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Common Core ELA2nd GradeReading: Informational

RI.2.8: Explain How Reasons Support an Author’s Point

Also written as CCSS.ELA-LITERACY.RI.2.8 · Cluster: Integration of Knowledge and Ideas.

All 40 2nd Grade ELA Standards

The Official Wording

Describe how reasons support specific points the author makes in a text.

Common Core State Standards, Grade 2, Reading: Informational Text · Read it at the source · Checked October 14, 2026

What RI.2.8 Means in Plain English

Second graders find a point an author makes and explain how each reason holds it up. An author who says to wear sunscreen every time you play outside gives reasons, like clouds not stopping the sun’s rays, and children say how each one makes the point stronger.

In 1st grade (RI.1.8) children pointed out the reasons an author gives. Second grade asks how each reason supports the point, which means saying why it matters. In 3rd grade (RI.3.8) the focus widens to how sentences and paragraphs connect, such as cause and effect.

RI.2.8 I Can Statements

  • I can find the point an author is trying to make.
  • I can find the reasons the author gives for that point.
  • I can explain how each reason makes the point stronger.

RI.2.8 Worked Example

The author makes one point, gives three reasons and adds one fact that is not a reason, and the weak answer falls for it.

Read the Story
You should wear sunscreen every time you play outside.First, a sunburn hurts. Burned skin turns red, stings when you touch it and can peel for days.Second, sunburns add up. Many burns over the years can make your skin sick when you are older.Third, clouds do not stop the sun’s rays. You can get burned on a gray day, even when you cannot see the sun.The sun is a star, just like the ones you see at night.
A short passage written for this page.
Question: The author says you should wear sunscreen every time you play outside. How does each reason support that point?
Not Yet“You should wear sunscreen because the sun is a star.”The star fact is in the passage, so the answer feels supported, but it gives no reason to wear sunscreen. The child picked the most surprising fact instead of a reason, and explained nothing.
Meets the Standard“A sunburn hurts, stings and peels, so sunscreen saves you from that. Burns add up and can make your skin sick when you are older, so every burn counts. And clouds don’t stop the sun’s rays, so you need it on gray days too. That’s why the author says every time. The star fact is true, but it isn’t a reason.”Every reason is tied back to the point with so, the third reason is matched to the words every time, and the fact that supports nothing is noticed and set aside.
Question Stems to Use
What point is the author trying to make?What reasons does the author give?How does this reason help prove the point?Is this sentence a reason, or just an interesting fact?Which reason do you think is strongest? Why?

Common Mistakes with RI.2.8

Counting every fact as a reason

“The sun is a star.” offered as a reason to wear sunscreen

Try this: Ask “Does this make you want to wear sunscreen?” about every fact, and let students cross out the ones that do not.

Listing reasons without explaining them

“Sunburns hurt. Burns add up. Clouds don’t stop the sun.”

Try this: Require a so or because after each reason that tells what it means for the reader, the part the standard adds.

Missing the point itself

“The author’s point is that sunburns hurt.”

Try this: Teach that the point is what the author wants you to believe, usually in the first or last sentence, and reasons answer why.

Where RI.2.8 Fits

Comes BeforeRI.1.8Point out the reasons an author gives to support points in a text.
AlongsideW.2.1Write an opinion and link reasons to it with words like because and also.
Comes NextRI.3.8Describe how sentences and paragraphs connect, such as cause and effect or steps in order.

Practice RI.2.8

Quick Check

  1. What point does the author make?
  2. Why does the author say you need sunscreen even on a gray day?
  3. Which sentence in the passage is not a reason?

RI.2.8: Other Names

RI.2.8CCSS.ELA-LITERACY.RI.2.8

Common Core State Standards © Copyright 2010. National Governors Association Center for Best Practices and Council of Chief State School Officers. All rights reserved. Official wording from the Common Core State Standards PDFs at corestandards.org, last checked October 14, 2026. The explanation, I can statements, example, mistakes and practice on this page are EMStudio’s own, written beside the official wording. They are not part of the standard.