IMPLEMENTING COMMON CORE
STANDARDS
USING
COMMON SENSE ARGUMENTATIVE
WRITING
Lorraine Hirakawa, NBCT
Puget Sound Writing Project
Exploring the Common Core
• 4 corner strategy
• Argument is the same as persuasion
• Young students cannot formulate an argument
• Argument requires research
• Argument requires logic
• Debrief
• Read the material from Appendix A/C
• Conclusions? What do we need to do?
Small Group Discussion
• Has anyone in your group used mysteries in the
curriculum before? If so, with what goals?
• What were are your strengths and weaknesses in
teaching argument?
• What are your concerns about engaging students in
argumentation?
Slip or Trip
Next Day – Slip or Trip
• Writing the report
• Who would we be writing to?
• What would we need to explain?
Claim, Warrant, Evidence
• Claim - states your position on the issue
• What is your position on Queenie’s guilt or innocence?
• Data - the evidence which you cite to support your claim
• What evidence did you points to Queenie’s guilt or evidence?
• Warrant - the warrant interprets the data and shows how it
supports your claim
The Lunchroom Murder
Argument of Judgment
• Goal
• Develop a model for informal reasoning
• Use a model for informal reasoning to analyze data and draw
logical conclusions
• Apply a model for informal reasoning in writing an analysis of a
problem that requires the application of criteria
MASCOT ASSIGNMENT
See page 8 of your packet
School Mascots
• Arkansas State
University
• Runnin’ Joe
• ASU Indians
• ASU Red Wolves
Think about YOUR mascot
• How do you feel about it?
• Do you like it?
• Why or why not?
• What comes to mind when you think of it?
• How was your mascot selected?
• If you were to select a different mascot, what would it be?
• Why would you select it?
What about these?
Evaluate
• Do you think the mascot is a good one?
• If you like it, what makes a good mascot?
• If you don’t like it, what makes it a bad mascot?
• Write comments on your sticky notes and go put them on the
appropriate mascot chart.
Criteria for a good mascot
• Based on your comments, let’s make some criteria
• In your group, use your butcher paper to
• Come up with four or five rules (warrants) that a school should use to
select a mascot
SHARE TIME
THE VOLUPTUARY
Page 10
What makes a good king?
• In your group, make a list of qualities that makes a good
king.
• Justify your answers
• Is the prince in the picture a good king? (use page 10 of
packet)
Academic Controversy
• Learn to argue both sides of an issue
• Draw from both to create meaning
• Students need to be assigned partners
• Elbow partner
• Face partner
• Fold your paper vertically
• Label the left hand column Reasons, the right hand
Examples
EXAMPLE of two columns
Reasons for banning
• Cheating
Examples
• Students could text
answers to their friends
• They could copy down
test questions.
• They could photograph
test pages.
• They could put
notes/answers on their
phones
PASS OUT ARTICLE
Pg. 11 of your packet “Florida Allows Cell Phones in
Class”
Why Cell Phones SHOULD be used in
School
• Turn papers over
• Again label the left hand column Reasons and the right
hand column Examples
• Work with your partner to choose four good reasons along
with examples for using cell phones in school, think about
the article you read
Example of two columns
Reasons
• Quick research
Examples
• Teacher can pose a
question and students can
look it up and share
information.
• Visual information – if
students are reading about a
setting or time period they
are unfamiliar with
• Students get more practice
at best ways to research a
topic and they can easily
share tips/strategies
Choose a new partner
• Partner 1 – you are going to argue in favor of banning cell
phones
• Partner 2 – you are going to argue in favor of using cell
phones
• Ones – you have one minute to argue; Twos don’t
interrupt, only listen
• Switch
Final
• Now, draft a solution that considers all sides of the
argument.
• This can be a quick write or a more formal essay.
Nancy Steineke’s book Assessment Live addresses this strategy more elaborately.
Four Corners Variation
• When artificial meat becomes available, would you eat it?
• Choose your corner
• Bring a writing surface and a pen so you can compare
notes with the people you meet.
• When you arrive, your job is to talk to some other people
who are standing there and take turns explaining your
reason.
• What could change your mind?
Four Corners Variation
• Today we are going to read a short article about artificial
meat, also know as vitro meat.
• Anyone heard of vitro meat?
• Anyone heard of PETA?
• Read and annotate the article
Chicken in a Petri Dish
Culminating Assignment
• Sample Junior AP English prompt
• Pg. 13 of Packet
• Pros
-Schools need money
Cons
-Youth and advertisers’
influence
SMARTER Balance
Parts of Performance Task
• Part 1: Student reads research sources
and responds to prompts (Claim 1 or 4)
• Part 2: Student plans, writes, and revises
his or her full essay (Claim 2) or plans and delivers a
speech (Claim 3)
Sample Performance Task
Directions
Part 1
Part 2
Scoring Information
• How your essay will be scored:
The people scoring your essay will be assigning scores for:
• Statement of purpose/focus—how well you clearly state your claim on the
topic, maintain your focus, and address the alternate and opposing claims
• Organization—how well your ideas logically flow from the introduction to
conclusion using effective transitions, and how well you stay on topic
throughout the essay
• Elaboration of evidence—how well you provide evidence from sources about
your opinions and elaborate with specific information
• Language and Vocabulary—how well you effectively express ideas using
precise language that is appropriate for your audience and purpose
• Conventions—how well you follow the rules of usage, punctuation,
capitalization, and spelling
Guidelines for Writing Performance Tasks
• Align parts of the task
• Parts build to “full write” or speech
• Develop rubric for each assessment target
• Develop exemplars for each rubric
• Allow multiple approaches
Sources
• Daniels, Harvey and Nancy Steineke. Texts and Lessons
for Content Area Reading. Portsmouth: Heineman, 2011.
• Hillocks, Jr. Teaching Argument Writing. Portsmouth:
Heineman, 2011.