CCSS.ELA-Literacy.RI.8.8
The Standard
Delineate and evaluate the argument and specific claims in a text, assessing whether the reasoning is sound and the evidence is relevant and sufficient; recognize when irrelevant evidence is introduced.
Common Core State Standards for English Language Arts · Reading Standards for Informational Text
Teacher's field guide
What This Standard Means
What Students Need to Do
- Students break an argument into its main point, supporting claims, reasons, and evidence. They judge whether each piece of evidence truly supports the claim and whether enough support is provided.
What Mastery Looks Like
- Students can map an author’s main argument, supporting claims, reasons, and evidence. They can explain why support is strong or weak and identify details that do not help prove a claim.
Common Misconceptions
- Students may assume any fact about the topic supports the claim. They may also mistake emotional language, repeated points, or large amounts of weak evidence for strong support.
How to Assess It
- Use one paragraph from the current reading. Ask: “State one claim, name its strongest evidence, and explain whether that evidence is relevant and sufficient.”
Lesson moves
Ways to Teach It
Give groups sentence strips from an argument to sort into claim, reason, evidence, and irrelevant detail.
Ask students to write: “Which evidence best supports the author’s claim, and why is another detail less useful?”
Run an evidence auction where teams spend ten points on the details they think provide the strongest support for a claim.
Compare two product advertisements and have students judge which claims are supported by relevant facts rather than slogans or unrelated features.
Free download
Printable RI.8.8 Worksheet
A ready-to-print activity worksheet aligned to CCSS.ELA-Literacy.RI.8.8, with an answer key for the teacher on its own page. No account needed.
PDF, US Letter, prints cleanly in black and white.
Download the worksheetLearning progression
Where This Standard Sits
See the whole path on the Reading: Informational Text progression map.
Before This Standard
If students are struggling here, check these first.
What This Unlocks
Mastery here sets students up for these next.
Keep exploring
Related Standards
- CCSS.ELA-Literacy.CCRA.R.8
Delineate and evaluate the argument and specific claims in a text, including the validity of the reasoning as well as the relevance and sufficiency of the evide...
- CCSS.ELA-Literacy.SL.8.3
Delineate a speaker's argument and specific claims, evaluating the soundness of the reasoning and relevance and sufficiency of the evidence and identifying when...
Turn this exact standard into a lesson
Grade, subject, topic, and the complete standard are prefilled. Create one free, no account needed.