ReadWriteThink is proud to provide these resources that support students in the activity of writing persuasive letters.

ReadWriteThink Student Interactive Tools

Letter Generator
http://readwritethink.org/materials/letter_generator/

The Letter Generator tool is designed to help students learn to identify all the essential parts of a business or friendly letter, and then generate letters by typing information into letter templates. A sample letter is included, and students can learn about the parts of a letter by reading descriptions of each part. Once students have become familiar with letter formats, they are prompted to write their own letter using a simple template.

Persuasion Map
http://www.readwritethink.org/student_mat/student_material.asp?id=34

The Persuasion Map is an interactive graphic organizer that enables students to map out their arguments for a persuasive essay or debate. Students begin by determining their goal or thesis. They then identify reasons to support their argument, and three facts or examples to validate each reason.

ReadWriteThink Lesson Plans Related to Persuasion and/or Letter Writing

Communicating on Local Issues: Exploring Audience in Persuasive Letter Writing
http://www.readwritethink.org/lessons/lesson_view.asp?id=945

Students are asked to identify and then research a local issue that concerns them, using Internet and print sources. They will then argue a position on this issue in letters to two different audiences, addressing their own purpose and considering the needs of the audience in each letter. Students will work with peer groups as they draft and revise their letters before sending them to their intended readers.

Persuading the Principal: Writing Persuasive Letters About School Issues
http://www.readwritethink.org/lessons/lesson_view.asp?id=1137

This lesson gives students the opportunity to examine opinion editorials and write their own on school issues. After reading and listening to opinion pieces, students identify strong examples of persuasion and record them on a graphic organizer. Small groups then brainstorm issues in the school that they believe deserve action plans. Each group uses graphic organizers to explore its issue. The group then constructs a letter on that issue. The letter is then edited for grammar and content, typed on a word processor, printed, and delivered to the school principal.

Persuading an Audience: Writing Effective Letters to the Editor
http://www.readwritethink.org/lessons/lesson_view.asp?id=929

Students write a persuasive letter to the editor of a newspaper, focusing on a current local or national issue and requesting a specific action or response from readers. The lesson includes an exploration of the genre, a review of persuasive writing structure and letter format, and an emphasis on multi-draft writing.

The Correspondence Project: A Lesson of Letters
http://www.readwritethink.org/lessons/lesson_view.asp?id=1083

Letter writing is perhaps one of the most functional writing forms covered in the writing classroom. This lesson covers the differences between business and friendly letter formats, using examples and a Venn diagram. Students then write letters for varying audiences and real-world purposes. A range of writing prompts is included.

Persuasive Essay: Environmental Issues
http://www.readwritethink.org/lessons/lesson_view.asp?id=268

Critical stance and development of a strong argument are key strategies when writing to convince someone to agree with your position. In this lesson, students explore environmental issues that are relevant to their own lives, self-select topics, and gather information to write persuasive essays. Although this lesson focuses on the environment as a broad topic, many other topics can easily be substituted for reinforcement of persuasive writing.

Finding Common Ground: Using Logical, Audience-Specific Arguments
http://www.readwritethink.org/lessons/lesson_view.asp?id=938

When students write argumentative or persuasive essays, they often ignore the viewpoints of their opponents, the potential readers of their essays. In this lesson, students use a hypothetical situation to predict and articulate the audience’s predicted resistance to their arguments. After they have examined the opposing view, they can then revise their arguments to better decide how to use them to counter the opponent logically, perhaps finding common ground from which their arguments might grow. Thus, the activity becomes a lesson not only in choosing arguments but also in anticipating audience reaction and adapting to it.

Letters and Learning Genre
http://www.readwritethink.org/lessons/lesson_view.asp?id=978

This lesson combines a lesson on genre with an opportunity for students to write and experience how genre changes a situation. By examining letters in picture books, students will see concepts of genre in action: that genres respond to social situations, that genre choice can also influence the situation, that genres have flexibility, that they aren’t just forms, and that they can be used in different situations. They will apply these generic concepts as they rewrite a story in a different genre.