A must-have resource for classes that engage in debate, this packet contains 20 detailed plans for debate games and activities. Everything from how to select evidence to support a position, to structuring a debate on which candy bar is...

Students examine and discuss the concept of stage fright. They demonstrate positive debate techniques, constructively critique other speakers, and implement debate techniques for a practice debate.

Sometimes the hardest thing about an argument essay writing assignment is coming up with a question. A four-page list of prompts includes a range of topics, from social media and smart phones to video games and sports. The list is a...

Grab a debatable (or controversial) moment from your current reading, and use this task to progress the persuasive writing skills of your high school scholars. Divide your learners into four small groups and let them collaborate, debate,...

Should college admissions decisions be based on whether whose family members attended? Secondary students read and respond to a New York Times article on the issue of 'legacy preferences' in college admissions. Following class...

A blood sucking what? Grade schoolers identify the characteristics of blood sucking parasites. They organize their information, identify their arguments, and present them to the class in persuasive arguments. They participate in a debate...

Middle schoolers debate one another. In this pollution lesson, pupils work in teams to debate which is more serious, air or water pollution. They research their topic to come up with valid points to justify their side of the debate.

Consider the possibility of a new U.S. draft with this lesson, which encourages class debate and persuasive arguments. Middle and high schoolers discuss how such a draft might be enacted and how they would feel about it. They write...

There are some historical events that may warrant greater reflection and more in-depth analysis, and the decision to intern Japanese-Americans in the United States during World War II, as well as to drop the atomic bomb on Hiroshima and...

Get your junior high writers stimulated with the strategies and ideas available in this activity. Learners discuss and debate controversial subjects, and outline their reasons with an online graphic organizer (link included) that creates...

An excellent, in-depth resource would be an asset to your unit on writing an argument essay. It provides an explanation to each part of the essay as well as examples of transition words to strengthen your kids' writing. Additionally, the...

After viewing the documentary The Last Roundup, a documentary about the transitioning of Santa Rosa from a privately own island to a National Park, class members debate the takings clause of the Fifth Amendment that permits the...

Pupils, in groups, work together to develop a five-paragraph essay that defends the group's viewpoint on an assigned topic. Each student in the group writes one paragraph.

Students examine the basic elements and vocabulary of debating. They research an issue and write a letter to the editor of the local newspaper, and role-play a Parliamentary debate on a particular bill.

In a mock senate hearing regarding the development of ethanol as a fuel source, each person in the class is assigned a role to play and must uphold the stance of their character. Once the senate hearing is complete, each person writes a...

Each presidential election year, the debate about the electoral college rages. Michael C. Maibach's "A Defense of the Electoral College" offers young political scientists an opportunity to examine a reasoned argument for why the...

Class groups investigate the economic and political implications of a country's policies on genetically modified foods, craft a position paper detailing that policy, and share their findings with the class. Armed with this...

High schoolers examine the pros and cons of the implementation of public policy matters and the specific issue of dress codes. They develop a list of pros and cons of a school dress code, examine and discuss a local editorial newspaper...

Help your class explore the question "Is it ever right to disobey a law?" With a strong base of knowledge about the Civil War, anti-slavery movement, and Underground Railroad, your class explores civil disobedience in Marshall, Michigan...

After class members brainstorm a list of current social and political issues, groups each select a different topic from the list to research. Teams create a portfolio of at least 10 examples of stories about their issue, stories that...

To better understand the debate over the 19th Amendment, class members examine two primary source documents that reveal some of the social, economic, racial, and political realities of the time period.

"Warning: Conducting this lesson may be harmful." Such statements, called "Trigger Warnings," are the focus of a two-part lesson that looks at censorship, especially the pros and cons of trigger warnings. Class members read two articles,...

Is a college education necessary for success in today's world? The class investigates the question, along with others at the end of the sixth workshop in a 15-part series. The lesson has four parts with multiple activities and...

Seventh graders explore persuasive writing using the city life and the country life as focus topics. In this persuasion lesson, 7th graders read "The Town Mouse and the Country Mouse" in an attempt to determine the pros and cons of both...