CCSS.ELA-Literacy.SL.5.5
The Standard
Include multimedia components (e.g., graphics, sound) and visual displays in presentations when appropriate to enhance the development of main ideas or themes.
Common Core State Standards for English Language Arts · Speaking and Listening Standards
Teacher's field guide
What This Standard Means
What Students Need to Do
- Students choose images, charts, sound, or other media that make a presentation’s main idea easier to understand. They place and explain each item so it supports the message rather than distracts from it.
What Mastery Looks Like
- During a short presentation, students use a clear image, chart, audio clip, or display that supports the main point. They can explain why the chosen media fits the message.
Common Misconceptions
- Students may add any picture and assume it helps. They may use crowded slides, unreadable graphics, or distracting sounds. They may also repeat the same words on the screen instead of adding useful information.
How to Assess It
- Give students a one-minute talk and three possible visuals. Ask them to choose one and write how it makes the main idea clearer.
Lesson moves
Ways to Teach It
Give pairs chart paper and markers to turn a short informational paragraph into one labeled visual, then present the paragraph’s main idea.
Show two slides about the same topic, one useful and one decorative, then ask students to write which better supports the main idea.
Play Media Match: students pair claim cards with image, chart, or sound cards, then justify each match in one sentence.
Have students create a 60-second school announcement using one photo, simple chart, or sound cue that makes the message clearer.
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Printable SL.5.5 Worksheet
A ready-to-print activity worksheet aligned to CCSS.ELA-Literacy.SL.5.5, 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 Speaking & Listening progression map.
Before This Standard
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What This Unlocks
Mastery here sets students up for these next.
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Related Standards
- CCSS.ELA-Literacy.SL.8.5
Integrate multimedia and visual displays into presentations to clarify information, strengthen claims and evidence, and add interest.
- CCSS.ELA-Literacy.SL.7.5
Include multimedia components and visual displays in presentations to clarify claims and findings and emphasize salient points.
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