Unit Map 2011-2012
English 12* (CC) / Grade 12 (Common Core)
Unit: Writing the Argument: Social Commentary
Common Core Initiative
Overarching Questions and Enduring Understandings
Enduring Understandings
Critical citizens formulate inquiries around complex ideas about cultural and social issues through
reading, writing, viewing, speaking, and/or listening, or through personal experience. They integrate
and evaluate multiple sources of information in different genres, media, and formats to explore and
develop a deeper understanding of their questions and the problems or conflicts that emerge in
society. Compelled by this critical reading and thinking, they take action through social commentary.
Overarching Questions
1. How does an individual affect social change?
2. How does an individual shape an argument to take action and affect social change?
Graphic Organizer
Graphic Organizer:
Unit Abstract
In order to prepare for their role as critical citizens becoming advocates for social change and social
action, students will engage in a process of inquiry around social issues impacting their generation.
Preliminary exploration will build knowledge, raise questions, deepen thinking, and prepare students
to develop a stance and form an argument. To do so, students will engage in reading, viewing,
primary and secondary research, discussion, blogs or other digital spaces, and/or debates. Students
will consider the thoughts of others applying patterns of respectful listening and collaboration as they
test their beliefs against the beliefs of others. Through the clarification of ideas, gathering of valid
evidence and warrants that support multiple claims, students will design and create an
argumentative product intended to promote social action and change. Students will use the writing
process to clarify their thinking and product in anticipation of publication for an authentic audience.
Content Expectations
CCSS: English Language Arts 6-12, CCSS: Grades
11-12, Reading: Informational Text
Key Ideas and Details
1. Read closely to determine what the text says
explicitly and to make logical inferences from it; cite
specific textual evidence when writing or speaking to
support conclusions drawn from the text.

RI.11-12.1. Cite strong and thorough textual
evidence to support analysis of what the text
says explicitly as well as inferences drawn from
the text, including determining where the text
leaves matters uncertain.
3. Analyze how and why individuals, events, and ideas
develop and interact over the course of a text.

RI.11-12.3. Analyze a complex set of ideas
or sequence of events and explain how specific
individuals, ideas, or events interact and
develop over the course of the text.
5. Analyze the structure of texts, including how specific
sentences, paragraphs, and larger portions of the text
(e.g., a section, chapter, scene, or stanza) relate to
each other and the whole.

RI.11-12.5. Analyze and evaluate the
effectiveness of the structure an author uses in
his or her exposition or argument, including
whether the structure makes points clear,
convincing, and engaging.
Integration of Knowledge and Ideas
7. Integrate and evaluate content presented in diverse
formats and media, including visually and
quantitatively, as well as in words.

RI.11-12.7. Integrate and evaluate multiple
sources of information presented in different
media or formats (e.g., visually, quantitatively)
as well as in words in order to address a
question or solve a problem.
8. Delineate and evaluate the argument and specific
Unit Level Standards
claims in a text, including the validity of the reasoning
as well as the relevance and sufficiency of the
evidence.
(Not applicable to literature)

RI.11-12.8. Delineate and evaluate the
reasoning in seminal U.S. texts, including the
application of constitutional principles and use of
legal reasoning (e.g., in U.S. Supreme Court
majority opinions and dissents) and the
premises, purposes, and arguments in works of
public advocacy (e.g., The Federalist,
presidential addresses).
9. Analyze how two or more texts address similar
themes or topics in order to build knowledge or to
compare the approaches the authors take.

RI.11-12.9. Analyze seventeenth-,
eighteenth-, and nineteenth-century
foundational U.S. documents of historical and
literary significance (including The Declaration of
Independence, the Preamble to the Constitution,
the Bill of Rights, and Lincoln’s Second
Inaugural Address) for their themes, purposes,
and rhetorical features.
Range of Reading and Level of Text Complexity
10. Read and comprehend complex literary and
informational texts independently and proficiently.

RI.11-12.10. By the end of grade 11, read
and comprehend literary nonfiction in the grades
11–CCR text complexity band proficiently, with
scaffolding as needed at the high end of the
range.
CCSS: English Language Arts 6-12, CCSS: Grades
11-12, Writing
Text Types and Purposes
1. Write arguments to support claims in an analysis of
substantive topics or texts, using valid reasoning and
relevant and sufficient evidence.



W.11-12.1. Write arguments to support
claims in an analysis of substantive topics or
texts, using valid reasoning and relevant and
sufficient evidence.
W.11-12.1a. Introduce precise,
knowledgeable claim(s), establish the
significance of the claim(s), distinguish the
claim(s) from alternate or opposing claims, and
create an organization that logically sequences
claim(s), counterclaims, reasons, and evidence.
W.11-12.1b. Develop claim(s) and
counterclaims fairly and thoroughly, supplying
the most relevant evidence for each while
pointing out the strengths and limitations of



both in a manner that anticipates the audience’s
knowledge level, concerns, values, and possible
biases.
W.11-12.1c. Use words, phrases, and clauses
as well as varied syntax to link the major
sections of the text, create cohesion, and clarify
the relationships between claim(s) and reasons,
between reasons and evidence, and between
claim(s) and counterclaims.
W.11-12.1d. Establish and maintain a formal
style and objective tone while attending to the
norms and conventions of the discipline in which
they are writing.
W.11-12.1e. Provide a concluding statement
or section that follows from and supports the
argument presented.
Production and Distribution of Writing
4. Produce clear and coherent writing in which the
development, organization, and style are appropriate to
task, purpose, and audience.

W.11-12.4. Produce clear and coherent
writing in which the development, organization,
and style are appropriate to task, purpose, and
audience. (Grade-specific expectations for
writing types are defined in standards 1–3
above.)
6. Use technology, including the Internet, to produce
and publish writing and to interact and collaborate with
others.

W.11-12.6. Use technology, including the
Internet, to produce, publish, and update
individual or shared writing products in response
to ongoing feedback, including new arguments
or information.
Research to Build and Present Knowledge
7. Conduct short as well as more sustained research
projects based on focused questions, demonstrating
understanding of the subject under investigation.

W.11-12.7. Conduct short as well as more
sustained research projects to answer a
question (including a self-generated question) or
solve a problem; narrow or broaden the inquiry
when appropriate; synthesize multiple sources
on the subject, demonstrating understanding of
the subject under investigation.
8. Gather relevant information from multiple print and
digital sources, assess the credibility and accuracy of
each source, and integrate the information while
avoiding plagiarism.

W.11-12.8. Gather relevant information from
multiple authoritative print and digital sources,
using advanced searches effectively; assess the
strengths and limitations of each source in
terms of the task, purpose, and audience;
integrate information into the text selectively to
maintain the flow of ideas, avoiding plagiarism
and overreliance on any one source and
following a standard format for citation.
Range of Writing
10. Write routinely over extended time frames (time for
research, reflection, and revision) and shorter time
frames (a single sitting or a day or two) for a range of
tasks, purposes, and audiences.

W.11-12.10. Write routinely over extended
time frames (time for research, reflection, and
revision) and shorter time frames (a single
sitting or a day or two) for a range of tasks,
purposes
CCSS: English Language Arts 6-12, CCSS: Grades
11-12, Speaking & Listening
Comprehension and Collaboration
1. Prepare for and participate effectively in a range of
conversations and collaborations with diverse partners,
building on others’ ideas and expressing their own
clearly and persuasively.



SL.11-12.1b. Work with peers to promote
civil, democratic discussions and decisionmaking, set clear goals and deadlines, and
establish individual roles as needed.
SL.11-12.1c. Propel conversations by posing
and responding to questions that probe
reasoning and evidence; ensure a hearing for a
full range of positions on a topic or issue;
clarify, verify, or challenge ideas and
conclusions; and promote divergent and creative
perspectives.
SL.11-12.1d. Respond thoughtfully to diverse
perspectives; synthesize comments, claims, and
evidence made on all sides of an issue; resolve
contradictions when possible; and determine
what additional information or research is
required to deepen the investigation or complete
the task.
CCSS: English Language Arts 6-12, CCSS: Grades
11-12, Language
Knowledge of Language
3. Apply knowledge of language to understand how
language functions in different contexts, to make
effective choices for meaning or style, and to
comprehend more fully when reading or listening.


L.11-12.3. Apply knowledge of language to
understand how language functions in different
contexts, to make effective choices for meaning
or style, and to comprehend more fully when
reading or listening.
L.11-12.3a. Vary syntax for effect, consulting
references (e.g., Tufte’s Artful Sentences) for
guidance as needed; apply an understanding of
syntax to the study of complex texts when
reading.
Essential/Focus Questions
1.
2.
3.
4.
5.
6.
What social issues do I have an authentic
urgency for and am motivated to pursue?
What ethical complexities will stretch my
beliefs and impact my writing?
How will my interaction and response to the
thinking and writing of others (including peers)
influence my thinking and writing?
How can my thinking, speaking, or writing
influence others?
What modes, formats, and forms of media are
currently used for social action and social
commentary?
How will the modes, formats, and forms of
media influence my argument?
Assessment Tasks
Key Concepts
Toulmin Model of Argument
audience
purpose
context
multi-modal
multi-media
Intellectual Processes
1.
Formative Assessment Tasks
1. Argument Inquiry: At this point, reread your
annotations and identify the current social issue that
impacts you and you are most compelled to action
upon. Write a 1-2 paragraphs that identifies the critical
turns in your investigate that cause you to select this
issue and explain why and how you might act to cause
social change? Include an annotated bibliography to
demonstrate that you have read and thought widely on
this issue.
2. First Draft of Argumentative Product: Identify where
you have included the key elements of Toulmin's model
of argument.
Students have a repertoire of
cognitive and metacognitive skills and
strategies for problem solving,
decision making, and inquiry.
2.
Through explicit emphasis on
intellectual processes, students will
become aware of the nature of
thinking and their mental capability to
control attitudes, dispositions, and
development.
3.
Through numerous experiential
activities, students will be able to use
thinking skills and strategies with
increasing independence and
responsibility.
4.
Engage in authentic learning
experiences to maximize learning and
transfer.
Unit Assessment Task
What current ideas or events impact you and your
generation? After reading informational texts,
literature, essays, visual and digital texts on historically
important social issues that impacted a generation as
well as current social issues that might impact your
generation, create an argumentative product that
promotes social action and change. Support your
argument with evidence from your research and
personal experience.
Lesson Sequence
Reading Immersion:




Annotation of multi-genre, multi-media
sources
Independent collection of artifacts around an
inquiry
Response formetacognition
Response to develop arguments (analyzing
and evaluating sources) craft to clarify a line of
reasoning
Exploration of a Social Issue



Multiple claims
A range of evidence and warrants
experimentation with a line of reasoning
Writing the Essay


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Study the genres, structures, and craft of
other arguments focused on social commentary
Develop valid argument and product intended
for an authentic audience
Revise and edit content, organization, style,
and conventions
Resources
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Everything's an Argument by
Lunsford and Ruszkiewicz
They Say, I Say: The Moves That
Matter in Academic Writing by Graff
and Birkenstein
Teaching Argument Writing, Grades
6-12: Supporting Claims with
Relevant Evidence and Clear
Reasoning by Hillocks, Jr.