3 Argument Writing Activities my Students Loved!

As I’ve been prepping for my spring semester, I wanted to share 3 argument writing activities I gave my AP® Lang students this semester that they genuinely enjoyed.

Argument Writing Activity 1: Teach the Teacher

I love when students write about “niche” concepts in their Q3 argument essays. I find it more interesting and more convincing than some of the more “obvious” topics.

However, I’ve noticed that students need to practice writing about topics of interest. For one, they need to be able to concisely and effectively provide background information so the reader understands the significance of the evidence.

Last year, I had a couple students select the same evidence for multiple prompts. They simply adapted the example to the prompt. While this apporach might not work for every student or all prompts, I noticed that those students seemed less stressed planning their essays. And, after writng about the same example in multiple ways, they really honed their writing skills.

So, for the “teach the teacher” assignment, I had my students select a topic of their choice and write an essay in which their goal was to inform, entertain, or persuade me. Knowing that I was their audience helped us revisit the concept of the rhetorical situation.

One of my classes loved it so much that they made me a “reading order.” With Google Classroom, I normally grade in alphabetical order, but they made me a “playlist” of sorts so that their chosen topics could have maximum effect. It was interesting to hear the class rationalization for the order. Some of the topics were humorous to read consecutively. They also wanted to balance the “heavy” topics with the lighthearted ones.

As an extension of this activity, you could have students make a presentation to teach the class as well.

This year, I had my students write shorter essays, 4-5 paragraphs (more like an exam length essay,) but in the past, I’ve done this assignment as a full research paper to help students practice synthesis and argument skills that they will need in college. Honestly, either option works well. I change my approach based on students’ needs and my work load.

Argument Writing Activity 2: Independent Reading

I don’t teach a full-length novel in. my AP Lang classes. (Our students cover a variety of full-length texts in their other classes.)

However, I’ve noticed that most of my students do not read outside of class. I get it. They have activities, jobs, responsibilities, etc.

But, I also know that students need specific examples to write an effective argument essay, and some students struggle with generating effective evidence.

An independent reading assignment is an argument writing activity that meets both needs. I provide students with a list of recommended books (nonfiction titles from my class library and our school library,) but I also allow them to request a book if there is one they would prefer instead.

Student choice builds investment in the activity.

Now you might be wondering what my students did besides just reading the book.

Here are some ideas:

• Vocab Lists: I had students find 10 vocab words in their books. They had to define the word and include the part of speech. They also had to write the sentence from the book that contained the word as well as a sentence of their own that included the word.

• Rhetorical Analysis: I had my students select a short passage (approximately 2 paragraphs – a page) to analyze. They had to identify one rheotrical choice in the passage they selected and explain how the choice contributed to the message, argument, or purpose.

• Make your own Q3 prompt: This was my favorite part of the assignment. I had my students write their own Q3 prompt and then write a thesis and body paragraph in response to their prompt. The body paragraph had to include something from the book as evidence. Students had to make sure they provided enough background for their evidence to make sense, plus adequate commentary. Some students used an important quote from the book in their prompt. Other students identified a broader issue and found a quote from another source to use as the basis of their prompt. I coached my students on how to use the stable wording and offered to be a sounding board if needed. Overall, I was really impressed with the prompts they created and how they used their books as evidence.

Argument Writing Activity 3: Convince the Class

Do you remember that meme with the teacher sitting by the table sipping coffee with a sign that had a topic and said “change my mind?”

That meme plus a conversation with my husband inspired this assignment.

I don’t know much about college football. We live in Arkansas, so our seasons are usually pretty disappointing 😂

However, I always wondered why the playoff selection process was the way it was. I’m not an expert, but it seems like a bracket system would be more engaging, especially since so many top players now opt out of the bowl games to be healthy for the draft.

Apparently this is one my husband’s “Roman Empires” as the TikTok trend goes. (A Roman Empire is a topic you think about regularly.) And as such, he has a whole solution to revamp the current system. I must admit it was pretty convincing.

So, I thought I could turn this into an assignment by having my students assert a position on a topic they are passionate about, even if that topic might not seem very sophisticated or academic.

Some of the football players in the class loved the idea of having to pitch a solution to revamp College Football, especially after FSU didn’t make it.

Not all students enjoy sports, let alone football, so here are some other possible “debate” topics or writing prompts.

• Should schools reduce to a 4-day week?
• Has TikTok shop ruined the FYP?
• What’s a conspiracy theory that you find plausible and why?
• Has Taylor Swift helped change the NFL’s image?
• Is cheerleading a sport? (Could replace with other topics likes band, dance, bowling, etc.)
• What order should you watch the Star Wars or Marvel movies in?
• What is your Roman Empire and why?

A couple of the topics above could lend themselves to the “2019 overrated prompt” as well (i.e. TikTok shop is overrated or the College Football Playoffs are overrated, etc.)

Keep in mind that each school environment is different, so not all of the above ideas will be a good fit for each school. Plus, students might have ideas of their own as well.

For more argument writing activities, such as a March Madness style bracket, ​check out this resource!

​For more tips about teaching argument writing, check out this blog post!