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Lesson 31: Animal Farm, Argumentative Writing, Part 4
50 min
California CCSS: Focus Standards
California CCSS: Supporting Standards
ELD Standards
Student Lesson
Lesson 31: Animal Farm, Argumentative Writing, Part 4
Student Learning Objectives
1
Content
Students will write an argument body paragraph that supports their claim about why revolutions uphold or betray their ideals by using the TREE Strategy.
2
Language
Students will write an argument body paragraph using the TREE structure (Topic sentence, Reasons, Examine evidence, Ending) by embedding quotations from Animal Farm and explaining how the evidence demonstrates their argument claim.
3
Foundational Skills
Students will learn how to write an argument body paragraph by creating a topic sentence, using evidence from the text, explaining evidence through reasoning, and creating a conclusion that connects back to their claim.
Essential Question
Why do revolutions rise, and why do some end up betraying their own ideals?
Connections to
Knowledge-Building:
Students apply their understanding of Animal Farm and historical revolutions to practice writing an argumentative body paragraph that explains how revolutions may uphold or betray their original ideals.
Enduring Understanding:
Revolutions often begin with strong ideals, but those ideals may be weakened or betrayed when leaders gain control of information, manipulate language, or use fear to maintain power.
Future Lessons:
In Lesson 32, students continue to independently draft their argument body paragraph using the TREE Strategy. In Lesson 38, students will begin writing the Unit Performance Task argument essay.
Unit Performance Task:
Students are learning how to write argument body paragraphs that will help them write their multi-paragraph argument in the final performance task.
Lesson Pacing
| Lesson Flow | Purpose of Learning Experience |
|---|---|
Launch5 Minutes | Students activate prior knowledge about argumentative writing and reflect on how previous learning has prepared them to write body paragraphs. |
Literacy Lab10 Minutes | Students learn the TREE Strategy for writing argument body paragraphs and examine how a body paragraph supports the argument’s claim with evidence and reasoning. |
Learning in Action30 Minutes | Practicing Argument Writing Using TREE (RL.8.1, W.8.1.b, W.8.9.a) Students plan and begin drafting a body paragraph using the TREE Strategy with evidence from Animal Farm and historical examples from the unit. |
Vocabulary
Vocabulary Addressed in Lesson
Not available for this lesson
Vocabulary for Additional Support
Not available for this lesson
Material List
Animal Farm by George Orwell
Unit 2 Lesson 31 Student Edition
Routines
Think-Pair-Share
TREE Strategy
Turn and Talk
Lesson Sequence
Think-Pair-Share
Students reflect on prior learning about argument writing and connect those strategies to writing body paragraphs.
Have students Think-Pair-Share to reflect on strategies they have already learned about writing body paragraphs.
Say these Directions: Turn to your partner and discuss how you have written body paragraphs in the past and what strategies have helped you. Discuss the following questions.
Display the following questions for students.
How do you write body paragraphs?
I usually begin with a topic sentence that connects to my thesis or claim. Then I include evidence from the text and explain how that evidence proves my point. I try to end the paragraph by connecting my ideas back to the main argument or claim I am making.
What strategies have helped you develop body paragraphs in previous units?
In the previous unit, we learned to use claim, evidence, and reasoning through the RACE strategy. We also practiced embedding quotations instead of simply dropping them into the paragraph. This helped make our writing flow more smoothly and sound more formal.
After pairs finish discussing, invite two or three students to briefly share their ideas with the class.
Connection to Today’s Learning
Say: In previous lessons, you developed a clear claim about why revolutions sometimes betray their ideals. Today, you will learn how to support that claim by writing a strong body paragraph.
Display the following information:
A strong body paragraph includes:
a topic sentence that explains one reason connected to your claim,
evidence from the text, and
reasoning that explains how the evidence supports your argument.
Say these Directions: Today, you will practice writing a body paragraph using a strategy called TREE, which will help you organize your ideas, evidence, and reasoning clearly.
Students learn how the TREE strategy organizes an argument body paragraph and examine how evidence and reasoning work together to support a claim.
Display the performance task prompt: Write an argument essay explaining how Animal Farm shows that revolutions can either protect or corrupt ideals.
Say these Directions: At the end of this unit, you will write an argument essay responding to this prompt. In previous lessons, you developed your claim about why revolutions either protect or corrupt their ideals. Today, we will focus on the next step: writing a strong body paragraph that supports your claim with evidence and reasoning. A strong body paragraph explains one reason that supports your claim and shows how evidence from the text proves that reason.
Introduce the Writing Strategy
Display the structure below and have students follow along as you explain the structure.
TREE Paragraph Structure
T: Topic sentence: Introduce one point or reason that supports your overall claim for your argument.
R: Reasons (Evidence): Include evidence from the text that supports your idea.
E: Explanation: Explain how the evidence proves your point. This is where your reasoning appears.
E: Ending (Conclusion): End the paragraph by connecting your point or reason back to your argument claim.
Say: TREE is a strategy that helps writers organize their argumentative writing clearly. You begin with a topic sentence, which introduces one reason connected to your claim. Then you provide evidence from the text. After that, you explain how the evidence proves your argument. Finally, you end the paragraph by connecting the reason or point back to your argument claim in the introductory paragraph.
Say: Notice that the first “E”—Explanation—is where the thinking happens. This is where you move beyond simply summarizing the story. Logical reasoning means you clearly explain why the evidence matters and how it supports your argument. If you remove the explanation, the paragraph becomes only a list of events instead of an argument.
Display a partially completed model paragraph.
Say these Directions: Follow along as we examine how this paragraph uses the TREE structure to support a claim.
Model Topic Sentence: Revolutions often betray their ideals when leaders gain control of information and manipulate the truth to maintain power.
Evidence #1 (from Animal Farm): Orwell illustrates this when Squealer explains that the pigs need milk and apples because they are the “brainworkers” of the farm and must stay healthy in order to manage everything for the other animals (p. 36).
Explanation: This manipulation works because Squealer presents the pigs’ privileges as something necessary for the success of the farm. As a result, the animals begin to accept inequality even though the original ideals of Animalism promised equality for all animals.
Explain that strong body paragraphs often include more than one piece of evidence. Display the rest of the completed model paragraph.
Evidence #2 (From Animal Farm): Later in the novel, in Chapter IX, Squealer again manipulates the animals by claiming that Boxer was taken to a hospital, even though the animals saw a van marked for a slaughterhouse.
Explanation: This deception reinforces the pigs’ control over information. Because most of the animals cannot read well and trust Squealer’s explanations, they accept the false story instead of questioning the pigs’ actions.
Ending Conclusion: These examples show how controlling information allows the pigs to gradually betray the revolution’s promise of equality.
Ask: What does the body paragraph do well?
The paragraph begins with a clear topic sentence, uses specific and relevant evidence, and explains how the evidence supports the argument instead of just summarizing events.
Provide students with a confidence continuum (i.e., 1–5). As needed, model how to demonstrate a level of confidence using the continuum.
Reflection |
|---|
Reflect on your understanding of how to write an argument body paragraph using the TREE Strategy, using the Reflection routine.
|
Connection to Today’s Learning
Say: You will now use the TREE strategy to plan and draft your own body paragraphs, using evidence from Animal Farm to support your claim.
Learning in Action: Practicing Argument Writing Using TREE (RL.8.1, W.8.1.b, W.8.9.a) (30 minutes)
Paragraph Planning Using the TREE Strategy
Emphasize that strong writers plan their topic sentence, evidence, and reasoning so that each part of the paragraph supports the same central idea.
Instruct students to take out their claim and notes from previous lessons.
Say these Directions: Now that we have looked at how a strong body paragraph is structured, you will begin planning your own paragraph. Use the TREE organizer to organize your ideas and plan your body paragraph. Begin by choosing one clear reason that supports your claim. Then, select evidence and explain how it proves your point. You will use this plan to draft a complete body paragraph.
Remind students that a strong argument body paragraph should:
begin with a topic sentence that includes a point or reason connected to the claim
include evidence from Animal Farm
(optional) include a historical example from the Russian Revolution
explain how both examples support the topic sentence
end by connecting back to the claim
Provide the following TREE body paragraph organizer with sample responses to support students as they practice drafting an argument body paragraph using their claims from Lesson 26.
T – Topic Sentence What point or reason from your argument claim will this paragraph focus on?
Examples to Choose From: fear, propaganda, loss of truth, corrupted leadership, control of information
Revolutions often betray their ideals when leaders use fear to silence opposition and control decision-making.
R – Reason/Evidence #1 from Animal Farm
Choose one moment from Animal Farm that supports this reason.
In Chapter V, Napoleon uses the dogs to chase Snowball off the farm. Orwell writes that the dogs “dashed straight for Snowball,” forcing him to flee from the farm (p. 53). This moment ends the animals’ debate about the windmill and enables Napoleon to take control of the farm.
E – Explanation #1 Explain how this evidence supports your point or reason.
Questions to Consider: What ideal is betrayed? How does power shift? Why does this matter?
This moment betrays the ideal of equality because the animals no longer have an equal voice in decisions. Power shifts from shared debate to Napoleon’s control through fear. This matters because the revolution begins to resemble the same oppression it was supposed to end.
R – Reason/Evidence #2 from the Russian Revolution or Animal Farm
Choose one historical example that reinforces the same reason or another piece of evidence from Animal Farm.
During the Russian Revolution, political opponents were often intimidated, arrested, or executed by Stalin and his regime. This shows how revolutionary leaders used fear to silence opposition and strengthen their control.
E – Explanation #2
Explain how this historical example supports the same reason or point.
Questions to Consider: How does this example parallel Animal Farm? What does it reveal about revolutions and ideals?
This example parallels Animal Farm because both Napoleon and real revolutionary leaders use violence to stop disagreement. Together, these examples show that revolutions can betray their ideals when leaders silence others instead of allowing freedom and accountability.
E – Ending
Write one sentence explaining how these examples reinforce your argument claim.
Both Animal Farm and the Russian Revolution show that revolutions betray their ideals when fear is used to replace equality and agency.
Say these Directions: Begin drafting your body paragraph using your completed organizer. Make sure your paragraph includes a topic sentence, evidence, and clear reasoning that explains how the evidence supports your claim.
Provide time for students to write independently. Circulate to support students as needed.
Display the following rubric for students to reference as they work:
Lesson 31 Writing Rubric: Argument Body Paragraph — TREE Strategy
Writing prompt: Use the TREE Strategy to plan and begin drafting a body paragraph supporting your claim about why revolutions uphold or betray their ideals in Animal Farm. Include a topic sentence, relevant evidence from the text, and reasoning that explains the connection between evidence and claim.
Criteria | 1 — Beginning | 2 — Developing | 3 — Proficient |
|---|---|---|---|
Evidence & Analysis (W.8.1.b) TREE: Evidence + Reasoning | Evidence from Animal Farm is absent or not connected to the argument about propaganda protecting or corrupting ideals. No reasoning explains how the evidence supports the claim. | Evidence is present and relevant, but the reasoning is brief or does not fully explain how the propaganda technique in the evidence protects or corrupts the revolution’s ideals. | Accurate evidence from Animal Farm is integrated with a signal phrase and analyzed with clear reasoning. The explanation shows specifically how the chosen evidence — a character action, a slogan, a rule change — demonstrates why the revolution upholds or betrays its ideals. |
Teacher Tip |
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If students need support, prompt them to explain why their evidence matters by asking, What does this example show about the revolution’s ideals? If students do not finish their body paragraphs, they will have more time in the following lesson to work on them. |
Teacher Tip |
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To strengthen their analysis, remind students that the Explanation section should be the longest part of the paragraph in the TREE structure. This is where students move beyond summarizing events and explain why the evidence matters. Encourage students to think about Orwell’s purpose as an author. Instead of retelling what happens in the story, students should explain what Orwell is revealing about power, propaganda, and the betrayal of revolutionary ideals. For example, if a student writes about the changing commandments, they should explain why Orwell shows the pigs slowly rewriting the rules and how this reflects the way leaders can manipulate revolutionary ideals to maintain power. |
Checklist |
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Check to make sure you have the following criteria in your completed paragraph:
If needed, revise your paragraph to strengthen your explanation and ensure your evidence clearly supports your claim. |
Turn and Talk
Have students reflect on how the TREE Strategy helped them write their paragraph in a partner discussion.
Say: Discuss how the TREE strategy supported your writing today. Focus on how you used evidence and reasoning to develop your paragraph.
How did the TREE Strategy help you move from evidence to reasoning? What part of your paragraph required the most thinking?
The TREE strategy helped me remember that I need to explain my evidence, not just include it. The explanation required the most thinking because I had to clearly connect the event to my argument about revolutionary ideals.
Instruct students to review the body paragraph they drafted today and respond to the following prompt in their Journal:
How does your evidence and reasoning support your claim? What is one revision you can make to strengthen your explanation?
Lesson Texts
Novel
Animal Farm
George Orwell
