CCSS.ELA-Literacy.W.6.2c

ELA6th GradeText Types and Purposes

The Standard

Use appropriate transitions to clarify the relationships among ideas and concepts.

Common Core State Standards for English Language Arts

What This Standard Means

Students need to connect ideas in informational writing so the reader can follow the thinking. They should choose words and phrases that show order, cause and effect, comparison, contrast, examples, and conclusion. They also need to place transitions where the relationship might otherwise feel unclear.

Mastery looks like smooth movement between sentences, paragraphs, facts, and explanations. The writing does not sound like a list. Students often get stuck by repeating the same transition, adding transitions that do not match the meaning, or using “also” when they really mean “however,” “for example,” or “as a result.”

Ways to Teach It

Give students a cut-up informational paragraph and have them rebuild it using transition cards like however, for example, meanwhile, and as a result.
Ask students to explain which transition best connects two facts: “Many animals migrate. Food becomes scarce in winter.”
Have students underline three transitions in their draft and label each one as order, contrast, example, or cause and effect.
Show a short recipe, sports recap, or science article and have students mark the words that help the reader follow the steps or ideas.