Opinion Essay Topics from New York Times 184 Questions to Write About

184 Questions to Write About
Click on link above or on individual links below.

Remember:
1. Choose Your Topic.
2. Make your Claim
3. Back it up with Evidence!  Facts, Data, statistics, expert testimony
 Carefully employ emotional appeals.
4. Start with an anecdote in your introduction.
5. Call for action in your conclusion.





1. Does Technology Make Us More Alone?


2. Is Smoking Still a Problem Among Teenagers?


3. What Criteria Should Be Used in Awarding Scholarships for College?


4. When Is the Use of Military Force Justified?


5. What Local Problems Do You Think Your Mayor Should Try to Solve?


6. Should Tablet Computers Become the Primary Way Students Learn in Class?


7. Does Keeping a Messy Desk Make People More Creative?


8. What Is More Important: Our Privacy or National Security?


9. Should Parents Let Their Children Play Football?


10. Does Gym Help Students Perform Better in All Their Classes?


11. Do We Give Children Too Many Trophies?


12. Do Schools Provide Students With Enough Opportunities to Be Creative?


13. Is It Principled, or Irresponsible, for Politicians to Threaten a Shutdown?


14. Should Colleges Use Admissions Criteria Other Than SAT Scores and Grades?


15. Is There Too Much Pressure on Girls to Have ‘Perfect’ Bodies?


16. Should Video Games Be Considered a Sport?


17. Who Should Be Able to See Students’ Records?


18. Is It Offensive for Sports Teams to Use Native American Names and Mascots?


19. Are Some Youth Sports Too Intense?


20. Will Musical Training Make You More Successful?


21. Are Women Better at Compromising and Collaborating?


22. How Much Does Your Neighborhood Define Who You Are?


23. Why Do We Take Selfies?


24. Has Baseball Lost Its Cool?


25. How Young Is Too Young for an iPhone?


26. Should We Rethink How Long Students Spend in High School?


27. Should the U.S. Be Spying on Its Friends?


28. Does TV Capture the Diversity of America Yet?


29. Is It an Unaffordable Luxury to Major in the Humanities in College?


30. When Do Pranks Cross the Line to Become Bullying?


31. How Important Are Parent-Teacher Conferences?


32. Has Facebook Lost Its Edge?


33. Why Aren’t More Girls Choosing to Pursue Careers in Math and Science?


34. Do We Need Art in Our Lives?


35. Should Scientists Try to Help People Beat Old Age So We Can Live Longer Lives?


36. How Seriously Should We Take Standardized Tests?


37. What Do You Think of the Police Tactic of Stop-and-Frisk?


38. How Important Is Keeping a Clean House?


39. Does Your School Hand Out Too Many A’s?


40. Do Rich People Get Off Easier When They Break the Law?


41. What Musician, Actor or Author Should Be a Superstar, but Hasn’t Quite Made It Yet?


42. What Words or Phrases Should Be Retired in 2014?


43. Should College Football Players Get Paid?


44. Do You Worry We Are Filming Too Much?
45. How Can a Reputation Be Improved?
46. Do TV Shows Like ‘16 and Pregnant’ Promote or Discourage Teenage Pregnancy?
47. Do Parents Have Different Hopes and Standards for Their Sons Than for Their Daughters?
48. Why Do We Like to Watch Rich People on TV and in the Movies?
49. Do Laws That Ban Offensive Words Make the World a Better Place?
50. Who Does Hip-Hop Belong To?
51. How Long Is It O.K. to Linger in a Cafe or Restaurant?
52. Should Sports Betting Be Legal Everywhere?
53. If You Were Governor of Your State, How Would You Spend a Budget Surplus?
54. Is It Unethical for a Zoo to Kill a Healthy Giraffe?
55. Is Hookup Culture Leaving Your Generation Unhappy and Unprepared for Love?
56. Do Kids Need Recess?
57. Should Felons Be Allowed to Vote After They Have Served Their Time?
58. Should Terminally Ill Patients Be Allowed to Die on Their Own Terms?
59. Is It O.K. to Refuse to Serve Same-Sex Couples Based on Religious Beliefs?
60. How Much Control Do You Think You Have Over Your Fate?
61. Is Your Generation Really ‘Postracial’?
62. Does Reading a Book Count More Than Listening to One?
63. Does a Championship Game Always Need to Have a Winner (and a Loser)?
64. Is Teenage ‘Voluntourism’ Wrong?
65. Should Colleges Ban Fraternities?
66. Who Are the Characters That Authors Should Be Writing About?
67. Should the School Day Start Later?
68. Should Employers Be Able to Review Job Applicants’ SAT Scores?
69. What Makes a Good TV Show Finale?
70. Does It Matter Where You Go to College?
71. Should the United States Care That It’s Not No. 1?
72. Should the United States Stop Using the Death Penalty?
73. When You Are Old Enough to Vote, Will You?
74. Should Society Support Artists and Others Pursuing Creative Works?
75. Do You Support Affirmative Action in College Admissions?
76. Should Certain Animals Have Some of the Same Legal Rights As People?
77. Do We Need New Ways to Identify Gender and Sexuality?
78. Do Girls Get Better Grades Than Boys in Your School?
79. Does Suffering Make Us Stronger and Lead to Success?
80. Should Discomfort Excuse Students From Having to Complete an Assignment?
81. What Can You Predict About the Future of the Music Industry?
82. Does Live Theater Offer Something You Just Can’t Get Watching Movies or TV?
83. Does the Way Your Classroom Is Decorated Affect Your Learning?

Questions for Creative, Personal or Reflective Writing

Jackson Berger

What crazy adventure would you want to take? Here’s what students said.

84. What Memorable Experiences Have You Had in Learning Science or Math?
85. What Rites of Passage Have You Participated In?
86. What Are Your Favorite Internet Spoofs?
87. How Big a Problem Is Bullying or Cyberbullying in Your School or Community?
88. Do You Always Have Your Phone or Tablet at Your Side?
89. How Much Do You Trust Online Reviews?
90. Would You Most Want to Live in a City, a Suburb or the Country?
91. Do Your Television Viewing Habits Include ‘Binge-Watching’?
92. What Would You Do With a Gap Year?
93. What Does Your Hairstyle Say About You?
94. Do You Believe in Ghosts?
95. How Good Are You at Time Management?
96. When Is the Last Time You Did Something Nice for a Stranger?
97. What’s Your Favorite Restaurant?
98. Will You Be Wearing a Halloween Costume This Year?
99. What Kind of Robot Would You Want?
100. What Personal Essay Topic Would You Assign to College Applicants?
101. What Can Older People Learn From Your Generation?
102. What Are the Best Ways to Learn About History?
103. Do You Worry Colleges or Employers Might Read Your Social Media Posts Someday?
104. What Would You Outsource if You Could?
105. What Would You Invent to Make the World a Better Place?
106. How Good Are You at Waiting for What You Really Want?
107. Who Is the ‘Mayor’ of Your School or Neighborhood?
108. What Are Your Thanksgiving Traditions?
109. How Are You and Your Parents Alike and Different?
110. Who Is Your Family?
111. How Can People Make the Most of Long Holiday Weekends?
112. What Are the Best Things You’ve Read, Watched, Heard or Played This Year?
113. Who Are Your Heroes?
114. How Do You Know if What You Read Online Is True?
115. What Is Your Relationship With Guns?
116. Do You Have ‘Instagram Envy’?
117. What Will You Remember Most From 2013?
118. What Are Your Predictions for 2014?
119. What Hobbies Have Been Passed Down in Your Family?
120. When Do You Choose Making a Phone Call Over Sending a Text?
121. How Do You Handle the Cold?
122. How Closely Do You Listen to Lyrics?
123. Where in the World Would You Travel If You Could?
124. How Much of a Priority Do You Make Sleep?
125. What Were the Best Movies You Saw in the Past Year?
126. Do You Apologize Too Much?
127. What Is Your Reaction to Richard Sherman’s Postgame Interview?
128. Do You Ever Feel Overlooked and Underappreciated?
129. What Are Your Secret Survival Strategies?
130. What Memorable Experiences Have You Had on Facebook?
131. Will You Be Watching the Sochi Olympics?
132. What Are Five Everyday Problems That Bother You, and What Can You Do About Them?
133. What Event in the Past Do You Wish You Could Have Witnessed?
134. How Well Do You Perform Under Pressure?
135. What Crazy Adventure Would You Want to Take?
136. How Much of a Daredevil Are You?
137. Do You Pay Attention to Nutrition Labels on Food?
138. Do You Ever Eavesdrop?
139. What Have You Learned in Your Teens?
140. What Challenges Have You Overcome?
141. What Did You Once Hate but Now Like?
142. How Much Does the SAT or ACT Matter in Your Life?
143. How Much Time Do You Spend Outdoors?
144. What Qualities Would You Look For in a College Roommate?
145. Have You Ever ‘Paid It Forward’?
146. How Concerned Are You About Climate Change?
147. What Do You Think Happened to Malaysia Airlines Flight 370?
148. How Do You Find Peace in Your Life?
149. What Do You Want to Be Doing When You’re 80?
150. How Comfortable Are You With Lying?
151. Have You Ever Posted, Emailed or Texted Something You Wish You Could Take Back?
152. What Do You Wish Your Teachers Knew?
153. What Pranks, Jokes, Hoaxes or Tricks Have You Ever Fallen for or Perpetrated?
154. Why Do So Many People Say ‘Like’ and ‘Totally’ All the Time?
155. To Whom, or What, Would You Like to Write a Thank-You Note?
156. Do You Like to Exercise?
157. What Are Your Longtime Interests or Passions?
158. What Have You Learned Playing Video Games?
159. How Common Is Drug Use in Your School?
160. Do You Take More Risks When You Are Around Your Friends?
161. What Movies Do You Watch, or Reference, Over and Over?
162. Do You Set Rules for Yourself About How You Use Your Time?
163. What Messages About Food and Eating Have You Learned From Your Family?
164. How Well Do You Take Criticism?
165. If You Had Your Own Talk Show, Whom Would You Want to Interview?
166. Who in Your Life Introduces You to New Music?
167. What Career or Technical Classes Do You Wish Your School Offered?
168. What Are the Most Memorable Works of Visual Art You Have Seen?
169. Do You Read for Pleasure?
170. What Rules Would You Like to See Changed in Your Favorite Sports?
171. Does Your School Seem Integrated?
172. How Have You Handled Being the ‘New Kid’?
173. What Would You Most Like to Learn to Cook or Bake?
174. Can Students at Your School Talk Openly About Their Mental Health Issues?
175. How Has Exercise Changed Your Health, Your Body or Your Life?
176. Do You Think You Will Have a Career That You Love?
177. Do You Consider Yourself a Feminist?
178. Are Your Parents Too Overprotective?
179. Do You Like School?
180. When Do You Write by Hand?
181. Who Is Your Favorite Pop Diva?
182. What Was Your Favorite Field Trip?
183. What Are Your Experiences With Internet-Based Urban Legends?
184. Will You Be Watching the World Cup?