Writing an Argumentative Claim or Thesis Statement: Lesson and Activities

The thesis statement or argumentative claim is the backbone of solid writing! If your students' claims are lacking in confidence, knowledge, clarity, or formality, this mini unit is what you need!

This thesis statement (argumentative claim) lesson focuses specifically on writing solid, effective thesis statements for argumentative essays. I use it as part of the pre-writing process as students are researching their topic.

ARGUMENTATIVE CLAIM / THESIS STATEMENT MINI UNIT CONTENTS:

*This mini unit uses the term "claim" because that is what corresponds with Common Core Standards for argumentative writing. However, it is 100% editable, so if you want to change the terminology, you will be able to do so.

1. A 29 slide presentation that covers the purpose of a thesis statement, the difference between a thesis and topic as well as between a thesis and topic sentence, common claim writing mistakes, and "Your Turn!" exercises for students.
2. 20 task cards that include a variety of complexity levels. Students will evaluate claims, revise claims, identify characteristics of strong and weak claims, and write claims.
3. 3 practice worksheets to reinforce the material in the slideshow. Students will practice evaluating weak thesis statements and writing strong ones. They will also work on turning a broad topic into a more specific claim because students often confuse the two.
4. 1 claim game, which is an informal game that can be played as a whole class or in small groups. The purpose is to allow students fun repetition in creating argumentative claim statements for different topics.
5. 3 graphic organizers to help students begin brainstorming for their own claims and supporting reasons.
6. A suggested lesson and teaching guide.
7. Answer keys for all activities as well as slide notes for the Your Turn! questions in the direct instruction slideshow

If you want to make sure your students are thoroughly prepared to write strong argumentative claims / thesis statements, use this lesson and activities.

Please note: This lesson is not intended for literary analysis essays. The examples and tips included were created for argumentative, persuasive, and debate-style topics.

If used according to the suggestions provided, this lesson should take approximately 4 days (with 45 minute class periods). Time may vary depending on the length of your discussions. However, because this resource is 100% editable, you can tweak anything you would like to make it fit your time frame.

These teaching resources are perfect for grades 7 through 10 and should especially resonate with struggling writers. The explanations and examples are simple and clear so as not to add unnecessary frustration.

THIS RESOURCE IS ALSO INCLUDED IN A LARGER ARGUMENTATIVE WRITING BUNDLE FOR GRADES 7-12.

Looking for additional writing tools to add to your repertoire? Find these in my store:

• Writing Pre-Assessment
• Color-Coded Essay Graphic Organizer
• Embedding Quotations in Research Papers MLA Practice
• The Writing Games! Engaging MLA Research and Writing Skills Dice Game
• Plagiarism Minilesson

And more here!

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