This document outlines a lesson plan to teach students how to write argumentative essays about environmental topics. The plan includes 7 sessions that cover distinguishing argumentative from persuasive texts, analyzing example essays, researching topics, designing surveys, writing draft essays, doing oral presentations, and creating an eco blog. The goal is for students to develop critical thinking and argumentation skills while learning vocabulary related to ecology. Sessions include class discussions, video watching, internet research, and project-based assignments to practice each step of writing an argumentative essay.

1. ‘‘How green are you?’How green are you?’
Teaching students how to write argumentative essays

2.  TARGET STUDENTS: 3ºESO
 SUBJECT: Ecology
 DIDACTIC OBJECTIVES:
- To distinguish between argumentative and persuasive texts.
- To analyse an example of an argumentative text.
- To study and apply the characteristics of argumentative texts.
- To know and make use of connectors and transition words.
- To be able to support arguments by showing corroborative evidence, in both written and oral
formats.
- To develop critical thinking.
- To learn vocabulary related to the environment.
- To create a blog to spread personal knowledge and suggestions.
 CROSS CURRICULAR TOPICS:
- Application of information technology.
- Enhancing the quality of learning, living and working through IT.
- Learning to learn/ ability to think critically.
- Environmental/ ecological education.
- Social/communicative skills/ reading/ speech.
“Understanding of and respect for argument is
essential to participation in a democratic society”

3. • CONTENTS
 Listening, speaking and communication
- Watching youtube videos and discussing about them.
- Reaching to agreements.
- Oral production of arguments.
- Oral presentation of written work.
 Language awareness
 Vocabulary:
- Environmentally friendly, green, environment, consumerism, consumers, climate
change, electric cars, conservation, natural resources, (non)renewable resources,
endangered species, disforestation, pollution, energy waste, recycle, reduce, reuse.
 Transition words:
- While I have shown that…other may say…; Opponents of this idea claim/maintain
that…; Those who disagree claim that…; While some people may disagree with this
idea…; However, ; Nonetheless, ;but ; On the other hand, ; After seeing this evidence, ;
Contrary to what they think, …

4.  Reading and writing
 Understanding argumentative texts.
 Creating an argumentative text.
 Elaboration of a survey.
 Completion of a multiple choice questionnaire.
• METHODOLOGY
- Project based learning.
- Student centred approach.
- Inquiry-based learning.
- Cooperative learning.

5.  SESSION 1
Presenting the topic
Warm-up: complete the following test on-line and share your answers with your classmates.
1. Do you switch off your TV/computer/sound system at the wall?
◦ a) Always.
◦ b) Mostly.
◦ c) Sometimes.
2. When you clean your teeth, do you let the water run?
◦ a) Yes.
◦ b) No!
◦ c) Sometimes.
3. Do you grow your own food at home?
◦ a) Yes – loads.
◦ b) Yes, some.
◦ c) No, not really.
4. How many of your home’s light bulbs are low energy ones?
◦ a) None / one or two.
◦ b) About half.
◦ c) All of them.

6. 5. How much of your household waste do you recycle?
◦ a) We put our bottles in the bottle bank.
◦ b) As much as we can.
◦ c) Most of what we can.
6. Do you have a wildlife friendly garden?
◦ a) We’ve got a bit of a wildlife corner, but it’s nothing special.
◦ b) I think we’ve got a bird box.
◦ c) We’ve got bird boxes, a wildlife area, a pond and loads of plants for bees and butterflies.
7. How did you travel to your last holiday?
◦ a) By boat or train.
◦ b) On foot or by bicycle.
◦ c) By air.
8. How do you get to school?
◦ a) Walk or cycle.
◦ b) School bus.
◦ c) Car.
9. Shower or bath?
◦ a) Bath.
◦ b) Shower.
◦ c) Don’t care.

7. 10. If you’re buying a present, which matters MOST to you ?
◦ a) Price.
◦ b) Was it made locally?
◦ c) Will the person I’m giving it to like it?
11. How do you think of wasps?
◦ a) If they avoid me, I’ll avoid them.
◦ b) A nuisance.
◦ c) An important part of the natural world.
12. How many times do you re-use the plastic bags shops give you?
◦ a) Once, maybe.
◦ b) Several times.
◦ c) I never take them; I always use my own bag.
* The answers the students choose are compared so as to draw inferences, for example:
- 23% of the students sometimes switch off their electric devices at the wall.
- 70% of the students travelled by air on their last holiday.
- 40% of the students reuse plastic bags once, maybe.
* Reflecting on the data that can be obtained from surveys or questionnaires helps students
realise how they can base their arguments on them. They are a reliable source of information.
SOURCE: http://www.ecofriendlykids.co.uk/how-green-are-you.html

8. Follow-up: Brainstorming.
What can be done to take care of the earth?
Ideas from the questionnaire plus new ones students come up with.
Task: Taking care of the Earth.
Reading comprehension and questions to answer (on the next slide).
SOURCE:
http://www.k12reader.com/reading-comprehension/Gr4_Wk36_Ecology_Taking_Care_of_Earth.pdf
Watching a video: Ecology is…
Commenting on what they have seen. This way students fully interiorise the topic and go getting
ready for the following stage.
VIDEO LINK: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Ac1UV30jt_U

10.  SESSION 2
Characteristics of argumentative essays
What is it? It is the type of essay where you prove your opinion, theory or hypothesis about an
issue to be right.
TASK: Work on the differences
between argumentative and
persuasive writing.
*Click on the circles on the right.
Characteristics:
1. The argument should be focused, expressed by a clear statement.
2. Research needs to be carried out so the evidence given is convincing.
3. It should be well structured.
4. The essay should be based on pros and cons (claims and counterarguments).
5. It should contain good transition words or phrases.
6. It should be aimed at a target audience.
7. It should not be repetitive.
8. It should be based on solid evidence.
“A good argument is one in which there is a tight fit between claims and facts.”
Further explained

11.  1. The argument should be focused, expressed by a clear statement. An easy way to come up
with a subject for the essay is to answer a controversial question. For example:
a) QUESTION : Is it important to be a conscious-shopper?
- ARGUMENT 1: People should care about how and were their purchases are manufactured.
VIDEO LINK: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=marSzh00sTI
b) QUESTION: Does recycling really make a difference?
- ARGUMENT 2: Sorting and recycling waste should be a must.
VIDEO LINK: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Jixu9zCF0a0
c) QUESTION: Do fines for environmental violations have any effect on people?
- ARGUMENT 3: Should all supermarkets charge for plastic bags in order to encourage the use
of reusable bags?
- How could be over-packaging stopped?
- If fined, everybody learns.
VIDEO LINKS:
https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PL_sG9fFQFF9rpmMvio1Cr5MwHeFSh1i7E
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sLvkYYSVjow
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9irBVdIiJW0

12. d) QUESTION: Should your city /school/family do more for the preservation of the
environment?
- ARGUMENT 4: People should use public transport more often.
VIDEO LINK: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bn8R_XqjjI0
* The links provided are videos students can watch so that they help them decide on a topic.
 2. Research needs to be carried out so the evidence given is convincing.
So as to gather solid evidence, surveys can be conducted or questionnaires can be designed
with the purpose of collecting data focused on the argument you want to defend.
These are titles of possible questionnaires in search of evidence for the arguments that were
mentioned before:
a) ARGUMENT 1: Are you an eco-conscious shopper?
b) ARGUMENT 2: Do you sort out rubbish properly?
c) ARGUMENT 3: Do you respect the environment?
d) ARGUMENT 4: How do you help the environment?

13.  3. It should be well structured.
a) INTRODUCTION
PURPOSE: to set up and state one’s claim.
Tips: make it interesting, consider if the audience need background information to understand
your claim, use rhetorical questions to force the reader picture the idea you want to
transmit.
Requirements: provide a brief explanation of your issue or theory and state your claim at
the end of the paragraph.
b) SUPPORTING EVIDENCE PARAGRAPH 1: (from 1 to 3 paragraphs)
PURPOSE: to prove your arguments.
Argument 1: State you topic sentence. Give examples or fact that will help your readers
understand your claim. Explain some evidence (I have many convincing reasons to support
my opinion; To understand this issue, we first need to look to statistics; According to a
survey/experts; In line with my research). End your paragraph with a concluding sentence.
Topic sentence: tells what the rest of the paragraph is about. All sentences after it have to
give more information about it, prove it by offering facts, descriptions, evidence.

14. c) COUNTERARGUMENT PARAGRAPH 1: (from 1 to 2 paragraphs)
PURPOSE: to anticipate your readers objections. What possible argument might your reader
pose against your argument or some aspects of your reasoning? Insert one or two of those
arguments and refute them. End the paragraph with a concluding sentence that
reasserts your paper’s claim as a whole.
Counterargument: fact you use to show that the opposing argument is not valid.
d) CONCLUSION:
PURPOSE: to illustrate that you have thought critically and analytically about the issue.
Restate your opinion. It determines the reader’s final impression of your essay. Use vivid and
concrete language. Call readers’ attention
GENERAL TIPS!!
1. Use present tense to talk about general truths.
2. Past tense may be used when using as evidence incidents
that are already over.
3. Use words of belief to show you strongly believe in what you are
writing (I am convinced, definitely, certainly, I am certain, surely, etc.)
4. Use emotive words to bring out some feelings in the readers.

15.  TASK: Identify the coloured elements in the following argumentative essay.
QUESTION Should people recycle or not?
INTRODUCTION
Do you think people should recycle or not? All around the world people throw things in to
dumpsters that are heading for landfills each day. If we don’t recycle each day the
landfills will be filled by 2015.
SUPPORTING EVIDENCE PARAGRAPH 1
If we do recycle there will be more trees around the world. Living things will have a
suitable place to live. Recycling causes the environment to have less pollution and
more oxygen. The human species will last longer.
SUPPORTING EVIDENCE PARAGRAPH 2
Trash is all over the world. We should recycle to cut down on trash and use less
energy. Recycling tin or different metals saves 74% of the energy used to make
them. If we recycle we are helping are plants animals and environments.
COUNTERARGUMENT PARAGRAPH 1
Many people do not recycle. That is hurting many things in our environment
like, water, animals, plants and even the air. If we start now we can save the
world from being covered in garbage. So we should recycle at least a little.

16. COUNTERARGUMENT PARAGRAPH 2
Not all people agree with recycling. 63% of Americans do not recycle. Some people
even think it is a waste time and money but, is not really.
CONCLUSION
It takes one person to make it happen, that person could be you if you recycle.
Please help your world.
* The students are given a copy without the colours. They should identify and highlight/colour
the parts of the text that are mentioned in the theory.
KEY
Rhetorical question
Claim
Topic sentence
Counterargument
Example/evidence
Refutation
Concluding sentence
Calling readers’ attention

17.  SESSION 3
Searching for evidence to support an argument
TASK: Do your own survey related to conserving Earth’s resources.
Students separate into groups according to the subject they have chosen to develop/the
question they have chosen to answer.
SOURCE: http://www.ecofriendlykids.co.uk/do-your-own-energy-survey.html
By following the structure of the questionnaire, students design their own one in groups.
* Another video to inspire them: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VPtKOrwf1h0
 SESSION 4
Surfing the internet in search of more evidence
TASK: Searching for information on the internet.
With the help of the youtube links provided in session 2, students search for more trustworthy
information in order to show supportive evidence for the arguments and examples the give.

18.  SESSION 5
Writing
TASK: Write your argumentative essay.
Once they all have collected enough data for their essays, the students should be ready to
write their own essay.
 SESSION 6
Oral presentation
TASK: Do an oral presentation of the fulfilled work.
In order to develop their argumentative speaking skills, students then do an oral presentation
of the topic they chose. They can explain the steps they followed and the conclusions they
reached to. Also, the arguments they gave and the evidence they found to support them.

19.  SESSION 7
Starting an eco blog
TASK: Create an eco blog using ‘Blogger’.
Working in the groups previously formed, students create an eco blog were the can post their
argumentative essays, share interesting videos related to the topic, offer suggestions to
take care of the environment, etc.
SOURCE: http://www.ecofriendlykids.co.uk/starting-your-own-eco-blog.html
 BIBLIOGRAPHY
Genome, D. Academic writing guides. Retrieved February 3, 2015 from
http://darwingenome.info/argumentative-research-papers-writing-guide-right-for-you
Hillocks, G. (2010). Teaching argument for critical thinking and writing: An
introduction. English Journal 99(6): 24-32.
Hillocks, G. (2011) Teaching argument writing, grades 6–12 : supporting claims with
relevant evidence and clear reasoning. Retrieved February, 3, 2015 from
http://www.heinemann.com/shared/onlineresources/e01396/introandchapter1.pdf