1. I believe YOUR VOICE MUST BE HEARD. Beliefs Writing Project English I DUE: Friday, Dec. 9, 2011

2. Your voice will be heard if you: Find something to say. Organize your thoughts logically. Communicate effectively with your audience.

3. Find something to say. Choose a topic that you can speak about knowledgeably but not overly passionately. Your topic may be serious or frivolous. Be careful of scope—you need a topic that you can cover in 10-15 slides. Create a thesis statement by phrasing your topic in the form of a sentence, starting with “I believe.”

4. Writer’s Notebook Invitation: Read back through your notebook to find some ideas. Brainstorm a list of “I believe…” statements. Examples: Examples – …God is love. – …celebrities should make less money. – …college is the best years of your life. – …High School Musical sends a harmful message to children. – …travel is essential to education. – …governments should certify only civil unions, not marriages. – …beautiful people are not always the most attractive. – …Louisville, KY, is the best place to live in the world. – …everyone should take the stage at least once. – …you should not have a monogamous relationship with anyone you can’t marry.

5. Organize your thoughts logically. Before you begin drafting your presentation, create a main idea map.

6. Thesis Statement One sentence summarizing your argument. This is the main idea that ties everything in your piece together, and it MUST be a belief or opinion, NOT a fact. I believe you should not have a monogamous relationship with anyone you can’t marry.

7. Supporting Points Break your thesis statement down into the steps that you will have to prove. These are the three basic categories for which you will provide evidence. Deal-breakers Moment in time Exceptions

8. Evidence Facts based on your own experience or on relevant and reliable research (which you must cite internally AND in a list of sources at the end). Your outline can be just the bare minimum. In your actual draft, don’t forget to explain how each fact proves your point.

9. Examples of Evidence Beliefs Future plans Personality conflicts Experience Deal- breakers Moment in time Exceptions Priorities Knowledge Injustice Drastic change Like Minds

10. Communicate effectively. Make your audience feel smart. – Define technical or specialized terms they may not know. – Use precise/sophisticated vocabulary. – No need to explain the obvious DON’T treat your audience like the enemy. – No rhetorical questions – Explain your own perspective.

11. ARGUMENT, Not Persuasion Argument is based on logical explanation of a belief or opinion using factual examples for clear understanding. Persuasion is based on emotional pleas for action by the audience. Your job is to give a logical explanation, not an emotional speech.

12. Your voice must be heard! You will present your PowerPoint or webpage to the class. You are the only one with your unique and valuable perspective, the only one with your own personal blend of experience, personality, and opinion. Therefore, you must find something to say; no one else can speak for you.

13. Sources http://www.sac.edu/students/library/nealley/ websites/controversial.htm http://www.sac.edu/students/library/nealley/ websites/controversial.htm Microsoft Clipart