CCSS.ELA-Literacy.SL.6.6
The Standard
Adapt speech to a variety of contexts and tasks, demonstrating command of formal English when indicated or appropriate.
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 words, tone, volume, and formality to fit the audience, purpose, and setting. They use standard English grammar when a formal situation calls for it.
What Mastery Looks Like
- A student can deliver the same message differently for classmates, teachers, and unfamiliar adults. The student uses clear sentences and an appropriate tone without sounding forced.
Common Misconceptions
- Students may think formal speech means using long words or sounding stiff. They may use slang, fragments, or an overly casual tone during presentations. Some change volume but not vocabulary, grammar, or tone.
How to Assess It
- Give students the message, “The field trip time changed,” and two audiences, a friend and the principal. Have students say both versions, then name one choice they changed.
Lesson moves
Ways to Teach It
Students draw audience and setting cards, then deliver the same announcement twice, changing word choice, tone, and formality to match each card.
Students write and compare explanations of a missed deadline for three audiences, a friend, a teacher, and a coach.
Play Context Switch: one student speaks from a prompt, then classmates call a new audience and the speaker immediately adjusts.
Students record a 30-second voicemail requesting an appointment, using a clear greeting, complete sentences, specific details, and a polite closing.
Free download
Printable SL.6.6 Worksheet
A ready-to-print activity worksheet aligned to CCSS.ELA-Literacy.SL.6.6, 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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