Persuasive Writing

By Anonymous (not verified), 16 March, 2026
In this poor problem-solution essay, a student argues for the use of ethanol.
By Anonymous (not verified), 16 March, 2026
In this persuasive speech for Honors Public Speaking, a student imagines his inauguration as the 49th U.S. President in the middle of the 21st Century.
By Anonymous (not verified), 16 March, 2026
In this inauguration speech, a student parodies ineffective speech making but as a result creates a less-than-effective piece of rhetoric.
By Anonymous (not verified), 12 March, 2026

Assessing with Rubrics

Test graders will use a rubric to judge the quality of your writing for assessment. They typically provide a score of 0–4, 0–6, or even 0–8 for each category on the rubric, such as Focus, Organization, Evidence, Language, and Conventions. Then they add up these scores and divide by the number of categories to get the overall average score. By using the following rubrics to judge your own assessment writing, you can become aware of what testers are looking for and can improve your scores in the future.

Assess with an argument rubric.

Use the following rubric to score argument or persuasive essays for assessment.

By Anonymous (not verified), 12 March, 2026

Responding to DBQs Nonfiction Assessment V

The AP US History and AP World History exams include document-based questions (DBQs). A DBQ requires you to analyze a writing prompt, closely read a series of related documents, and then write an essay that answers the prompt using evidence from the documents. The documents may include a variety of media such as articles, graphs, photographs, and political cartoons.

Respond to a document-based question.

Read the following prompt, analyze it using the PAST questions, and write an essay response.

By Anonymous (not verified), 12 March, 2026

Viewing and Writing Nonfiction Assessment IV

Some Common Core and AP assessments present you with visuals that you must analyze and respond to. Remember that every visual is a form of communication with a sender and receiver (who), a message (what and why), a medium (how), and a context (where and when).

View and analyze source 1.

Closely read the ad from the Seattle Brewing and Malting Company, which originally appeared on the back of a brochure for the Argus Alaska-Yukon-Pacific Exposition, 1909. Note especially the ideas presented visually through illustrations, type selection, layout, and so on. Afterward, analyze the visual by answering the questions.

By Anonymous (not verified), 12 March, 2026

Reading and Writing Nonfiction Assessment III

Closely read the following articles and answer the questions afterward. Then you will need to analyze a prompt about these models and respond by writing an insightful essay.

Closely read and respond to source 1.

Read and/or listen to the following text, focusing on the topic, purpose, and main points. Answer the questions afterward.

By Anonymous (not verified), 12 March, 2026

Reading and Writing Nonfiction Assessment II

Closely read the following articles and answer the questions afterward. Then you will need to analyze a prompt about these models and respond by writing an insightful essay.

Closely read and respond to source 1.

Read and/or listen to the following text, focusing on the topic, purpose, and main points. Answer the questions afterward.

Listen to "Excerpt from "Citizenship in a Republic";

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Source 1

By Anonymous (not verified), 12 March, 2026

Editing Narrative Arguments

After you complete major revisions to your narrative argument, you should edit it to make sure every word and punctuation mark is correct. Among other issues, you'll want to look closely at pronoun agreement and punctuation of dialogue. The activities that follow will help. You'll also use a checklist to finalize your editing.

Editing for Pronoun Agreement

A pronoun is a word that stands in the place of a noun or another pronoun (its antecedent). The most familiar pronouns are I, me, my; we, us, our, ours; you, your, yours; he, she, it, they, their, theirs. A pronoun needs to agree with its antecedent. That means both need to have the same person (first, second, or third), the same number (singular or plural), and the same gender (masculine, feminine, neuter, or indeterminate).

Agreement

Merida drove her car. (Merida and her are both third person, singular, and feminine: they agree.)

I rode my bike. (I and my are both first person, singular, and indeterminate.)

Other friends relied on ride-share apps using their phones. (Other friends and their are both third-person, plural, and indeterminate.)