lewelma Posted January 7, 2012 Share Posted January 7, 2012 I am interested in spending a few years reading about and discussing controversial topics with my ds(11) to help prepare him to write persuasive papers in high school. I would really love to read paired essays, one pro and another con. I would like to rotate through historical, scientific, current events, and ethics etc. I have found some paired essays on the NYTimes website in the opinion section. http://www.nytimes.com/roomfordebate/2012/01/05/should-foreign-money-be-allowed-to-finance-us-elections/?ref=opinion . But I am looking for additional sources. They can be websites of current issues or books of classic arguments like famous supreme court cases, as long as both sides get a turn. Ideas? Thanks, Ruth in NZ Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Free Posted January 10, 2012 Share Posted January 10, 2012 I have not seen anything for pro and con essays. But I was actually just today looking at these websites which give a lot of topics and prompts for discussion on current affairs, ethics, etc. Learning Network NY Times - teaching topics Learning Network NY Times - Student Opinion Ethical dilemmas from Good character.com Not sure if this fits your requirement, but the Learning Network seems to be quite extensive for Thinking questions and Writing prompts on current affairs, Student challenges, etc. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
lewelma Posted January 10, 2012 Author Share Posted January 10, 2012 Thanks for this, I will go take a look. Ruth Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Janice in NJ Posted January 10, 2012 Share Posted January 10, 2012 Plenty to choose from here. Check your library for titles. These are used in college classrooms, so older editions can be found cheaply. http://highered.mcgraw-hill.com/sites/0076667771/information_center_view0/ Peace, Janice Enjoy your little people Enjoy your journey Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
PeterPan Posted January 11, 2012 Share Posted January 11, 2012 It doesn't sound as thorough as what you want, but I got a nifty book of debate topics with pro and con paragraphs written up to make it easy to discuss. The topics are relevant or interesting to this age, so it was good. I think it was some obvious title like "debate prompts". Oh mercy, you said essays. Nevermind. But if smaller would do, there you go. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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