Teachers are professional acronym and mnemonic device creators. Love them or leave them, acronyms and mnemonic devices are important, well-supported learning strategies, and I have found them to be particularly useful when teaching students about arguments and persuasion.
When I introduce the many pieces of rhetorical analysis to my students, I use the term SMELL to focus their learning. It is not a surprise that teenagers find my SMELL-y mnemonic device entertaining, and several snickers are shared as I introduce it, but it's memorable, and that is what matters. I tell my students we are going to SMELL out an author's argument (complete with a slide with a large nose on it). In my class, we use SMELL to analyze and evaluate an author's argument, the logic of their reasoning, and the relevance of their evidence. In case you were wondering what the letters mean, here they are:
S=Sender/Receiver Relationship
M=Message
E=Emotional Strategies
L=Logical Strategies
L=Language
As I teach about arguments, reasoning, and persuasion, I use SMELL to guide my instruction. The tasks and practice associated with SMELL often overlap, just as they would in an actual argument; nevertheless, I make sure that every letter has its opportunity to shine. Today, I want to talk about each of the elements of SMELL, and what they look like in my class.
S=Sender/Receiver Relationship
This is a big one. If we can't figure out who is speaking, and who they are speaking to, we really can't start to analyze the argument at all. I like to use direct-instruction when I discuss the sender-receiver relationship because my students give me so much material. I always start with the obvious. I am the sender; you (students) are my receivers. I am sending you a message. This lesson can be quite lengthy if I want it to be. I can talk about different channels of communication, such as physical or verbal channels vs. written channels. I can talk about using ALL CAPS when typing vs. lower-case letters, and what kind of message that sends. I can talk about how they send verbal and nonverbal signals. One of the most effective examples is the kid who sits with his/her arms crossed on the first day of school. She thinks she is not sending any messages, but through this discussion, I can explain how sometimes we send messages, even when we don't mean to.
Once students understand fundamental sender-receiver relationships (who's talking and who they are talking to), we can dig into the message.
M=Message
The discussion of sender/receiver relationships automatically overlaps with messages, and I cover most of this all at the same time and frequently use real, personal examples mixed with famous speeches and examples.
Once I have used my many in-class examples to discuss sender/receiver relationships, I turn the students’ attention to a piece we are studying, for example, Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.’s I Have a Dream speech. We discuss Dr. King, his audience, and his message. We can also watch the video and listen to his voice, look at his nonverbals, and acknowledge or identify some of his physical choices. Using these examples, we talk about impact. We are still not talking about how he is speaking beyond the basic summarizing of his message. We aren't ready to discuss how he adds emphasis to his words through pathos or how he uses repetition or other examples of figurative language, we simply paraphrase the message, learn about him, and identify his audience.
E=Emotional Strategies
Ethos, Pathos, and Logos, oh my!
Initially, when I teach about ethos, pathos, and logos, I use an entry-level PowerPoint with videos embedded, and I let the students explore the three pillars of persuasion on their own to develop some basic background knowledge before our lesson together. Then I introduce the topic further with an in-depth lesson on reasoning and persuasive appeals.
In addition to teaching students about emotional strategies and how we use them through a PowerPoint, I pull many examples from advertisements (commercials and print ads). When teaching about emotional strategies within a full Rhetorical Analysis unit, I like to work these in and formatively assess students on them daily through bell ringers. My unit bundle has slides to post on the board daily, and the Bell-Ringer Journal lets students keep track of these examples so that they can use them later as notes or examples.
L=Logical Fallacies
Do the speaker's or writer's argument use sound logical reasoning? When students better understand fallacies and their applications, they can identify flaws in a writer's line of reasoning.
Now, I'm not going to pretend fallacies are easy to teach because they're not. The sheer number of different types of fallacies makes it very clear why they are so widely used. We are all inundated with illogical reasoning everywhere we look, and students struggle to understand the difference between the fallacies, but I think this is one of the essential components of SMELL. When writers and speakers use persuasive rhetoric like fallacies, they are clearly trying to sell their audience on an idea, and I don't want my students falling prey to pretty words.
To introduce the fallacies, I like to share examples, lots and lots of examples! In my PowerPoint, I define the fallacies, provide examples, embed videos, and supply samples from the media.
I generally let students explore the PowerPoint/Google Slides in partner pairs. I ask them to take detailed notes, and then I will review the fallacies with a few real-life examples after this exploration. This tends to keep students far more engaged than a full class lesson with all slides. If you choose to make this a direct-instruction lesson, I recommend giving students time to think-pair-share between each fallacy to help solidify the content.
After students have explored these fallacies, I give them my Bell-Ringer Practice at the beginning of the next few classes to review and reiterate the information. This provides some reliable formative assessments to gauge my next steps.
When I feel they are ready, I like to do a fun, little formative assessment in the form of a traveling salesman pitch/script. Students love the collaboration, acting component, and creating far-fetched arguments. At the end of my PowerPoint lesson, I include the instructions for this assessment and an example that helps get the wheels of creativity turning! If you are interested in seeing what is included in the full Logical Fallacy Unit, click here!
L-Language
Last, but certainly not least, is language.
Language is all about word choice, so I teach this final element of SMELL by using examples. We discuss the use of figurative language and choices the writer is making using within the actual words of the speech/writing. I focus on a few key questions with students as we deep-dive into our exploration of the example.
What specific words or phrases is the author choosing to use that affect the audience? I encourage students to consider connotative and denotative meanings as they think through word choice.
Identify areas within the author's work where they use figurative language. What do you think was the intent? Does the author convincingly use figurative language?
In addition to this instruction, I provide my students with a graphic organizer specifically designed to help them use SMELL to analyze someone else’s work.
My ultimate goal for my students after this rhetorical analysis unit is that they will not take all statements at face value. Learning to dig into an author's reasoning helps them to understand how people are pitching their ideas. Whether those people are politicians, salesmen, or even just pals engaging in a friendly debate, I hope they can use all of the knowledge they've learned to SMELL out any speaker’s arguments!
NOTE: The activities and lessons I applied throughout this post are available in individual units in my TpT store, or they can be purchased as a full Rhetorical Analysis bundle.
