PERSUASIVE WRITING
Elaboration Techniques:
House That Jack Built
Concession/Rebuttal
HOUSE THAT JACK
BUILT
(CAUSAL CHAIN)
CAUSAL CHAIN
This elaboration strategy is referred to both as
“House that Jack Built” AND a “Causal Chain”.
Whichever term you use, they both mean the same
thing: a connected series of cause and effect
events.



Event “A” leads to Event “B”, which then leads to Event “C”
Think of it like building a snowball or watching a set of
dominoes fall
Causal Chains may be just a sentence or two long (a “Little
Jack”) or may last throughout a paragraph
Copyright © 2007 Washington Office of Superintendent of Public Instruction. All rights reserved. Modified 10/08.
WHY DO WE CALL IT
“HOUSE THAT JACK BUILT”?
This is the house that Jack built.
This is the malt
That lay in the house that Jack built.
This is the rat
That ate the malt
That lay in the house that Jack built.
This is the cat
That killed the rat
That ate the malt
That lay in the house that Jack built…
Where do you see the chain of events in this
section of the children’s rhyme?
ANOTHER EXAMPLE…
If you give a mouse a cookie,
When you give him the milk,
When he’s finished, he’ll ask
for a napkin.
He’s going to ask for a
glass of milk.
He’ll probably ask you for
a straw.
Do you remember what
comes next?
Copyright © 2007 Washington Office of Superintendent of Public Instruction. All rights reserved.
WHAT MIGHT IT LOOK LIKE?
If you make students sit in
assigned seats at lunch they
will have to yell to talk with
their friends sitting across
the room, and the noise will
just get louder.
Sometimes I stay up too late
chatting on my computer, so
it’s hard to get up the next
morning. Since I’m tired, I hit
the snooze button too many
times, and I miss my bus.
When school doesn’t get out
until 4 o’clock, sports
practices have to be held
later, which means kids get
home awfully late to start
their homework.
These are “Little
Jacks”. See how a
chain of events is
created in just a
sentence or two?
CAUSAL CHAIN IDENTIFICATION:
CAN YOU FIND EXAMPLES?
If the teachers of “X School” do not allow the students to
turn in their homework late then the students will learn to
finish their work on time, correct? This may be, but the
Sink or Swim philosophy often leaves many students
failing…If a student does not see themselves as being able
to finish the assignment on time, they may simply decide to
not do the work. This would not only cause the student’s
grades to fall, but also his or her teacher would likely spend
unnecessary time trying to persuade the student to do work
that the child has simply chosen not to do. More than one
student would have this problem, though! Many students
would also fall into this downward spiral of not doing their
homework. This would result in many declining grades all
across the school. In turn, this would result in the decline
of the school’s reputation. Is that something we want to
see happen?
Copyright © 2007 Washington Office of Superintendent of Public Instruction. All rights reserved. Modified 10/08.
CAUSAL CHAIN IDENTIFICATION:
LET’S TRY IT AGAIN
For me school starts at 7:30, which means I need to
leave my house at 7:00 or 7:05. But for other students
who ride the bus they must be ready far earlier than
that. I see people half asleep standing outside waiting
for that big yellow bus to take them to a long, tiring
day at school. I think if school started later it would
put many people at ease. Even if you get that extra
half an hour of sleep, it can do wonders. You won’t be
tired for that first period test, you won’t have to take
that nap second period and miss your history notes,
and you won’t miss breakfast and have to spend class
time counting down the minutes to lunch. Many
things would be so much better if school started later.
Copyright © 2007 Washington Office of Superintendent of Public Instruction. All rights reserved
HOUSE THAT JACK BUILT:
GREAT TRANSITIONS
Here are some great transitions that you could use to help write effective
causal chains. Choose two or three that you can use well, and practice
using them in your own writing!
 After
 Earlier
 Consequently
 Finally
 Since, because
 During
 Before
 Every time
 Meanwhile, while
 Soon
 At that time
 Simultaneously
 Preceding
 As a result
 Although
 This will lead to
Copyright © 2007 Washington Office of Superintendent of Public Instruction. All rights reserved. Modified 10/08.
CAUSAL CHAIN
INDIVIDUAL IDENTIFICATION PRACTICE
 Take
out Letter to Principal Scaddilybob once
again.
 Use a new colored highlighter pen to mark any
examples of a Causal Chain found in the
letter.
 Also, circle any of those great transition words
that we just discussed
 Compare what you highlighted with a person
sitting near you.
 Are there any other places in the paper where
you could effectively add other examples of a
House that Jack Built?
LET’S TRY IT TOGETHER!
Topic: the NMS cafeteria should offer more choices for lunch.
Students get tired of
eating the same meals
for lunch over and over
again
(Hmmm. What
would be the result of
no food?)
Don’t forget to use your
good transition words!
Some days the choices
just aren’t appetizing
and students simply
opt to go without food.
(What might the end
result be, due to the
idea you put in the
last box?)
TRY IT WITH A PARTNER!
Topic: Students should not have access to media in the home until
all homework is done each night.
If students keep the T.V.
and computer turned off
until their homework is
done, they will be less
distracted.
(What would happen?
How would no
distractions be positive?)
( so…what would
be the outcome/
effect of this?)
YOUR TURN!
WRITE YOUR OWN “HOUSE THAT JACK BUILT”!
Go back to the paper that you wrote about
winning the trip to the Great Wolf Lodge.
Re-read the paper and find a place where
you might be able to add a short causal
chain (“Little Jack”?) to the paper
Think carefully about the domino effect that
you will add. What will be the end result
you want to describe?
Write!
Share your changes with a partner. Discuss
how you just strengthened your argument.
CONCESSION/
REBUTTAL
WHAT IS THIS?
“Concession and Rebuttal” sounds pretty fancy, but
it refers to two things:

To concede in an argument means to acknowledge
another person’s thoughts about something.
I understand that you feel students should…

A rebuttal is a counterargument or a reply that you
have for that person’s beliefs.
However, I believe that if you just trust kids more
you would realize that…
TELL ME MORE



A Concession is when you consider the opposing
viewpoint, “conceding” something important
A reader of your essay is more likely to listen to
your ideas if you show you can see his/her point
of view before you counter that argument with
your own.
The Rebuttal is when your own argument proves
the ideas of the reader to be false, or shows that
your argument is stronger than theirs.
Copyright © 2007 Washington Office of Superintendent of Public Instruction. All rights reserved. Modified 10/08.
WHAT MIGHT IT LOOK LIKE?
Some people say that we shouldn’t
have assigned seats because
Americans deserve their freedoms,
including where they sit. But I
disagree. Children should have
freedoms, but sometimes the
freedoms go a little overboard.
You may think stress does
not have anything to do with
lunch time, but it does – big
time. It is where the cliques
are made, gangs are joined,
and fights are not a rarity, but
a common occurrence.
I get that you are tired of the noise
and rowdy behavior, but I strongly
believe there are better alternatives
than a seating chart at lunch. Students
aren’t going to just behave because you
move them around.
Copyright © 2007 Washington Office of Superintendent of Public Instruction. All rights
reserved. Modified 11/08.
CONCESSION/REBUTTAL
TRANSITIONAL PHRASES
Here are some great transitions that you might use to help
write effective Concession/Rebuttal arguments. Note that
these transitions come in a series and should be used
throughout the few sentences you write to build your full
concession/rebuttal argument.
It is true that… however … therefore
Certainly… but … in short…
Admittedly … on the other hand … so …
Of course … nevertheless … as a result …
Obviously … on the contrary … finally …
Sure … however … in addition
CONCESSION/REBUTTAL IDENTIFICATION:
CAN YOU FIND THE EXAMPLES?
Where are those great transitions?
It is true that students should not have headphones
on when their teachers are giving a lesson. Students
should not be allowed to block out their teachers.
However, when every member of the class is working
individually after important information has been
given, listening to music can be a helpful learning
tool. It would create a more relaxing, calm
environment for learning. Some students can
concentrate more while listening to music. As a result
grades could go up and it would definitely make
school more enjoyable. Therefore, our school should
allow headphones in the classroom.
Copyright © 2007 Washington Office of Superintendent of Public Instruction. All rights reserved. Modified 11/08.
CONCESSION/REBUTTAL IDENTIFICATION:
MORE EXAMPLES
Group Exercise
There is nothing more important to students than the ability
to express their unique sense of self. Whether it’s grunge,
goth, or glam, each student at our school is a person who likes
to be themselves. Dress codes would turn us all into a bland,
uniform mass of white and navy. Having a school dress code
might improve discipline, which might be true in schools
where students fight over shoes, but enforcing a dress code
will cause student rebellion, causing even more discipline
issues than we have now. Some say a dress code will reduce
the number of cliques in school, but students will adapt and
find new ways to express themselves. Hairstyles, piercings,
accessories will become the new way of standing out and
standing apart from each other. Do you really think that
students will allow themselves to be forced into a specific
mold?
Copyright © 2007 Washington Office of Superintendent of Public Instruction. All rights reserved. Modified 11/08.
CONCESSION REBUTTAL
INDIVIDUAL IDENTIFICATION PRACTICE
 Take
out Letter to Principal Scaddilybob yet
again.
 Use a new colored highlighter pen to mark any
examples of a Concession/Rebuttal argument
found in the letter.
 Also, circle any of those great transition words
that we discussed.
 Compare what you highlighted with a person
sitting near you.
 Are there any other places in the paper where
you could effectively add other examples of
Concession/Rebuttal?
LET’S TRY IT TOGETHER!
Topic: The school board is suggesting that all middle and high
schools in the district be required to offer Study Hall as an
elective each quarter.
I realize that some people in
the community may think that
students will not use a Study
Hall responsibly, and that it will
just become a “play time”.
Concession
Now you try. Don’t forget a transition!
Rebuttal
ONE MORE TIME!
Full Group
Topic: Write a letter to your principal persuading her to set up a
hot chocolate/latte stand in the cafeteria.
I understand that some parents
in our community are against the
school selling coffee because it
encourages young people to buy
drinks with caffeine in them.
Concession
Your Turn. Remember to use a transition!
Rebuttal
TRY IT WITH A PARTNER!
Topic: The administration at your school is deciding whether or not to allow
students to listen to personal music players in the classroom (not really – don’t
get excited).
(Write your own
concession. What
point might someone
make about this topic?)
(Now write your
rebuttal to what you
wrote in the previous
box)
YOUR TURN!
WRITE YOUR OWN “CONCESSION/REBUTTAL”!
Go back once again to the paper that you
wrote about winning the trip to the Great
Wolf Lodge.
Re-read the paper and find a place where
you might be able to add a concession/
Rebuttal to the paper
Think carefully about an argument someone
might make for your group not to go
(concession), then how you might respond
(rebuttal)
Write!
Share your changes with a partner. Discuss
how you just strengthened your argument.