Persuasion

Persuasion

Planning for

Learning









Karen Yager & Penny Waters

Focus on learning

 What do I want my students to

learn?

 Why does it matter?

 What do they already know?

 How will they demonstrate

learning?

 How will they get there?

2010 Narrative 2011 Persuasive Text

1 Audience

2 Text Structure

3 Ideas

4 Persuasive Devices

5 Vocabulary

6 Cohesion

7 Paragraphing

8 Sentence Structure

9 Punctuation

10 Spelling

Improving Writing

To improve the quality of pupil writing:

 Explicitly and systematically teach the structure and

language demands of the writing task

 Focus on the sound, feel and power of words

 Focus on audience and purpose

 Explicitly teach the thinking processes involved in writing

 Immerse pupils in examples and exemplars of the

required style of writing

 Model, scaffold and jointly construct texts

 Use guided and independent practice

 Employ peer and self assessment and critical reflection

 Write with your pupils!

Confidence

 Creativity is innate yet starting

writing is not easy!

 ‘Just get black on white’

(Robert Gray, 2011).

 Fast write

 Beginning with observations,

chunks of writing, little

moments...a sentence a day!

 Jottings: Journal, notepad,

iPhone or wiki/blog

 12 words of conviction

 Twitter arguments

 50 word persuasion: Take

away the letter ‘e’

Confidence

 Simple to super sentences!

 Persuasive devices

 Word Clouds: Wordle and

Taxedo

 Master Chef persuasion

 Story Circle (Hot Potato

Debates)

 Hypotheticals

 Writing from experience

and conviction!

Craft

 Focussing on the sound,

look and feel of the

words…record writing

and really listen!

 Senses:

- Sound: Euphony,

discordance…the

vowels and consonants

- Sight: Figurative devices

- Feeling: Nuances

Craft

 Spotlighting: the word

and sentence level

- Lexical density

- Vocabulary

- Grammar

 Structure:

- Purpose and audience

- Form

- Syntax and

paragraphing

- Framing devices

Persuasive Devices

 Verbs are the powerhouse of

persuasion

 Effective figurative and sound

devices

 Colourful adverbs and

adjectives

 Modality

 Imperative voice

 Second person

 Hyperbole

 Analogy

 Visuword:

http://www.visuwords.com/

Grammar

 Recording written

work and listening

for the discordance.

 Online tools:

http://www.cybergra

mmar.co.uk/index.ph

p

 Grammies!

 Replacing adjectives

with verbs

‘Questions may be the most

powerful technology we have

ever created. Questions and

questioning allow us to make

sense of a confusing world.

They are the tools that lead to

insight and understanding’

Jamie McKenzie.

Hypothetical Questions

 Explore possibilities and test theories. These

are the “what would happen if…” questions,

allowing pupils to think critically and

creatively, and test their own convictions and

beliefs. E.g.

• What if the speaker had eliminated the

imperative verbs and anaphora?

• What if we had no Facebook?

• What are the possible pros and cons?

Synthesising

 Really listening to pupil

responses

 Identifying relationships

 Building on pupil

responses

 Connecting pupil

responses to make

meaning and emphasis

key points.

 This contrasts/compares

with…?

 What conclusion can we

draw from…?

Williams’ Model to develop Ideas

 Paradox: Paradoxes can be used to evaluate ideas and challenge pupils to

reason and find proof.

 Analogy: Find the similarities between things and compare one thing to

another.

 Discrepancy: Students should be challenged to discuss what is not known or

understood.

 Provocative questions: These are questions that require thoughtful

consideration to clarify meaning or develop new knowledge.

 Organised Random Search: Given a situation or body of knowledge, pupils

search for other information to answer questions such as, what would you

do or what would you have done?

 Tolerance for Ambiguity: Open-ended questions

 Intuitive Expression: Empathy questions

 Evaluative Situations: Evaluate solutions and answers in terms of their

consequences and implications — pose the question what if?

 Visualisation Skills: Provide opportunities for students to perceive or

visualise themselves in many contexts.

Langford’s 5

Whys

 Ask a question

 This leads to a

second question

 Ask three more

questions

 Probes and

deepens

understanding

 Thwarts

superficial

responses

Persuasion

 Stage 4 Year 7 Term 1

 Students will learn

about how words and

images can be used

persuasively to

manipulate and

position others.

 Cross curriculum

perspective of

Sustainability

 Naplan 2011

Persuasion

 Key learning ideas:

- The features of a persuasive

text

- The purpose of persuasive

texts

- How language features and

form can be used to

persuasively promote points

of view and position a

responder.

 Overarching question: How

and why do composers craft

texts that promote

persuasively points of view?

Assessment for and of Learning

 Nature of Task: The Australian Federal government has decided to be proactive in

targeting these vulnerable locations. They have devised an Australia wide

competition that invites proactive citizens to identify an environmentally significant

and vulnerable location, and present a persuasive argument as to why the Federal

Government should provide funding to ensure that this location is protected for the

future. You have been selected to represent your school to identify the special

location, predict a possible disaster and argue persuasively why the special place

you have chosen should be protected. Your presentation must include:

 A description of the unique place

 A prediction of one or more possible man-made or natural disasters.

 A persuasive case for why the place is special, and should be protected and

preserved for future generations.

 You can present your case using any medium of production such as:

 A power point, slide show or prezi with images and footage

 A podcast

 A print document such as: a poster, pamphlet or letter.

 Use your imagination and decide what medium would be the most effective and

persuasive vehicle for your argument!

Weeks 1-2

 Focus: What are the key features of

persuasive texts?

 Introduction to Persuasion

 Students view and analyse:

 Severn Suzuki’s speech delivered at UN

Earth Summit 1992 focusing on the

ideas and the purpose of the speech:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uZs

DliXzyAY

 The Green’s television advertisement

election campaign:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2gQ

VnIKDoOA

 EDF Energy Advertisements:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Xx3

Y5RV9YR4&feature=related ;

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=z7J

MBa6h7Eo&feature=related

Weeks 1-2

 Features of Persuasive Texts

 Students visit for Persuasion 101:

http://prezi.com/62290/

 Power of Verbs and the Imperative

Voice

 Persuasion in 30 seconds

 Students deliver a 30 second speech

presenting their point of view on the

merits of one vs. the other from the

following list:

 Solar power vs. electricity

 Cars vs. walking

 Book vs. Kindle

 Plastic bags vs. green bags

 Clothes dryer vs. Clothesline

 Polarised debates

 Class blog created as a platform or

Voicethread - http://voicethread.com/

Weeks 3 -4

 Focus: What is the purpose of

persuasive texts?

 Al Gore’s speech to Smith School

World Forum on Climate Change:

http://oxforddigital.tv/streaming/alg

ore0709.php

 ‘There will come Soft Rains’: Short

Story – Ray Bradbury & poem by

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=K

BtE4jS8J24&feature=related

 Bruce Dawe’s Poem ‘In the New

Landscape’

 Blog or Voicethread to discuss the

issue: ‘Global warming is a myth.’

 Persuasion map:

http://www.eduplace.com/graphicor

ganizer/pdf/persuasion.pdf

Weeks 3 -4

 To enhance vocabulary, students

use the online thesaurus:

Visuword:

http://www.visuwords.com/

 The Naplan marking criteria is to

be used to assess the exposition

– self and peer marking -

http://www.naplan.edu.au/writi

ng_2011_-_domains.html

 Impact of Emotive language and

Modality

 Cyber Grammar:

http://www.cybergrammar.co.u

k/index.php

Weeks 4-5

 Focus: How can language features

and form be used to persuasively

promote points of view and

position a responder?

 The Power of Rhetoric

 Point of view: The line of argument

and the supporting evidence

 Use of persuasive techniques

 Notes and discussion on the

features of effective rhetorical

speeches. Students could visit

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rheto

ric

 Assessment Task – ongoing

 http://prezi.com/bnvpgr4u8pnh/ca

pe-byron-symposium/

Exposition

 Timed introductions

where time allowed

decreases with each

response.

 What? Where? When?

Why? How?

 Comparison/Contrast

columns

 Hamburger

 Imperative voice,

anaphora, declarative

statements….

Exposition

 Editorial

 Letter to the Editor

 Advertisement

campaign

 Poster

 Symposia

 Nominalisation (actions

become things). E.g. ‘to

pollute’ becomes

‘pollution’, ‘destroy’

becomes ‘destruction’

Conviction

 Stage 5 Year 9 Term 1

 Students will learn about how

the convictions of composers

reflect their times and context ,

and shape meaning in texts.

 Question:

• How significant is our context in

the formation of our convictions

and the meaning we convey in

our texts?

 Key Ideas

• How context shapes convictions,

perspectives and ideas.

• How conviction shapes the use of

language, form and features.

Conviction

 Suggested texts:

 To Kill a Mocking Bird, 1984,

Ender’s Game, Night…

 Websites such as:

- Surfaid:

http://schools.surfaidinternation

al.org/

- Amnesty International:

http://www.amnesty.org.au/refu

gees/

 Protest poetry and songs:

http://www.ppu.org.uk/learn/po

etry/poetry_against.html

Weeks 1 - 2

 Significance of context

and convictions:

- 12 word exposition on a

burning issue

- 50-word narrative

- Extracts from a range of

texts

 Modality, imperative

voice and emotive

language

 Persuasive text - Naplan

Assessment

 Assessment for Learning

- 60 second presentation on

a burning issue

- Blog post or editorial

 Assessment of and as

learning:

- Imaginative text

- Critical analysis focused on

how context and

convictions shaped

meaning and language

choices

Weeks 3-6

 Close study of a text or

CTD a range of texts

- Focus on how meaning is

shaped by context and

convictions

 Imagery through

figurative devices

 Gaps and silences

 Assessment task: Text

with conviction and

personal evaluation

http://connectivity2

011.wikispaces.com/

Persuasion+-

+ETA+Conference