Common Core Speaking and Listening Standard 4

The first three Speaking and Listening Standards fell under the category of "Comprehension and Collaboration." In other words, we were focusing on listening. Today we jump into "Presentation of Knowledge and Ideas," leading us into the speaking part of the standard. College and Career Readiness Anchor Standard for Speaking and Listening 4 (CCRA.SL.4) asks students to "present information, findings, and supporting evidence such that listeners can follow the line of reasoning and the organization, development, and style are appropriate to task, purpose, and audience."

As I considered the ways this standard might play out in my classroom, ties to reading and writing standards struck me. What are some ways that we can link this standard to others?

SL.3.4 states: "Report on a topic or text, tell a story, or recount an experience with appropriate facts and relevant, descriptive details, speaking clearly at an understandable pace." Let's look at three standards to which this standard can be applied.

• RL.3.2 asks students to recount folklore. After reading a fable, folktale, or myth, students could simply retell it. If you're feeling ambitious, groups of children could create skits about the literature they have read.
• Step-by-step descriptions of historical, scientific, or technical information are required for RI.3.3. For this standard, students could relate a sequence of historical events or scientific steps. What a great way to study for a test! How-to speeches also fit into this category.
• W.3.3 provides this structure for writing narratives: introduce, elaborate, use sequence words, and conclude. Asking students to either tell the story before writing it or to use this structure to tell a story will reinforce both standards.

SL.4.4 requires students to "report on a topic or text, tell a story, or recount an experience in an organized manner, using appropriate facts and relevant, descriptive details to support main ideas or themes; speak clearly at an understandable pace." While nearly the same as the third grade standard, fourth graders need to organize their material better, carefully structuring their speaking to establish main ideas supported by appropriate details and examples. Two Common Core Writing Standards give a more thorough understanding of what's expected.

• W.4.2 provides guidance for reports. Specific steps include (a) introducing, grouping related information, (b) developing the topic with supporting details, (c) using transitional words and phrases, and (d) concluding. 
• W.4.3 gives us a run-down of what's expected in storytelling. The student should (a) establish the situation and introduce characters at the beginning, organize to allow events to unfold naturally, (b) use dialogue and description, (c) employ transitional words and phrases, (d) use concrete and sensory words to "convey experiences and events precisely," and (e) conclude.

SL.5.4 asks students to "report on a topic or text or present an opinion, sequencing ideas logically and using appropriate facts and relevant, descriptive details to support main ideas or themes; speak clearly at an understandable pace." There's no doubt about what they want fifth graders to do: persuasive speaking. Again, the related writing standard provides more guidance. We just alter it a bit to fit its new purpose, like this:

As I mentioned in yesterday's blog, when students have a clear understanding of common organizational patterns used in writing and speaking, it becomes easier for them to read and listen, as well as write and speak. And the beauty of it is that we can kill two birds with one stone. That's the beauty of integrating standards.