Arguing and Supporting with Evidence

Now that you have your introduction and thesis statement, you are ready to begin making points and supporting them with evidence. This assignment helps you begin drafting a portion of your persuasive essay’s body section. Before completing this assignment, we advise that you read all lecture materials and textbook chapters, as these materials will prepare you to complete it successfully. If you have reviewed all of these materials and still have questions, don’t hesitate to contact your instructor with specific questions prior to submitting the assignment.

By the due date assigned, post your assignment to the Discussion Area as an attached APA- formatted Microsoft Word document. By the end of the week, provide two peer reviews for your fellow students.

Assignment Requirements:

1. Your overall assignment should be developed to include three paragraphs in addition to your introduction and thesis. It should be around 600 words in length. Be sure to cite your evidence using APA style conventions, both in-text and in the reference page. Please review the Week 3 APA material for help with formatting and citing.
2. Include the introduction and thesis that you developed in the Week 4 Discussion so that you can add this assignment to what you already have.
3. In support of the thesis statement you wrote in the Week 4 Discussion, present three supporting points and relevant evidence. Present each point and respective evidence in its own paragraph.
4. Each paragraph should include a topic sentence (see the Longman Writer Pgs. 58 & 59 for additional help with topic sentences).
5. Incorporate at least one source of supporting evidence for each of the points. You may use more than one source, but only one is necessary, and you can use the same source to support multiple required points. Just make sure to use at least one academic source and one popular source from the research you conducted in Week 3. Be careful to use proper in-text citations and include a separate reference page with an appropriately formatted APA style reference page entry for each source used.

By the due date, post your assignment in the Discussion Area below by attaching your draft into the response section. Critique two of your peers’ drafts, using these guidelines:

• Locate the essay’s thesis. Does it establish a clear argument?
• Is each paragraph organized around one key point or idea? Do topic sentences clearly indicate the focus of each paragraph?
• Does the author include sufficient evidence from outside sources to support his or her key points? Do you have any suggestions for improvement?