Persuasive writing is one of those skills that can help students succeed in real life. Learn the basics of this valuable skill, then use our big roundup of persuasive essay topics for practice. They cover a wide range of subjects, so every student will find something that piques their interest. Plus, they’re divided by grade level to help you determine which persuasive writing topics are most appropriate for your students.
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What is persuasive writing?
In a persuasive essay, the writer aims to convince a reader to accept a position or take an action by combining clear reasoning, credible evidence, and rhetorical techniques.
Here are the general steps to writing persuasively:
- Hook the reader: Start with an attention-grabbing story, quote, statistic, or personal emotional appeal to the audience.
- State your position (thesis statement): Clearly and succinctly, state your desired opinion or outcome up front. This could be the point of view you want the reader to adopt (“Pineapple has no place on a pizza.”) or the action you want them to take (“All adults should educate themselves and vote in every election.”).
- Provide evidence and support: Use facts to support your point of view, citing sources whenever you can. Explain how those facts back up your position, using logic and reason.
- Anticipate counterarguments: It’s important to know your audience so you can anticipate any counterarguments they might make and try to overcome them. It’s not necessary to address every possible counterargument in a persuasive essay.
- Use emotional appeals: Persuasive essays are similar to argumentative essays, but they incorporate more emotion rather than sticking strictly to facts and logic. For instance, you might try to anger, scare, or create a sense of pride in your reader so they’ll be more likely to agree with you.
- Make a call to action: Finish strong with the specific action you’d like the reader to take, whether it’s voting responsibly or never putting pineapple on a pizza again.
Help students understand what strong persuasive writing looks like by exploring well-known examples of persuasive essays, speeches, ads, and more. Then, use the topics here to give them practice writing persuasively on their own.
School and Education Persuasive Essay Topics
Elementary/Middle School
- If you could change one school rule, what would it be?
- What is the most important school subject?
- Should all students wear school uniforms?
- Do you think homework should be required, optional, or not given at all?
- Do you think schools should ban junk food from their cafeterias?
- Should schools have dress codes?
- Is it better to be good at academics or good at sports?
Middle/High School
- Should students be able to use their phones during the school day?
- Is year-round school a good idea?
- Should every student have to participate in athletics?
- Should schools teach life skills like financial responsibility?
- Are letter grades helpful, or should we replace them with something else?
- Is it ever OK to cheat on homework or a test?
- What are the ideal starting and ending hours for a school day?
- Which is better, book smarts or street smarts?
- Does your school handle bullying well?
- Should all students have to learn a foreign language?
High School
- Should we stop giving final exams?
- Which is better, private schools or public schools?
- Should students be required to volunteer in their communities?
- Should students get to grade their teachers?
- Do you think college should be free for anyone who wants to attend?
- Should schools be allowed to ban some books from their libraries?
- Is attending college worth the time and effort?
- Are single-gender schools better or worse for students?
- Should schools reduce or eliminate standardized testing?
Life and Ethics Persuasive Essay Topics
Elementary/Middle School
- What animal makes the best pet?
- Which is better, giving or receiving?
- Should kids have set bedtimes or just go to bed when they’re sleepy?
- Is it better to save your allowance or spend it?
- If you could make a new law, what would it be?
- Which is better, living in the city or in the country?
- If you find money on the ground, should you try to find the person who lost it, or is it yours to keep?
Middle/High School
- Is it OK to eat animals?
- Is it better to adopt from an animal shelter instead of a breeder?
- Why is it important to vote?
- Is it better to be kind or truthful?
- Who faces more peer pressure, girls or boys?
- Is it OK to keep animals in zoos?
- Which is more important, happiness or success?
- Should we ban plastic bags and bottles?
- Is social media helpful or harmful?
High School
- Should all Americans be required to vote?
- Should wealthy people pay a higher tax rate?
- Is democracy the best form of government?
- Should free speech have any limitations?
- Should we change the minimum driving age in the United States?
- Is capital punishment ever ethical or justified?
- Should parents be punished for their children’s mistakes or crimes?
- Do you think the government should find a way to provide free universal health care for everyone?
- Does immigration benefit the United States?
- Is a border wall between Mexico and the United States essential for reducing crime rates?
- Should the United States have stronger gun regulations?
Science and Technology Persuasive Essay Topics
Elementary/Middle School
- Is Pluto a planet?
- Should we plant more trees instead of building new houses?
- Would you rather explore the ocean or outer space?
- Are there benefits to playing video games?
- Is it better to recycle things or throw them away and buy new ones?
- Is it better to be an animal that lives in the water or on land?
Middle/High School
- Should all people have free internet access in their homes?
- Are humans responsible for an increase in the climate change rate?
- Should all communities be legally required to recycle?
- Is there intelligent life on other planets?
- What’s better, cable TV or streaming apps?
- Should parents use their children’s cell phones to track where they are?
- Which is better, Macs or PCs?
- Should there be a minimum age requirement to own a smartphone?
- Should kids under 13 be allowed to use social media sites?
- Do all people have a responsibility to help combat climate change?
- Do people rely too much on technology in the modern world?
High School
- Should human cloning be legal?
- Should vaccines be mandatory?
- Do the benefits of nuclear power outweigh the risks?
- Is it right for countries to still maintain nuclear weapon arsenals?
- Should testing on animals be made illegal?
- Will expanded use of artificial intelligence be good for humanity?
- Does technology create more jobs than it eliminates?
- Should scientists try to develop a way for people to live forever?
- Should cryptocurrencies replace cash?
- Does the cost of space exploration outweigh the value?
- Should we ban cigarette smoking and vaping entirely?
Sports and Entertainment Persuasive Essay Topics
Elementary/Middle School
- Should kids be allowed to watch TV on school nights?
- Are video games better than board games?
- Should we allow little kids to play competitive sports?
- Which is better, reading books or watching TV?
- What new sport should be added to the Olympics?
- Should all neighborhoods have free parks and playgrounds?
- What’s the best video game system?
- Choose a book that’s been made into a movie. Which was better, the movie or the book?
Middle/High School
- Who is the world’s best athlete, present or past?
- Which is better, paper books or e-books?
- Are celebrities obligated to be positive role models for their fans?
- Does playing violent video games make people more violent in real life?
- Do video games need more inclusive and diverse characters?
- What is the best music genre?
- Which is better, fiction or nonfiction?
- What is one book that everyone should read?
- Are graphic novels just as valuable as traditional fiction books?
- Is the current movie rating system (G, PG, PG-13, etc.) effective?
- Are movie theater tickets too expensive?
- Have youth sports become too competitive?
- Does playing video games make you smarter?
- Does reality TV actually depict real life?
High School
- Should sports teams have to pay to build their own arenas or stadiums rather than relying on the community?
- Do women’s sports deserve equal funding and coverage as men’s sports?
- Should everyone play on the same sports teams, regardless of gender?
- Are professional athletes/musicians/actors overpaid?
- Is hosting the Olympics a waste of a country’s money and resources?
- Should college athletes be allowed to accept a salary for playing?
- Should high school athletes be required to maintain a minimum GPA to continue playing?
- Are contact sports like boxing and football too dangerous?
- Are awards like the Grammys and Oscars biased and in need of reform?
Just for Fun Persuasive Essay Topics
- What’s the best holiday?
- What is the very best food of all time?
- Which make better pets, dogs or cats?
- Which is better, artificial Christmas trees or real ones?
- What’s the best season of the year?
- Should you put ketchup on a hot dog?
- Is a taco a sandwich?
- Does fruit count as dessert?
- Is it better to eat dessert first?
- Should people have to go to school or work on their birthday?
- Are clowns scary or funny?
- Which is more dangerous, werewolves or vampires?
- What’s the best pizza topping?
- What would be the best superpower to have?
- Should everyone make their bed every day?
- Which came first, the chicken or the egg?
- Should you put pineapple on a pizza?
- Should you eat macaroni and cheese with a spoon or a fork?
- What ingredients would be in the world’s best ice cream sundae?
- Is Monday the worst day of the week?
- Would you rather travel back in time or forward in time?
- Is it better to be too hot or too cold?
- Are there aliens living among us here on Earth?
Get your free printable persuasive essay graphic organizers!
Download our persuasive essay graphic organizer bundle to pair perfectly with your lesson and allow your students to plan their writing with helpful visuals. There are two worksheets, one with a simple layout for younger students and one with a detailed layout that’s best for older students. Both graphic organizers feature a road map theme that walks your students through all the steps, such as stating their claim, providing reasons and supporting facts, and restating the claim. These graphic organizers work for both persuasive and argumentative essays. Just enter your email address in the form on this page to grab them!