Home›Lesson Plans›English Language Arts›Reading: Comprehension · Grade 6

Citing Textual Evidence: Prove It with the Text

Sixth graders learn to support their ideas about a text with specific evidence — quoting or paraphrasing the exact details that back up a claim — the foundation of strong reading analysis and writing.

Grade 6Analysis50 minutes1 class periodReading WorkshopExplicit teaching4 StandardsCommon Core
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Lesson at a Glance

Everything you need before the bell rings

Learning Objectives

Students will be able to…

  • ✓Make a claim about a text.
  • ✓Find evidence that supports it.
  • ✓Quote or paraphrase accurately.
  • ✓Explain how evidence proves the claim.
Essential Question

You think a character is brave — but how do you PROVE it? Strong readers point to exactly what the text says. How do you find and cite the best evidence?

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Lesson Phases
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Vocabulary Terms
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Standards Aligned
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Interactive Task
Explore · Interactive Model

Find the Best Evidence

Project each item and have students pick the strongest evidence for the claim. The tool explains what good evidence looks like.

🔍 Which evidence best supports the claim?Try it
Choose the best textual evidence for each claim.
The Lesson · Reading Workshop (Mini-Lesson · Practice · Share)

50 minutes, five moves

Tap any phase to open the teacher moves and student actions.

1

Connect — Prove It

5 min

You think Maya is brave — how do you prove it from the text?

👩‍🏫 Teacher Moves

  • Make a claim about a character.
  • Ask how to prove it.
  • Set the goal: citing evidence.

🎒 Student Actions

  • Hear the claim.
  • Wonder how to prove it.
  • Predict the idea.
2

Teach — Claim & Evidence

12 min

Teacher models.

👩‍🏫 Teacher Moves

  • State a claim.
  • Find a supporting quote.
  • Explain the connection.

🎒 Student Actions

  • Learn claim.
  • Find evidence.
  • Explain it.
3

Active Engagement — Find Together

13 min

Class uses Find the Best Evidence.

👩‍🏫 Teacher Moves

  • Pick the strongest evidence.
  • Explain why it fits.
  • Reject weak evidence.

🎒 Student Actions

  • Pick evidence.
  • Explain it.
  • Reject weak.
4

Practice — Practice

13 min

Students cite evidence.

👩‍🏫 Teacher Moves

  • Make a claim about a text.
  • Find and quote evidence.
  • Explain how it supports.

🎒 Student Actions

  • Make a claim.
  • Cite evidence.
  • Explain it.
5

Share — Share

5 min

Students share evidence.

👩‍🏫 Teacher Moves

  • Invite a claim with evidence.
  • Explain the connection.
  • Hand out the exit ticket.

🎒 Student Actions

  • Share it.
  • Explain it.
  • Complete the exit ticket.
Standards Alignment

Built to the standards you report on

Aligned to the Common Core State Standards for English Language Arts.

CCSS
RL.6.1

Cite textual evidence to support analysis of what the text says.

CCSS
RI.6.1

Cite textual evidence to support analysis of informational text.

CCSS
W.6.9

Draw evidence from texts to support analysis.

CCSS
RL.6.3

Describe how characters respond and change.

Differentiation

One lesson, every learner

Multilingual Learners

ELL / EMERGING READERS
  • Claim + evidence sentence frames.
  • Sentence frame: “The text says ___, which shows ___.”
  • Highlight evidence in the text.

Support & Access

IEP / 504
  • Provide the claim.
  • Give two evidence choices.
  • Underline the evidence.

Stretch & Extend

GIFTED / EARLY FINISHERS
  • Cite multiple pieces of evidence.
  • Paraphrase instead of quoting.
  • Support a claim in writing.
Materials

What to gather

  • 📽️Projector / board
  • 📚Short passages
  • 💻Find the Best Evidence
  • 🖍️Highlighters
  • ✏️Pencils
  • 🎫Exit-ticket slips
Vocabulary

Key terms — hover for a quick definition

claima statement you can supportevidencedetails from the text that support a claimciteto point to the exact textquoteto use the exact wordsparaphraseto restate in your own wordssupportto back up with evidenceanalysisa close examinationrelevantdirectly connected
Evaluate

Exit Ticket

Preview the three formative checks. Tap “Sample answer” to see what mastery looks like — hide them before you print for students.

QUESTION 1
What is textual evidence?
A specific quote or detail from the text that supports a claim.
QUESTION 2
If your claim is “the setting is spooky,” what kind of detail should you cite?
A detail from the text that shows spookiness (like “the wind howled through the broken windows”).
QUESTION 3
What are two ways to cite evidence?
Quoting the exact words, or paraphrasing (restating) them accurately.

Going deeper? Two pieces of evidence.

Have students support one claim with two different pieces of evidence from the text, then explain how each one proves it. A printable citing-evidence sheet is in the ELA library.

Study · Flashcards

Study the key terms

Tap a card to flip it, then rate whether you knew it. Built from this lesson’s vocabulary.

🃏 Citing Textual EvidenceFlip
Card 1
Term
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Meaning
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Practice · Quiz

Check your understanding

A quick self-check with instant feedback, drawn from this lesson’s key terms.

📝 Citing Textual EvidenceQuiz
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Question 1
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Practice · Worksheet

Printable worksheet

A print-and-go review sheet with a built-in answer key. Tap “Show answer key” to reveal answers, or print the clean version for students.

🖨️ Citing Textual EvidencePrint
Name: ________________________
Date: ____________

Part A · Write the word that matches each meaning

Word bank: analysis, cite, claim, evidence, paraphrase, quote, relevant, support
  1. directly connected
  2. to point to the exact text
  3. to use the exact words
  4. to back up with evidence
  5. a statement you can support
  6. to restate in your own words
  7. a close examination
  8. details from the text that support a claim

Part B · Show what you learned

  1. What is textual evidence?
  2. If your claim is “the setting is spooky,” what kind of detail should you cite?
  3. What are two ways to cite evidence?
Answer key — Part A: 1) relevant · 2) cite · 3) quote · 4) support · 5) claim · 6) paraphrase · 7) analysis · 8) evidence
Part B: 1) A specific quote or detail from the text that supports a claim. 2) A detail from the text that shows spookiness (like “the wind howled through the broken windows”). 3) Quoting the exact words, or paraphrasing (restating) them accurately.