Argumentative Essay Writing Middle School Challenge Activity Printable

Mrs. Spangler in the Middle Verified independent store

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Reviewing argumentative essay writing can be challenging, but this engaging and interactive football-themed challenge activity will break it down and make it fun! Students are give n a prompt, texts, and a checklist to write an essay. Each successfully completed step from the checklist earns a puzzle piece. On the appointed day, students are awarded whatever their puzzle shows that they earned! What's included: ✅ A Challenge for embedded counterclaims ✅ A Challenge for separate counterclaim paragraphs (These 2 challenges are the same, except for how the counterclaim is addressed.) ✅ Directions for the Teacher ✅ Two original articles and matching prompt ✅ Checklists ✅ Two Planning graphic organizers: 1 for embedded counterclaims and 1 for counterclaim paragraphs. ✅ Editable Puzzles Your students will love the idea of working for a reward, and they will be more successful with writing as the essay is chunked into manageable pieces. You will love the results! In my class, students earned a "mud pie" - a pudding cup with "fixins" like gummy bears and chocolate chips, but the puzzle included shows a popcorn reward. The puzzles come in an editable format so you can choose the best reward for your students. :) The Argumentative Essay Challenge reviews the 5 steps in writing an essay: 1. Read and unpack the prompt. This is accomplished by circling verbs and underlining nouns. Then, the student makes a T-chart with verbs on one side and nouns on the other. ➡️The prompt is: Read the texts and write an essay in which you take a position on whether football is a meaningful part of American culture or is just a business. 2. Flip the prompt. This means to take the prompt and turn it into a statement with blanks for the reasons, thus creating a thesis “skeleton”. 3. Read and Mark the Texts. This is accomplished by setting up a second t-chart and recording the article number and paragraph number for any evidence that helps to support your flipped prompt. 4. Planning. This is accomplished by creating a graphic organizer (Included!) 5. Write the Essay with 5 paragraphs. There is a version for embedded counterclaims and a version for a separate counterclaim paragraph. TEACHERS LIKE YOU SAID: ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ Laura L. said, "This is a great resource for breaking down argumentative writing. It made the concept more manageable for my students. Thank you!" ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ Krista D. said, "My students loved this activity! Made writing an arguments essay so easy!" ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ Lisa C. said, "My students loved this-everyone was engaged!" SUPPORTS COMMON CORE STANDARD: CCRA.W.1 Write arguments to support claims in an analysis of substantive topics or texts, using valid reasoning and relevant and sufficient evidence. _________________________________________________________ ©Mrs. Spangler in the Middle (Elizabeth [Lisa] Spangler) All rights reserved by the author. Permission to copy for single classroom use only. Please purchase additional licenses if you intend to share this product. Thanks, and Enjoy! Total Pages: 20 pages Answer Key: Not Included Teaching Duration: 1 Week Show more