Appeal to Emotion: Free Kids Worksheet
Charles Ponzi promised people their kids could go to college. That their family could have two houses. That their life could finally be different. He never mentioned facts. He didn't need to - the feelings were doing all the work.
When people started asking questions, he shamed them. "You don't trust me after everything I've done for your friends?" That shut most people up. By the time it was over, he'd stolen millions from thousands of ordinary people who just wanted a better life.
That's the Appeal to Emotion: skipping the argument and going straight for the feelings - fear, hope, greed, guilt - so that saying no feels wrong. Your kids are targets all day. Ads built to scare them. Influencers built to shame them. In every guilt trip they'll ever be handed. This free Question Pack teaches them to catch it.
What's in the free Question Pack:
- Discussion and research questions that get kids arguing about the Charles Ponzi story - the productive kind of arguing
- A guided walk through how the original con man used hope, greed and shame - never facts - to empty 17,000 wallets
- An answer sheet, so you can run it at the dinner table or in a classroom with zero prep
FAQ: Appeal to Emotion
What is the appeal to emotion?
Skipping the facts and going straight for feelings like fear, guilt, hope, or greed to get a "yes."
How do I explain the appeal to emotion to a kid?
Charles Ponzi promised college funds and shamed anyone who asked questions about his investment scheme - no evidence required, just feelings doing all the work.
What age is this worksheet for?
Ages 10+. The Appeal to Emotion Question Pack includes discussion questions, a guided history walkthrough, and an answer sheet - no prep required.
The deal, stated plainly
We teach people to spot manipulation, so it would be a bit rich to hide ours. This pack is free because it's the best advertisement we have. You hand over your email, we send the download, and every so often we'll email you about new comics, book and our card game. Unsubscribe the moment we get boring.
One email. Check your spam folder - our goodies have a talent for landing there.
What the free pack doesn't include
The fully illustrated Charles Ponzi story. The Duchess & Bruno comic. The Spot-the-Fallacy hunt through real ads and headlines. The Code Breaker, the Draw Your Own Comic page, and the hidden Gizmo kids go feral trying to find.
All of that lives in the Appeal to Emotion Activity Pack - a 20-page printed booklet, rated 5.0 by teachers and parents on Etsy and TPT.
⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ "My kids absolutely adore the characters and story! It reminds us of horrible histories. I haven't found anything like this pack before." - Sandra
It's one of 24. Every pack takes one fallacy, one historical disaster and one comic - and turns them into a kid who is very hard to fool.
More fallacies like this
- Appeal to Force - threats replacing an argument
- Loaded Question - a question with the guilty verdict built in
- Hasty Generalisation - one example standing in for the whole group