S O M E S AY T H I S I S D I F F I C U LT , B U T I N R E A L I T Y , I T ’ S R E A L LY V E RY S I M P L E .

COUNTER-ARGUMENT

COUNTER-ARGUMENT: WHAT’S THE POINT?

• Actually makes your argument stronger because you can respond to your reader’s objections before they are done reading your paper.

• Shows you are a reasonable person and have considered both sides of the debate.

HOW DO I BEGIN?

• Begin by brainstorming what the other side believes.

• Pick one belief from the other side• Start a new paragraph right before your conclusion • Begin the paragraph with what the other side’s

belief is • Follow this with continued support for your belief• *The key here is to remain respectful of the other

side. If you begin being disrespectful, your counter-argument will not have a positive effect. It will actually harm your argument.

WAYS TO BEGIN COUNTER CLAIM PARAGRAPHS

• Many people believe that__________.

• It is often thought that _____________.

• It might seem as if _________________.

• While it is common that ____________.

WAYS TO TRANSITION FROM THE OPPOSITE SIDE BACK TO YOUR OPINION

• What this argument fails to consider is _____________.

• This view sounds convincing at first but ____________.

• Although the core claim is valid, it suffers from the flaw in its _____________.

EXAMPLE

The writer’s opinion is that science is the best academic class.

Counterclaim: It is often thought that social studies is the favorite academic class for middle school students. However, what this argument fails to consider is that science allows for more hands-on activities. For example, when studying amphibians, you get to dissect a frog rather than just read about an event from the past. (Continue paragraph with other supportive statements.)