Grade 6 Semester Unassisted Writing Sample (UWS)

Discussion Essay

Instructions: Use the following page to write the first draft of your discussion essay. Write the

advantages and disadvantages of a renewable or nonrenewable energy source, then state your

opinion at the end. Use your outline in OneNote (Step 3) to write your draft.

 Write the essay: 1 hour

 Proofread and edit: 30 min.

After you complete your draft, check your work for spelling, capitalization, and punctuation.

When you proofread, do not delete your errors when proofreading.

Use the following key:

 Strikethrough: Replace words or phrases. Make corrections in red or green.

 Example: Energy is transfered transferred from one form to another.

Use Calibri or Times New Roman font style, size 12, and double-spaced lines. Include a relevant

title.

Use the following structure for your discussion essay:

1. Introductory paragraph which communicates the statement of position (or overall main

idea of your essay)

2. Specific arguments emphasizing at least one advantage and least one disadvantage

related to the topic and supporting evidence for each.

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 3. Concluding paragraph, which effectively provides a recommendation or restates the

statement of position (or emphasizes the main idea) and restates the main arguments

Remember to use this checklist to guide your writing:

 Consider your purpose as the author and how to catch the interest of your readers

 Create an outline to organize your ideas so your essay makes sense

 Be concise (i.e., don’t repeat ideas)

 Use present tense to write your argument and past tense when sharing examples

 Use a variety of sentence structures

 Use adjectives to add specific details to your topic

 Use connectives (transition words) to link arguments and order ideas

Before submitting your essay to your teacher, be sure to:

 Review and edit your work

 Review all directions carefully

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Grade 6 Unassisted Writing Sample 2022
 Title: Solar Energy: Reliable or Unreliable?

By: Cecilia Mann

Did you know that there are currently more than 12 million homes powered by solar

panel systems in the United States? There has been debate about whether solar energy is

reliable or unreliable. I think that both viewpoints have reasonable arguments, but for the

most part, I agree with the people who say that solar energy is reliable.

Some people say that solar energy is unreliable and that we shouldn’t use it. For

example, solar energy can be harmful to environments because it isn't 100% pollution free and

it “takes up a lot of land, invading agricultural land and natural habitats." Solar farms take up a

lot of land because they need plenty of space for solar panels. Sometimes, in order to have

solar farms, they take up space from natural habitats and agricultural land. Another reason why

some people don’t like using solar energy is that it’s expensive and it doesn’t work during the

night due to lack of sunlight. Although solar energy has many disadvantages, there are also

many advantages to it.

Other people say that solar energy is useful and reliable. Some benefits of solar energy

is are that although solar cells are expensive to install, “the investment pays off over time” and

you gain other advantages such as lowering your electricity bills, and the solar cells are low

maintenance. Solar energy is also very powerful. Did you know that a single hour of sunlight is

enough energy to run everything electrical on Earth by solar panel systems for a year? There

are many reasons why solar energy is a reliable source of energy.

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 Different people have different opinions on whether solar energy is reliable or

unreliable, but I agree with the people who say that solar energy is reliable. Whatever

opinions people have, I think we can all agree that solar energy could change the world.

Works Cited

“15 Interesting Facts about Solar Energy.” Wind Solar Alliance, 5 Oct. 2021,

windsolaralliance.org/2021/10/interesting-solar-energy-facts/. Accessed 17 Feb. 2022.

Br, Dara, and t. “Disadvantages of Solar Energy: Top 7 You Should Know.” Energy Center of

the World, www.ecw.org/disadvantages-of-solar-energy/. Accessed 17 Feb. 2022.

Inc, Epic! Creations. “Instantly Access 40,000 High-Quality Books for Kids.” Epic - Books for

Kids, www.getepic.com/app/read/74079.

National Geographic. “Solar Power Has Benefits as a Source of Alternative Energy.”

Environment, 9 Oct. 2009, www.nationalgeographic.com/environment/article/solar-

power.

“Newsela | Types of Renewable Energy.” Newsela.com, newsela.com/read/natgeo-renewable-

energy/id/2000002211/.

“Solar.” Irena.org, 2019, www.irena.org/solar.

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“What Is Solar Energy?” Justenergy.com, justenergy.com/blog/what-is-solar-energy/.

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