conventional way of doing things. Then write an essay in which you explain your position on the importance between conforming to traditions and being true to your sense of self. Use appropriate evidence from your reading, experience, or observations to support your argument.

If this were the question you faced on the timed writing how would you plan and write a response in which you develop your point of view on this issue? How would you support your position with reasoning and examples taken from your reading, studies, personal experiences, or observations? With your elbow partner try to determine if you

1.can rephrase the prompt on your own.

2.Would you challenge, defend, or qualify this assertion? Notice that this prompt requires that you cover both sides of this issue to some extent.

3.What evidence might you use to challenge and defend this assertion?

Formula for an intro paragraph of an AP Lang Argument Prompt

*Note, this is just a handy formula to help you remember the essential information the one should put in an intro paragraph for the argument essay; you may adjust, customize, or ignore this form.*

•Observation Sentence 1: An appropriate joke, pun, or observation that introduces the one word topic of the prompt; this step is optional, but anything you can do to wake the graders up is good if it is carefully selected. Alternately, you can discuss the history of this subject and join the debate. Why does this issue come up so often and how will it continue to be important to society?•They Say Sentence 2: Restate the prompt including the specific quote to which you are responding. •I Say Sentence 3: Restate the prompt in your own words defining the undefined terms contained in the prompt. •Pick a Side Sentence 4: Write a multi-clausal thesis statement starting with the word “Although” that takes a clear side on the subject.

Go back to the Chesterton Prompt: How would you apply the formula?

1.) In Shakespeare’s famous play Hamlet, a babbling father once advised, “This above all—to thine own self be true!” 2.) For centuries, as children set forth from their parent’s home to make their fortunes in society they must consider what G.K. Chesteron claimed when he stated, “I owe my success to having listened respectfully to the very best advice, and then going away and doing the exact opposite.” 3.) It is my belief that while it may seem that fabulously successful inventors, artists, and iconoclasts seem to be flouting conventional advice, they are often simply doing a better job of managing their societies’ expectations of them while listening to their own inner voice. 4.) Although some people can be successful doing exactly what their parents, teachers, and religious leaders advise them to do, it is ultimately better to march to the beat of one’s own drum.

*Please note, there is no wrong answer to this prompt. Consider this the pro-individual response. How would you write an intro that claims the opposite—that tradition and social norms must be considered first? With your elbow partner, try this now!