Overview
Clear, thoughtful persuasive discussion is used daily in many different occupations and conversations. This one- to five-day lesson will give students an opportunity for teacher-guided practice and discussion of the persuasive essay. It is based on the management of the white-tailed deer in Cuyahoga Valley National Park.

Standards Addressed
Grade 6, Language Arts — Writing

05-07 Benchmark
E. Use persuasive strategies, including establishing a clear position in support of a proposition or a proposal with organized and relevant evidence.

Y2003.CEW.S02.G05-07.BE.L06.I05

05. Write persuasive essays that establish a clear position and include organized and relevant information to support ideas.

Grade 7, Language Arts — Writing

05-07 Benchmark
E. Use persuasive strategies, including establishing a clear position in support of a proposition or a proposal with organized and relevant evidence.

Y2003.CEW.S02.G05-07.BE.L07.I05

05. Write persuasive essays that establish a clear position and include relevant information to support ideas.

Grade 8, Language Arts — Writing

08-10 Benchmark
E. Write a persuasive piece that states a clear position, includes relevant information and offers compelling evidence in the form of facts and details.

Y2003.CEW.S02.G08-10.BE.L08.I05

05. Write persuasive compositions that establish and develop a controlling idea, support arguments with detailed evidence, exclude irrelevant information and cite sources of information.

Materials
Word processors

Overhead transparencies for plain-paper copiers

Procedure
Pictures of deer are available at www.generationscvnp.org/photos.aspx

1. Discuss the meaning of the word “argument,” dismissing its negative connotation and establishing it as a word that describes a series of reasons developing to a conclusion.
2. Discuss the many places, occupations and times the ability to make a clear argument may arise in daily life. List examples as a class or in groups that eventually share with the class. The idea is to have students value the art of persuasion and argument rather than see it as an essay they will never write.
3. List as a class or in groups the reasons why arguments or persuasions fail to convince. Make sure students consider faulty facts, overlooked facts, poor presentation and/or poor organization of points, faulty conclusions, lack of factual support and inclusion of unnecessary details. They might also list attributes of the audience such as individual prejudices.
4. In groups, pairs or as a class, read and discuss the Deer in Cuyahoga Valley National Park handout. This fact sheet and writing assignment is set up similar to the Ohio Achievement Test for seventh grade.
5. If you would like, allow time for further research on the topic and have students present what they found.
6. Ask each student to come to a personal conclusion about the management of deer in Cuyahoga Valley National Park. Ask them to put their idea into eight clear words. The number is arbitrary. Often a word limit such as this is helpful because it forces the students to clarify and solidify their thinking. This eight-word phrase should be worked into a thesis statement for the essay.
7. Ask students to identify and write out three supporting reasons that they will be able to discuss in their essays.
8. Survey the class, asking for volunteers to read their belief statement and supporting points. Discuss the appropriateness of the samples as a class.
9. Point out that many students in their age level use hypothetical questions as proof. Use “How would we like it if suddenly the deer bought guns and started shooting us?” as an example. Discuss how questions shift the burden of thought and proof onto the reader, and that they should not be used. Write several examples on the board and practice rewording them as statements. For example, “Would it be kinder to allow the deer to starve slowly?” should be rewritten as “It would certainly not be kinder to allow the deer to starve slowly.”
10. Have students write their essays either in class or at home.
11. Encourage peer editing and self-editing as your class has been trained. Hand out copies of the grading rubric so students may evaluate their work.
12. Collect and grade essays. Make overhead transparencies of both good examples and consistent problems for classroom instruction when papers are returned.

Evaluation
This rubric should be made available to the class members so they can evaluate themselves as they write. If you would like, it can also be used for the final evaluation of the paper if you choose.

Writing Applications

Writing Conventions