Rant And Persuasion Unit Assignment

Argument and Persuasion Unit Assignment: Rant
Now that we have studied and practiced making persuasive arguments, it is time to apply your knowledge by crafting an argument of your own. Your argument will take the form of a rant, and will be presented to the class.

Step One: Writing

rant (noun):

1. A loud, extravagant declamation (speech) expressed with strong emotion.

To make things even more interesting, use the RAFT “formula” for writing your rant:

Role: chosen by you
Audience: our class
Format: rant
Topic: chosen by you

To write your rant, follow these steps:
Select a topic that you feel passionately about. It will be difficult to express your argument with strong emotion if you don’t really care about
what you are saying. For best results, choose a topic that you already know something about, or have experience with. Brainstorm a broad argument you want to make about that topic.
Research your topic.
Rants aren’t all about emotion – every argument needs specific facts to be truly convincing. Adjust your overall argument, and develop your supports based on the information you gather in your research.
Choose your role. Your role should be creative and should be chosen based on who (or what) would present your argument most convincingly. For example, if your topic is cruelty against animals, and your argument is that keeping animals in zoos should be banned, you’re probably not going to take on the role of a zookeeper. However, writing as an animal living in the zoo could be very
persuasive.
Write. Your rant should state your thesis first, then provide supporting arguments with evidence. Make sure you have at least one peer read your rant over and give you feedback. Have your peer look for weaknesses in your argument, as well as grammatical errors.

Step Two: Presenting rant (verb):
1. To talk in a noisy, excited, wild or vehement manner.

After your rant has been written, you will present it to the class:

Practice. You should know your argument well enough that you don’t have to read it from a piece of paper. You need to be able to make consistent eye contact and use gesture and expression to help convince your audience of your argument’s validity – and you can’t do that if you spend all your time facing a sheet of notes.
Time yourself. Your rant should be 3-5 minutes long. Do not go over the time limit – rants should be brief, to avoid losing the audience’s attention.
Present! Speak clearly and confidently. The definition of rant may include words like “loud” and “wild”, but you shouldn’t get up and yell your speech. Instead, alter your voice to create mood and to emphasize key points.

Audience Task

As the final part of this assignment, your task as an audience member will be to provide feedback to three of your peers:

Your teacher will randomly assign three speakers for whom you will provide feedback.
As well as providing feedback, you must record the speaker’s thesis, so listen carefully!
Your feedback should be descriptive and specific. Don’t write vague overall comments like “Good job!” or “Very convincing!” Instead, write specifically what you thought the speaker did well, or how they convinced you.
Consider the criteria on the assignment rubric when writing your feedback – how well did the speaker meet the criteria?
Your comments should include at least one strength, one area for improvement, and one next step. For example: “Your overall argument was creative, and you chose compelling evidence to back it up. You could have made better use of eye contact, expression, and gesture to further engage your audience. Next time, try practicing more before you present. You could try rehearsing in front of a mirror so you can see your use of gesture and expression as you speak.”
You will hand your comments in to your teacher, who will assess your listening skills based on your correct identification of the speaker’s thesis and your feedback for
him/her.