School Start TimeJean Wolph, Louisville Writing Project

Inspired by a presentation by Tom Fox, National Writing Project

(June 16, 2014)

 

A Mini-Unit on Writing an Argument

2

Writing Reading Argument MINI-UNITEmphasis

# of Lessons

ARGUMENT SKILLS PRODUCT ELEMENTS OF

ARGUMENT CLOSE READING STRATEGIES

RESPONSE TO READINGS TOPICS

Draft, Feedback, Revise, Reflect Close reading strategies

Writing & talking to develop knowledge on

topic or issue

Making a claim and supporting it with evidence

3 Lessons

Entering Skills:• Annotating

text

Foundational Skills: Understanding qualities of a good claim

Digging Deeper:• Making a

working claim• Revising a

claim

Product: Single paragraph draft

ClaimEvidence

Compelling evidence

3-column Argument Planner

PQP feedback

SCHOOL START TIME

Video; 7 choicereadings(print )

Mini-Unit Overview

Writing Standards Emphasized in the Mini-Unit

Write arguments to support claims with clear reasons and relevant evidence….

Conduct short research projects to answer a question, drawing on several sources….

Gather relevant information from multiple print and digital sources…and quote or paraphrase the data and conclusions of others….

Draw evidence from …informational texts to support …research.

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 discipline-specific tasks, purposes, and audiences.

Day 1 Days 2 Day 3

Watch video. Capture facts and quotes on Argument Planner.

Brainstorm Causes/Effects of Changing School Start Times

Form working claims and identify relevant evidence from video

Jigsaw reading of research on teens and sleep

Share relevant, compelling evidence

Draft paragraph response

Present writing to class

Receive feedback on use of evidence to support claim

Consider other issues related to teens and sleep

View PowerPoint “What is a Claim”

Develop independent claim

Test it using criteria from PowerPoint

Write independent paragraph using evidence from our research

Mini-Unit Sequence

How can science help us make good decisions?

• Watch “Let Them Sleep In: Docs Want Later School Times for Teens”

• As you watch the video, capture facts and quotes on the Argument Planner that will help you understand the science in this issue and to use it to make an argument about what schools should do.

Brainstorm!

Cause and Effect: What would be affected if we start middle and high school later?

• After-school activities• Sports practices and games• Family schedules• Bus schedules

 

Make a claim!

What should we do? Keep the schedule we have or change it to start later?

Because of the research on teens’ sleep patterns, we should delay the start of school till 9 a.m.

In spite of the research on teens’ sleep patterns, we should keep our current schedule.

Find evidence

• Each person at your table will have a different piece of information about this issue.

• Read your passage. Annotate it to find the scientific facts. What lines will be most useful in supporting your claim? Underline or highlight them.

• Share your evidence with the group.

• Note: When you see things like this--(Wolfson & Carskadon, 1998)—those are the researchers who found out the information, and the year when they found it.

Writing

• As a group, write a paragraph explaining why you support a change or why you support the current schedule. Use science to prove your case!

• Prepare to share your writing with the class.

• Response: How did the group’s evidence support their claim?

Now YOU try it!

Think: What else should change because of this research on teen’s and sleep?

List: As a class, compile a list of other issues that relate to teens and sleep.

View: The PowerPoint on Claims

Write a NEW claim. Make sure it meets the “claim test”: debatable, defensible, and compelling, plus...

Write a paragraph in which you support this claim with evidence from our research.