Unit 2
Persuasive Writing
About this unit
Persuasive writing on the Selective test asks you to convince the reader of a position — for example, whether homework should be reduced, or whether a local pool should stay open. You are not writing a balanced essay for a teacher who already knows both sides; you are arguing with clear reasons, examples, and a confident tone.
This unit teaches thesis statements, PEEL paragraphs, counter-arguments, and how to write for a real audience — including formal letters.
What types of questions will you face?
- 1"Should…?" statements — you must pick for or against and argue consistently (e.g. "Should homework be banned on weekends?"). Do not write "both sides have a point" unless the prompt explicitly asks for a discussion piece — Selective persuasive tasks almost always want a position.
- 2Letter format — write to a named audience (principal, mayor, editor) with a formal greeting, clear request, and appropriate close. Tone stays polite but firm.
- 3Community or school issues — prompts about rules, facilities, uniforms, technology, or local services. Strong answers use local, specific examples rather than vague generalities.
- 4Required sentence or quote — include the given line in a paragraph where it supports your argument. Introduce it with your own words so it does not float alone.
- 5Text or scenario stimulus — a short context box (facts about a pool, park, or policy) followed by what you must argue. Use the facts in the stimulus as evidence — do not ignore them.
Skills you will build
- Thesis first — state your position in the opening paragraph so the marker knows your line of argument immediately.
- PEEL paragraphs — Point (reason), Evidence (example or fact), Explanation (why it matters), Link (back to thesis). One reason per paragraph.
- Counter-argument — briefly acknowledge the other side, then refute it. This shows maturity without abandoning your position.
- Persuasive devices — rhetorical questions, rule of three, emotive but precise word choice ("exhausted", "essential", "unsafe") — not shouting or insults.
- Audience and register — match formality to the reader (letter to council vs newsletter to parents).
- Call to action — end with what should happen next: vote, trial a policy, fund a repair, change a rule.
By the end of this unit, you will be able to
- Write a clear thesis and hold the same position from introduction to conclusion.
- Support at least three reasons with specific examples or facts.
- Address one counter-argument without sounding unsure.
- Adapt tone and structure for a letter or essay audience on the Selective test.
- Integrate a required sentence or quote so it strengthens — not interrupts — the argument.
Difficulty profile
Persuasive tasks reward structure more than flashy vocabulary. Students who plan three reasons plus a counter-argument often score higher than those who write passionately but repeat themselves. Letter prompts are medium difficulty because format and audience count for marks as well as ideas. Allow 25 minutes to draft and 5 minutes to check paragraph breaks and spelling.
Exam tip: Persuasive Writing
Read the prompt twice and underline the audience (who are you persuading?) and the task (letter, speech, essay?). Write your thesis on scrap paper or the planning space: one sentence only. Draft body paragraphs in any order if you are stuck — you can reorder when typing. Never invent statistics without framing them plausibly ("in our year alone…", "last term at our school…"). Finish with a specific call to action, not "everyone should think about it."
Guided Practice
The most common persuasive task is a straight "Should we…?" question. The trap is writing a list of random points; the win is choosing one clear answer and building three reasons that each bring a specific example.
Persuasive writing appears on every Selective Writing test — equally common as narrative. Prompts often ask you to argue for or against a school rule, a local issue, or a change that affects young people.
Markers reward a clear position held from start to finish, reasons supported with specific examples, and a tone that sounds convinced — not angry or vague. They penalise essays that list both sides without choosing one, or that repeat the prompt without new detail.
You receive a statement or question (e.g. "Should…?" or "Write a letter to…"), about 30 minutes, and a blank typing area. You must persuade an identified audience — often a principal, council, or newspaper reader.
Best approach: Before you type, write one sentence: "I believe… because…" That is your thesis. Under it, list three reasons. Each reason needs one concrete example (a time at school, a statistic you invent plausibly, or a short scenario). Open with your position; do not "warm up" with background for three sentences.
Your writing task
Allow 25 minutes to write, then 5 minutes to edit. · In the exam, aim for roughly 350–450 words (introduction, three body paragraphs, conclusion).
Persuasive task
Write a persuasive text arguing for or against this statement:
Primary schools should ban homework on weekends.
Your audience is parents and teachers reading a school newsletter. State your position clearly in the opening paragraph.
Quick plan (before you write)
Position: ban homework weekends, or keep them? Pick one — no "it depends."
Reason 1: what is the strongest argument for your side?
Reason 2: a different angle (health, family time, learning, fairness…).
Reason 3: answer what the other side might say (a quick counter-argument).
Ending: call to action — what should parents or teachers do next?
Write your response on paper or in a notes app first. When you are ready, read the example below.
Example response
Study structure and detail — do not memorise phrases.
Example response (about 410 words — arguing FOR a ban)
Primary schools should ban homework on weekends. Weekends are the last regular space families have to recover from a crowded week; filling them with school tasks sends the message that learning only counts when it is measured at home.
First, weekend homework steals time that cannot be replaced. Many students in Year 5 and 6 already carry sport, music, and family responsibilities on Saturdays. When Sunday becomes "catch-up day," children do not practise deeper thinking — they rush through worksheets to avoid Monday trouble. A ban would not stop curious children from reading or building projects; it would stop mandatory work from colonising rest.
Second, rest is part of learning, not the enemy of it. After five days of new concepts, the brain needs sleep and play to move information into long-term memory. Teachers in schools that trial homework-free weekends report calmer Mondays and fewer incomplete tasks during the week — because students arrive less exhausted.
Critics argue that weekend tasks "build discipline." Discipline already exists in five school days, music practice, and chores. Adding another pile of pages does not build character; it builds resentment. If the goal is independence, schools can set optional extension challenges with no penalty for skipping them.
Some parents worry their child will "fall behind." In truth, a child who reads one book they chose, cooks with a parent, or fixes something broken is practising literacy and problem-solving without a mark scheme. Those experiences are not gaps — they are enrichment.
Banning weekend homework is not lowering standards. It is protecting standards during the week by giving families their weekends back. Principals should pilot the policy for one term, survey families and teachers, and publish the results. If Monday mornings improve, the ban should stay.
Why this works
- Clear thesis in paragraph one — no sitting on the fence.
- Three reasons (family time, rest/learning, discipline myth) each with a specific detail.
- Counter-argument addressed in its own paragraph before the conclusion.
- Call to action — pilot, survey, decide — fits a newsletter audience.
Letter and "council" prompts test audience awareness. The same argument sounds different when you write to a mayor rather than a friend. Match your greeting, evidence, and closing request to who can actually make the change.
Persuasive writing appears on every Selective Writing test — equally common as narrative. Prompts often ask you to argue for or against a school rule, a local issue, or a change that affects young people.
Markers reward a clear position held from start to finish, reasons supported with specific examples, and a tone that sounds convinced — not angry or vague. They penalise essays that list both sides without choosing one, or that repeat the prompt without new detail.
You receive a statement or question (e.g. "Should…?" or "Write a letter to…"), about 30 minutes, and a blank typing area. You must persuade an identified audience — often a principal, council, or newspaper reader.
Best approach: Underline the audience in the prompt. If you are persuading a council, use formal tone, local facts, and a specific request ("keep the pool open until…"). If you must include a quote, place it in a body paragraph where it supports a reason — never drop it in the introduction without explanation.
Your writing task
Allow 25 minutes to write, then 5 minutes to edit. · In the exam, aim for roughly 350–450 words in letter or essay format.
Context for your response
Riverside Pool opened in 1978. The council says repairing the roof and filters will cost $1.2 million and proposes closing the pool for twelve months. Local swim clubs, primary schools, and elderly aqua-fitness groups use the pool every week.
Write a persuasive letter to the Riverside Council arguing that the pool should stay open while repairs are planned.
Your letter must:
- Use a suitable greeting and closing for a formal letter
- Include at least one specific group that would be harmed by closure
- Include this sentence somewhere in your argument:
"A closed pool is not a neutral choice — it is a decision to push families elsewhere."
You may place the required sentence in any paragraph.
Quick plan (before you write)
Opening: state clearly that you want the pool to stay open (or stay partially open).
Who suffers if it closes? pick two groups (children, clubs, elderly, schools…).
Where does the required sentence fit best — after you describe harm?
Practical alternative: repairs in stages, temporary roof, partner funding?
Closing: exact request to council (vote, meeting, timeline).
Write your response on paper or in a notes app first. When you are ready, read the example below.
Example response
Study structure and detail — do not memorise phrases.
Example response (about 430 words — formal letter)
Dear Mayor Chen and Riverside Councillors,
I am writing to urge you to keep Riverside Pool open while repairs are planned, not to close it for twelve months. The pool is not a luxury facility; it is weekly infrastructure for children learning to swim, clubs training before dawn, and older residents who rely on gentle exercise.
Last summer, our primary school sent ninety-two students to the pool for water-safety lessons. Those lessons are compulsory because drowning remains one of the leading causes of death for young Australians. If the pool closes, families will drive to Westlake — forty minutes away — or skip lessons entirely. A closed pool is not a neutral choice — it is a decision to push families elsewhere, often the families with the least time and money.
Riverside Swim Club has forty members under fourteen who train four mornings a week. Their coach, Ms Okonkwo, has produced three state qualifiers from a suburb with no other fifty-metre lane. Closing the pool mid-season would break training cycles that cannot pause without losing qualification points.
I understand the roof and filters need work. However, a full shutdown is not the only option. Councils in similar towns have used staged repairs: temporary covers, reduced hours, and partnership grants from health departments that fund active communities. The $1.2 million figure is serious, but so is the cost of exporting our swimmers, patients, and students to neighbouring towns.
Some will say ratepayers cannot afford delays. I reply that delay is cheaper than rebuilding community trust after a year of silence from a boarded-up building on the main road.
Please vote to keep the pool operating on a limited timetable while you seek repair funding. Publish a month-by-month plan so residents can see progress. Riverside deserves a council that fixes problems without abandoning the people who use them every week.
Yours sincerely,
Jordan Ellis Riverside resident and parent
Why this works
- Formal letter shape — greeting, argument paragraphs, courteous close with a named sign-off.
- Audience-specific evidence — school safety, club training, elderly exercise (implied through "gentle exercise").
- Required sentence placed after concrete harm — it reads as a reasoned claim, not a slogan.
- Alternative solution — staged repairs and funding — shows persuasion, not just complaint.
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