Practices 1-2

1. Practices 1-2 Boston Debate League Winter Season 2012

2. Argument 4-Corners Instructions Strongly Agree Strongly Disagree • Our claim is that medical marijuana should be legal. • Our warrant is that although it can be abused nothing eases the suffering of having cancer more and it is almost non-addictive. • Medical Marijuana should be legal • Decide in your corner what the best warrant is for believing your claim. You have 1 minute. • Let’s hear from the Agree Corner. Agree Disagree

3. Fun with Arguments 4-Corners Strongly Agree Strongly Disagree • Medical marijuana should be legal • Social networking sites like Facebook are good for our society. • Violent Video games contribute to youth violence. • The US should provide comprehensive health care for its residents. Agree Disagree

4. In response to what my opponent said: 1 & 2. Also, as I stated earlier 1 & 2. My claim is true for 2 reasons: Reason # 1 Reason # 2 In response to what my opponent said: 1 & 2. Also, as I stated earlier 1 & 2. My claim is true for 2 reasons: Reason # 1 Reason # 2 Table Debates Would anyone like to share an argument that their opponent stated that you found particularly persuasive. All my As rise. You have 1 minute to both state your arguments and attack those of your opponents. Anything you do not attack, it is assumed you agree with. …30 seconds….10 seconds…5 seconds….3,2,1. Get into pairs. Decide who will be A and B. A is for it and B is against it. You will now have 2 minutes of prep time to come up with 2 warrants that defend your claim. All my Bs rise. You have 1 minute to both state your arguments and attack those of your opponents. Anything you do not attack, it is assumed you agree with. …30 seconds….10 seconds…5 seconds….3,2,1. …30 seconds….10 seconds…5 seconds….3,2,1. All my As please rise. All my As you have 1 minute to present your 2 warrants that will prove why your claim is true. Begin! …30 seconds….10 seconds…5 seconds….3,2,1. You will now have 2 minutes of prep time. If you do not respond to all of your opponents arguments then you must agree with the ones you did not respond to. All my Bs please rise. All my Bs you have 1 minute to present your 2 warrants that will prove why your claim is true. Begin! A B My claim is true for 2 reasons: Reason # 1 Reason # 2 In response to what my opponent said: 1 & 2. Also, as I stated earlier 1 & 2. My claim is true for 2 reasons: Reason # 1 Reason # 2 In response to what my opponent said: 1 & 2. Also, as I stated earlier 1 & 2. A B

5. Fun with Table Debates • Medical marijuana should be legal • Violent Video games contribute to youth violence. • Social networking sites like Facebook are good for our society. • The US should provide comprehensive health care for its residents. A B A B

6. Space Arguments 4-Corners Strongly Agree Strongly Disagree • An asteroid collision with Earth is the most likely way that humanity will be terminated. Alien’s exist. The government should be searching for extraterrestrial/ extradimensionalbeings. • The US should revive its personed-space program. • Human’s should build a colony on Mars to avoid total extinction after a catastrophic event on Earth. Agree Disagree

7. Space Related Table Debates • An asteroid collision with Earth is the most likely way that humanity will be terminated. Alien’s exist. The government should be searching for extraterrestrial/ extradimensionalbeings. • The US should revive its personed-space program. • Human’s should build a colony on Mars to avoid total extinction after a catastrophic event on Earth. A B A B

8. W1 is the best reason to believe the claim is true because… Mini Debates W3 is the best reason to believe the claim is true because… …30 seconds….10 seconds…5 seconds….3,2,1. A will claim that warrant 2 (W2) best proves the claim is true; B – W3, and C – W1. Get into groups of 3. Decide who will be A, B, and C. You will now have 2 minutes of prep time to come up with 2 reasons why your warrant best proves that the claim is true. All my Cs please rise. You will now have 1 minute to prove that your warrant best proves that the claim is true. Go! You will now have 2 minutes of prep time. If you do not respond to all of your opponents arguments then you must agree with the ones you did not respond to. For the given claim there are 3 warrants that try to prove that it is true. Which warrant best proves that the claim is true? …30 seconds….10 seconds…5 seconds….3,2,1. All my As please rise. You will now have 1 minute to prove that your warrant best proves that the claim is true. Go! …30 seconds….10 seconds…5 seconds….3,2,1. All my Bs please rise. You will now have 1 minute to prove that your warrant best proves that the claim is true. Go! W2 is the best reason to believe the claim is true because… W3 B C W1 W2 A Continue with an additional round where each debater will have 1 minute to both respond to their opponents arguments and prove why their warrant is the best reason to believe the claim is true. Any arguments not attacked by you, you accept as true.

9. Exploring the Topic with Choosing the Best Warrant Mini Debate Claim: The US should substantially increase its exploration and/or development of space. Warrants: 1) Colonizing Mars will ensure that people will survive a catastrophe on Earth. 2) We could find Aliens whose technology could solve all our problems. 3) We need to locate and deflect asteroids that could kill us all. W3 W2 W1