DSE English — The Argumentative Essay: Lesson Prep Guide (Tutor Edition)

2026-11-03

Tutor lesson-prep guides · Secondary English

The problem in an argumentative essay is rarely a missing opinion: it is that forty-five minutes run out before the third body paragraph is finished. This lesson splits one essay into three tables of words, minutes and sentences, so students know before they start how long each paragraph should be and how much evidence it must carry.

Objectives — Students can: (1) finish 400 words in five paragraphs within 45 minutes, using budgets of 60, 90, 120, 90 and 40 words against 7, 10, 13, 10 and 5 minutes, an average of 8.9 words per minute; (2) write a debatable thesis and give 2 pieces of evidence in each of the 3 body paragraphs, with a concession paragraph before the last body point; (3) write about 22 sentences of roughly 18 words each with around 8 connectives, and self-assess against a 21-mark school rubric split into content, language and organisation at 7 marks each.

01 Prerequisites (3-minute check)

If any of these fails, fix it before the lesson starts.

Skill	Quick check	Pass mark
Paragraph structure	How many central ideas should a paragraph carry?	One, with every other sentence supporting it
Connectives	Which linkers signal concession and rebuttal?	Concession uses although or while; rebuttal uses however or nevertheless
Tense control	Which tense carries an argument?	The present, with past tense for examples
Word-count sense	Without counting, how do you judge a paragraph length?	Estimate by sentences, about eighteen words each

02 Lesson flow (45 minutes)

Time	Stage	Tutor does	Student does
0–8 min	Thesis warm-up	Three thesis lines for one prompt	Only one can be argued against
8–18 min	Words and minutes	400 words across five paragraphs	8.9 words per minute
18–30 min	Three body paragraphs	2 pieces of evidence each	Example, number or experience
30–42 min	Concession and rebuttal	Grant the strongest objection, then limit it	Disagreement alone is not a rebuttal
42–52 min	Timed writing	400 words in 45 minutes	Eight minutes for the first body paragraph
52–60 min	Self-assessment and exit	Mark three strands against 21	Marked on the spot

03 Teaching script (read it out)

Scene 1: Budget the words before writing one

400 words split five ways: 60 for the introduction, 90 and 120 for the two reasons, 90 for concession and rebuttal, 40 for the conclusion. Forty-five minutes split the same way gives 7, 10, 13, 10 and 5 minutes, an average of 8.9 words per minute. Have students write those five numbers on the planning sheet and check after every paragraph. The gain is not speed but the absence of the late discovery that time has run out: put the longest body paragraph in the middle, where thinking costs most.

Ask students to restate why the longest paragraph sits in the middle.

Scene 2: A thesis must be attackable

A usable thesis carries three things: a position, a scope and a direction of reasoning. For example, secondary students should exercise thirty minutes a day because it improves focus more than extra tutoring does; that can be attacked, while exercise is good cannot, because nobody disagrees. Each body paragraph supplies 2 pieces of evidence, 6 in total, drawn from three sources: personal experience, school data and published research. Train students to add one explanatory sentence after every piece of evidence, because that sentence is the reasoning a marker looks for. The whole piece runs to about 22 sentences at 18 words each: long sentences multiply grammar errors and short ones leave the argument unconnected.

Ask students to restate which sentence must follow every piece of evidence.

Scene 3: The concession paragraph earns marks

A concession paragraph states the strongest opposing point and then explains why it does not overturn the thesis. The pattern has three steps: grant (Admittedly, …), limit (This is true when …), rebut (However, …). It takes 90 words and about 10 minutes, and it separates stronger writers from weaker ones because most students argue one side only. Aim for about 8 connectives, roughly one every fifty words: too many reads mechanically and too few leaves sentences unrelated. Self-assessment uses 7 marks each for content, language and organisation, 21 in total at 33.3% a strand, so a weak structure score cannot be rescued by strong content.

Ask students to restate the three steps of the concession paragraph.

04 Question types and worked steps

Type	Example	Steps	Answer
Thesis line	Prompt: should phones be used in class	(1) state the position (2) add scope (3) add the direction of reasoning	All three in one sentence
Body paragraph	One reason in 90 words	(1) topic sentence (2) evidence (3) explanation (4) link back	2 pieces of evidence
Concession and rebuttal	The strongest opposing reason	(1) grant (2) limit (3) rebut	90 words in 10 minutes
Time and words	400 words in 45 minutes	(1) split the minutes (2) check each paragraph against its budget (3) keep two minutes to proofread	8.9 words per minute

Sanity check (teach this): Sanity checks: the five word budgets must add to 400 and the five time slots to 45; 400 divided by 45 is 8.9 words a minute, never twenty; 22 sentences is an estimate at 18 words each, so sentence length may vary but the total must hold; no body paragraph may carry one piece of evidence while the others carry four; the 21-mark split is a school rubric, not an official examination scheme, and students must be told so; a concession paragraph may not restate your own reasons; treat the connective count as a guide and prefer fewer.

05 Independent practice (3 questions)

Question	Answer	What to watch
Split 400 words into five paragraphs and give each budget	60, 90, 120, 90, 40	Check the total is 400
Write one debatable thesis on school uniforms	Model: uniforms should stay because they reduce clothing comparisons between families	Check for scope and direction of reasoning
Write a 90-word concession paragraph with all three steps	One sentence each to grant, limit and rebut	Check it does not stop at granting

06 Common mistakes and what to say

Mistake	Student writes	Say this
A thesis too broad to attack	“Exercise is good for you”	Add an object, a degree and a comparison; without them the sentence is common sense.
Evidence with no explanation	“For example my classmate runs and feels sharper”	One sentence of reasoning must follow each example, or the marker sees no thinking.
A concession that surrenders	“Although some disagree, I still think I am right”	Grant the strongest opposing point specifically, limit where it applies, then rebut.
Front-loaded timing	“I wrote two paragraphs in the last five minutes”	Follow 7, 10, 13, 10 and 5 minutes, with 13 minutes for the longest body paragraph.

07 Homework (paper, section and question numbers)

Secondary English chapter index — Copy three key terms from the argumentative essay chapter and define each in one sentence
Paper 2 writing (S4 chapter) — Redo question 1 in the practice set and add an explanatory sentence after each piece of evidence
Group interaction (S5 chapter) — Read the common errors section and list three connectives usable in a concession paragraph

08 Exit check (last 5 minutes)

Question	Answer	Decision
400 words in five paragraphs: how long is the middle body paragraph?	120 words	Wrong answer 80 means re-teach the word budget
What are the three steps of a concession paragraph?	Grant, limit, rebut	Wrong answer agree and disagree means re-teach the steps
How many strands carry the 21-mark rubric?	Three: content, language and organisation at 7 each	Wrong answer two means re-teach the rubric

09 Tutor FAQ

Which year is this for?

S5 writing; S4 can use it in the second term as an entry to Paper 2 argument.

Is 45 minutes enough?

Yes. If handwriting is slow, run eight-minute single-paragraph drills before a full essay.

Is there practice attached?

The homework column links to site chapters, and the practice set carries model answers.

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A TutorZone lesson-prep guide. Written by the TutorZone team; questions and lesson flow are original and are not taken from any school or publisher material.