The goal of your argumentative essay is to persuade a target audience to understand your position and/or take action. While arguments are often thought of as hosti

Topic: “should vaccinations be mandatory for children?”

Will share the 3 ARTICLES IN THE FILE SHARING PORTFOLIO

Argumentative Essay Prompt

The goal of your argumentative essay is to persuade a target audience to understand your position and/or take action. While arguments are often thought of as hostile interactions, an argument is really just a claim backed up by facts. We use them often when chatting with each other. i.e., That movie is very successful (claim). It has won three Academy Awards (fact). We should watch it sometime (call to action).

A word of caution: It is easy to assume that you should choose an argument that you feel strongly about. While this can help you be interested in the subject matter and enthusiastically support your claim, it can also make it difficult for you to respect an audience who doesn’t agree with you. Since your audience is people who disagree with you, make sure to choose a topic where you can see both sides clearly and speak respectfully of the opposite viewpoint. There is no faster way to fail in your persuasive argument than to insult the other side. Always stay professional in formal academic writing.

Requirements

Your essay will be judged according to these requirements:

· Incorporate  three  credible sources, preferably articles from School library databases.

· Have a thesis, a claim that is the main idea of the entire paper.

· Have at least 3 body paragraphs.

· Each body paragraph should have a topic sentence, a claim that states the main idea of the paragraph. Note that each topic sentence should support the thesis. If readers ask why they should agree with the thesis, every topic sentence should answer that question.

· Include enough facts in body paragraphs to support all claims coherently and logically.

· Be free of logical fallacies.

· Use correct MLA format, spelling, and grammar.

· Use an objective tone.

· At most, one block quote (quotes longer than 4 lines in MLA format) may be used, but it cannot be longer than 8 lines.

· Quotes should not make up more than 30% of the total words in the essay. 

· Demonstrate an understanding of the opposing viewpoint and respond to it (most likely in just the last body paragraph, but you might also address opposition in all of your body paragraphs, depending on your subject).

· Be at least 1000-words long.

· Mostly be in third person. Only if you are bringing in personal experience to support a topic may you use first person. You may use second person in the hook and the call to action, but nowhere else.

· The introduction (first paragraph) should include a hook, background, and thesis in that order.

· The conclusion (last paragraph) should include a reworded thesis, summary of topics, and call to action in that order.

· The call to action should be a single sentence that recommends an action that is  small (requires little time commitment, cost, or preparation) and  actionable (something the reader can do the second they are done reading the essay). 

Below are five common calls to action that you should avoid (with small, actionable, commitment-focused alternatives that work!):

· writing a letter (use engaging in a discussion instead)

· thinking (use attending a lecture or meeting instead)

· passing a law (use voting instead)

· imposing taxes (use researching current funding instead)

· providing funding (use donating instead)