CCSS.ELA-Literacy.CCRA.SL.6
The Standard
Adapt speech to a variety of contexts and communicative tasks, demonstrating command of formal English when indicated or appropriate.
Common Core State Standards for English Language Arts · College and Career Readiness Anchor Standards for Speaking and Listening
Teacher's field guide
What This Standard Means
What Students Need to Do
- Students choose words, tone, volume, and detail to fit their audience, purpose, and setting. They shift between conversational and formal language when the situation calls for it.
What Mastery Looks Like
- A student can explain the same idea differently to a friend, a class, and an unfamiliar adult. The student uses clear, complete sentences in formal settings without sounding memorized.
Common Misconceptions
- Students may think formal speech means using long words, speaking stiffly, or hiding their natural voice. They may also use slang, vague references, or an unsuitable tone without considering who is listening.
How to Assess It
- Give students one message: “We need a longer lunch.” Ask them to present it first to a friend, then to the principal, changing their wording and tone.
Lesson moves
Ways to Teach It
Give pairs audience cards, such as kindergartener, teammate, or school board member, and have them deliver the same announcement for each listener.
Ask students to rewrite “Move your backpack” for a sibling, a teacher, and a public meeting, then explain each language choice.
Play Audience Switch: students speak from a prompt, then draw a new audience card and revise their wording, tone, and volume.
Have students record a voicemail requesting information from a local library, using a clear greeting, specific question, and polite closing.
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Printable CCRA.SL.6 Worksheet
A ready-to-print activity worksheet aligned to CCSS.ELA-Literacy.CCRA.SL.6, with an answer key for the teacher on its own page. No account needed.
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Related Standards
- CCSS.ELA-Literacy.SL.6.6
Adapt speech to a variety of contexts and tasks, demonstrating command of formal English when indicated or appropriate.
- CCSS.ELA-Literacy.SL.9-10.6
Adapt speech to a variety of contexts and tasks, demonstrating command of formal English when indicated or appropriate.
- CCSS.ELA-Literacy.SL.8.6
Adapt speech to a variety of contexts and tasks, demonstrating command of formal English when indicated or appropriate.
- CCSS.ELA-Literacy.SL.7.6
Adapt speech to a variety of contexts and tasks, demonstrating command of formal English when indicated or appropriate.
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