CCSS.ELA-Literacy.L.11-12.1a
The Standard
Apply the understanding that usage is a matter of convention, can change over time, and is sometimes contested.
Common Core State Standards for English Language Arts
What This Standard Means
Students need to recognize that language rules are shaped by context, audience, history, and power. They should be able to explain why one form may fit a college essay, another may fit dialogue, and another may be debated by editors, teachers, or communities.
Mastery looks like making informed choices, not just memorizing rules. Students can revise for standard academic English when needed and explain the choice. They often get stuck thinking there is only one correct form, or that informal language is automatically wrong.
Ways to Teach It
- Have students sort sentence strips into formal academic use, casual speech, debated use, and outdated use, then defend each placement.
- Ask students to write about a grammar or usage rule they were taught and whether they think it still holds up.
- Give four sentences with contested usage, such as singular they, and ask students to choose the best version for a college application.
- Show a current style guide entry and an older one, then have students identify what changed and why it might matter.
Plan a Lesson for CCSS.ELA-Literacy.L.11-12.1a
Generate a complete lesson plan aligned to this standard, with objectives, activities, and materials. Free, no account needed.
Related Standards
- CCSS.ELA-Literacy.L.7.3
Use knowledge of language and its conventions when writing, speaking, reading, or listening.
- CCSS.ELA-Literacy.L.8.3
Use knowledge of language and its conventions when writing, speaking, reading, or listening.
- CCSS.ELA-Literacy.L.11-12.1b
Resolve issues of complex or contested usage, consulting references (e.g., Merriam-Webster's Dictionary of English Usage, Garner's Modern American Usage) as nee...
- CCSS.ELA-Literacy.L.2.3
Use knowledge of language and its conventions when writing, speaking, reading, or listening.