8.8.E.ii
The Standard
identifying and explaining the counter argument
Texas Essential Knowledge and Skills for English Language Arts and Reading · The student recognizes and analyzes genre-specific characteristics, structures, and purposes within and across increasingly complex traditional, contemporary, classical, and diverse texts.
Teacher's field guide
What This Standard Means
What Students Need to Do
- Students locate the viewpoint that challenges an author’s main claim. They explain how that opposing view connects to the claim and supports the argument’s structure.
What Mastery Looks Like
- Students accurately point to the opposing viewpoint in an argument. They explain what claim it challenges and why the author includes it before responding.
Common Misconceptions
- Students may label any disagreement as a counterargument, even when it does not challenge the main claim. They may also confuse the counterargument with the author’s rebuttal or assume including one weakens the author’s position.
How to Assess It
- Give students a short argument with one opposing viewpoint. Ask them to underline the counterargument and write one sentence explaining how it relates to the main claim.
Lesson moves
Ways to Teach It
Cut an argument into sentence strips, then have pairs sort the claim, evidence, counterargument, and rebuttal into labeled sections.
Ask students to write the strongest counterargument to the claim, “School should begin one hour later,” then explain why it is relevant.
Play a card sort where teams match main claims with relevant counterarguments and reject cards that are unrelated or merely provide evidence.
Examine an editorial or advertisement and identify the opposing view the writer expects readers to hold, then discuss how it is addressed.
Keep exploring
Related Standards
Turn this exact standard into a lesson
Grade, subject, topic, and the complete standard are prefilled. Create one free, no account needed.