Get Middle Schoolers on Board with Argumentation

Angela B. Peery, Ed. D.Educational Consultantangela.peery@hmhco.comdrangelapeery@gmail.com

Teaching the skills of argumentation...

It’s not a fad.

It’s been a good idea for a long, long time.

But many of us are now focused on argumentation like never before…

In this session…

• Use crime scene scenarios to introduce argument writing

• Distinguish claims from non-claims

• Understand the roles of logos, ethos, pathos in an argument

• Connect reasons and evidence

• Examine model arguments

• Plan for teaching argument

Using Crime Scene Scenarios

Teaching Argument Writing,

Grades 6-12 by George Hillocks,

2011

Let’s analyze a crime scene together…

The Case of Lady Frankenport’s Emerald

As detectives, you are assigned to a case involving the Glitzy Jewelry Store heist. You arrive to hear the store owner tell her story:

“I honestly don’t have much to tell you,” Mazie Morris, the jewelry store owner, moans. Obviously distraught, she continues: “I arrived this morning, and I admit I was a little late, but I opened up the store as I usually do. When I got here, I noticed the broken window and then I rushed to the case in which the fabulous Lady Frankenportemerald was housed. Missing! Gone!” Dissolving in tears, Mazie sobs, “Just yesterday all the newspapers carried the story of the emerald’s arrival here in New York and how fortunate we were, as a small family-owned jewelry store, to acquire it. I called the police as soon as I saw the empty case.”

As Mrs. Morris continues to talk to the officers, you investigate the scene. The jewelry store is located facing a quiet street, attached to a small but pricy boutique, with a maroon canopy stretching across the building that fits with the neighborhood’s elegance and class. As you investigate, you are careful to watch your step. Broken glass litters the street from the jewelry store window you assume the thief had entered. A long alleyway stretches along the left side of the building, which has no windows, although a few small air vents are visible. A locked, reinforced steel door is on the back side of the building. Drawing a rough sketch, you rejoin the officers in time to hear the rest of the story.

“This theft is so ironic,” the owner continues, “since just last week I contacted a company to have an alarm installed yesterday because of the arrival of Lady Frankenport’s emerald. Our last system was hopelessly outdated and was dismantled in preparation for the new system. Oh dear, what a loss!”

http://www.cyberbee.com/whodunnit/

crimescene.html

Shortcut: http://tinyurl.com/m2pmmaf

Here’s an easy one to use with students…

Another good one for students…

• Who Killed the Red Baron?

• http://tinyurl.com/mvufbfq

More Advanced Options (in the uploaded handout)

• Slip or Trip?

• The Murder of Jack Sweeney

The Body

Claims and Non-ClaimsThink of the claim in an argument as the most general statement in the argument. It may not be a particularly general statement all by itself, and some claims for arguments are very narrow indeed. But the claim in an argument is like the umbrella statement that all other parts of an argument have to fall under.

Writing@CSU — home of Colorado State University's open-access learning environmentSee writing.colostate.edu

Is it a claim, an opinion, a logical fallacy, or something else?

Types of Claims

• Fact or definition

• Value, judgment, or worth

• Cause and effect

• Policy or solution

1. Driving hybrid cars is an effective way to reduce pollution.2. If the government were to ban gas-guzzling cars, they would

eventually ban air travel as well.3. The show “Whale Wars” is my favorite reality show.4. The show “Whale Wars” should not be on TV because the crew on

the show is a bunch of unlawful hippies.5. Watching reality shows is a waste of an intelligent person’s time

and energy.6. Raising the federal minimum wage would be beneficial for both

workers and business owners.7. People who don’t support the increase in the federal minimum

wage have contempt for the poor.8. If I had to work three minimum wage jobs to support my family, I

would.9. The use of plastic grocery bags should be minimized in order to

better protect our planet.

Logos, Ethos, and Pathos

• The three artistic proofs

• Elements of effective argumentation

The Importance of Evidence

“We would all probably like to believe that the people we argue with will accept our claims and reasons as perfect and complete by themselves, but most readers are unlikely to do that. They want evidence of some sort--facts, examples, statistics, expert testimony, among others – to back up our reasons… To be believable and convincing, evidence should satisfy three conditions. It should be sufficient, credible , and accurate.”

Writing@CSU — home of Colorado State University's open-access learning environmentSee writing.colostate.edu

Connecting Reasons and Evidence

• What constitutes evidence?• Can evidence convince you to change your

mind?• You must be able to explain how evidence you

cite supports the reasons that you provide

Let’s play the evidence game…

Potbellied pigs make good family pets.

Evidence• They bond easily with humans.

• They are generally hypoallergenic.

• They are highly trainable and learn at a faster rate than dogs.

• The pig’s brain is only slightly less developed than a dolphin’s.

• They can live to be 20 years old.

• They are very susceptible to heat and stress.

• They are physically incapable of sweating.

• You can train a pig to walk on a leash.

Model Essays

Color-coded essay available as a Word document at

drangelapeery.com

Plan for Effective Teaching of Argument

• Crime scene scenarios

• Claims vs. non-claims

• Logos, ethos, pathos

• Reasons and evidence (and the evidence game)

• Model arguments

What are your next steps?