#persuasive map

Students will need to write a persuasive essay about the use of big, dense, bulky history textbooks. Choose a side do you like these kind of textbooks or would you prefer to use something else in the classroom. 

Use evidence and quotes from the article "Down with Textbooks" to back up your opinion. 

Begin by writing a Hook and Thesis statement.

Hook: This is the first sentence of your essay and is meant to grab the attention of the reader. It is only one sentence! It can be an interesting fact about the topic, a statistic, a quote, or you can pose a question to the reader.

Examples:

What if you never had to open a textbook in the classroom ever again? 

How many trees are wasted because of big, bulky history textbooks?

"As soon as students open a history textbook, their eyes glaze over."

***Decide the best way to start your paper and write a strong attention grabbing hook

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Thesis statement: This sentence is the most important sentence of your paper. A strong thesis statement is focused and specific. The reader should know exactly what you’re going to argue and why. It should be a complex, not simple sentence.

BAD EXAMPLE: “Online education is a great choice for students” is a weak thesis because it’s not specific or focused enough.

GOOD EXAMPLE: A stronger thesis would be, “Online classes are a better choice than traditional classroom learning because they’re more flexible for students and teachers, they're less expensive and they let students works at their own pace.”

BAD EXAMPLE: "History textbooks are not effective tools for teaching in the classroom."

GOOD EXAMPLE: "History textbooks in the classroom are not effective for teaching because they are difficult to understand, they are usually told from one point of view, and they can be outdated." 

Write the Hook and Thesis first!

Then complete the Persuasive map outline found here: