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Common Core ELA5th GradeSpeaking & Listening

SL.5.1: Take Part in Class Discussions

Also written as CCSS.ELA-LITERACY.SL.5.1 · Cluster: Comprehension and Collaboration.

Pick the Next SpeakerAll 43 5th Grade ELA Standards

The Official Wording

Engage effectively in a range of collaborative discussions (one-on-one, in groups, and teacher-led) with diverse partners on grade 5 topics and texts, building on others' ideas and expressing their own clearly.

Common Core State Standards, Grade 5, Speaking & Listening · Read it at the source · Checked October 14, 2026

What SL.5.1 Means in Plain English

Fifth graders come to a discussion having done the reading, keep to the group’s rules and their assigned role, and answer what a classmate just said instead of starting fresh. “Building on Lena’s point, page 12 says…” is the move. The talk ends with what the group concluded.

Fourth graders (SL.4.1) link their comments to others’ remarks and explain their own thinking afterward. Fifth grade asks them to elaborate on a classmate’s remark and draw conclusions from the whole discussion. Sixth grade (SL.6.1) adds probing with evidence, group goals and deadlines, and paraphrasing other perspectives.

SL.5.1 I Can Statements

  • I can come to a discussion ready, with notes from the reading.
  • I can build on a classmate’s comment and ask a specific question.
  • I can sum up the key ideas and what our group concluded.

SL.5.1 Worked Example

One discussion question, two replies to the same classmate, and the difference is whether the reply listened first.

Prompt

Small-group discussion of the article “Should Our Town Ban Plastic Bags?” The group’s question: is the ban a good idea? Respond to Marcus, who just said, “It’s a bad idea, because people need bags.”

Not YetI think it’s a good idea. Plastic is bad for the ocean. Also my mom uses cloth bags.A fresh opinion that ignores Marcus, a fact that is not in the article and a story from home. The discussion moves sideways, not forward.
Meets the StandardMarcus, I get your point that people need bags, but the article says shoppers can still buy a paper bag for ten cents, so nobody would go without. And paragraph three says the town pulled four thousand plastic bags out of the river last year. Can I ask you something? Would you change your mind if the paper bags were free?It names Marcus and answers his exact point, brings in two details the speaker prepared from the article, and ends with a specific question that keeps the talk going.
Moves to Use
Name the classmate and restate their point before answering it.Bring in a detail from the reading you prepared, and say where it is.Ask a specific question back, not “What do you think?”Keep to your role and the group’s talk rules: one speaker at a time.Close the discussion by summing up where the group landed and why.

Common Mistakes with SL.5.1

Waiting for a turn instead of listening

Five students in a row each give a brand-new opinion, and no comment mentions anyone else’s

Try this: Require every comment to start with a classmate’s name and their point, using stems like “Building on what Lena said…”

Coming to the circle unprepared

“I didn’t finish it, but I think…” followed by a guess about the article

Try this: Collect a ticket in: two sticky notes from the reading, each with a page or paragraph number, before a student joins the group.

Stopping without a conclusion

The timer goes off and the group simply stops, mid-argument

Try this: Save the last two minutes for the summarizer role, who states the group’s two key ideas and one conclusion out loud.

Where SL.5.1 Fits

Comes BeforeSL.4.1Come prepared, follow discussion roles, and link comments to the remarks of others.
AlongsideSL.5.3Sum up a speaker’s points and the reasons and evidence behind each claim.RI.5.1Quote an informational text accurately, the evidence a prepared speaker brings to the circle.
Comes NextSL.6.1Probe ideas with evidence, set group goals and deadlines, and paraphrase other perspectives.

Practice SL.5.1

Random Name PickerFree ToolSpin for the next speaker so the same three voices don’t carry every discussion, or spin for who answers the last comment.Next speakerAnswer the last commentWhole class
Spin a Name
Classroom TimerFree ToolTime each round of a group discussion, then run a two-minute countdown for the summarizer to state what the group concluded.Discussion rounds2-minute summary
Start a Timer

Quick Check

  1. In the strong reply, which of Marcus’s points does the speaker answer, and with what?
  2. Which parts of the strong reply show the speaker came prepared?
  3. What does the strong reply do at the end that keeps the discussion going?

SL.5.1: Other Names

SL.5.1CCSS.ELA-LITERACY.SL.5.1

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.