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Common Core ELA1st GradeSpeaking & Listening

SL.1.3: Ask a Speaker Questions to Learn More

Also written as CCSS.ELA-LITERACY.SL.1.3 · Cluster: Comprehension and Collaboration.

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The Official Wording

Ask and answer questions about what a speaker says in order to gather additional information or clarify something that is not understood.

Common Core State Standards, Grade 1, Speaking & Listening · Read it at the source · Checked October 14, 2026

What SL.1.3 Means in Plain English

When a visitor, the teacher or a classmate finishes speaking, first graders ask questions that grow out of what that person said: one to find out more, or one to fix a part they did not follow. They also answer questions about the talk, which shows they were listening.

The hard part is telling a question from a story: six-year-olds raise a hand to say “I have a dog too.” Kindergarten (SL.K.3) asked questions to get help or information, and 2nd grade (SL.2.3) adds questions that deepen understanding of a topic or issue.

SL.1.3 I Can Statements

  • I can ask a question about what the speaker said.
  • I can ask when I did not understand a word.
  • I can answer questions about what a visitor told us.

SL.1.3 Worked Example

A zookeeper visits to talk about feeding the giraffes, and two first graders get the first questions.

Prompt

The zookeeper says: “Every morning I feed our three giraffes. I hold the leaves up high, and I’m training them to lift their feet so the animal doctor can check their hooves.” Ask her a question.

Not Yet“I went to the zoo and I saw a monkey and it was eating a banana!”A story, not a question, and it is about monkeys, not anything the zookeeper said. The child wanted a turn to talk, which is real, but nobody learns anything new.
Meets the Standard“You said you hold the leaves up high. Why can’t the giraffes eat off the ground?” Then, after her answer: “What are hooves?”The first question starts from her exact words and asks for more information. The second clears up a word the child did not know. Those are the two jobs SL.1.3 names.
Moves to Use
Start from what the speaker said: “You said…”Ask to find out more: why, how, what happens when.Ask about a word or a part you did not get.Save your own story for later, and ask a question now.

Common Mistakes with SL.1.3

Telling instead of asking

“I have a cat!” offered to the visitor as a question

Try this: Teach one hand signal for a question and a different one for a comment, and take only question hands during question time.

Asking what was already answered

“Do you feed the giraffes?” a minute after she said she does

Try this: Practice the “You said…” starter before the visit, so every question has to begin from the speaker’s own words.

Nodding past the confusing word

Nobody asks what hooves are, and the drawings afterward show giraffes wearing shoes

Try this: Pause after the speaker uses a new word and ask the class who has a question about it, until they ask unprompted.

Where SL.1.3 Fits

Comes BeforeSL.K.3Ask and answer questions to get help, find information or clear up confusion.
AlongsideSL.1.1Ask questions to clear up confusion during partner, small-group and class discussions.L.1.1Produce complete questions as well as statements, part j of the grammar standard.
Comes NextSL.2.3Ask and answer questions about a speaker’s words to clarify, gather information or deepen understanding.

Practice SL.1.3

Random Name PickerFree ToolSpin for who asks the visitor the next question, so the questions do not all come from the front row.Class visitorQuestion timeWhole class
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Quick Check

  1. Which strong question gathers more information, and which clears up confusion?
  2. Turn this comment into a question for the zookeeper: “I like giraffes.”
  3. What two reasons does SL.1.3 give for asking a speaker questions?

SL.1.3: Other Names

SL.1.3CCSS.ELA-LITERACY.SL.1.3

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.