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Common Core ELA6th GradeWriting

W.6.9: Draw Evidence from Literature and Nonfiction

Also written as CCSS.ELA-LITERACY.W.6.9 · Cluster: Research to Build and Present Knowledge.

All 41 6th Grade ELA Standards

The Official Wording

Draw evidence from literary or informational texts to support analysis, reflection, and research.

Common Core State Standards, Grade 6, Writing · Read it at the source · Checked October 14, 2026

What W.6.9 Means in Plain English

Sixth graders use texts as evidence in their own writing. For a story and a poem on the same theme, they quote both to compare how each handles it. For an editorial, they trace each claim and quote the evidence behind it, or point out that there is none.

Fifth grade (W.5.9) compares characters and shows which evidence supports which point. Sixth grade compares texts across genres, like a historical novel and a fantasy, and judges whether an author’s claims are supported. Seventh grade (W.7.9) compares fiction with history and asks whether evidence is relevant and sufficient.

W.6.9 I Can Statements

  • I can quote two texts to compare how they treat one theme.
  • I can trace an author’s claims and judge which ones are supported.
  • I can explain how each piece of evidence backs my own point.

W.6.9 Worked Example

Both students read the same editorial. One shared an opinion about phones; the other judged the writer’s argument, claim by claim.

Prompt

Read this paragraph from a student newspaper editorial, then write a paragraph evaluating its argument. Which claims are supported by reasons and evidence, and which are not? “Our school should ban phones during lunch. Last year the library’s phone-free lunch club grew from 12 members to 47, and in the club’s survey, 38 of the 47 said they now talk with more people at lunch. Phones are also the main reason students are unhappy. Everyone knows that kids who use phones at lunch have fewer real friends.”

Not YetI agree with the editorial because phones are bad. Kids should talk to each other at lunch. The writer makes good points and uses facts.It gives the student’s own opinion of phones instead of evaluating the writer’s argument, never quotes a claim, and calls everything “good points” without separating the one claim that has evidence from the two that have none.
Meets the StandardThe editorial argues that phones should be banned at lunch, but only one of its claims is supported. The claim that phone-free lunches help students connect comes with evidence: the club grew “from 12 members to 47,” and “38 of the 47” said they talk with more people. Even that evidence has a limit, since it comes only from students who chose to join the club. The next two claims have nothing behind them. The writer calls phones “the main reason students are unhappy” but offers no survey or study, and “Everyone knows” replaces evidence with an appeal to the crowd. With two of its three claims unsupported, the editorial does not yet prove that a full ban is needed.It traces the argument claim by claim, quotes each one and sorts them: one backed by numbers, two backed by nothing. It also weighs the evidence it does find, noting who the survey left out, and ends with a judgment of the whole argument drawn from that sorting.
Moves to Use
List the writer’s claims in order before judging any of them.Under each claim, look for a reason or evidence, and quote it.Label each claim supported or unsupported, and say what is missing.Weigh the evidence that is there: who it covers and who it leaves out.End with a judgment of the whole argument, based on the sorting.

Common Mistakes with W.6.9

Agreeing instead of evaluating

“I agree because phones are bad,” in a response meant to judge the writer’s argument

Try this: Have students list the author’s claims first, so their response is about those claims and not about their own opinion of the topic.

One number offered as proof of everything

The club’s survey used to show that phones make all students unhappy

Try this: Ask “What exactly does this evidence show, and about whom?” and have students match it only to the claim it actually supports.

Comparing plots instead of themes

A story-and-poem comparison that retells what happens in each and never names the theme they share

Try this: Have students name the shared theme in one sentence, then quote one line from each text that shows how it handles that theme.

Where W.6.9 Fits

Comes BeforeW.5.9Draw evidence from texts to compare characters and show which evidence supports which point.
AlongsideRI.6.8Trace and evaluate an argument, separating supported claims from unsupported ones.RL.6.9Compare texts in different forms or genres on how they approach similar themes and topics.RI.6.1Cite textual evidence for what a text says and for the inferences drawn from it.
Comes NextW.7.9Compare fiction with historical accounts and judge whether evidence is relevant and sufficient.

Practice W.6.9

Quick Check

  1. Which of the editorial’s claims has evidence behind it?
  2. What limit does the strong response find in that evidence?
  3. Why is “Everyone knows” not evidence?

W.6.9: Other Names

W.6.9CCSS.ELA-LITERACY.W.6.9

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.