M8: Determining Textual Evidence

• In order to figure out what a claim is, you must simply read carefully.

  • Does the writer provide lots of supporting details?
  • Are the paragraphs organized effectively, with topic sentences that introduce the central focus of each paragraph?

  If so, the claim is often found in the last sentence of the first paragraph. If you can’t find the claim, skimming the first and second paragraphs of an expository text may help. However, it is not enough to simply identify the claim, as a sophisticated argument will also include what is called ‘counterclaim’.
• Textual Evidence

  
• Example Sentence Starters for Textual Evidence

  
• How to Cite Explicit Textual Evidence?