Counterclaims

Writing Workshop - Research Based Argument Essay - Self Selected Topic - Lesson 3

Today, you will be able to strengthen your claim by including evidence supporting the opposing viewpoint and then offering a rebuttal. You will continue to do research and add more evidence keeping a focus on what you can use as a counterclaim.

Writers strengthen a claim and show how knowledgeable they are by anticipating and mentioning the ideas that people raise when challenging the writer's argument.

when someone comes up with evidence that doesn't seem to go with your claim, you have to show that your opponent's spin on the evidence isn't the best one. When you offer a rebuttal, it strengthens your argument.

Writers need to imagine the counterarguments someone might produce - counterarguments you'll later rebut. Remember when someone is reading your essay, they are not just going to agree with everything you state. In their mind they could be thinking of why they disagree with your argument.

Let's look at what someone might be thinking as they read the essay about dogs in parks (the italicized sections are not part of the essay. They are what the reader is thinking):

Dogs should be allowed to run loose in the park in the early morning. They should be allowed to run loose because they need their exercise.

"Yeah, but people need their exercise too. If dogs are running all over the place, they'll get in the way of people who want to exercise. Just because it is early morning it doesn't mean people will not be at the park."

They should be allowed to run loose because dogs need social time with each other.

"I disagree. I disagree because it's not important for dogs to have social time. They'd probably fight with each other and get in all sorts of trouble."

you'll need to do something to win this reader back. You need to anticipate and then shoot down any counterclaims.

Let's look at what a counterclaim and rebuttal might have looked like for the chocolate milk essay:

Some people disagree. Jamie Oliver, a chef and enemy of chocolate milk, argued that chocolate milk does have added sugar. In a shocking video, Jamie shows a school bus filled with sugar to show how much sugar school kids get from chocolate milk. But there are a lot of school kids in the U.S., and if you divide that busload up between all the kids, it will not be such a shocking amount. And if you put next to it a bus filled with the vitamins A, D, E and calcium that kids get, the picture might seem very different. That's why we should keep serving chocolate milk at school - maybe it's true that it has a little bit of sugar, but it gets kids to drink milk, it gives them vitamins, and it builds good habits.

Use these phrases to start to rebut counterclaims in your argument essay.

Phrases to Use to Acknowledge and Rebut Counterclaims:

Some people disagree, saying...
I challenge this. I don't think...
Critics argue that...
While it might be true that... still, all in all
Others may say that...but I argue...
A common argument against this position is...but...
You might think...but...
Skeptics may think...
While some might say...nevertheless
It's easy to think...but when you look at the facts

You try it:

Use the attached, Dogs in the Classroom, to write a counterclaim and rebuttal to the arguments presented in the essay. Remember you need to make a copy.

Dogs in the Classroom

As you continue to do research, think more deeply about where and how to include counterclaims and rebuttals to strengthen an essay's argument in a balanced way.

When you are finished with the assignment, here is what you can do:

Just keep writing.
Keep adding seeds.
Add to a already started seed.
Decide to take a seed through the writer’s process.
Reread your writing.
Edit your writing.
Work with a writing partner (with permission).
NEVER say "I am finished"

You need to be writing for a minimum of 30 minutes.

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