Positive Impact Project: Argumentative Writing & Presentation
Learning Module
- Creator(s):
The purpose of this project is to engage students in meaningful research, discourse, and publication of argumentative writing that centers on a topic of their choice. The project prompt is: What person, organization, or event has had a significant lasting impact on the world? This prompt is deliberately vague, as to allow students to, wherever possible, persue a topic about which they are passionate and knowledgeable.
This unit was designed with sixth graders in mind in an ELA classroom. The lessons are written for students whose skills are at grade-level, but options are provided throughout for extension and scaffolding depending on student needs. The unit is meant to take place over roughly 20 school days, with some updates taking a few days and some taking only a class period. Instructor discretion as to pacing will be important.
Pre-requisite Skills:
Common Core Standards Addressed Formally or Informally:
On the teacher side of each update, suggestions for differentiation for levels of learners are suggested, as well as links to supplementary resources for small-group instruction or alternate activities.
For this update, students are asked to consider what it means to have a "positive impact" and practice participating in online discussions with peers. Be present in the discussion, demonstrating the principles of "netiquette" yourself and guiding students toward respectful, thoughtful, and constructive discussions.
Welcome to the Positive Impact Project! Over the next few weeks, you will be creating a published argument about the value of a person, organization, or event that has posively impacted the world. By the end of Update 3, you will need to choose your project focus, and by the end of Update 4, you will choose your project format for the final submission.
Over the course of this unit, you will:
Let's get started!
For this update, we're simply going to start thinking in the direction of positive impact. Create an update about what you think it means for someone/thing to have a "positive impact" on the world. Consider, for example, whether or not the person or event needs to be positive throughout or if the results and changes caused by the person or event is enough to nominate them for a positive impact project spot. Review the updates of at least two classmates and comment with constructive feedback - see the infographic below for reminders about how to conduct yourself in online discussions!
In this update, students review (or are introduced to) the concept of rhetorical devices. After participating in off-line conversations about examples of ethos, pathos, and logos, students will create an update regarding the use of the rhetorical devices in a sample essay.
CCSS Addressed:
For Struggling Learners:
For Excelling Students:
Before we can start our individual projects, we all need to have a baseline understanding of the vocabulary and concepts that create the foundation of argumentative writing and research. This update focuses on the three major rhetorical appeals.
By the end of this update, you should be able to:
Rhetorical Devices
Rhetorical devices are different ways to convince an audience of a side of an argument. We will be focusing on three (3) common rhetorical devices throughout this unit.
As the graphic above demonstrates, the different rhetorical devices are ethos, pathos, and logos.
Here's a video that explains the rhetorical appeals again, just in case you need it!
Small Group Activity
With your assigned group, review the videos and resources below. Identify for each example that you've been assigned whether you believe it is an example of ethos, logos, pathos, or some combination of the three. Review with your teacher for any you're unsure about and comment on this update with your group's answers.
Your Update
Now that you've got a handle on ethos, pathos, and logos, let's see it in action. Read the essay linked here. In your update, explain which rhetorical appeal you think is used most strongly in the essay. Provide examples from the text to support your answer. Respond to at least two classmate's answers, paying attention to those who disagree. Discuss whether both appeals may be present, and consider why one person might have thought another appeal was stronger.
In this update, students will be reviewing the terminology of argument writing and revisiting the essay used in Update 2. Students will be asked to evaluate the writing piece, and, in their update, explain the final score given to the writing piece. This is written as an independent activity, but it could easily become a partner or small group activity to suit student needs.
The evaluation uses a fixed grading scale, as indicated at the top of the student work document, which could also be adjusted. For reference, the grading scale used assumes that an 81 is "task mastery," meaning grade-level expectations have been met. Scores higher than an 81 indicate that grade-level expectations have been exceeded.
Students will also need to fill out the survey included in this update to indicate what person, organization, or event they will research for their Positive Impact Project.
CCSS Addressed:
For Struggling Learners:
For Excelling Students:
How an argument is developed matters. We learned in the last update that rhetorical appeals can be powerful persuasive tools, but these tools don't work if the argument itself isn't set up logically.
In this update, you will:
Terminology Review
Fill in the organizer attached here, matching the terms to the definitions provided. THEN, read the essay linked here and include an example of each of the terms in the box at the right. Include a direct quote from the essay. See your teacher with questions and to check your answers!
Your Update
Using the same essay, complete as much of the evaluation checklist linked here as is necessary to score the essay. Use only the rubric scores provided, keeping in mind that an 81 is the mastery threshold for "meets grade-level expectations." Once you've come to a final score, create an update with your score, an explanation of why that score is what you landed on, and a list of no fewer than 2 suggestions for improvement. Respond to at least 2 classmates' updates, 1 classmate who gave a higher score and 1 who gave a lower score. In your comment, try to convince them to consider your score as more appropriate or, if their reasoning is sound, explain how they convinced you that their score is more appropriate.
.png?Expires=1713619894&Signature=Xi3U8AQofVZ-tafF8AxmMi1LH~RaGBLjYh01LQgt9m43w45arN8Tsv3bxGDz2hUc2w~Mj0KNTcbpbrFCIfC7TuNECC4Q52GzPSBQU1ccWq-9hcTmlM1k7aGTyN4rJG2V5ESTnkOSHFB227QImOhc1YibszVH6CIIKL7x358zknG-JYwn8ji2RzUvVsHrqAaPm~fkyjJ-drlxa1zqM5zKvcruZtNjXEX7XdyMW0XSUqFoHAK9Qw4Qz3Bp5~BlvhVra1Abs463VOV6izKMWzHuCgJyQkSEYDgJqJoyCkrxr3~bDFjNhxBSovNLDlRIe2AMX-TmBYzSk~oyD3eVN1niHg__&Key-Pair-Id=APKAJELYXGUCCDL7FUQA)
If you're truly stumped for what to choose for your project, see the list linked here. (The point, though, is for you to choose something you care about and are interested in.) Complete the survey attached to this update when you've chosen.
This update will take students multiple days to complete. Depending on student success, the instructor will want to start with a five-day goal and adjust from there.
Project topics must be submitted and approved before the annotated bibliography can be completed. Meet with students who have not submitted topics or whose topics aren't acceptable to come up with a suitable research topic before moving into the update.
By the time students have completed this update, they should be able to explain the purpose and value of an annotated bibliography and create an annotated bibliography with resources about their chosen PIP topic. The annotated bibliography will help focus student work later on, so it is important that it is filled with resources that cover many aspects of their topic. The recommendations in this update for resources are based on the availability within the author's district; adjustments may need to be made depending on what students have access to in your district.
CCSS Addressed:
For Struggling Learners:
For Excelling Students:
Now that you have a topic for your Positive Impact Project, the next step is gathering resources! In this update, you will:
First, what's an annotated bibliography?
Simply put, an annotated bibliography is a list of sources of information about a topic with citations and notes about the source and its crediblity and/or usefulness. This resource also provides some useful information about annotated bibliographies.
Now that you know what an annotated bibliography is, let's review how to create one using the tools you have access to through your school account.
We will be using Noodletools to set up and organize our annotated bibliography. You can access this resource through our Media Center homepage.
The video below will walk you through setting up your Noodletools project and how to create citations and notecards. Review it carefully! It will be helpful! (It may actually be a good idea to split your screen and have Noodletools open while the tutorial plays.)
There's one final piece of the puzzle before you're unleashed on the world of research! How will you know if your sources are reliable? For any non-database source you use, you will be required to provide a credibility score based on the worksheet linked here.
Now you're ready to research!
Your annotated bibliography should include:
- a minimum of 12 sources
- at least 2 database sources (use the Media Center homepage) unless you have a one-on-one with your teacher where it's decided that won't work for your topic
- properly formatted MLA citations for every source
- an annotation for every source that includes a summary of the source (limit this to no more than 4 sentences), an explanation of its credibility (with a score for any non-database sites), and a statement of its potential for use in your project.
Once you've done all of that in Noodletools, you will export the bibliography from Noodletools into your Google Drive.
Your Update
Once you've exported your bibliography, you should include a link to the Google Doc in your update. Additionally, copy out your least credible source's complete citation and annotation into your update. Comment on at least 3 other student's updates by:
In this update, students will review (or learn) the terminology surrounding audience and determine the appropriate audience for their PIP topic. At the end of this update, students will also choose the format that their final project will take, which may include:
Build in time to conference with students regarding their choices to make sure they understand what's expected and have the technology skills to create their chosen product.
Additionally, monitor student comments about the target audience for the Paw Patrol commercial. This may help identify students who don't quite grasp the target audience concept, allowing for small-group instruction to help correct misconceptions.
CCSS Addressed:
For Struggling Learners:
For Excelling Students:
In this update, you will focus on developing an appropriate audience for your Positive Impact Project. By the end of this update, you will also conference with your teacher to determine your final project's format.
By the end of this update, you should be able to:
What is an audience?
The audience is the total group of people who experience a publication, whether it's a speech, a video, a poster, or something else entirely. While every audience member is important, when we're creating something persuasive, we're not trying to convince every member of the audience.
In order for a publication to be successful, the creator needs to focus on the correct target audience. The target audience is the part of the audience that the creator is hoping to persuade to act according to their wishes; they're the people you're trying to reach with your publication.
For example, let's take a look at an advertisement.
The audience for this commercial is anyone who sees the commercial. But not everyone who sees the commercial a) knows about Paw Patrol, b) wants to play with Paw Patrol toys, or c) has access to the purchasing power to get the toy.
Who then, is the target audience for this commercial? Comment on this update with your guess and at least one reason why. Your teacher may choose to have a class discussion based on the results, so be sure to participate!
Conference with your teacher about your project product before creating your update!
Your Update
Create an update that includes all of the following:
Comment on at least two classmates' updates offering feedback on whether or not the target audience seems appropriate to their chosen topic and product. Remember your netiquette in your responses!
From this point forward, this unit focuses on students working on the individual components of their projects. Therefore, the instructions are deliberately broad, to allow for the wide range of project topics and product selections. The instructor's role through the remainder of the updates will be to conference with students regularly to ensure success throughout the process and monitor student conversations in class and on the platform to facilitate positive and constructive communication.
The pacing of the next few updates will vary widely by students, so consider posting 6-8 together to allow students to work at the pace appropriate for them.
This update focuses on developing an effective introduction to the topic with the target audience in mind.
CCSS Addressed:
For Struggling Learners:
For Excelling Students:
In this update, you will:
What's a Hook?
Hooks are ways that a content creator can drawn in members of the audience to their publication. Review any of the following resources for some background on how this can be done:
Engaging Your Target Audience
A good hook is developed with the target audience in mind. Take a look at the example below. Comment on the update with the following:
Now you can work on the hook or introduction for your project! Feel free to seek out feedback from peers and from your teacher as you're working. Always keep your target audience in mind!
.png?Expires=1713619895&Signature=KuqNcdSExOfqdIq7E6fX1viMjUEpxalVGXIhzY0pAK85HJjLyGDOQU062EdXJNrFENfW1BKrgN4YzOjRDsLNGE0RNNRxhoOSs62llTFHLiltpJvLhug-AF7d0OPy-ZrWCNhNapjMGgi0ffPqh0btijkpISGmJtDz1Mo7xElcW5N8kxQluUxYkqn1cW8ZspHQf428vo0sNqKg-XUaDu6rZ4oAcWnq1CQQGktUoCK3mruruqpuYIFFdbxyt3~9PF5WXASL8NFQfl8jYvx0ReX21ai7chdd60TXleorpg0tUh55LoNSsaRH5VCAzze3amkoOqEUERO23eNckwSQYv65YQ__&Key-Pair-Id=APKAJELYXGUCCDL7FUQA)
Your Update
In your update, you should include either the text or a screenshot of your introduction to your product. Comment on at least three classmates' updates with feedback on the introduction. Remember your netiquette, both in your comments and as the creator. Not everyone who comments will be in your target audience, but the feedback is valuable! Use it to refine and improve your introduction before moving on to Update 7.
From Update 6 forward, this unit focuses on students working on the individual components of their projects. Therefore, the instructions are deliberately broad, to allow for the wide range of project topics and product selections. The instructor's role through the remainder of the updates will be to conference with students regularly to ensure success throughout the process and monitor student conversations in class and on the platform to facilitate positive and constructive communication.
The pacing of the next few updates will vary widely by students, so consider posting 6-8 together to allow students to work at the pace appropriate for them.
This update focuses on developing effective content on the topic with the target audience in mind.
CCSS Addressed:
For Struggling Learners:
For Excelling Students:
In this update, you will:
What is a counter-claim?
.png?Expires=1713619895&Signature=X5Etvxne52MZGT0zIpavyBHYqW3cOXkm82Ia9VpUZbHxBBFUTFYWpUGb10g1yl~rf7SQz09bIT3PbCGAShQjOFBDHIHd0miyCrPOMgva7SnzrBwlrH~Jvez7VqUt-7R14EHOgwYx7KyfZB699n~wp7-8-KCm~KQPLHcMpsfB4yHCiGq-7d7xyGJOapnyyj9z8On-qSl2PcJGqv8P6s-fS7VacY1NCSoWY3Cb7lq2PXl3BMdSPpTq-4g-mAkrXOuVAtJnfrsxBQsQyNQ8Vjq230o2aSuJsEBWohaDtuf~8Gbh3W9dukECSr2~vl35OOH8boM2SD3rANRcU6XEyjJKMA__&Key-Pair-Id=APKAJELYXGUCCDL7FUQA)
A counter-claim is a claim that opposes a central claim. This does not necessarily mean they are opposites. For example, if a claim is that recess should be 45 minutes, a counter claim might be that recess should remain 30 minutes. It also could be that recess should be an hour long, or that recess should not be part of the day at all.
To show your understanding, comment on this update. Write out your claim. Then, make a list of at least 4 counter-claims for your claim. Number the counter-claims strongest (#1) to weakest (#4) and explain in a paragraph why you ranked them the way you did.
Argument Structure
The pieces of your argument during this project will differ based on your audience, your claim, and the availability of supporting evidence, and the emphasis on the parts might change based on the product you've chosen. Plan a conference with your teacher if you're unsure of what an argument should include in your product type. A review of the elements of argument can be found here.
Argument Production
Based on your product type, you will, in some way, be presenting this information to an audience. Take a look at the resource here to see some tips for presentations (it's helpful even if you're not doing a live presentation to the class).
Remember: The goal here is to convince your target audience to agree with you. Develop your presentation with them in mind, using media and words and phrases that will make sense to them!
Your Update
Now you can work on the argument content for your project! Feel free to seek out feedback from peers and from your teacher as you're working. Always keep your target audience in mind!
In your update, you should include the text, a link to, or a screenshot of your argument content in your product. Comment on at least three classmates' updates with feedback on the argument and media elements. Remember your netiquette, both in your comments and as the creator. Not everyone who comments will be in your target audience, but the feedback is valuable! Use it to refine and improve your product before moving on to Update 8.
From Update 6 forward, this unit focuses on students working on the individual components of their projects. Therefore, the instructions are deliberately broad, to allow for the wide range of project topics and product selections. The instructor's role through the remainder of the updates will be to conference with students regularly to ensure success throughout the process and monitor student conversations in class and on the platform to facilitate positive and constructive communication.
The pacing of the next few updates will vary widely by students, so consider posting 6-8 together to allow students to work at the pace appropriate for them.
This update focuses on developing effective conclusion on the topic with the target audience in mind.
At the end of this update, students will submit their final project product for peer review using this rubric:
Depending on student familiarity with this rubric, the teacher may need to adjust the rubric focus or values.
CCSS Addressed:
For Struggling Learners:
For Excelling Students:
In this update, you will:
Conclusions:
A conclusion is the final impression that the audience is left with in any publication, presentation, or media. It needs to be effective and persuasive.
This resource offers several suggestions for creating effective conclusions, as does the video below.
It's time to finish your project product! You will submit your project at the end of this update and receive peer products to review before final publication. Use the rubric below to self-assess before submitting, and remember to include a strong conclusion!
Your Comment on this Update:
Reflect on the most challenging part of this project process for you. Why was that a struggle? Was it the topic, the argument, the writing, the time management, etc. Respond to as many classmates as you'd like, offering positive feedback and helpful insights.
This is an off-line suggestion, not an update for students. Once projects have been reviewed, revised, and published, consider having a few days where students rotate through stations, reviewing product types. They can sit in the audience for live peer presentations, view video projects, peruse websites and digital galleries, and walk the halls reviewing posters created by their peers.
Consider including some kind of capture sheet for audience members, focusing on all of the positive impacts that they've learned about.