• 124 topics

SPAR Debate Topics

Short motions two speakers can argue cold.

SPAR Debate Topics

Walking backwards should be a school sport.

Pro and Con speak, then tap a side for every raised hand.

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Silly 30

  • A cape is a bad idea for a superhero. A) Pro. It catches on doors and gives the villain something to grab. B) Con. It is the whole look. Nobody cheers for a tracksuit.
  • A dragon would make a terrible pet. A) Pro. It outgrows the yard and sets fire to the couch. B) Con. Free heating, and nobody ever bothers your house.
  • A penguin would be a better coworker than a cat. A) Pro. Penguins line up, share the work and dress for the office. B) Con. A cat minds its own business and never calls a meeting.
  • A pillow fort is a real building. A) Pro. It has walls, a roof, a door and a password. B) Con. A real building survives the family dog.
  • A robot would make a better hall monitor than a person. A) Pro. A robot never plays favorites and never gets bored. B) Con. A robot cannot tell a real emergency from an excuse.
  • A snowball fight needs a referee. A) Pro. Someone has to rule on ambushes and hiding behind the car. B) Con. The whole point is that there are no rules.
  • A snowman is better company than a scarecrow. A) Pro. He is round and cheerful, and he comes with a carrot. B) Con. A scarecrow has a job, and he lasts all summer.
  • A talking dog would be more annoying than fun. A) Pro. It would report every squirrel, all day, out loud. B) Con. You would finally know what it wants and where it hurts.
  • A treehouse is better than a castle. A) Pro. A treehouse is yours, hidden, and you can build it this summer. B) Con. A castle has a kitchen, a roof that works and a moat.
  • A week should have two Saturdays. A) Pro. One for chores and one that is truly free. B) Con. Take away a workday and the other four get longer.
  • A wizard would beat a pirate in a talent show. A) Pro. Real magic tricks, and the hat is already part of the act. B) Con. A pirate sings, tells stories and brings a parrot.
  • Aliens would be disappointed by Earth. A) Pro. They cross a galaxy and find people stuck in traffic. B) Con. Oceans, music and pizza. They would stay for the food alone.
  • Bubble wrap should come with everything you buy. A) Pro. It protects the thing, then it entertains you for an hour. B) Con. That is a lot of plastic for ten seconds of popping.
  • Elevators should play music the riders vote on. A) Pro. Ten quiet strangers finally have something to talk about. B) Con. The ride is twenty seconds. The vote would take longer.
  • Every backpack should have wheels. A) Pro. Nothing to carry, and your shoulders get the day off. B) Con. Wheels are no help on stairs, grass or a crowded bus.
  • Every doorbell should play a song. A) Pro. A front door with a tune makes every visitor smile. B) Con. The delivery driver rings it twelve times a week.
  • Every house needs a slide next to the stairs. A) Pro. Down is faster, and mornings get a lot more fun. B) Con. Somebody still has to carry the laundry back up.
  • Every meeting should end with a group high five. A) Pro. People leave smiling, and it takes two seconds. B) Con. Forced fun is the least fun kind there is.
  • Every pet should have a middle name. A) Pro. A full name is how a dog knows it is in real trouble. B) Con. The dog answers to the sound of the treat bag, not to a name.
  • Everyone should have a theme song that plays when they walk in. A) Pro. You would know who is coming and what mood they are in. B) Con. Thirty songs at once in one classroom is just noise.
  • The floor is the best seat in any room. A) Pro. There is always room, and you cannot fall off it. B) Con. Chairs were invented for a reason, and knees agree.
  • Glitter does more harm than good. A) Pro. One craft project and it is in the carpet until you move. B) Con. Nothing else makes a card look like a celebration so fast.
  • It is better to be a cloud than a tree. A) Pro. You travel the world and never buy a ticket. B) Con. A tree gets birds, a view and a hundred birthdays.
  • It is better to be a giant than to be tiny. A) Pro. You see everything, reach everything and fear nothing. B) Con. Nothing fits a giant: no bed, no door, no shoes.
  • It is fine to wear pajamas to the grocery store. A) Pro. You are buying milk, not meeting royalty. B) Con. Getting dressed is the least a person can do for the day.
  • Mondays should start at noon. A) Pro. Half a day is all anyone gives a Monday morning anyway. B) Con. The work does not shrink. It just lands on Tuesday.
  • Sand is the worst part of the beach. A) Pro. It gets in the sandwich, the car and the bed that night. B) Con. Without sand there are no castles and nowhere to lie down.
  • Socks should be sold in threes. A) Pro. One always goes missing, so the spare saves the pair. B) Con. A third sock is just one more thing to lose.
  • Umbrellas are more trouble than they are worth. A) Pro. They flip in the wind, poke people and get left on the bus. B) Con. A wet walk to school settles this argument quickly.
  • Walking backwards should be a school sport. A) Pro. It takes balance and teamwork, and nobody starts as an expert. B) Con. A sport needs to be watchable without everyone wincing.

One against the other 24

  • A bunk bed beats two single beds. A) Pro. It doubles the floor space and makes bedtime an adventure. B) Con. Nobody argues over who gets the top of a single bed.
  • A cabin in the woods beats a house by the sea. A) Pro. Quiet, shade and a fire at night. B) Con. The sea is a new view every hour of the day.
  • A drum is a better first instrument than a recorder. A) Pro. Rhythm comes first, and every child can find it. B) Con. Ask the family which one they would rather hear practiced.
  • A ferry is a better ride than a bridge. A) Pro. Sea air, a deck and ten minutes of doing nothing. B) Con. A bridge is always there, and it never makes you wait.
  • A gift you can use up beats a gift you keep. A) Pro. Candles and cookies never end up in a closet. B) Con. A kept gift reminds you of the giver for years.
  • A hammock beats a couch. A) Pro. It rocks, it is outdoors and it folds away. B) Con. Nobody ever fell out of a couch.
  • A jigsaw puzzle beats a crossword. A) Pro. Everyone at the table can work on it at once. B) Con. A crossword fits in a pocket and teaches you words.
  • A kite beats a paper plane. A) Pro. A kite stays up as long as the wind does. B) Con. A paper plane needs one sheet of paper and no weather.
  • A long book beats a short one. A) Pro. You get to live in its world for weeks. B) Con. A short book says its piece and lets you start another.
  • A postcard beats a photo sent from a phone. A) Pro. Someone chose it, wrote on it and found a stamp. B) Con. The photo arrives today and shows what you really saw.
  • A relay race is a better event than a sprint. A) Pro. Four runners and three handoffs. Anything can happen. B) Con. A sprint is pure: one runner, one line, no excuses.
  • A sleeping bag beats a bed at a sleepover. A) Pro. It is part of the adventure, and everyone is in one room. B) Con. After a night in a bed you can still walk the next morning.
  • A small birthday party beats a big one. A) Pro. You get time with every guest. B) Con. A big party is the one people talk about afterwards.
  • A snack you packed beats a snack you bought. A) Pro. It is what you like, and it was waiting in your bag. B) Con. The bought one is a treat because you never have it at home.
  • A thank-you said in person beats one in writing. A) Pro. A face and a voice mean more than a card. B) Con. A written note can be kept and read again.
  • A thunderstorm is better than a snowfall. A) Pro. It is a free show with sound. B) Con. Snow stays, and you can build with it.
  • Cleaning a little every day beats one big clean. A) Pro. Ten minutes a day and the mess never gets a head start. B) Con. One big clean leaves the other six days free.
  • Cookies are better than cake. A) Pro. No plate, no fork and one fits in a pocket. B) Con. Nobody puts candles on a cookie.
  • Four long weekends beat one long vacation. A) Pro. There is always something to look forward to. B) Con. It takes a few days just to stop thinking about work.
  • Listening is a more useful skill than speaking. A) Pro. A listener knows what the room thinks before saying a word. B) Con. An idea nobody hears you say helps nobody.
  • Mountains make a better vacation than the beach. A) Pro. A new view at every turn, and cool air all day. B) Con. A beach asks nothing of you, which is the point of a vacation.
  • Stairs are better than elevators. A) Pro. No waiting, no small talk and no getting stuck. B) Con. Try the stairs with a suitcase and a tired toddler.
  • Summer is better than winter. A) Pro. Long evenings, no coat and no school. B) Con. Winter has snow days, hot chocolate and no mosquitoes.
  • Sunrise is better than sunset. A) Pro. You earned it by getting up, and the day is still ahead. B) Con. Sunset asks nothing of you, and dinner is next.

Everyday life 24

  • A gift card is a lazy gift. A) Pro. It says nothing about the person it is for. B) Con. It lets them pick the one thing they really want.
  • A guest should never arrive empty-handed. A) Pro. Even a small thing says thank you for having me. B) Con. The invitation was the gift. Hosts want company, not objects.
  • A routine makes life better than surprises do. A) Pro. A routine frees your mind from small decisions. B) Con. The days you remember are the ones that broke the routine.
  • A to-do list should never have more than three things on it. A) Pro. Three things get done. Ten get moved to tomorrow. B) Con. A short list hides the work. It does not remove it.
  • Adults need recess too. A) Pro. Twenty minutes outside and the afternoon goes better. B) Con. Adults can take a walk whenever they choose. That is recess.
  • Birthdays matter less as you get older. A) Pro. After a certain age the cake is the only part people want. B) Con. Each one is rarer and worth more. The parties just get quieter.
  • Every home should have a junk drawer. A) Pro. Tape, string and spare keys need one known address. B) Con. A junk drawer is where useful things go to be lost.
  • Every street should hold a block party once a year. A) Pro. One afternoon turns a row of houses into a neighborhood. B) Con. Someone has to organize it, and it is always the same two people.
  • Everyone should keep a journal. A) Pro. It is the only record of what an ordinary day felt like. B) Con. Some people think better by talking than by writing.
  • Everyone should learn one magic trick. A) Pro. It breaks the ice anywhere, at any age. B) Con. One trick, repeated for forty years. Ask the family.
  • Everyone should learn to cook before they turn eighteen. A) Pro. It is the one skill a person needs three times a day. B) Con. Plenty of adults get by fine and learn when they need to.
  • Everyone should learn to sew on a button. A) Pro. It takes five minutes and saves a shirt. B) Con. Buttons rarely fall off, and a tailor is easy to find.
  • Everyone should send at least one handwritten card a year. A) Pro. A card on a shelf outlasts any message. B) Con. What counts is the thought, not the stationery.
  • It is better to borrow a tool than to buy one. A) Pro. A drill is used for minutes a year. Share it. B) Con. The day you need it, the neighbor is out of town.
  • Neighbors should know each other's names. A) Pro. A street where people say hello looks after itself. B) Con. A friendly nod is enough. Not everyone wants to chat.
  • Nobody needs more than three pairs of shoes. A) Pro. One for sport, one for rain and one for looking smart. B) Con. Feet do a dozen different jobs. Three pairs cannot cover them.
  • Photos are better printed than kept on a phone. A) Pro. A photo on the wall gets looked at. A phone hides thousands. B) Con. A phone keeps every picture and loses none in a move.
  • Road trips are better without a plan. A) Pro. The best stop is the one nobody had heard of. B) Con. No plan means a full motel and a closed diner.
  • The second try is always better than the first. A) Pro. You know where the hard part is now. B) Con. The first try has the nerve. The second one is careful.
  • Tidying up goes better with music on. A) Pro. A good song turns a chore into a race to the chorus. B) Con. Music is a distraction. Quiet gets it done sooner.
  • Waking up early is overrated. A) Pro. An hour of work is an hour of work, whenever it starts. B) Con. The early hours are the only ones nobody interrupts.
  • Whistling is a skill worth teaching. A) Pro. It is free and portable, and it calls a dog across a field. B) Con. Ask anyone who shares an office with a whistler.
  • Whoever finishes something should replace it. A) Pro. An empty carton in the fridge helps nobody. B) Con. Whoever notices first can just add it to the list.
  • You should always finish a book you start. A) Pro. Plenty of good books are slow for the first hundred pages. B) Con. Life is short, and the shelf of better books is long.

School 23

  • A class should vote on the order of the day's lessons. A) Pro. People work harder on a plan they picked. B) Con. Math would come last every day, when everyone is tired.
  • A test on Monday is better than a test on Friday. A) Pro. Get it over with and enjoy the other four days. B) Con. A Friday test gives the whole week to prepare.
  • Debate should be a required class. A) Pro. Everyone needs practice at disagreeing without a fight. B) Con. Make it required and it stops being fun.
  • Every class should end with five minutes of quiet reading. A) Pro. It calms the room and adds up to a book a term. B) Con. Five minutes is too short to get into any story.
  • Every classroom should have a reading corner with a couch. A) Pro. People read longer where they are comfortable. B) Con. One couch, thirty students and an argument every day.
  • Every classroom should have a window that opens. A) Pro. Fresh air and a view keep people awake. B) Con. The view is the problem. Ask anyone who sits by one.
  • Every new student should be paired with an older guide for a month. A) Pro. A new student with one older friend is never lost. B) Con. Older students have their own friends and their own worries.
  • Every school club should be run by students, not teachers. A) Pro. Running a club teaches more than joining one. B) Con. Without an adult, a club lasts until its founder graduates.
  • Every school needs a mascot. A) Pro. A silly costume gives a whole school one thing to cheer for. B) Con. School spirit comes from people, not from a foam head.
  • Every school should have a joke of the day. A) Pro. One laugh at nine o'clock and the room wakes up. B) Con. A bad joke every morning for six years is a long time.
  • Every student should enter the science fair at least once. A) Pro. Asking your own question beats answering the teacher's. B) Con. A forced project ends up as the parents' project.
  • Group projects teach more than solo projects. A) Pro. Splitting the work and settling arguments is the real lesson. B) Con. One person does the work and four share the grade.
  • Learning to give a speech matters more than learning to write an essay. A) Pro. Most of life is said out loud, to people, without notes. B) Con. Writing is where you find out what you actually think.
  • Lockers are no longer needed. A) Pro. Books are lighter and half the work is on a screen. B) Con. A coat, a lunch and a trumpet have to go somewhere.
  • The oldest students should teach one lesson a year to the youngest. A) Pro. You only know a thing once you have explained it. B) Con. Teaching is a skill. Being older does not supply it.
  • One field trip teaches more than a week of class. A) Pro. You remember the thing you saw with your own eyes. B) Con. A week of class covers ground no bus trip can.
  • Pop quizzes are unfair. A) Pro. A quiz with no warning measures luck and sleep. B) Con. If you only learn for announced tests, you have not learned it.
  • Reading a story aloud is better than reading it silently. A) Pro. A voice gives the characters life, and everyone hears it together. B) Con. Silent readers go at their own speed and picture it themselves.
  • The school bell should be replaced with music. A) Pro. A song is a kinder way to end a lesson than an alarm. B) Con. Nobody can tell whether the song means go or stay.
  • The seating plan should change every month. A) Pro. New neighbors mean new friends and fewer cliques. B) Con. Just when a table starts working well, it gets split up.
  • Show and tell should not stop after elementary school. A) Pro. Standing up to explain something you love is a life skill. B) Con. Older students have presentations. That is show and tell.
  • Spelling still matters when a machine can check it. A) Pro. A checker passes the wrong word as long as it is spelled right. B) Con. Hours of spelling drills are hours taken away from ideas.
  • Tests should be taken in pairs. A) Pro. Explaining your answer to a partner is the best check there is. B) Con. One partner coasts and both get the grade.

Serious but friendly 23

  • A compliment from a stranger means more than one from a friend. A) Pro. A stranger owes you nothing, so the praise is the plain truth. B) Con. A friend knows what it cost you. That is the praise that counts.
  • A good reputation is worth more than a big achievement. A) Pro. People trust you before you say a word. B) Con. A reputation is opinion. An achievement is done and stays done.
  • A town needs a library more than it needs a movie theater. A) Pro. A library is free, open to all and useful at every age. B) Con. A town also needs somewhere to go out together at night.
  • A town should plant trees before it builds a statue. A) Pro. Shade and birdsong are a monument everyone uses. B) Con. A statue tells the town's story. Trees grow anywhere.
  • Asking for help is a strength. A) Pro. It takes courage, and the work gets better. B) Con. Lean on others too soon and you never learn to do it.
  • The best leader is the best listener in the room. A) Pro. You cannot lead people you have not understood. B) Con. At some point someone has to stop listening and decide.
  • Boredom is where good ideas come from. A) Pro. An empty hour is when the mind starts making things up. B) Con. Ideas come from seeing and doing, not from staring at a wall.
  • Curiosity is worth more than knowledge. A) Pro. Knowledge goes out of date. The habit of asking does not. B) Con. A question is no use without facts to answer it.
  • Every invention should be judged by who it leaves out. A) Pro. A tool that half the town cannot use is half a tool. B) Con. Nothing would pass. New things start small and spread.
  • Every town should have one car-free day a month. A) Pro. People would hear their own street for the first time. B) Con. Deliveries, buses and night shifts do not take a day off.
  • Everyone should learn to repair what they own. A) Pro. A fixed thing is money saved and one less thing thrown away. B) Con. Some repairs take experts. That is why trades exist.
  • Experience is a better teacher than books. A) Pro. You do not forget what you learned the hard way. B) Con. A book hands you a thousand lifetimes of other people's mistakes.
  • Failure should be celebrated. A) Pro. Every person who built something failed at it first. B) Con. Celebrate failing and people aim lower.
  • Good manners matter more than good grades. A) Pro. Manners open doors that a report card cannot. B) Con. Grades show what you can do. Manners show you were taught.
  • Honesty is always the best policy. A) Pro. People can plan around a hard truth. A lie comes back later. B) Con. Nobody wants the whole truth about the gift they just gave.
  • It is better to finish a small thing than to start a big one. A) Pro. Finished things can be used and shown. B) Con. Nothing great was ever small at the start.
  • It is better to give a gift than to get one. A) Pro. Choosing well and watching it land is the bigger joy. B) Con. Be honest: the unwrapping is the best part.
  • Kindness is a skill, not a trait. A) Pro. It can be practiced and gets better with use, like any skill. B) Con. Some people are plainly gentle from the day they can walk.
  • Money spent on experiences is better spent than money spent on things. A) Pro. The trip becomes a story you tell for years. B) Con. A good tool or a bike is used every day for a decade.
  • Most meetings should have been a message. A) Pro. An hour for eight people is a whole workday gone. B) Con. In a room, a misunderstanding gets fixed in ten seconds.
  • Old things are better made than new things. A) Pro. A tool that has lasted fifty years has proved itself. B) Con. We only see the old things that lasted. The rest broke.
  • Patience is the most underrated virtue. A) Pro. Almost everything worth having takes longer than expected. B) Con. Patience can be an excuse for putting up with what should change.
  • Rules are made to be questioned. A) Pro. A rule that cannot survive a question was a bad rule. B) Con. If everyone picks which rules count, there are no rules.

How it works

These SPAR debate topics are 124 short motions for spontaneous argumentation practice. Each can be argued for two minutes with no research, and each card gives Pro and Con an opening line. The five groups run from silly to serious.

Read the full guide

Funny SPAR debate topics

Silly holds 30 funny SPAR debate topics for a warm-up or a first round: A pillow fort is a real building. A dragon would make a terrible pet. Socks should be sold in threes. One against the other adds 24 fun SPAR debate topics that set two things side by side: A kite beats a paper plane. Sunrise is better than sunset.

Serious topics that still need no research

Everyday life (24), School (23) and Serious but friendly (23) ask for a value judgment and nothing to look up: Road trips are better without a plan. Pop quizzes are unfair. Curiosity is worth more than knowledge. Asking for help is a strength.

  • Read out three cards and let each speaker strike one. The card left is the topic, and nobody can say it was unfair.

Questions and answers

What is a SPAR debate?

SPAR is short for spontaneous argumentation: two speakers, one for and one against, argue a topic they have just been handed after one to three minutes to prepare. Opening speeches run about two minutes, and each host sets its own timings.

What are good SPAR debate topics?

Ones both sides can argue from what they already know, with a fair case each way. Rules are made to be questioned and Boredom is where good ideas come from are two Hard cards that need no facts at all.

What are nice SPAR debate topics for beginners?

The 44 Easy cards, where nothing is at stake and nobody can be wrong: Every house needs a slide next to the stairs. A hammock beats a couch. Tidying up goes better with music on.

How are sides picked in a SPAR round?

Sides are usually assigned by a coin flip or by the judge, right after the topic is announced, so a speaker may have to argue against their own opinion.

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