Virginia SOL 12.RI
SOL Standard (Knowledge and Skills Cluster)
The student will use textual evidence to demonstrate comprehension and build knowledge from grade-level complex informational texts read.
Virginia Standards of Learning for English
Cluster contents
Knowledge and Skills in This Standard
12.RI is a Standards of Learning standard. These are the knowledge and skills expectations under it.
- 12.RI.1
Key Ideas and Confirming Details
- 12.RI.1.A
Interpret and complete an application for employment or college admission, and summarize the intent, main ideas, and purpose of the workplace or technical docum...
- 12.RI.1.B
Evaluate the effectiveness of the structure(s) and rhetorical devices authors use in their exposition or argument, including how the structure advances their po...
- 12.RI.1.C
Analyze the argument and specific claims in texts, examining whether the reasoning is valid, the evidence is relevant, and whether there are any false premises ...
- 12.RI.2
Craft and Style
- 12.RI.2.A
Analyze text structures to discern how they affect the meaning and message of informational and technical writing and how their text structures differ from thos...
- 12.RI.2.B
Analyze the cumulative impact of specific word choices on meaning, author’s attitude toward the subject, and mood.
- 12.RI.3
Integration of Concepts
- 12.RI.3.A
Evaluate texts with differing points of view on the same or similar events or issues by assessing claims, reasoning, evidence, and connections to other works or...
- 12.RI.3.B
Analyze how the author organizes an analysis or series of ideas or events, including the order in which the points are made, how they are introduced and develop...
Teacher's field guide
What This Cluster Means
What Students Need to Do
- Students read complex informational, workplace, and technical texts and use specific evidence to explain meaning, purpose, and main ideas. They analyze structure, word choice, rhetoric, claims, and reasoning. They also compare viewpoints and accurately complete employment or college applications.
What Mastery Looks Like
- Students complete applications accurately and summarize workplace or technical documents without leaving out key directions. They explain how structure and word choice shape meaning and point of view. They judge claims by testing the logic, relevance, support, and links to other texts or events.
Common Misconceptions
- Students may name the topic instead of stating the main idea or purpose. They may quote evidence without explaining its relevance, or accept statistics and expert claims without checking the reasoning. They may overlook application directions, unsupported assumptions, loaded language, and the effect of organizational choices.
How to Assess It
- Give students a short editorial and ask them to identify its claim, cite one relevant detail, name one reasoning flaw, and explain one structural choice.
Lesson moves
Ways to Teach It
Have pairs complete a mock job application from a sample resume, then circle directions that could cause an incomplete or inaccurate response.
Ask students to compare two editorials on one issue and write which is more convincing, using one claim and two cited details.
Use claim, evidence, and reasoning cards for a sorting race, with students rejecting irrelevant evidence and identifying unsupported assumptions.
Students examine a college admissions page or employee handbook section, then summarize its purpose, main ideas, required actions, and likely audience.
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Printable 12.RI Worksheet
A ready-to-print activity worksheet aligned to 12.RI, with an answer key for the teacher on its own page. No account needed.
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