Teaching the Argumentative Essay Writing process as a middle school ELA teacher is something we all know is part of the job… and what a job it is! After tweaking this for years, I’ve finally found what works and what doesn’t. The bottom line- the writing process has to be broken down into steps. Sometimes it even needs to be baby steps.
1. Students have to understand the difference between a statement vs a claim. The claim is the main argument in an essay. If this isn’t clear, then the argumentative writing process can’t move forward. I begin this unit with a statement vs. claim drag-and-drop activity.
2. Next, I show a sample argumentative essay that includes all of the necessary elements. Together, we color code the elements, identifying all the parts that should be included in the essay. I always point out that the majority of the body paragraphs are green because they need a lot of evidence to support their reasons.
3. After students have a better idea of what each paragraph should include, we focus in on the specific elements of the paragraph- specifically the types of hooks. This interactive, drag-&-drop activity is a quick way to review or even introduce the types of hooks. Enjoy this for FREE!
4. I then break down the essay into a paragraph at a time using this essay graphic organizer (also yours for FREE). This helps to not overwhelm students. Instead of looking at the assignment as a time consuming essay, just doing a paragraph at a time causes less anxiety.
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I would love to hear how you teach argumentative writing. Let me hear about what works for you in the comments.