Unit 9.

4: Its a Matter of Opinion English as a Second Language 5 weeks Stage 1 - Desired Results Unit Summary
In this unit, students will develop an understanding of the structure and elements of persuasive text. Students will focus their attention on the different types of persuasive techniques used in a variety of texts. They will use authentic text to determine the components, structure, and purpose of persuasive writing as they begin to create their own persuasive writing pieces using the writing process. Transfer goal: Students will leave the class able to use their learning of how to evaluate and produce persuasive text to appropriately respond to persuasion in their lives.

Content Standards and Learning Expectations

Listening/Speaking L/S.9.2 Listens and responds to, analyzes, gives, and discusses complex instructions; constructs complex sentences and statements to explain, describe, support, and discuss information; answers and formulates closed and open-ended questions. L/S.9.3 Uses appropriate language structures to problem solve, explain a process, and express opinions integrating comparison and contrast statements; analyzes presentations. L/S.9.5 Explains the main idea or topic and important details from learned concepts or readings of a variety of expository texts; applies sequence of events to discuss and summarize text; compares and contrasts topics from a variety of texts. Reading R.9.1 Analyzes the text, establishes purpose, states authors purpose, and distinguishes between text features. R.9.4 Organizes plot; establishes cause and effect relationships; makes connections, predictions, inferences, draws conclusions, and classifies conflicts in narrative, expository, and persuasive texts. R.9.5 Distinguishes between fact and opinion in narrative and expository texts; states and paraphrases main idea and selects important details. Writing W.9.3 Applies organizational patterns and the elements of descriptive, narrative, expository, and persuasive forms of writing to construct a composition.

Big Ideas/Enduring Understandings:

Literature both reflects and contributes to knowledge. Persuasive writing must be organized in a way that succinctly supports the writers assertion. Deliberate word choice positively impacts persuasive writing. Persuasive writing has power and can affect lives and viewpoints.

Essential Questions:
In what ways does literature contribute to our understanding of the world? How are persuasive essays organized and supported? How does word choice impact writing? Why is it important to be able to read and produce persuasive writings?

June 2012

Unit 9.4: Its a Matter of Opinion English as a Second Language 5 weeks Content (Students will know)
Organizational patterns and the elements of persuasive forms of writing Appropriate language structures to problem solve Sequencing of events Authors purpose Compare and contrast statements Propaganda Advertisement Editorial Audience Persuasion Claim, thesis statement Pathos

Skills (Students will be able to)

Construct complex sentences and statements to explain, describe, support, and discuss information. Explain a process. Express opinions integrating comparison and contrast statements. Analyze the text. Establish purpose. Make connections, predictions, inference, draw conclusions. Classify conflicts in persuasive texts.

Content Vocabulary

Stage 2 - Assessment Evidence Performance Tasks

Persuasion Scrapbook The students will create scrapbooks that show examples of persuasive texts including advertisements, commercials, speeches, etc. They will identify and discuss effective persuasive techniques evidenced in the examples they locate. They will write a paragraph to go along with each item to discuss how and where the examples show evidence of the persuasive features, as well as to discuss the authors purpose. The paragraph can also include their opinions on the effectiveness of the examples and should include specific examples (from the work being assessed) that support, clarify, or justify the comments made. Students will design an item that they would like to sell to a fictitious company. They will demonstrate their understanding of two forms of persuasive writing by writing a persuasive letter to the company as well as 2

Other Evidence
Reading log Students will continue reading books on their own and keeping a running record of the titles and pages read. o Provide prompts for very short responses to daily reading (In the section you read today, did you notice a persuasive devise used? If so, what was it? What purpose did it serve?) Effective and Ineffective Persuasion Techniques chart (see Learning Activities) Journal Entry: Recalling Persuasive Tactics (see Learning Activities) Word wall Students will continue to add to the class word wall and their personal word walls to include/add words from persuasive unit Quiz on vocabulary from the unit

Invention

June 2012

Unit 9.4: Its a Matter of Opinion English as a Second Language 5 weeks

designing an advertisement for the product. Students can use attachment 9.4 Performance Task Scaffolding for Persuasive Letter for help in organizing their persuasive letters. Students projects will be evaluated using attachment 9.4 Performance Task Persuasion Rubric.

Stage 3 - Learning Plan Learning Activities

Home/School Connection The teacher will distribute attachment 9.4 Learning Activities - Persuasion Is All Around You. Students are to find an example of a persuasive piece from the newspaper, television, radio, magazine, or billboard around town and be ready to report back to class. Teacher should demonstrate the homework in class with a selection of advertisements to be sure students understand the assignment before they leave. Distribute Attachment 9.4 Learning Activities Strategy-Definition and discuss each of the persuasive strategies listed. The teacher should elicit examples from the students for each strategy. The examples can be from the persuasive piece they found for Persuasion is All Around You, from the pieces available in class, or from examples the students can think of from memory (specific commercials, etc.) Through the discussion, complete the example column from the examples given in class. Teacher will provide multiple types of persuasive texts for students to explore (editorials, advertisements, propaganda, public service announcements, as well as persuasive childrens books). Class will discuss features of the texts that signal that they are persuasion. Students and teacher will work together to make a list of features of persuasive text. While looking through the texts provided, and focusing on the childrens books (see Literature Connections), students will make a chart to show effective and ineffective strategies used by the character in the book. For example, effective strategies show where the character asks for something and gives good reasons for why he/she should receive what is being asked. Ineffective strategies include places in the text where the character whines, begs, pleads, cries, demands, etc. Using Think-Pair-Share, students will discuss their charts with a partner and then the whole class will discuss their general findings. Journal Entry: Students will write a journal entry about a situation in which they tried to persuade an adult to make a particular decision or to take a certain action (i.e. convincing a teacher to let them hand in an assignment late, convincing a parent to let them stay out past curfew).

Check the Strategies

Evaluating the effectiveness of persuasive styles1

Recalling Persuasive Tactics

Source: https://www.georgiastandards.org/Frameworks/GSO%20Frameworks/Grade-5-Unit-2-Convince.pdf

June 2012

Unit 9.4: Its a Matter of Opinion English as a Second Language 5 weeks

Students should describe their persuasive strategies. Did the effort work? How might the student argue differently if they were to make their argument again? Dialogue Journal: The teacher will read the journal entries and respond with comments written in the journal. Follow up questions can be posed and a written dialogue between the teacher and student can develop through the journal. Students should find two persuasive messages of one to two pages each in length (examples: memos, reports, marketing letters, articles junk mail). Ask the students to: o Identify the writer's objective(s). o Determine (and comment on) the persuasive strategies used : What are they? Do they work well? Explain. Could different strategies be equally effective in this particular situation? Elaborate. o Comment on the pattern(s) and voice being used, indicating whether they believe they are appropriate. o State whether they, as readers, found the persuasive piece convincing. They should provide reasons to justify their statement. Students should hand in their responses in a written format, with copies of the articles or messages attached. Can You Convince Me? Developing Persuasive Writing http://www.readwritethink.org/classroomresources/lesson-plans/convince-developing-persuasive-writing-56.html Dear Librarian: Writing a Persuasive Letter http://www.readwritethink.org/classroomresources/lesson-plans/dear-librarian-writing-persuasive-875.html Get Cooking With Words! Creating a Recipe Using Procedural Writing: http://www.readwritethink.org/classroom-resources/lesson-plans/cooking-with-words-creating1018.html Making an Argument: Effective use of Transition Words http://www.visualthesaurus.com/cm/lessons/606/ Primary Resources (huge collection of downloadable materials related to advertisements and persuasive writing): http://www.primaryresources.co.uk/english/englishD10.htm I Wanna Iguana by Kaufman Karen Orloff Click Clack Moo: Cows That Type by Cronin, Doreen Fly Away Home by Bunting, Eve Can I Have a Tyrannosaurus Rex, Dad? Can I? Please! by Lois Grambling and Penny Hauffe Can I Have a Stegosaurus Mom? Can I Please? by Lois Grambling and H.B. Lewis Can I keep him? by Steven Kellogg Earrings by Judith Viosrt
Source: http://www.sasked.gov.sk.ca/docs/comm20/mod8.html

Recognizing Persuasive Writing Objectives and Patterns2

Sample Lessons

Additional Resources
o

Literature Connections

2

June 2012

Unit 9.4: Its a Matter of Opinion English as a Second Language 5 weeks

READ XL (Ninth grade) Textbook o The Science Behind Extreme Sports page 20 (Nonfiction Article: Detail) o Take The Balance Challenge page 30 (A Science Activity: Detail) o Cookie by Gary Paulsen page 332 (Personal Narrative: Detail) o Two Were Left by Hugh B. Cave page 336 (Short Story: Detail)

June 2012 Adapted from Understanding by Design by Grant Wiggins and Jay McTighe