South Dakota ELA 7.RL.6

ELA7th GradeReading Literature

The Standard

Analyze how an author develops and contrasts the different points of view of characters or narrators in texts through dialogue, action, and description.

South Dakota English Language Arts Standards (2025)

Teacher's field guide

What This Standard Means

What Students Need to Do: Students track how two characters or narrators see the same event. They use dialogue, actions, and descriptions to explain how the author shows each view and sets them apart.
What Mastery Looks Like: A student finds details that show each person's view. They explain how the details reveal a difference, rather than just listing what happened.
Common Misconceptions: Students may name first person or third person without explaining what a character thinks. They may take a character's words at face value and miss actions or descriptions that suggest otherwise.
How to Assess It: Exit ticket: Choose two characters who react differently to one event in the story you read today. Give one detail for each, then explain how those details show a contrast.

Lesson moves

Ways to Teach It

Give pairs a short scene to mark with two colors, one for each character's dialogue and actions, then compare what the marks show.
Ask partners, 'What does each character want in this scene, and which line gives you the clearest clue?'
Make cards with dialogue, actions, and descriptions from a scene; teams sort them by character and defend one disputed card.
Post two notes about a canceled field trip; students turn each into dialogue and actions, then explain how the views differ.

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