Discovery Discussion Debate

Politics
Competition between cities is common. Speaking for charities is also a part of politics. How much time should politicians spend on these? Discover it! Discuss and form your opinions! Defend your opinions through debate. Dr. Paul R. Friesen

Discovery Discussion Debate

Title: Alberta Premier loses to Conservative backbencher in annual horse race

Discover Ideas
( Outline)

Discuss the Story

(3 Question Levels)
Create Opinions

Quiz

Politics

Design Dr. Paul R. Friesen 2013 Original Story copyright of original author Graphic organizers from MS Office templates

Page 1 of 15

Discovery Discussion Debate Before you start

Look through the idea, front to back. The ideas in red are just ideas. Students should add to these. There is an outline page for Discovery. There are graphic organizer pages for the Discussion and Debate sections. The reason for the worksheets, at the end of the book, is to help you work systematically through the material. Worksheets are helpers and can be a distraction from the rhythm and sequence in your teaching. By putting them at the end they become support pages versus places to stop, giving a smoother presentation.

Discovery
In the beginning of each story you will have a few questions to discover what you know, or think you know about a story. The Title of the article/ story will be given and you will be asked to discover the story by asking good questions. In the second part of discovery you will be asked to find words which you do not know. Some of these may be highlighted already in bold. Definitions will follow to help you discover what the writer is talking about. Discovery will help you form a plan for the discussion and debate.

Discussion
Discussion is not a debate, though it can quickly become one if there are strong opposing ideas in the group. Discussion can be a part of the discovery before you read the story. It may also come after to discuss the ideas of the story. Sometimes a persons views may change after reading the article, which is a good way to start a discussion. Discussion is interaction without a lot of structure. Be careful not to confuse discussion with argument. Debate is about argument. Discussion is about sharing your views and interacting with others who want to expand or give a differing viewpoint.

Debate
Debate is a structured idea. It means that only one person speaks in turn, and with a specific point to address. It also has a time limit, so the speaker must be precise in their argument. In a debate the key is to listen and be prepared to oppose the other teams ideas. It takes research, a lot of work, and patience. In the following story we want to begin with discovery ideas. What can you know from a title, if you dont know about the topic?

Design Dr. Paul R. Friesen 2013 Original Story copyright of original author Graphic organizers from MS Office templates

Page 2 of 15

Discovery Discussion Debate

In discovery you will form ideas to create basics ideas for an outline. In discussion you will ask questions to help you build an outline for your viewpoint. In debate you will separate the outline into two sections, for and against. At each stage you will be able to use what you have learned before, to expand on your ideas and understand both sides of the issue.

Category ~ Politics

Discovery
Title: Alberta Premier loses to Conservative backbencher in annual horse race
What can you know from the title? . . . . It is about dead people. The lady has a lot of stress. Its about American/ Canadian / European culture. It was about people wanting to talk with their ancestors.

What do I know about this topic? Nothing! Complications in life give me stress. People want to talk to dead people. Only in America! . __________________________________________ . __________________________________________ . __________________________________________ . __________________________________________ What would make me depressed? . __________________________________________ . __________________________________________ . __________________________________________ . __________________________________________ Have you ever had a problem that looked simple, but was complicated? No! Why not?
Design Dr. Paul R. Friesen 2013 Original Story copyright of original author Graphic organizers from MS Office templates Page 3 of 15

Discovery Discussion Debate

Yes! What did you do, and why? ___________________________________________________________ ___________________________________________________________ ___________________________________________________________ ___________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________ . Now read the story. . Create an outline of the story / paragraphs. . There are highlighted words you will find following the story. . Look in the definitions, which follow the story. . Discover the words you dont know.

Politics
Alberta Premier loses to Conservative backbencher in the annual horse
race Wednesday, December 10, 2003 EDMONTON (CP) - Lethal Charm turned out to be a losing bet for Alberta Premier Ralph Klein on Wednesday. Klein, driving a horse named Lethal Charm, let an early lead slip away in an annual exhibition harness race at Northlands Park. He lost by three lengths to his only competitor, Tory backbencher George VanderBurg, in the one-mile pace. "My horse is a front-runner and just didn't have what it took to stay the distance," said Klein, who drove Lethal Charm around a fast track in -14 C temperatures. "I don't consider it a loss, I consider it a very tight race."

Klein pulled away slowly at first, but VanderBurg passed the premier as the two
drove past the grandstand for the first time. Klein pulled ahead in the backstretch, but VanderBurg slowly gained ground, pulling ahead at the three-quarter pole. Klein pulled to the outside, but couldn't catch the Tory backbencher. This is Klein's third exhibition race at Northlands. He won the previous two races easily, but VanderBurg entered this race determined to make a better showing. "There's a lot of pressure from my family to win this race," VanderBurg said in a prerace interview. He won in a time of two minutes and 13 seconds, a slow race by professional standards.

Design Dr. Paul R. Friesen 2013 Original Story copyright of original author Graphic organizers from MS Office templates

Page 4 of 15

Discovery Discussion Debate

The race is a highlight of the year for Klein, who owned standard breds at one time when he was Mayor of Calgary. "This is really a rush," said Klein, dressed in silks borrowed from a regular driver at the track. "You're a bit nervous prior to the race, but once you're on the sulky, you have the fullest confidence in the horse." The Premier was at the track a day early this year for a couple of practice laps before retreating to the barns. Northlands donated a $1,000 purse for the race, to be donated to the charity of the winner's choice. VanderBurg donated it to a charity for handicapped children. Copyright 2003 The Canadian Press

Design Dr. Paul R. Friesen 2013 Original Story copyright of original author Graphic organizers from MS Office templates

Page 5 of 15

Discovery Discussion Debate Vocabulary Definitions

Alberta Premier --In Canada our Provincial Leader is called a Premier and the National Leader a Prime Minister. Alberta is therefore a Province. Conservative Conservative a political party name. Notice the line is drawn to the word Tory. Tory is the common name of this Party. Therefore the two are the same. The first is the real name and the second the common persons usage. Backbencher The person who is elected but is not close to the Prime Minister or Premier. They have not been chosen for any special duties like the Cabinet or Minister of Something. Harness race There are many kinds of horse races. This one has a harness over the head of the horse and a small two wheeled wagon for the driver to sit in. It is very fast and sometimes dangerous if the wheels come together. Northlands Park. This is the name of the Race Track. Three lengths The story does not tell y what the three lengths are. In racing it is the length of the horse or car or whatever. It is NOT meters or a standard measurement. Klein Notice here the Last name is used without formal words. Klein being the Premiers last name. The first name is not used. This is common when it is assumed all the people reading the paper know who he is. It is different in Korea where the name Kim refers to a lot of common people and politicians alike. Standard -breds -- Standard bred is a kind of horse. There are thoroughbreds which are for a different kind of racing. Therefore knowing the kind of bred is to understand the kind of race. "This is really a rush," Rush is used to mean fast. We rush around trying to find the keys to the car. Here it used to define a fast boost of adrenaline and excitement. The idea is the same but it is not me who rushes but the adrenaline or blood which rushes. It is commonly used when you have a quick moment of excitement. It is not a long period, just a moment. Dressed in silks Silks is the dress code of the driver. The material of the drivers suit is silk. On the sulky On gives us a clue to what this means. Sulky is the word used for track by those who are familiar with horse racing.

Design Dr. Paul R. Friesen 2013 Original Story copyright of original author Graphic organizers from MS Office templates

Page 6 of 15

Discovery Discussion Debate Discovery

What do I know about this topic?
List at least four (4) different ideas you have found in this story about the horse race.

. __________________________________________ . __________________________________________ . __________________________________________ . __________________________________________

Use them when you make your outline.

Discussion
1. Do you like horse racing? 2. What kinds of horse races have you seen? 3. Do your politicians challenge each other to non-political events to show who is better? Please explain. 4. Would you go to see this event? Why? 5. Do you think it is good for politicians to do this? Level II 1. Is the horse race just for fun, or is there more to this story? 2. Where is the place most often used to negotiate political deals? Explain. 3. Do you think that politicians spend too much time out of playing, and not working? Level III 1. 2. 3. 4. What is your view of how politics works? Are challenges like this valuable by Country leaders? Explain. How do cities in your Country compete? Do you feel connected to your politicians? You now have everything you need to fill out your outline. Look at your answers, under Discussion, and fill it out to reflect the new ideas. These new ideas will help you form your debate ideas better.

Design Dr. Paul R. Friesen 2013 Original Story copyright of original author Graphic organizers from MS Office templates

Page 7 of 15

Discovery Discussion Debate

In debate you will have a statement not a question. You have to react to the statement with facts, not opinions. Discussions are based a lot on opinions and answer questions. This is where these two ideas, though similar, are different. Debate is about facts and statements. When you make a statement, from a story, you must consider what the core issue is. If you have made a good outline, you will have this already discovered. This story is from politics. The core issue could be; social economic political culture In todays world the topics could range from; Competing cities. Playing politics many uses of horse racing political attitudes competing for public money These are all good arguments that you would want to research for your argument, or write in your essay. Build the argument starting from Why? Once you have determined the Why? you can find facts to support your idea.

Politicians spend too much time keeping their image, and not working. Competition for image is not as important as securing jobs for the community. Fun is fun. A challenge is a part of life. Everyone needs it, but politicians
should do it on their own time. Before you start choose one of the above statements to focus on. Choose a for or against position. Research to find FACTS for your position. List the facts. Write out your argument in a long paragraph format. Include the opposite position in your writing.

You need to write out both sides so you can understand the
other sides argument.

Design Dr. Paul R. Friesen 2013 Original Story copyright of original author Graphic organizers from MS Office templates

Page 8 of 15

Discovery Discussion Debate Discovery Outline

Main topic ________________________ Find one (1) key idea in each paragraph. (3-5 words) Paragraph 1 ______________________________ Paragraph 2 ______________________________ Paragraph 3 ______________________________ Paragraph 4 ______________________________ Paragraph 5 ______________________________ Write two things about the main paragraph idea. Paragraph 1 ______________________________ A. ______________________________ B. ______________________________ Paragraph 2 ______________________________ A. ______________________________ B. ______________________________ Paragraph 3 ______________________________ A. ______________________________ B. ______________________________ Paragraph 4 ______________________________ A. ______________________________ B. ______________________________ Paragraph 5 ______________________________ A. ______________________________ B. ______________________________ In the introduction you use the 5 paragraph ideas to communicate the order of your argument/ essay. In the conclusion you repeat what you have said about the points of each paragraph.

Design Dr. Paul R. Friesen 2013 Original Story copyright of original author Graphic organizers from MS Office templates

Page 9 of 15

Discovery Discussion Debate

Graphic Organization ~ Main topic = 5 Paragraph Topics

paragraph 1 ____________ ____________ ____________ ____________ paragraph 5 ____________ ____________ ____________ ____________ paragraph 2 ____________ ____________ ____________ ____________

Main topic

paragraph 4 ____________ ____________ ____________ ____________

paragraph 3 ____________ ____________ ____________ ____________

Design Dr. Paul R. Friesen 2013 Original Story copyright of original author Graphic organizers from MS Office templates

Page 10 of 15

Discovery Discussion Debate

Discussion Graphic ~ Is government spending a problem / becoming a problem in todays society? Answer ~ I think politicians are (are not) interested in spending money wisely because

Problem / Wages

Politicians only want to look good so they can stay in power.

People will vote for the Political Party which promises the best return.

Business cannot survive without Government money, so politicians give it to those who vote for them.

Respond

Respond

Respond

Respond

Respond

Respond

Design Dr. Paul R. Friesen 2013 Original Story copyright of original author Graphic organizers from MS Office templates

Page 11 of 15

Discovery Discussion Debate

graphic ~ choose one statement from the above. Write it here _____________________________________________ ________________________________________________________ To make your argument you should understand that they are connected. In the next two charts (1) list your argument facts and ideas, (2) show how your argument connects to both the center point and the other points. list

Facts
For 1 Against

Add more if needed

Design Dr. Paul R. Friesen 2013 Original Story copyright of original author Graphic organizers from MS Office templates Page 12 of 15

Discovery Discussion Debate

graphic ~ choose one statement from the above. list

If this -- then

If this -- then

Write your statement position here. ________________________________________ ________________________________________ ________________________________________ ______________________________

If this -- then

If this -- then

If this -- then

Now start the

As a team choose which points they will speak about. Each person will listen for the opposite point and create a new response to what the other person has said. A: point 1 B: responds to the point and give a new point. C: responds to B and give a new point. After all persons have spoken each person can respond to any point given by the opposite team, or add more points from their team which will need responding to from the opposite team.

Design Dr. Paul R. Friesen 2013 Original Story copyright of original author Graphic organizers from MS Office templates

Page 13 of 15

Discovery Discussion Debate Quiz

1. A harness is something you_________. a. wear on your head b. wear on your toe c. wear around your neck d. wear under your pants e. none of the above 2. Silks is used in this story for ______________. a. ties b. shoes c. socks d. blinders e. none of the above 3. Klein in this story is _____________ a. brother to Calvin b. a whiskey c. something to wear d. a person e. none of the above 4. This race is done ____________. a. everyday b. all day c. only once d. twice a year e. none of the above 5. Northlands Park is _______________ a. a race track b. a hotel c. where you drink coffee d. where children place on horses e. all of the above

answers 1e2e3d4e5a

Design Dr. Paul R. Friesen 2013 Original Story copyright of original author Graphic organizers from MS Office templates

Page 14 of 15

Discovery Discussion Debate

Dear Teacher/ Student, After you have finished this please look for more in this series to challenge yourself. This is only part of a curriculum. It starts with Dr. Roys Everything Grammar. Dr. Roys Everything Grammar Volumes I and II will develop the skills of story and essay writing, while at the same time building a foundation in grammar. The repetition of grammar, combined with reason and speaking, culminating in a story or essay will prepare students for this series. Going beyond this book is a book to expand the outlines into essays. Good essays are able to build and defend an argument. Building a structure for debate will springboard off this skill set.

Dr. Paul R. Friesen

Design Dr. Paul R. Friesen 2013 Original Story copyright of original author Graphic organizers from MS Office templates

Page 15 of 15