1. A claim must be arguable but stated as a fact. It must be debatable with inquiry and evidence; it is not a personal opinion or feeling.
2. A claim defines your writing’s goals, direction, and scope.
3. A good claim is specific and asserts a focused argument.

Here’s a packed rubric for your claim:

• Answers your research question
• Packed (complex sentence with 2-3 prongs)
• Arguable opinion (debatable)
• Concise
• Clear

Claim (Use the Rubric): ________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________.

Write-Up:  Choose one element of the claim, make your topic sentence and provide reasoning and evidence (1-2 paragraphs): _____________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________.