Write a short answer to each question. 1. What is your claim? Your claim should respond directly to your cousin's argument that the colonies should stay under British rule. Your claim should also give at least one supporting reason.

2. Choose at least three facts or ideas from Henry's or Paine's writing that you can use to provide evidence for your claim, and briefly explain how they support your claim.

3. Write down the strongest counterclaim to your argument you can think of, and then briefly explain how you will provide a rebuttal.

4. Write a preliminary outline for your letter. Write a short sentence or a phrase to describe each main part of your letter: the claim, each piece of evidence that supports your claim, a counterclaim your cousin might make, and your rebuttal of that counterclaim.

5. Think of some transitions you might use to separate each part of your letter. Should your first and second pieces of evidence be separated by furthermore or in contrast, for example? Add these transitions to the outline you created in question 4, but feel free to change them when you actually write your letter.

6. Write a basic summary of your argument here.

7. Write a full draft of your letter here.