​Not long ago, teacher Tatiyana Webb witnessed a “perfect” moment of elaboration in the classroom, and so she went with it.

​There’s a formula that we call the “ABCs” that can be used to write compelling op-eds, columns, or blogs. The same formula can also be used to write almost any document that offers up an argument or gives advice. This is a “news flash lede,” a comment which will make sense in a moment.

This formula for writing op-eds is based on our experience and our op-eds that appeared in the New York Times,the Wall Street Journal, and the Washington Post.  I first came across a version of this formula while I was at US News and World Report. It was called “FLUCK,” and we have tweaked it a bit since then.

This is probably obvious, but this ABC formula is meant to guide writers rather than restrict them. In other words, these are recommendations, not a rigid set of instructions.

Better yet, think of the formula as a flexible template for making an effective argument in print—one that you personalize with your specific style, topic and intended audience in mind.
​
This guide is divided into five parts.

Part I: Introduction: In this section, we give a brief overview of the approach and discuss the importance of writing and opinion.
 
Part II: The ABCs: Here we cover the important steps in writing for your audience: Attention, Billboard and Context.
 
PART III: The ABCS in Example: In this section we give you different examples of the ABC’s in action and how to effectively use them.
 
PART IV: Pitching: Here we will go over how to effectively pitch ideas and submit ideas to an editor for publication.
 
PART V: Final tips and FAQs: Here we go over a few more key things to do and answer the most commonly asked questions.​

Interested in learning more from The Learning Agency? Check out our course Learn Better, a research-driven set of modules designed to teach you how to learn. Whether you want to earn more money and success in your career, learn a new skill, or tackle a side project or hobby, anyone can benefit from learning better.

In the minds of many, the South Side of Chicago has descended into a type of madness. While crime doesn’t define the vibrant, inspiring city, violence clings to certain South Side streets where shootings have become commonplace. President Trump referred to parts of the city as “worse” than areas in the Middle East. A few weeks ago, two men shot a young man named Daniel Cardova, and when a group gathered to mourn Cardova some hours later, yet another shooting occurred, killing two people and injuring another eight.

​In education circles, testing has become the villain of the day. Kids declare exams to be a waste of time while educators argue that the anxiety around tests produces a “toxic environment.” ​Families loathe exams, too, as I learned when doing some research on assessments, with parents often viewing tests as either a distraction from more important activities or as “testing for testing’s sake.”

In a small classroom, Keoni Scott-Reid provided his opening statement. Scott-Reid had been assigned to argue against mass surveillance programs in an Urban Debate League tournament in Washington, D.C., and standing in the front of the room, wearing jeans and a sweatshirt, he spoke in rat-tat-tat bursts like a teenage cattle auctioneer. ​

A technician snapped a stretchy electrode cap onto my head, and I felt a cold pinch as she affixed each sensor to my scalp with a dose of icy gel. ​​Perched on an office chair, with a rainbow of wires spiraling from my head, I followed the tech’s instructions to stare at a small orange object while an EEG recording device measured the electrical activity in various regions of my brain.​

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