3.

01 Interpreting History
You will be writing about a current day topic and giving opposing perspectives. Your
format will be some form of social media. The template here is set up like text
messaging but you may choose something else. Find the 3 topic options on page 4 of
lesson 3.01 and pick 1 of them.

Conduct some Internet research for ideas for both sides of the argument. You will need 3
strong arguments for each side and 5 entries for each person in the conversation as you
create the exchange between the two people. Keep track of your Internet resources by
copying and pasting the web page address at the bottom of this page. This is required.

Ex: Person 1- “I think the new dress code for school is so restricting; they don’t let us
express ourselves at all!” Person 2- “Having a dress code makes it easier on everyone,
you need to lighten up.” Person 1- “That’s easy for you to say because you have no
style. I also think it is more expensive than the clothes I can get at the thrift store.”
Person 2- “They say research about uniforms shows that students perform better in
school and I know you need better grades!”

Topic: ____________soda tax________________________

john : hey fred, did you hear the news today about the new 2 cent tax on sodas?? i am so mad
about this.

fred: i don’t know what you mean, i love this tax, maybe it’ll stop people from drinking soda so
much, and start working out/ getting in shape. I love this idea.

john: i believe its unfair to tax soda and not other drinks that could be just as bad for me or
others.

fred: look at the bright side john! look at the other taxes that have been imposed to improve
health, they worked ! look at the tobacco tax on cigarettes

john: hey!!! tobacco is far worse than soda for a persons health. drinking soda is not as bad as
smoking.

fred: other places have put a tax on drinks, and it has worked. it decreased the consumption of
those drinks, so i think it would work here, think about the decrease in obesity and health cost.

john: think about the jobs that will be lost!! will this tax be worth the loss of a job, nope! how
about starting a campaign about excerise instead of another government tax!

fred: good point, but the tax will also raise money for needed projects like schools and
community projects, either way the tax really isn’t that big
john: well this tax is a regressive tax, it hurts more of the lower class than higher class, i just
don’t think this tax is a good idea

fred: well i disagree with you john. people in this country need to be in shape and excerise,
besides soda, you and other people need to excerise more, can we agree on that? and yes,
there does need to be a health campaign to get people in better shape.
Don’t forget to include at least 2 sources that you used for research. They should be
properly cited using the MLA citation guidelines.

Source #1 – www.sciencedirect.com

Source #2 – www.nclnet.org/soda_tax