Article
Illustrations by John Corbitt
Debate Scavenger Hunt,

Assigned Seating in the Cafeteria?

Should Lakeside Middle School have assigned seats at lunch? Lila thinks it’s a great idea. Josh disagrees. Who makes the better argument?

From the November 2018 Issue

Learning Objective: to analyze and evaluate two opposing argument essays 

Complexity Factors
  • Purpose
    This debate has a clear purpose: to present arguments for and against having assigned seats in school cafeterias.
  • Structure
    The debate consists of two short letters: one explains why assigned seating in the cafeteria is a good idea, and the other explains the drawbacks of assigned seating.
  • Language Conventionality and Clarity
    Vocabulary: some challenging academic vocabulary (e.g., dread, excluded, socialize) Figurative language: rhetorical questions
  • Knowledge Demands
    The article refers to the Hunger Games.
Featured Skill: Argument Writing,
Other Key Skills: central ideas and details
Common Core Standards
  • Anchor Standards
    R.1, R.2, R.4, R.6, W.1, W.4, W.5, L.4, L.6
  • Grade 6
    RI.6.1, RI.6.2, RI.6.6, W.6.1, W.6.4, W.6.5, SL.6.1, L.6.1, L.6.2, L.6.3
  • Grade 7
    RI.7.1, RI.7.2, RI.7.6, RI.7.8, W.7.1, W.7.4, W.7.5, SL.7.1, L.7.1, L.7.2, L.7.3
  • Grade 8
    RI.8.1, RI.8.2, RI.8.6, RI.8.8, W.8.1, W.8.4, W.8.5, SL.8.1, L.8.1, L.8.2, L.8.3
TEKS Standards
  • Grade 6
    6.1; 6.2; 6.11; 6.14; 6.18; 6.19; 6.26, 6.27
  • Grade 7
    7.1, 7.2e, 7.11; 7.14; 7.18; 7.19; 7.26, 7.27
  • Grade 8
    8.1, 8.2e, 8.11; 8.14; 8.18; 8.19; 8.26, 8.27

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YES

Assigned seats will make our cafeteria a better place.    

Dear Principal Rodriguez,

Thank you for giving the students of Lakeside Middle School the chance to voice our opinions about the issue of assigned seating in the cafeteria. It is nice to know that you care what we think.

What do I think? I think assigned seating in the cafeteria is a FANTASTIC idea.

Think about the kids who don’t have a group of friends to sit with every day. For them, walking into the cafeteria is about as fun as walking into the Hunger Games arena. Trying to find someone to sit with can create so much anxiety that some kids don’t even bother. Instead, they sit alone or go to the library or an empty classroom. One time I found a girl eating her ham sandwich in the bathroom. (Don’t worry; I took her back to my table with me.) If we had assigned seats, no one would have to face such situations.

Assigned seats would also break up some of the cliques that have formed at our school. I always sit with the same people at lunch: my gymnastics friends. Many kids do this—the soccer kids sit with the soccer kids, the band kids with the band kids, and so on. I don’t think there is anything wrong with that, but sitting with the same group every day does prevent you from meeting new people. It can also make others feel excluded. Assigned seats would force us all to branch out. Maybe we’d even make some new friends along the way!

Many of my classmates are not going to share my enthusiasm though. Most kids say that lunch is the one time during the day when they get to relax and have fun with their friends. And assigned seating could mean sitting next to someone you don’t particularly like. But in the words of my Language Arts teacher, Ms. Walsh, that would be a learning opportunity. In life, we’re not always going to be BFFs with everyone we meet, right? Assigned seating would be a way for all of us at Lakeside to practice treating everyone with respect and kindness—even people we don’t know well or aren’t friends with.

Thank you for considering my opinion,

Lila Olander

NO

Assigned seats will make everyone miserable. 

Dear Principal Rodriguez,

I have to be honest: I’ve been bummed ever since you announced that you’re considering assigned seats in the cafeteria. I don’t think it’s a good idea, and here’s why.

First of all, lunch is the only time during the school day when we get to socialize with our friends. It would not be fair to take that privilege away. We work reeeeeeally hard in class, and the time we spend relaxing and goofing around at lunch is an important break.

It’s true that finding a seat in the cafeteria can be stressful for some students, and I don’t want anyone at Lakeside to dread lunchtime. But assigned seating doesn’t seem like the best solution to the problem. For one thing, forcing kids to sit next to each other doesn’t mean they’re going to end up being friends. And even if assigned seating did relieve anxiety for some kids, would it be worth making others (like me) miserable?

Besides, when my friends and I eat lunch together, we are not excluding anyone. We would never turn someone away who wanted to sit with us.

Here’s something else: Many schools that have assigned seating in their cafeterias rotate seats each week. But that could prevent friendships from forming. About a month ago, a new kid, Leo, began eating with us. Over the next few weeks, we got to know each other and became friends. If our seat assignments changed all the time, friendships like ours would not have time to grow.

Plus, there are ways to make the cafeteria a friendlier place without assigned seating. For example, we could swap out the rectangular tables for circular ones. That way, no one would get stuck at the end of a table and left out of the conversation. We could also appoint someone at each table to be the “Table Usher.” The Table Usher’s job would be to keep an eye out for kids who are looking for a seat and invite them over. Or what if we tried assigned seats just once a month? Like a special get-to-know-someone-new day? I’d be way less bummed about that.

Thank you for hearing me out,

Josh Graff

Scavenger Hunt

Directions: Hunt through each letter for the following elements.

    1. The central idea, or central claim.

    2. Two pieces of supporting evidence.

    3. The counterargument.

    4. The writer’s rebuttal.

YOU decide: Who made the stronger argument?

This article was originally published in the November 2018 issue.

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Activities (7)
Core Skills Workout
  • The Core Skills Workout is a series of skill-based activities that will help your students "bulk up" in the comprehension skills they need most to become strong, analytical readers. The Core Skills Workout comes with every issue and will support your reading program no matter what your scope and sequence.
Reference
Skills Activities
Answer Key (1)
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Activities (7) Download All Quizzes and Activities
Core Skills Workout
  • The Core Skills Workout is a series of skill-based activities that will help your students "bulk up" in the comprehension skills they need most to become strong, analytical readers. The Core Skills Workout comes with every issue and will support your reading program no matter what your scope and sequence.
Reference
Skills Activities
Answer Key (1)
Step-by-Step Lesson Plan

Close Reading, Critical Thinking, Skill Building

Download the Lesson Plan

1. PREPARING TO READ

  • Give students a minute to preview the text features­—the headlines, illustrations or photos, any charts or graphs, etc. Ask students what they think the article is going to be about.
  • Project the Vocabulary and Definitions.
  • Follow up with the Vocabulary Activity to practice using the words that are highlighted in bold in the debate.

2. READING AND TEXT MARKING

  • Read both texts once through as a class.
  • Ask: “No matter what you personally think about the issue, which author do you think makes the better argument?” Take a poll and tally the results on the board.
  • Project the first text. For this text only, have students complete the Scavenger Hunt box at the end of the article, modeling text marking on your whiteboard while students mark their magazines. Or print and distribute the Scavenger Hunt graphic organizer to help students develop their arguments. Note that a lower-level version of the graphic organizer that does not include counterargument is available.
  • Have students complete the Scavenger Hunt box in the magazine and/or the Scavenger Hunt graphic organizer for the second text in small groups.

3. DISCUSS

As a class, discuss the question at the end of the Scavenger Hunt: Who makes the stronger argument? Then ask:
        1. What do the authors agree about? What do they disagree about?
        2. How do the images support each author’s argument?
        3. What is each author’s tone? Explain your answer.

4. DEBATE

  • Divide students into groups according to which author they think makes the best argument. Have the groups stand on opposite sides of the room.
  • Students should then debate: One student offers a reason (support) for his or her opinion; a student from the other group responds.
  • Students should quietly switch sides if at any point during the debate they change their position on the issue; be sure to ask any student who does this why he or she did so. Encourage students to use evidence to support their opinions.
  • At the end of the debate, compare the number of students who support each author with the number who supported each author before the debate.

5. WRITING

  • Have students work individually to complete the Essay Kit guided-writing activity to write an argument essay supporting their points of view. Students can use the Argument Essay Checklist to evaluate and edit their essays.
  • If they are provided, use the extension resources provided in the “Resource” tab that bring in other articles to deepen the conversation. NOTE: Extra resources are not provided with every debate.  
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