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Common Core ELA8th GradeSpeaking & Listening

SL.8.4: Present a Claim with Evidence and Reasoning

Also written as CCSS.ELA-LITERACY.SL.8.4 · Cluster: Presentation of Knowledge and Ideas.

Time the PresentationsAll 41 8th Grade ELA Standards

The Official Wording

Present claims and findings, emphasizing salient points in a focused, coherent manner with relevant evidence, sound valid reasoning, and well-chosen details; use appropriate eye contact, adequate volume, and clear pronunciation.

Common Core State Standards, Grade 8, Speaking & Listening · Read it at the source · Checked October 14, 2026

What SL.8.4 Means in Plain English

Eighth graders present a claim and what they found, leading with the point that matters most and keeping every minute on it. Each finding comes with evidence and a sentence of reasoning that says why it proves the claim. Eye contact, volume and clear pronunciation still count.

Seventh graders (SL.7.4) present claims with pertinent facts, descriptions and examples. Eighth grade asks more of the support: relevant evidence, valid reasoning that links it to the claim, and details chosen rather than piled up. Grades 9 and 10 (SL.9-10.4) make style and organization fit the audience and task.

SL.8.4 I Can Statements

  • I can open with my claim and keep the talk focused on it.
  • I can explain how each piece of evidence proves my claim.
  • I can speak clearly and loudly enough, looking at my audience.

SL.8.4 Worked Example

Two openings to the same research presentation. Both have facts, but only one tells listeners what the facts prove.

Prompt

Present your research to the school board in three minutes: should the school library stay open until 5:00? Give your first 45 seconds.

Not YetOkay, so, um, my topic is the library. The library has about 9,000 books, and it opened in 1998. I did a survey and a lot of people said stuff. Also I looked at some websites. So I guess the library should maybe stay open later?The claim arrives last and hedged, two facts (the book count, the year it opened) have nothing to do with the hours, and the survey result is never actually stated.
Meets the StandardThe library should stay open until 5:00 three days a week. Here’s what I found. In our survey of 212 students, 64 said they have no quiet place to do homework after school. The librarian’s sign-in sheets show that about 38 students are still working when the doors close at 3:30. If the library stays open, those students gain an hour and a half of quiet work time, exactly what our survey says they’re missing.The claim comes first, with a clear limit (three days a week). Two findings follow, each with a number, and the last sentence is the reasoning: it says why those findings prove the library should stay open.
Moves to Use
State the claim in your first sentence, not your last.Give each finding a number or a source listeners could check.Add one sentence of reasoning that says why the finding matters.Cut facts that are true but don’t support the claim.Look up at the end of every sentence and speak to the back row.

Common Mistakes with SL.8.4

Saving the claim for the end

Two minutes of background on the library’s history before the speaker says what they want

Try this: Have students say the claim aloud in one sentence to a partner before they write any slide or note card.

Evidence with no reasoning attached

“64 students said they have nowhere to study,” followed immediately by the next slide

Try this: Require a “which means” sentence after every statistic, saying how that number proves the claim, and model it twice first.

Reading the note cards word for word

Head down, voice dropping, eyes on a card full of sentences

Try this: Limit note cards to five words per finding, and rehearse in pairs where the listener stands at the back of the room.

Where SL.8.4 Fits

Comes BeforeSL.7.4Present claims and findings with pertinent facts, descriptions and examples.
AlongsideSL.8.5Add visuals that make the findings clearer and the evidence stronger.W.8.7Research a question across several sources, the findings a presentation reports.
Comes NextSL.9-10.4Present so listeners can follow the line of reasoning, with style suited to purpose and audience.

Practice SL.8.4

Classroom TimerFree ToolRun three-minute talks with the countdown in view, plus 45-second rounds for rehearsing just the opening claim with a partner.3-minute talks45-second openings
Start a Timer

Quick Check

  1. Where does the strong opening state its claim, and what limit does it set?
  2. Which sentence in the strong opening is the reasoning, not the evidence?
  3. Name two facts in the weak opening that are true but don’t support a claim about the hours.

SL.8.4: Other Names

SL.8.4CCSS.ELA-LITERACY.SL.8.4

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.