The Standards
1. Cite several pieces of textual evidence to support
analysis of what the text says explicitly as well as
inferences drawn from the text.
2. Determine a theme or central idea of a text and
analyze its development over the course of the
text; provide an objective summary of the text.3. Analyze how particular elements of a story or
drama interact (e.g., how setting shapes the
characters or plot).
4. Determine the meaning of words and phrases
as they are used in a text, including figurative
and connotative meanings; analyze the impact
of rhymes and other repetitions of sounds
(e.g., alliteration) on a specific verse or stanza of
a poem or section of a story or drama. (See grade
7 Language standards 4–6 for additional
expectations.) CA
5. Analyze how a drama’s or poem’s form or
structure (e.g., soliloquy, sonnet) contributes to
its meaning.
6. Analyze how an author develops and contrasts the
points of view of different characters or narrators
in a text.
7. Compare and contrast a written story, drama, or
poem to its audio, filmed, staged, or multimedia
version, analyzing the effects of techniques
unique to each medium (e.g., lighting, sound,
color, or camera focus and angles in a film).
8. (Not applicable to literature)
9. Compare and contrast a fictional portrayal of a
time, place, or character and a historical account
of the same period as a means of understanding
how authors of fiction use or alter history
10. By the end of the year, read and comprehend
literature, including stories, dramas, and
poems, in the grades 6–8 text complexity band
proficiently, with scaffolding as needed at the
high end of the range.
analysis of what the text says explicitly as well as
inferences drawn from the text.
2. Determine a theme or central idea of a text and
analyze its development over the course of the
text; provide an objective summary of the text.3. Analyze how particular elements of a story or
drama interact (e.g., how setting shapes the
characters or plot).
4. Determine the meaning of words and phrases
as they are used in a text, including figurative
and connotative meanings; analyze the impact
of rhymes and other repetitions of sounds
(e.g., alliteration) on a specific verse or stanza of
a poem or section of a story or drama. (See grade
7 Language standards 4–6 for additional
expectations.) CA
5. Analyze how a drama’s or poem’s form or
structure (e.g., soliloquy, sonnet) contributes to
its meaning.
6. Analyze how an author develops and contrasts the
points of view of different characters or narrators
in a text.
7. Compare and contrast a written story, drama, or
poem to its audio, filmed, staged, or multimedia
version, analyzing the effects of techniques
unique to each medium (e.g., lighting, sound,
color, or camera focus and angles in a film).
8. (Not applicable to literature)
9. Compare and contrast a fictional portrayal of a
time, place, or character and a historical account
of the same period as a means of understanding
how authors of fiction use or alter history
10. By the end of the year, read and comprehend
literature, including stories, dramas, and
poems, in the grades 6–8 text complexity band
proficiently, with scaffolding as needed at the
high end of the range.