NY Next Generation ELA 6L4.a
The Standard
Use context (e.g., the overall meaning of a sentence or paragraph; a word's position or function in a sentence) as a clue to the meaning of a word or phrase.
New York State Next Generation English Language Arts Learning Standards
Teacher's field guide
What This Standard Means
What Students Need to Do
- Students use the overall meaning of a sentence or paragraph and a word's position or function to infer meaning. They consider both semantic and grammatical context.
What Mastery Looks Like
- A student explains what the surrounding passage suggests and identifies whether the target acts as a noun, verb, adjective, or another form. The proposed meaning fits both clues.
Common Misconceptions
- Students may use the broad topic as their only clue or assign the wrong part of speech. They may find a nearby synonym that fits meaning but not the word's grammatical role.
How to Assess It
- Give students a paragraph containing an unfamiliar word. Ask them to infer its meaning, identify its function, and explain how both clues support the answer.
Lesson moves
Ways to Teach It
Mark target-word positions and paragraph clues with different colors, then write a definition that satisfies both.
Ask, ‘What job does this word perform in the sentence, and how does that narrow its meaning?’
Play Context and Function Match by pairing possible definitions with the sentence frames where they fit grammatically and logically.
Read an instruction manual and use sentence function plus overall meaning to infer an unfamiliar technical term.
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Printable 6L4.a Worksheet
A ready-to-print activity worksheet aligned to 6L4.a, with an answer key for the teacher on its own page. No account needed.
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Related Standards
- 8L4.a
The 8th Grade version of this standard.
- 7L4.a
The 7th Grade version of this standard.
- 9-10L4a
Use context (e.g., the overall meaning of a sentence, paragraph, or text; a word’s position or function in a sentence) as a clue to the meaning of a word or phr...
- 1L4.a
Use sentence-level context as a clue to the meaning of a word or phrase.
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