Overview

Lesson Procedure

65-70 minutes of class time across 5 phases.

1. Warm-Up10 minutes
2. Direct Instruction20 minutes
3. Guided Practice15 minutes
4. Independent Practice15 minutes
5. Closure5-10 minutes

1. Warm-Up10 minutes

   Project two short arguments for the same claim and ask students to decide which is stronger before any vocabulary is introduced.

   Warm-Up Prompt

   "(1) The city should paint a crosswalk at Pine and Fifth. Six cars hit pedestrians or cyclists at that corner last year, and the city traffic engineer recommends a crosswalk there. (2) The city should paint a crosswalk at Pine and Fifth. Everyone I talked to wants one, and anybody who is against it just doesn't care about kids. Which argument is stronger, and why? Point to the exact words that make the difference."

   Collect answers. Students usually prefer the first argument; push them to say why in specific terms. Record their words on the board and translate them: "it has real facts" becomes relevant evidence; "the second one just insults people" becomes fallacious reasoning (an attack on the people who disagree). Tell students that RI.9-10.8 gives them the vocabulary to make these judgments precisely.

2. Direct Instruction20 minutes

   Part 1: The vocabulary. Introduce the terms with the table below. Stress two distinctions: validity is about the link between reasons and claim, not about whether the reasons are true; and a false statement is a problem of fact, while a fallacy is a problem of reasoning.

   Terms for delineating and evaluating an argument

   Term	What it means	Question to ask
   Argument	A claim together with the reasons and evidence offered for it	What is the writer trying to get me to believe or do?
   Claim	The position the writer defends; an argument may also make smaller specific claims	Could someone reasonably disagree with it?
   Reason	A statement offered to show why the claim is true	What "because" does the writer give?
   Evidence	Facts, data, examples, quotations or expert views offered to support a reason	Where did this information come from?
   Valid reasoning	If the reasons are true, the claim must follow (a valid argument with true premises is also called sound)	Is there a gap between the reasons and the claim?
   Relevant evidence	Evidence that is about this claim	Would this still matter if the topic were different?
   Sufficient evidence	Enough evidence, of enough quality, to support the size of the claim	Would one more fact easily overturn it?
   False statement	A factual claim that can be checked and is wrong	What does the text itself, or a reliable source, say?
   Fallacious reasoning	A step that looks like reasoning but does not support the claim	Which fallacy pattern does this step fit?

   Part 2: Common fallacies. Walk through the fallacy table. Ask students to invent one more example for any two rows.

   Common fallacies with examples

   Fallacy	What it does	Example
   Ad hominem	Attacks the person instead of the argument	"Ignore her plan for the bus routes; she failed her driving test twice."
   Straw man	Answers a weaker or distorted version of the other side	"My opponent wants a shorter lunch, so she must think students do not deserve to eat."
   False dilemma	Offers two options when more exist	"Either we ban phones in class or we accept that nobody will learn anything."
   Slippery slope	Claims one step will lead to extreme results without showing each link	"If one club skips the fundraiser, soon no club will raise money at all."
   Hasty generalization	Draws a broad conclusion from too few cases	"The two freshmen I met at the game were rude, so the freshman class is rude."
   Bandwagon	Says a claim is true because many people accept it	"Thousands of people bought this supplement, so it must work."
   Circular reasoning	Uses the conclusion as its own reason	"This is the best book of the year because no other book this year is as good."
   False cause	Assumes that because B followed A, A caused B	"The mall opened in May and more people caught colds in June, so the mall spread the colds."
   Red herring	Changes the subject to avoid the issue	"Why worry about the leaking roof when the parking lot needs repainting?"

   Part 3: Model with Paine. Read the Paine excerpt aloud. Explain that in January 1776 many colonists still hoped to reconcile with Britain, and Paine is answering their reasons one at a time. Model the four questions from Diagram 2 on the first paragraph, then use Diagram 1 to show the whole argument map. Worked examples 1 and 2 come from this passage; examples 3-5 preview the letter students analyze next.

   I have heard it asserted by some, that as America hath flourished under her former connexion with Great-Britain, that the same connexion is necessary towards her future happiness, and will always have the same effect. Nothing can be more fallacious than this kind of argument. We may as well assert that because a child has thrived upon milk, that it is never to have meat, or that the first twenty years of our lives is to become a precedent for the next twenty. But even this is admitting more than is true, for I answer roundly, that America would have flourished as much, and probably much more, had no European power had any thing to do with her. The commerce, by which she hath enriched herself are the necessaries of life, and will always have a market while eating is the custom of Europe.

   But she has protected us, say some. That she has engrossed us is true, and defended the continent at our expence as well as her own is admitted, and she would have defended Turkey from the same motive, viz. the sake of trade and dominion.

   Alas, we have been long led away by ancient prejudices, and made large sacrifices to superstition. We have boasted the protection of Great-Britain, without considering, that her motive was interest not attachment; that she did not protect us from our enemies on our account, but from her enemies on her own account, from those who had no quarrel with us on any other account, and who will always be our enemies on the same account. Let Britain wave her pretensions to the continent, or the continent throw off the dependance, and we should be at peace with France and Spain were they at war with Britain. The miseries of Hanover last war ought to warn us against connexions.

   • Delineating the argument (Paine)

     In paragraph 1, separate the argument Paine is answering from his own claim and reason.

     Result: Opposing claim: because America flourished under Britain, the connection is necessary for its future. Paine's claim: "Nothing can be more fallacious than this kind of argument." His reason: past conditions do not decide the future, shown by the analogy of a child who "has thrived upon milk" but still needs meat.

   • Testing the reasoning (Paine)

     Paragraph 2 answers "But she has protected us, say some" by saying Britain "would have defended Turkey from the same motive."

     Result: Paine accepts the fact (Britain defended the colonies) but rejects the unstated premise that protection proves attachment, so the loyalty conclusion does not follow. He attacks a hidden premise, not the evidence. Whether his own claim about Britain's motive is true needs its own evidence.

   • Relevant or irrelevant evidence (letter)

     Hollis supports "there is no reason to let them sleep later" with his grandfather, who rose at 5:00, walked two miles to school and lived to 94.

     Result: Irrelevant: one man's habits and lifespan say nothing about how much sleep teenagers need or how start times affect today's students.

   • Relevant but not sufficient (letter)

     Hollis cites Coach Ramos: with an 8:30 start, some practices would end after dark in December and January.

     Result: Relevant, because it is about how the change affects sports. Not sufficient for "hurt after-school sports": one source, two months, and no look at fixes such as field lights, indoor practice or earlier weekend practices.

   • False statement (letter)

     Hollis writes that 212 of the 540 families who answered oppose the change and calls this "a clear majority."

     Result: False by the letter's own numbers: 212/540 is about 39 percent, less than half. A careful writer could say "a large minority."

3. Guided Practice15 minutes

   Hand out the letter to the editor below. Students highlight the claim in one color, reasons in a second and evidence in a third. Work through the first two reasons together (examples 3 and 5 above), then let pairs finish the letter using the four questions in Diagram 2. Tell students the letter and the town are invented for practice, and that every paragraph after the first contains at least one problem.

   To the Editor:

   The Lakeview school board wants to move the high school start time from 7:30 to 8:30 next fall. I urge the board to vote no.

   First, families do not want this change. The district's own survey shows it: of the 540 families who answered, 212 said they oppose the later start. That is a clear majority.

   Second, teenagers need less sleep than adults do, so there is no reason to let them sleep later. My grandfather got up at 5:00 every morning of his life, walked two miles to school, and lived to 94.

   Third, a later start would hurt after-school sports. Coach Ramos told me that with an 8:30 start, some practices would end after dark in December and January.

   Fourth, if we give in and start at 8:30 this year, students will ask for 9:30 next year, and before long the school day will not start until noon.

   We should also remember who is pushing this plan: the same board members who could not balance last year's budget. Why would we trust them with our children's mornings?

   The choice is simple. Either we keep the 7:30 start, or we give up on after-school sports.

   Every school I attended started at 7:30, and so does every school my neighbors' children attend. The early start works. Vote no.

   Pat Hollis, Lakeview

   Debrief as a class and build the map on the board. Expected findings: the survey claim is false (39 percent is not a majority); "teenagers need less sleep than adults" is false (sleep medicine guidelines recommend more sleep for teens than for adults; see the Activity 3 fact sheet); the grandfather is irrelevant evidence; the coach is relevant but insufficient; the 9:30-then-noon chain is a slippery slope; the budget attack is ad hominem; "either ... or" is a false dilemma; "every school I attended" is a hasty generalization that also leans on what is familiar. Ask: Is any part of the letter worth keeping? (Yes: the sports concern is real and could be researched.)

4. Independent Practice15 minutes

   Students read the city council speech below on their own, then answer quiz questions 1-12 with the passage open. The speech and the city are invented. Remind students to quote the words that support each answer. Students who finish early write one paragraph that delineates the speech: claim, reasons with paragraph numbers, and the evidence for each reason.

   Good evening. My name is Marisol Vega, and I have lived on Elm Street for eleven years. I am asking the council to turn the city-owned parking lot at Elm and Third into a community garden.

   First, the lot is not needed for parking. Last spring the city counted the cars in the lot every weekday and every Saturday for four weeks. The weekday average was 9 cars in the lot's 60 spaces. The highest count on any single day was 14, on a Saturday. So even on the busiest day counted, more than three quarters of the spaces sat empty.

   Second, a garden would feed people. The Maple Avenue garden across town grew about 1,800 pounds of vegetables last year on a lot half this size, and its volunteers gave most of that food to the Riverton food pantry. If Maple Avenue can do it, so can we.

   Third, gardens make neighborhoods safer. My cousin lives near a garden in Oakdale, and she says her street has been quieter since it opened. Every neighborhood with a garden is a safer neighborhood.

   Some people say the garden will cost too much. But the people saying that are the same people who park here for free so they don't have to pay at the downtown garage, so their opinion should not count.

   Others say we should study the idea for another year. We have a simple choice: build the garden this spring, or let this lot sit empty and ugly forever.

   The cost is small. Building the beds, a fence and a water line would cost about $24,000. That is less than half of 1 percent of the $3.1 million the city spends on parks each year.

   Finally, a garden is the right choice for Elm Street because it is what is best for our neighborhood.

   I ask you to vote yes in April. Thank you.

5. Closure5-10 minutes

   Exit ticket: "Our school should drop the uniform policy. Uniforms cost families money, and a student at my old school told me uniforms made her feel invisible. Anyone who supports uniforms just wants students to be boring." Students name (1) the claim, (2) one reason whose evidence is relevant but insufficient, and (3) the fallacy in the last sentence. (Answers: the claim is that the school should drop the policy; the single student's report is relevant but insufficient; the last sentence is a straw man, because it replaces the other side's real reasons with a silly one.)

   Homework passage. Introduce Susan B. Anthony's argument, which students analyze for homework. Anthony voted in the 1872 presidential election, was arrested, and gave this speech in dozens of towns before her 1873 trial. She argues from the words of the Fourteenth Amendment. Point out that the passage uses the words of 1873, including "negroes," a term that was common then but is outdated and offensive today. Read it as printed, since it is Anthony's own word, and use "Black Americans" or "Black men" in discussion. Point out also that her quotations were chosen to support her side, which the homework asks students to test. In the printed original, paragraphs 2 and 4 (the Fourteenth Amendment) and paragraph 7 (Justice Washington) are set off as indented quotations; they are not Anthony's own words.

   But, whatever room there was for a doubt, under the old regime, the adoption of the XIV. Amendment settled that question forever, in its first sentence:

   All persons born or naturalized in the United States and subject to the jurisdiction thereof, are citizens of the United States and of the State wherein they reside.

   And the second settles the equal status of all persons—all citizens:

   No State shall make or enforce any law which shall abridge the privileges or immunities of citizens; nor shall any State deprive any person of life, liberty or property, without due process of law, nor deny to any person within its jurisdiction the equal protection of the laws.

   The only question left to be settled now, is: Are women persons? And I hardly believe any of our opponents will have the hardihood to say they are not. Being persons, then, women are citizens, and no State has a right to make any new law, or to enforce any old law, that shall abridge their privileges or immunities. Hence, every discrimination against women in the constitutions and laws of the several States, is to-day null and void, precisely as is every one against negroes. Is the right to vote one of the privileges or immunities of citizens? I think the disfranchised ex-rebels, and the ex-state prisoners will all agree with me, that it is not only one of them, but the one without which all the others are nothing. Seek first the kingdom of the ballot, and all things else shall be given thee, is the political injunction.

   Webster, Worcester and Bouvier all define citizen to be a person, in the United States, entitled to vote and hold office. And prior to the adoption of the XIII. Amendment, by which slavery was forever abolished, and black men transformed from property to persons, the judicial opinions of the country had always been in harmony with these definitions. To be a person was to be a citizen, and to be a citizen was to be a voter. Associate Justice Washington, in defining the privileges and immunities of the citizen, more than fifty years ago, said:

   They included all such privileges as were fundamental in their nature. And among them is the right to exercise the elective franchise and to hold office.

Differentiation Strategies

Assessment Guidance

1. Question 1 of 20 · Multiple Choice

   In the Elm Street speech, what is Marisol Vega's central claim?

   AThe council should study the Elm Street lot for another year BThe Maple Avenue garden should give more food to the pantry CThe city should turn the parking lot at Elm and Third into a community garden DThe city should spend less of its budget on parks

2. Question 2 of 20 · Multiple Choice

   Which evidence does Vega give for her reason that "the lot is not needed for parking"?

   AThe city's four-week count, in which the highest single-day count was 14 cars in 60 spaces BThe 1,800 pounds of vegetables grown on Maple Avenue CHer cousin's report that her street in Oakdale is quieter DThe estimate that the garden would cost about $24,000

3. Question 3 of 20 · Multiple Choice

   Paragraph 2 says that "even on the busiest day counted, more than three quarters of the spaces sat empty." Is that statement accurate according to the speech's own numbers?

   ANo: only 14 of the 60 spaces, about 23 percent, were empty BYes: 46 of 60 spaces, about 77 percent, were empty on the busiest day CNo: 14 cars is more than a quarter of 60, so fewer than three quarters were empty DIt cannot be checked, because the speech gives only averages

4. Question 4 of 20 · Multiple Choice

   Paragraph 3 argues that a garden on Elm Street "would feed people" because the Maple Avenue garden grew about 1,800 pounds of vegetables. What is the main weakness of this evidence?

   AIt is irrelevant, because Maple Avenue is in a different part of town BIt is a false statement, because a smaller lot could not grow 1,800 pounds CIt is circular, because the word "garden" appears in both the claim and the evidence DIt is one comparison, and the speech does not show that Elm Street would have similar soil, sunlight or volunteers

5. Question 5 of 20 · Multiple Choice

   Paragraph 4 moves from one cousin's report about her street to "Every neighborhood with a garden is a safer neighborhood." Which fallacy is this?

   AHasty generalization BSlippery slope CAd hominem DCircular reasoning

6. Question 6 of 20 · Multiple Choice

   Paragraph 5 answers the objection that "the garden will cost too much." What is wrong with the answer?

   AIt is a straw man, because it exaggerates the cost BIt is bandwagon reasoning, because it says everyone agrees CIt is a false cause, because it blames the downtown garage DIt is ad hominem: it attacks the people who object instead of the cost argument

7. Question 7 of 20 · Multiple Choice

   "We have a simple choice: build the garden this spring, or let this lot sit empty and ugly forever." Why is this reasoning fallacious?

   AIt is a hasty generalization from one lot BIt attacks the council members personally CIt is a false dilemma: it ignores other options, such as studying the idea and building later or using the lot another way DIt is circular, because "empty" and "ugly" mean the same thing

8. Question 8 of 20 · Multiple Choice

   Which statement in the speech is false according to the speech's own numbers?

   A"More than three quarters of the spaces sat empty" on the busiest day BThe $24,000 cost "is less than half of 1 percent" of the $3.1 million parks budget CThe city counted cars "every weekday and every Saturday for four weeks" DThe weekday average was "9 cars in the lot's 60 spaces"

9. Question 9 of 20 · Multiple Choice

   "A garden is the right choice for Elm Street because it is what is best for our neighborhood." What is the problem with this sentence?

   AIt is circular reasoning: the reason restates the claim in other words BIt is a slippery slope about the future of the neighborhood CIt is a false statement that the numbers in the speech disprove DIt is irrelevant evidence taken from another city

10. Question 10 of 20 · Multiple Choice

    Which of Vega's reasons is best supported by relevant and sufficient evidence?

    AGardens make neighborhoods safer (paragraph 4) BThe cost is small (paragraph 7) CThe lot is not needed for parking (paragraph 2) DA garden is the right choice for Elm Street (paragraph 8)

11. Question 11 of 20 · Short Answer

    Delineate Vega's argument. State her central claim, then list each reason she gives, with its paragraph number. Which paragraphs respond to objections instead of giving new reasons?

    Show model answer

12. Question 12 of 20 · Multiple Choice

    Paragraph 2 reasons from four spring weeks of counts to "the lot is not needed for parking." Which unstated assumption must be true for that reasoning to work?

    AA garden would bring more visitors than the lot does now BParking demand in those four spring weeks is typical of the rest of the year CThe Maple Avenue garden is run by skilled volunteers DThe people who park in the lot come from other towns

13. Question 13 of 20 · Multiple Choice

    Which argument is valid, meaning that if its premises are true, its conclusion must be true?

    AAll ninth graders take biology. Jordan takes biology. So Jordan is a ninth grader. BIf the pool is open, a lifeguard is on duty. A lifeguard is on duty. So the pool is open. CIf the pool is open, a lifeguard is on duty. No lifeguard is on duty. So the pool is not open. DSome runners are swimmers. Some swimmers are cyclists. So some runners are cyclists.

14. Question 14 of 20 · Multiple Choice

    An argument's conclusion follows logically from its premises, but one premise is false. How should a reader describe it?

    AInvalid, because a false premise breaks the logic BSound, because the logic works CFallacious, because every false statement is a fallacy DValid but not sound: the logic holds, but the argument fails because a premise is false

15. Question 15 of 20 · Short Answer

    Paragraph 7 says the cost of the garden "is small." Setting the percentage comparison aside, is the evidence sufficient to show that the garden is affordable? What information is missing?

    Show model answer

16. Question 16 of 20 · Short Answer

    Suppose a council member checks the city's records and finds one Saturday with 31 cars in the lot. Which sentence in paragraph 2 becomes false, and does Vega's reason that "the lot is not needed for parking" still hold?

    Show model answer

17. Question 17 of 20 · Short Answer

    Give an overall evaluation of the speech. Name Vega's strongest reason and her weakest reason, explain each using the words valid, relevant or sufficient, and say whether the speech as a whole should persuade the council.

    Show model answer

18. Question 18 of 20 · Multiple Choice

    "Ever since the school painted the gym blue, our volleyball team has won more games. The new color must be helping." Which fallacy is this?

    AFalse cause: it assumes that because one thing came first, it caused the other BHasty generalization CRed herring DBandwagon

19. Question 19 of 20 · Multiple Choice

    Which of these is a false statement rather than an opinion?

    ACommunity gardens are the best use of empty city land. BThe Declaration of Independence was signed in 1812. CThomas Paine's argument in Common Sense is more convincing than Susan B. Anthony's. DEvery city should build more parks.

20. Question 20 of 20 · Short Answer

    Paragraph 4 claims that "Every neighborhood with a garden is a safer neighborhood." Rewrite the claim so that it is careful enough to defend, and describe evidence that would be relevant and sufficient to support your version.

    Show model answer

These standards connect to RI.9-10.8: prerequisites to review first, parallel standards at the same level, and next steps that build on it.

Standard text: Common Core State Standards for English Language Arts & Literacy. © Copyright 2010. National Governors Association Center for Best Practices and Council of Chief State School Officers. All rights reserved.