CCSS.ELA-Literacy.W.6.7

ELA6th GradeResearch to Build and Present Knowledge

The Standard

Conduct short research projects to answer a question, drawing on several sources and refocusing the inquiry when appropriate.

Common Core State Standards for English Language Arts · Writing Standards

Teacher's field guide

What Students Need to Do: Students develop a focused question, gather relevant information from multiple sources, and use it to build an answer. They revise the question when their research reveals a better direction.
What Mastery Looks Like: A student can answer a focused question using relevant information from at least three sources. The student adjusts the question when new information points toward a clearer or more useful focus.
Common Misconceptions: Students may copy full sentences, rely on one source, or collect facts that do not answer their question. They may think revising the question means their original plan failed.
How to Assess It: Give students three short texts about school start times. Ask them to write a focused question, one useful fact from each text, and a revised question.

Lesson moves

Place source cards around the room, then have pairs sort facts by which research question each fact could help answer.
Ask students to write how one new fact might narrow, broaden, or change a research question.
Play Question Refocus Relay, where teams revise broad questions after reading each new source excerpt.
Have students research a proposed change at school, such as longer lunch periods, using surveys, schedules, and school policy documents.

Free download

A ready-to-print activity worksheet aligned to CCSS.ELA-Literacy.W.6.7, with an answer key for the teacher on its own page. No account needed.

PDF, US Letter, prints cleanly in black and white.

Learning progression

See the whole path on the Writing progression map.

If students are struggling here, check these first.

Mastery here sets students up for these next.

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