CCSS.ELA-Literacy.RI.7.2
The Standard
Determine two or more central ideas in a text and analyze their development over the course of the text; provide an objective summary of the text.
Common Core State Standards for English Language Arts · Reading Standards for Informational Text
What This Standard Means
Students need to find more than one central idea in an informational text, then track how each idea is built across the whole piece. They should notice key details, examples, headings, shifts, and repeated points. They also need to summarize without adding opinions or minor details.
Mastery looks like naming two clear central ideas, citing where each appears, and explaining how the author develops them from beginning to end. Students often confuse topics with central ideas, pick only the first idea they see, or write summaries that retell too much or include personal reactions.
Ways to Teach It
- Give pairs a printed article, two colored highlighters, and have them mark details that develop two different central ideas.
- Ask students to write: What are two big points the author wants readers to understand, and how does each grow across the text?
- Use an exit ticket with one paragraph: students name the central idea and cross out details that do not belong in a summary.
- Connect to a news article about school lunches, sports safety, or phone use, and have students identify two main points the writer develops.
Plan a Lesson for CCSS.ELA-Literacy.RI.7.2
Generate a complete lesson plan aligned to this standard, with objectives, activities, and materials. Free, no account needed.
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