Grade 6 - Perfection Learning

Developing Your Skills of Persuasion
“Writing comes more easily if you have something to say,” wrote novelist and dramatist
Sholem Asch. Perhaps for this reason, many people write to express their opinions and
persuade others. For example, a citizen may write to elected officials to persuade them to
support issues on which the citizen holds strong feelings. When you write a persuasive
paragraph, your goal is to persuade others to agree with you.
CHAPTER 10
1 Structure of a Persuasive Paragraph
A persuasive paragraph has three main parts: a topic sentence, a body of supporting
sentences, and a conclusion. The chart below shows how to make each part fulfill
its function.
Here’s
How
Structuring a Persuasive Paragraph
• In the topic sentence, you capture the audience’s attention, present the issue, and
express your opinion.
• In the body of supporting sentences, you present reasons, facts, examples, and expert
opinions to support your opinion, or thesis. You also present counter-arguments—
opposing views—and show why your ideas are better.
• In the concluding sentence, you present a summary or strong conclusive evidence—
logically drawn from the arguments—that drives home your thesis.
Model: Persuasive Paragraph
Young Athletes
Students who excel in a sport should get a good
education and not count on a career in sports. First of
all, very few people actually play sports professionally.
Second, even those lucky enough to become professionals
may not be able to play for long. An injury may cut their
careers short. Finally, even a healthy sports career does
not usually last an entire lifetime. A good education will
prepare an athlete for a rewarding job in place of or after
a sports career.
The first sentence
expresses the
opinion of the
writer. This is the
topic sentence.
The following
sentences give
reasons to support
the opinion.
The concluding
sentence sums
up the topic on a
strong note.
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Writing to Persuade