IXL | Identify counterclaims | 6th grade language arts

Consider this claim:

Swallowing watermelon seeds is bad for you.

Now consider how someone might argue against this. Which sentence presents a counterclaim to the above claim?

Watermelon seeds are sometimes used for spitting contests.

Watermelon seeds contain lots of healthy protein.

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question

Consider this claim:

Swallowing watermelon seeds is bad for you.

Now consider how someone might argue against this. Which sentence presents a counterclaim to the above claim?

Watermelon seeds are sometimes used for spitting contests.

Watermelon seeds contain lots of healthy protein.

key idea

When you're writing an argument, you want to consider how someone might argue against your claim. Arguments against your claim are called counterclaims, or counterarguments. Addressing counterclaims makes you appear more fair and balanced as a writer, and it can help you build a stronger argument.

For instance, consider the following claim:

Scientists should attempt to revive mammoths through cloning.

This is a counterclaim since it makes an argument against the claim:

green checkmark, We don't know enough about mammoths to take good care of a clone.

These do not make arguments against the claim, so they are not counterclaims:

red X symbol, Reviving mammoths could help make tundra ecosystems healthier.

This statement supports the claim instead of arguing against it.

red X symbol, Scientists have already cloned sheep, cows, oxen, and horses.

This statement gives information related to the topic, but it doesn't argue against the claim.

solution

Consider this claim:

Swallowing watermelon seeds is bad for you.

This is a counterclaim that argues against the claim:

green checkmark, Watermelon seeds contain lots of healthy protein.

This is not a counterclaim:

red X symbol, Watermelon seeds are sometimes used for spitting contests.

This statement gives information related to the topic, but it doesn't argue against the claim.

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