Consider this claim:

School uniforms should be mandatory for all students.

Which statement gives the strongest evidence to support this claim?

a
According to the board of education, “school uniforms improve behavior, build school spirit, and develop a student’s sense of belonging.”
b
Making school uniforms mandatory directly contradicts Americans’ First Amendment right to express themselves freely.
c
Chris Hammock, a mother of three high school students, said that mandatory school uniforms would make back-to-school shopping much easier.
d
Recent reports indicate that school uniforms have a minimal impact on attendance rates in New York City Public Schools.

I think it’s A

Explanation: it has the most supporting evidence

A local youth group, collaborating with Splash and Dash Car Wash, raised more than $450 for their annual trip to Washington, DC. These boys and girls, who work as mentors for younger children in our community, set a goal, organized the plan for a car wash, and worked with local businesses to find the perfect partner for their project. Working side by side with Splash and Dash Car Wash employees, the group washed nearly one hundred cars. As a result, they surpassed their fundraising goals and are able to focus on planning their trip. One student said, "This car wash was successful beyond our wildest dreams."

The trip to Washington, DC, is scheduled for May 19. While they visit the nation's capital, students will tour the monuments, explore the Smithsonian museums, and meet with other youth groups from around the country. They are scheduled to leave early in the morning on May 19. The manager of Splash and Dash said that he and his staff will be there to see the students off on their trip. "These kids are our future leaders. It is wonderful to see their hard work rewarded," he said.

Explanation:

what: when quoting a source, use the author’s words verbatim, or word-for-word. this means you shouldn’t change any grammar, punctuation, spelling, etc. put quotations around the words to tell your reader where the quote begins and where it ends.

you also need to acknowledge the author. for example, if using mla format for your research paper, you should have in-text citations with the author’s name and page number listed at the end of each quote.

when: use quotations to provide concrete examples to support your claims. using direct quotations is a great way to build your credibility on the subject. it’s also a good idea to quote your source when the author states things in a powerful way. if you think he or she said it best, then use the exact words to share the ideas.

example: in the short story “a jury of her peers”, mrs. hale compares mrs. wright to her caged bird, saying “she—come to think of it, she was kind of like a bird herself. real sweet and pretty, but kind of timid and—fluttery. how—she—did—change” (glaspell).

paraphrasing

what: paraphrasing differs from quoting because you restate the passage in your own words. since you don’t use the author’s words, you don’t need to use quotation marks. however, you still need to acknowledge the author for his or her ideas.

when paraphrasing a text, you should communicate the full meaning of the text; don’t change the meaning. it can be a condensed version of the text, or it could end up being longer than the source it’s paraphrasing.

when: you use paraphrasing when you take notes, or explain a chart or diagram to someone. paraphrasing highlight the important parts of a larger text. it also allows you to simplify the ideas for your readers.

example:

original: “it was no ordinary thing that called her away–it was probably further from ordinary than anything that had ever happened in dickson county. but what her eye took in was that her kitchen was in no shape for leaving: her bread all ready for mixing, half the flour sifted and half unsifted” (glaspell).

paraphrase: as mrs. hales walks around mrs. wright’s home, she notices that the kitchen is in disarray as if she was in the middle of baking bread (glaspell).