Understanding and Explaining Information in Texts
Understanding and Explaining Information in Texts Objective: Students will learn to explain how an author uses reasons and evidence to support particular points in a text, enhancing their comprehension and critical thinking skills.
Learning Objectives
- Identify reasons an author gives to support a point in a text.
- Find evidence the author uses to explain those reasons.
- Explain how the reasons and evidence work together to support the author’s message.
Materials Needed
- A short informational text or article appropriate for 5th grade
- Paper and pencils
- Highlighters or colored pencils
Key Vocabulary
- Evidence
- Information or details from the text that support an author’s point or argument.
- Reason
- A statement that explains why the author believes something is true.
- Support
- To back up or prove an idea with facts or examples.
Detailed Activities
Discovering Reasons and Evidence in Text
- Begin with a brief discussion about why authors use reasons and evidence in writing.
- Read the selected informational text aloud together or have the student read independently.
- Ask the student to highlight or underline sentences that give reasons the author supports.
- Next, find sentences or phrases that provide evidence backing those reasons, marking them with a different color.
- Discuss how the reasons and evidence relate to each other and help explain the author’s main point.
- Have the student write a few sentences summarizing how the author uses reasons and evidence in the text.
Parent & Instructor Notes
- Encourage your child to take their time reading the text and to ask questions if something is unclear.
- Use the highlighting activity as a fun way to visually separate reasons and evidence, which helps understanding.
- Support your child by discussing the text together and guiding them to think about why the author included certain details.
Assessment Questions
- Can you point out one reason the author gives in the text?
- What evidence does the author use to support that reason?
- How do the reasons and evidence help you understand the author’s main idea?
Extension Ideas
- Have your child find another article or informational text and practice identifying reasons and evidence.
- Encourage your child to write their own short informational paragraph including reasons and evidence to support a point.
- Use a video or documentary segment and ask your child to explain the reasons and evidence the speaker provides.
Frequently Asked Questions
Read the text together more slowly and discuss each paragraph. Ask guiding questions like ‘Why do you think the author included this?’ or ‘What is this part trying to prove?’
Explain that a reason tells why something is true, and evidence shows the facts or examples that prove it. Using colors to mark them separately can make this clearer.
Teacher’s Guide
Common Misconceptions:
- Students may confuse reasons with evidence, thinking both are the same.
- They might focus only on the main idea and miss the supporting details.
- Some students might find it challenging to explain how evidence supports reasons.
Scaffolding Ideas:
For Struggling Students:
- Provide simpler texts with clear, obvious reasons and evidence.
- Use graphic organizers to visually separate reasons and evidence.
- Work one-on-one or in small groups to scaffold the identification process.
For Advanced Students:
- Challenge them to compare reasons and evidence across two texts on the same topic.
- Ask them to critique the strength of the author’s reasons and evidence.
- Encourage writing a persuasive paragraph using strong reasons and evidence.
Pacing Recommendations:
- Spend extra time on reading and discussing the text for students new to this skill.
- Allow at least 15 minutes for the highlighting activity to ensure comprehension.
- Reserve time to discuss and write explanations to reinforce learning.
Standards
- 5.RI.9 — Integrate information from several texts on the same topic in order to write or speak about the subject knowledgeably.
Printable Worksheet
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