Common Core ELAGrades 9–10Writing

W.9-10.7: Conduct Research and Synthesize Sources

Also written as CCSS.ELA-LITERACY.W.9-10.7 · Cluster: Research to Build and Present Knowledge.

The Official Wording

Conduct short as well as more sustained research projects to answer a question (including a self-generated question) or solve a problem; narrow or broaden the inquiry when appropriate; synthesize multiple sources on the subject, demonstrating understanding of the subject under investigation.

Common Core State Standards, Grades 9-10, Writing · Read it at the source · Checked October 14, 2026

What W.9-10.7 Means in Plain English

Ninth and tenth graders run short and sustained research projects, often on questions they pose themselves. They narrow a question that is too broad or widen one that is too thin, then combine several sources into one explanation instead of summarizing each in turn.

Eighth grade (W.8.7) runs short projects that end in new, focused questions. Grades 9 to 10 add sustained projects, problems to solve as well as questions to answer, and synthesis that shows understanding. Grades 11 to 12 (W.11-12.7) keep the same wording for harder subjects.

W.9-10.7 I Can Statements

I can narrow or broaden my research question when the sources demand it.
I can combine several sources into one explanation.
I can show I understand my subject, not just my sources.

W.9-10.7 Worked Example

Both students used the same three sources. One summarized them in turn; the other wove them into a single answer.

Prompt

Your first question, “How do invasive species harm lakes?”, turned up hundreds of sources about dozens of species. Narrow it to one species in one lake, then answer it in a paragraph that synthesizes three sources. Source 1, a state natural resources page by biologist Renata Oyelaran: zebra mussels reached North America in ships’ ballast water in the 1980s, spread to inland lakes on boats and trailers, attach to almost any hard surface and each filter up to a liter of water a day. Source 2, the Lake Wennick Association’s records: average water clarity rose from 2 meters to 5 meters in the six years after mussels were found. Source 3, an interview with the owner of the lake’s marina, who now scrapes mussels out of his water intake pipe every spring.

Not YetZebra mussels are an invasive species. Source 1 says they came in ballast water and filter a lot of water. Source 2 says the lake got clearer. Source 3 says the marina owner has to scrape mussels out of his pipe.Every fact is accurate, but each source gets its own sentence and nothing connects them. The question never narrowed, and the reader has to work out alone that the clearer water and the clogged pipe have the same cause.

Meets the StandardNarrowed question: How have zebra mussels changed Lake Wennick in the six years since they were found there? The answer starts with how the mussels feed: according to state biologist Renata Oyelaran, each one filters up to a liter of water a day, so a lake holding millions of them is filtered constantly. That explains the change residents noticed first, a rise in water clarity from 2 meters to 5 meters in the Lake Wennick Association’s records. The mussels’ habit of fixing themselves to any hard surface has a cost, though, which is why the marina owner now scrapes them out of his intake pipe every spring. Clearer water and clogged pipes, in other words, are two results of one invader, and Oyelaran’s point that mussels travel on boats and trailers suggests the next question: whether the lake should require boat inspections.It narrows the question to one species, one lake and one time span, then synthesizes: Source 1 explains the mechanism, Source 2 supplies the evidence, Source 3 shows the cost, and the sentences connect them. The closing sentence shows understanding of the subject by naming the shared cause and the further question it raises.

Moves to Use

Narrow a broad question to one case, one place and one time span.Lead each sentence with an idea, not with a source name.Connect at least two sources in every step of the explanation.Close by naming what the sources add up to, and what they leave open.

Common Mistakes with W.9-10.7

The source-by-source summary

“Source 1 says… Source 2 says… Source 3 says…”

Try this: Have students write the paragraph’s main point first, then place each source where it supports that point, never in source order.

A question no project could answer

“How do invasive species harm lakes?” on day three, with forty open browser tabs

Try this: Give students a narrowing frame, one species, one place, one time span, and require a revised question in their research log.

Quoting without understanding

A report built from long quotations the student cannot explain when asked

Try this: Ask students to explain their subject aloud in two minutes without notes before they draft, then write down what they said.

Where W.9-10.7 Fits

Comes BeforeW.8.7Conduct short research projects that draw on several sources and generate further focused questions.

AlongsideW.9-10.8Gather information from authoritative sources with advanced searches, and cite it in a standard format.WHST.9-10.7Run the same short and sustained research projects in history, science and technical subjects.

Comes NextW.11-12.7The same wording, applied to longer projects on more complex questions and problems.

Practice W.9-10.7

Quick Check

How did the strong response narrow the first question?
From invasive species in lakes in general to one species, one lake and one time span: how zebra mussels have changed Lake Wennick in the six years since they were found.
What role does each source play in the synthesis?
Source 1 explains the mechanism (filtering and attaching), Source 2 supplies the evidence of clearer water, and Source 3 shows the cost, the clogged intake pipe.
Why is the weak response a summary rather than a synthesis?
It gives each source its own sentence in source order and never connects them, so it never says that the clearer water and the clogged pipe share one cause.

W.9-10.7: Other Names

W.9-10.7CCSS.ELA-LITERACY.W.9-10.7