CCSS.ELA-Literacy.RI.7.9
The Standard
Analyze how two or more authors writing about the same topic shape their presentations of key information by emphasizing different evidence or advancing different interpretations of facts.
Common Core State Standards for English Language Arts · Reading Standards for Informational Text
What This Standard Means
Students need to compare two or more nonfiction texts on the same topic. They should notice which facts each author includes, leaves out, repeats, or explains in detail. They also need to explain how those choices shape the reader’s understanding of the topic.
Mastery looks like a student saying, “Both authors mention the same event, but one uses statistics to show harm while the other uses expert quotes to show progress.” Students often get stuck summarizing both texts separately instead of comparing them. They may also miss that authors can use true facts but still guide readers toward different conclusions.
Ways to Teach It
- Give students two short articles on school start times and have them color-code statistics, expert quotes, examples, and personal stories.
- Ask students to write: Which author seems more concerned, hopeful, or critical, and what evidence makes you think that?
- Use an exit ticket asking students to name one shared fact and one difference in how two authors use it.
- Compare two news reports about the same local issue, such as a new park rule, and list what each source emphasizes.
Plan a Lesson for CCSS.ELA-Literacy.RI.7.9
Generate a complete lesson plan aligned to this standard, with objectives, activities, and materials. Free, no account needed.
Related Standards
- CCSS.ELA-Literacy.RH.11-12.6
Evaluate authors' differing points of view on the same historical event or issue by assessing the authors' claims, reasoning, and evidence.
- CCSS.ELA-Literacy.CCRA.R.9
Analyze how two or more texts address similar themes or topics in order to build knowledge or to compare the approaches the authors take.
- CCSS.ELA-Literacy.RI.8.6
Determine an author's point of view or purpose in a text and analyze how the author acknowledges and responds to conflicting evidence or viewpoints.
- CCSS.ELA-Literacy.RH.9-10.6
Compare the point of view of two or more authors for how they treat the same or similar topics, including which details they include and emphasize in their resp...