Write a precise thesis and topic sentences
Grade 9 Reading Worksheet - Challenge Me
Circle the best answer.
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Keep Grass on Pemberton Field (argument draft)
[1] The Pemberton High School athletic field has been covered with natural grass since the school opened, and it hosts soccer, football, lacrosse and the spring track meet. [2] This year the school board is deciding whether to replace the grass with artificial turf when the field is rebuilt next summer. [3] The board should keep natural grass on Pemberton Field.
[4] Grass stays cooler than turf on the hot days when the field gets the most use. [5] During a heat wave last August, the district's athletic trainer measured the grass at 88 degrees and the turf field at nearby Holt High at 142 degrees at the same hour. [6] Players at Holt had to stop practice twice that week, while Pemberton's teams were able to keep training on their cooler field.
[7] Of course, there is the other side. [8] The coaches who favor turf argue that a turf field could be used in any weather, while grass must be closed after heavy rain. [9] Their point is a real one, because Pemberton Field was closed for nineteen days of rain last spring, and three home games had to be moved. [10] Turf would be a costly answer to that problem, however, because the district's estimate shows that a turf field would need to be replaced about every ten years at a cost of 900,000 dollars. [11] Rebuilding the grass field over a modern drainage layer, which the same estimate prices at a fraction of that amount, would let it reopen within a day after most storms.
[12] The board should rebuild Pemberton Field with natural grass and better drainage, so that players stay cooler in summer and the field still recovers quickly from rain. [13] That choice would keep the field safe and usable without tying the district to an expensive replacement every decade.
Ari sees that sentence [3] ignores the other side. Which thesis grants the opposing view's real strength, names its limit, and keeps the writer's claim?
- The board should keep a grass field with better drainage, since the coaches' worries about rain closings are not worth taking seriously.
- Because grass must close after heavy rain, the board should choose turf for Pemberton Field, even though turf costs more to keep.
- Although turf would cost less to replace than grass, the board should keep a grass field with better drainage, which stays cooler.
- Although turf can be used in wet weather, the board should keep grass with better drainage, which handles rain at far lower cost and stays cooler.
Esme sees that sentence [7] opens the counterclaim paragraph weakly. Which sentence should open that paragraph instead?
- A grass field is also softer for the players who fall during a game or a hard practice.
- The coaches are right that turf is the better choice, since the grass field closes too often.
- The coaches' case for turf in wet weather deserves a fair hearing, though turf is a costly answer to it.
- Some coaches simply want a shiny new field so that their teams can look impressive to visitors from other towns.
Retakes at Hollins High (argument draft)
[1] At Hollins High School, a student who fails a unit test in math or science keeps that grade for good, even if the student masters the material a week later. [2] A group of teachers has asked the school to allow one retake of each unit test, with the higher of the two scores counting toward the final grade. [3] Hollins High should let students retake unit tests.
[4] A retake rewards students for learning the material, and not merely for learning it by a fixed deadline. [5] In a pilot last year, students in two algebra classes who retook a test raised their scores by an average of seventeen points, and they later did better on the final exam than classmates who had not retaken one.
[6] But not everyone thinks this is a good idea. [7] Some teachers argue that students who know they can retake a test will not study as hard for it the first time. [8] That worry has support, because teachers in the pilot noticed several students who skipped studying for a first test and planned to rely on the retake. [9] The pilot also showed how to limit the problem, since students who had to correct each missed question before retaking a test rarely skipped studying again. [10] Teachers also capped retake scores at eighty-five, so a retake could raise a grade but could not take the place of steady preparation.
[11] Retakes would also give teachers a clearer picture of what each student has actually learned by the end of a unit. [12] A second score shows whether a student has fixed a misunderstanding, while a single failing grade hides that change from the teacher and the family.
[13] Hollins High should allow one retake of each unit test for students who first correct their errors, with retake scores capped at eighty-five. [14] That rule would reward real learning while still giving students a good reason to prepare the first time.
Kira is labeling the outline. Which map gives the draft's claim, the counterclaim, the counterclaim's strength and its limit?
- [3] counterclaim; [7] claim; [8] its strength; [9] its limit
- [3] claim; [7] counterclaim; [8] its strength; [9] its limit
- [5] claim; [7] counterclaim; [8] its strength; [9] its limit
- [3] claim; [7] counterclaim; [8] its limit; [9] its strength
Luz sees that sentence [6] opens the counterclaim paragraph weakly. Which sentence should open that paragraph instead?
- Some teachers simply dislike change and would rather keep grading the way they have for years.
- The teachers who object are right that retakes would make students lazy, so the whole idea should be dropped.
- Retakes would also show teachers more clearly what each student has learned by the end of a unit.
- The worry that retakes weaken first-time studying is fair, yet the pilot shows a simple way to limit it.
Shade Trees for Kessler Street (argument draft)
[1] Kessler Street runs past an elementary school, two blocks of shops and the town pool, yet along most of its length there is not a single tree between the road and the sidewalk. [2] The town should plant shade trees along both sides of Kessler Street when it repairs the road next spring.
[3] Shade trees would make the street cooler for the people who walk it in summer. [4] On a July afternoon, the town's environmental office measured the bare Kessler Street sidewalk at 118 degrees, while the shaded sidewalk on nearby Oak Lane measured 91 degrees. [5] Children walking to the pool and older residents waiting for the bus would feel that difference on every hot afternoon.
[6] Trees would also slow the rainwater that now pours off the street into the storm drains. [7] Their leaves catch rain before it reaches the ground, and their roots help the soil soak up water, so the drains are less likely to overflow during a heavy storm.
[8] Then again, some people disagree. [9] Some shop owners argue that tree roots would crack and lift the sidewalks in front of their stores. [10] Their concern is grounded in fact, because the town replaced forty broken sidewalk slabs last year on Linden Avenue, where large maples were planted decades ago. [11] Newer planting methods limit that damage, since the town forester recommends smaller species with deeper roots, wider planting pits and plastic barriers that steer roots downward. [12] The trees planted this way on Garfield Street over the past eight years have not damaged the sidewalk there at all.
[13] With careful planting, shade trees on Kessler Street would cool the sidewalks and soak up storm water without breaking the pavement in front of the shops.
Milo sees that sentence [2] ignores the other side. Which thesis grants the opposing view's real strength, names its limit, and keeps the writer's claim?
- Because roots have cracked sidewalks in town before, Kessler Street should stay bare so that the shop owners' pavement stays whole.
- Although roots have cracked sidewalks in town before, Kessler Street should get shade trees planted with newer methods that limit root damage.
- Kessler Street should get shade trees planted with newer methods, since the shop owners' fear of cracked sidewalks is not worth discussing.
- Although shade trees would block the view of the shop signs, Kessler Street should get trees planted with methods that limit root damage.
Noah is labeling the outline. Which map gives the draft's claim, the counterclaim, the counterclaim's strength and its limit?
- [2] claim; [9] counterclaim; [10] its limit; [11] its strength
- [4] claim; [9] counterclaim; [10] its strength; [11] its limit
- [2] counterclaim; [9] claim; [10] its strength; [11] its limit
- [2] claim; [9] counterclaim; [10] its strength; [11] its limit
Pia sees that sentence [8] opens the counterclaim paragraph weakly. Which sentence should open that paragraph instead?
- A few shop owners simply do not care about the people who walk past their stores in the heat.
- The shop owners are right that roots would ruin the sidewalks, so planting trees along the street is a mistake.
- The shop owners' worry about roots and sidewalks is well founded, though newer planting methods answer it.
- Trees would also give the shops along Kessler Street a more welcoming look for their customers.
Choice in Summer Reading at Marlowe High (argument draft)
[1] Every June, each student at Marlowe High School is assigned the same novel to read over the summer, and the first week of English class in September is spent discussing it. [2] A committee of English teachers has proposed letting students choose any book from a list of forty approved titles instead. [3] Marlowe High should let students pick their summer books from the approved list.
[4] Students who choose their own books are far more likely to finish them. [5] When the English department surveyed students last fall, about four in ten said they had finished the assigned novel, but most said they had read at least one other book that summer for fun. [6] A list of forty titles would let students turn that interest in reading toward books that their teachers have already approved.
[7] A longer list would also let students read at a level that suits them. [8] The forty titles range from short, fast-paced novels to long, demanding classics, so a struggling reader and a strong reader could each find a book that is challenging but not discouraging.
[9] Of course, there is the other side to think about. [10] Some teachers argue that one shared novel gives the whole grade something to discuss together in September. [11] That is a real advantage, because the first-week discussions help new teachers and students get to know one another through a common story. [12] Shared discussion does not require a single book, however, since the committee's list groups the forty titles under four themes, and students who read different books on the same theme can compare them.
[13] Marlowe High should let students choose their summer books from the themed list, so that more students finish a book and each class can still share a conversation in September. [14] Choice would turn summer reading from an assignment that many students skip into one that they complete.
Ren sees that sentence [3] ignores the other side. Which thesis grants the opposing view's real strength, names its limit, and keeps the writer's claim?
- Although one shared novel gives a grade a common discussion, Marlowe should let students choose from the themed list, which keeps that shared talk.
- Although one shared novel is cheaper for families to buy, Marlowe should let students choose from the themed list of forty titles.
- Marlowe should let students choose from the themed list, since the claim that a shared novel helps September talks is simply mistaken.
- Because one shared novel gives the grade something to discuss, Marlowe should keep assigning a single summer book to each student.
Tala is labeling the outline. Which map gives the draft's claim, the counterclaim, the counterclaim's strength and its limit?
- [5] claim; [10] counterclaim; [11] its strength; [12] its limit
- [3] claim; [10] counterclaim; [11] its strength; [12] its limit
- [3] counterclaim; [10] claim; [11] its strength; [12] its limit
- [3] claim; [10] counterclaim; [11] its limit; [12] its strength
Zee sees that sentence [9] opens the counterclaim paragraph weakly. Which sentence should open that paragraph instead?
- A few teachers simply want to keep teaching the same old novel they have taught for years.
- The case for one shared novel rests on a real benefit, but a themed list can keep that benefit.
- A choice of books would also let strong readers try longer and more demanding classics.
- The teachers who favor one novel are right, so the single summer assignment should stay as it is.
