Any child who has ever negotiated his or her bedtime, pleaded for items in the grocery store, or asked to attend a community event has practiced the art of persuasive argument. Why not bring that expertise into the classroom to introduce children to the fundamentals of persuasive writing? According to elementary educator Brandi Clark, picture books make excellent mentor texts to teach primary students about persuasive writing. She describes how her students use the popular book "Don't Let the Pigeon Stay Up Late" as a model to create their own picture books that incorporate simple persuasive arguments. She also lists additional mentor texts that can help students develop more advanced persuasive arguments As students move up through the grades, she writes, these activities will help theme build the skills they will need to write more sophisticated opinion pieces and research papers.