Grades: 7th Grade Language Arts Standards: Reading: 2.1, 2.2 Writing Strategies Organization and Focus: 1.1-1.

1.3, 1.4, 1.7 Writing Applications: 2.4 Written and Oral Language Conventions: 1.1-1.7 American School Counselor Association Standards: Develop Career Awareness: A1.6 Acquire Career Information: B1.5 Identify Career Goals: B2.1 Lesson length: 4 5 class sessions (50 minutes each) Who Conducts: Language Arts teacher

Lesson 5, 7th grade: PERSUASIVE ESSAY FOR CAREER CHOICE

Overview
In this lesson, students will write a persuasive essay addressed to an important adult in their life. They will use logical argument, self-observation and researched facts to attempt to convince the reader that their career choice is an acceptable one and to persuade the reader to adopt their perspective. Through this exercise, students will not only learn the form of the persuasive argument, but they will also demonstrate awareness of the education and training needed to achieve career goals. (Note that the terms job and career are used interchangeably in this lesson.) Students will: Be able to identify their skills and interests, and which career might be the best match for these. Demonstrate knowledge of the genre of the persuasive argument. Demonstrate competency using reference materials, computer information and interviews to convey a clear and accurate perspective on the subject matter. Handouts SAMPLE ESSAYS (Homework assignment: handed out prior to first session, students read in advance) JOB (CAREER) PLAN WORKSHEET PEER REVIEW WORKSHEET CITATION NOTES WORKSHEET Essay Graphic Organizers (See Prentice Hall Graphic Organizers, Tab 5 of When Teachers and Students Write). Materials Overhead projector, white board or chart paper Access to the Internet (hold class in the computer lab) and to reference materials (library) Refer to When Teachers and Students Write and Prentice Hall Materials re. teaching the persuasive essay genre. Preparation: Homework assignment (see above: Handouts)
Lesson 5, 7th grade

Lesson Objectives

Handouts, Materials and Preparation

Procedure

Suggested timeframe

Homework (prior to first session): Handout SAMPLE ESSAYS for students to read before Session 1. Session 1 1. Hold class in the computer lab. Give each student a JOB PLAN WORKSHEET and their portfolios. 2. QUICK WRITE: Have students start with a pre-write. Ask them to write down as many jobs that they can think of that they find interesting. 3. Have a group brainstorm all of the career areas students have discovered through prior career/college exploration activities. Ask students to draw on their portfolio of work in support of the brainstorm. Possible brainstorm prompts include: What is one job you discovered through the California Career Zone survey? What is one job you would like to learn more about? What is a job you thought youd like but after you researched it, you changed your mind? 4. After the brainstorm, introduce the assignment of a 5-paragraph persuasive essay addressed to their parents or other adult. Ask students to choose a career and write a persuasive essay explaining why its a good career choice for them. 5. Explain your grading rubric. (see below) 6. Ask students to take some time to select one career area to research. They may refer to the California Career Zone (www.cacareerzone.org) as a reference. Allow students time to use the site and to make a selection. 7. Ask students to do a quick pair-share with a student sitting next to them. They are to identify their selection and give two reasons why they chose it. This should tie to their Interest Types. (For example: Im going to write about being a nurse because I like to help people and I enjoy learning about science.) 8. Ask students to share with the group which career they chose. 9. Present the research process to students. Ask them to organize information to answer the following questions: Job description (including environmental aspects: e.g., inside/outside or quiet/busy) Required education Personal aptitude, interests, skills Current/future need or opportunity for employment Wage/salary range 10. Have students use the JOB PLAN WORKSHEET to gather and record information about the job/career. They will use this information to develop a persuasive argument. 11. Have students begin the research process by gathering information specific to the career they selected. They can draw on a variety of sources: past personal experience, classroom Steps Project activities, websites, library materials, interviews, print media, etc. Explain that their
Lesson 5, 7th grade

Session 1 (5 min.) (5 min.)

(5 min.)

(15 min.)

(15 min.)

essays must include documented references, two of which must not be from the Internet. Pass out the CITATION NOTES worksheet for them to use to organize this information. 12. Have students finish researching their selected job/career for homework.
Session 2 (time frame is flexible)

Session 2 1. Hold class in the computer lab and give students time to research their career choice. 2. Introduce a pre-write graphic organizer to prepare students to write the essay. Use the overhead projector and blank graphic organizer. (Note: See Prentice Hall Graphic Organizers listed in Tab 5 of When Teachers and Students Write.) 3. Review the essay format with students. Use sentence starters as necessary. Consider pairsharing upon completion of each paragraph, using the PEER REVIEW WORKSHEET. Review the format, as follows, with students: Introduction (paragraph 1): - Idea that will arouse the readers interest about the career area of choice. - List of 3 points/reasons to be covered in the essay. (Students will refer to these 3 points/reasons to support their thesis.) - Thesis: A basic statement of the authors overall opinion about the career choice. Paragraph 2: Information on what the author wants (their aspirations), what their interests are and how these match-up. Paragraph 3: Discussion of the plan for achieving these goals. Paragraph 4: Description of the benefits of this career including wages, growth opportunities, personal interests, advancement potential, etc. Paragraph 5: - Restatement of thesis - List of three points/reasons - Conclusion/ending: This could be a solution, challenge, quote, etc. 4. Assign Draft 1 of the essay for homework. Review the assignment. Have students start their drafts in class and complete them for homework. 5. Have students continue research to gather additional information for the essay. Session 3 1. Introduce peer editing process using PEER REVIEW WORKSHEET. 2. Have students pair-share to improve writing and clarity. 3. Assign final rewrite for homework. Ask students to revise and type essay, drawing on the peer feedback, for final submission the next session.
Lesson 5, 7th grade

Session 3 (time frame is flexible)

Modifications and Extensions

Additional Resources

Session(s) 4 5 (Note: This may span one or two sessions.) 1. Hold class in the computer lab. 2. Students may finish typing their essays in the computer lab. 3. Completed and teacher proofed essays are to be added to the student portfolios. Depending on your schedule, this essay can be modified to be a research paper instead of a persuasive essay. This essay can be part of a larger digital media project such as the Digital Storytelling Project. See www.sfstepsproject.com for examples of digital stories. Students who have their ACT EXPLORE Score Report can add information about their academic abilities and career/college interests as it pertains to their career choice. Useful websites for researching jobs and careers include: www.cacareerzone.org http://www.californiarealitycheck.com/ www.bacareerguide.org http://online.onetcenter.org http://www.acinet.org/acinet/default.asp http://www.careervoyages.gov http://actstudent.org Use your own grading rubric, based on your grading method for persuasive essays. An example rubric is shown below. (Note: This rubric is drawn from Prentice Hall.) 1. Introduction is interesting. 2. Thesis is clear. 3. Opposing paragraphs sound reasonable. 4. The three reason paragraphs each start with a topic sentence. 5. Transitions connect all paragraphs. 6. Reason paragraphs have proper structure. (topic sentence, explanatory sentences, specific, colorful examples, closing sentence) 7. Essay ends with: a. Restating Thesis b. List of three points/reasons c. Has ending idea, such as a solution, challenge, quote, etc. 8. The appropriate audience is addressed. 9. A variety of sentence patterns is used. 10. Details are specific and interesting.
Lesson 5, 7th grade

Session 4: (time frame is flexible)

Lesson Rubric

SAMPLE ESSAY

SAMPLE ESSAY

JOB (CAREER) PLAN WORKSHEET

Student Name: _____________________Date: _______________ Job / Career Title: ______________________________________ 1. Job definition:

2. Interests that correspond with this job: 3. Tasks (list five tasks a person in this job does)

4. Top skills and knowledge I will need to gain to get this type of job at an entry (starting) level: a. Skills (list three): b. Knowledge (list three): 5. Education I will have to have to get this type of job at an entry (starting) level: a. Degree and/or training required: b. Two classes I will take: 6. Wages: The amount of money I can expect to earn each year in this type of job. Entry-level (starting): Experienced:

CITATION NOTES
Web Page Author(s) Title Name of Institution or Organization Date Accessed URL

Periodical (Magazine & Newspapers) (library research) Author(s) Title of Article Title of Periodical Date of Periodical Pages

Books Author (s) Title of Book City Publisher Year

PEER REVIEW WORKSHEET

Reviewers Name: ________________________________ Authors Name: __________________________________ Organization: 1. Reviewer: Read the essay aloud to the author. 2. Make two positive comments about the essay. What are its strengths?

3. Describe any weakness you find in the areas listed below. a. b. c. d. Thesis or focus Voice or tone Organization Development

4. Suggest a strategy to eliminate each weakness.

5. What did the author include, but not develop sufficiently? What would you like to know more about?

6. Are new ideas included in each new paragraph? Explain. 7. What part do you like best? 8. What confuses you in the essay? 9. What would you recommend to make this an even better essay?