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Texas Standards

1st Grade ELA TEKS

All 60 Texas English language arts standards for 1st grade, each explained in plain English. The official wording is one click away under each one.

60 standards

Developing and sustaining foundational language skills: listening, speaking, discussion, and thinking--oral language

5 standards
The student develops oral language through listening, speaking, and discussion.
1.1(A)
Listen closely, ask questions that clear up anything unclear about what was said, and answer in full phrases, like The class pet is a hamster.
Official wording
listen actively, ask relevant questions to clarify information, and answer questions using multi-word responses;
1.1(B)
Carry out, repeat back and give spoken directions with a few linked steps, like telling a partner how to wash the paint brushes.
Official wording
follow, restate, and give oral instructions that involve a short, related sequence of actions;
1.1(C)
Stay on the topic being discussed when sharing ideas, speaking clearly, not too fast or too slow, and using correct grammar.
Official wording
share information and ideas about the topic under discussion, speaking clearly at an appropriate pace and using the conventions of language;
1.1(D)
Follow the class rules for group talks by listening to others, waiting to be called on, and adding comments that fit the conversation.
Official wording
work collaboratively with others by following agreed-upon rules for discussion, including listening to others, speaking when recognized, and making appropriate contributions; and
1.1(E)
Practice social talk, like introducing yourself and a friend, telling a classmate about something that happened, and saying how you feel or what you need.
Official wording
develop social communication such as introducing himself/herself and others, relating experiences to a classmate, and expressing needs and feelings.

Developing and sustaining foundational language skills: listening, speaking, reading, writing, and thinking--beginning reading and writing

6 standards
The student develops word structure knowledge through phonological awareness, print concepts, phonics, and morphology to communicate, decode, and spell.
1.2(A)
Make strings of rhymes, hear matching first sounds and long or short vowels, blend and split words of up to five sounds, like s-t-o-m-p, and swap sounds in words.
Official wording
demonstrate phonological awareness by:iproducing a series of rhyming words;iirecognizing spoken alliteration or groups of words that begin with the same spoken onset or initial sound;iiidistinguishing between long and short vowel sounds in one-syllable words;ivrecognizing the change in spoken word when a specified phoneme is added, changed, or removed;vblending spoken phonemes to form one-syllable words, including initial and/or final consonant blends;vimanipulating phonemes within base words; andviisegmenting spoken one-syllable words of three to five phonemes into individual phonemes, including words with initial and/or final consonant blends;
1.2(B)
Decode words with blends, digraphs like sh, silent e, vowel teams and bossy r, read compounds, contractions and -ed or -es endings, and know 100 or more sight words.
Official wording
demonstrate and apply phonetic knowledge by:idecoding words in isolation and in context by applying common letter sound correspondences;iidecoding words with initial and final consonant blends, digraphs, and trigraphs;iiidecoding words with closed syllables; open syllables; VCe syllables; vowel teams, including vowel digraphs and diphthongs; and r-controlled syllables;ivusing knowledge of base words to decode common compound words and contractions;vdecoding words with inflectional endings, including -ed, -s, and -es; andviidentifying and reading at least 100 high-frequency words from a research-based list;
1.2(C)
Spell words with silent e, vowel teams, r-controlled vowels, blends and digraphs, like cake, rain, car, frog and ship, plus common sight words from a set list.
Official wording
demonstrate and apply spelling knowledge by:ispelling words with closed syllables, open syllables, VCe syllables, vowel teams, and r-controlled syllables;iispelling words with initial and final consonant blends, digraphs, and trigraphs;iiispelling words using sound-spelling patterns; andivspelling high-frequency words from a research-based list;
1.2(D)
Tell what each part of a book offers, like the title page naming the author or the table of contents listing chapters.
Official wording
demonstrate print awareness by identifying the information that different parts of a book provide;
1.2(E)
Put words in ABC order by their first or second letter, like bat before bed, and look words up in a dictionary.
Official wording
alphabetize a series of words to the first or second letter and use a dictionary to find words; and
1.2(F)
Print words, sentences and answers neatly enough to read, with a finger space between each word.
Official wording
develop handwriting by printing words, sentences, and answers legibly leaving appropriate spaces between words.

Developing and sustaining foundational language skills: listening, speaking, reading, writing, and thinking--vocabulary

4 standards
The student uses newly acquired vocabulary expressively.
1.3(A)
Use a picture dictionary or a digital word tool to locate words, like finding caterpillar while writing about bugs.
Official wording
use a resource such as a picture dictionary or digital resource to find words;
1.3(B)
Figure out or check what a word means from the pictures and words of books read alone or heard aloud, like a drawing that shows a burrow.
Official wording
use illustrations and texts the student is able to read or hear to learn or clarify word meanings;
1.3(C)
Tell how the endings -s, -ed and -ing change a word's meaning, like jumps, jumped and jumping.
Official wording
identify the meaning of words with the affixes -s, -ed, and -ing; and
1.3(D)
Recognize and use words for actions, directions, positions, order, groups and places, like skip, left, beside, next, fruit and library.
Official wording
identify and use words that name actions, directions, positions, sequences, categories, and locations.

Developing and sustaining foundational language skills: listening, speaking, reading, writing, and thinking--fluency

1 standard
The student reads grade-level text with fluency and comprehension.
1.4
Read first grade books aloud smoothly, at a good speed, with few mistakes and with expression that sounds like talking.
Official wording
use appropriate fluency (rate, accuracy, and prosody) when reading grade-level text.

Developing and sustaining foundational language skills: listening, speaking, reading, writing, and thinking--self-sustained reading

1 standard
The student reads grade-appropriate texts independently.
1.5
Choose books independently and spend more and more time reading them alone, like moving from five to fifteen minutes of quiet reading.
Official wording
self-select text and interact independently with text for increasing periods of time.

Comprehension skills: listening, speaking, reading, writing, and thinking using multiple texts

9 standards
The student uses metacognitive skills to both develop and deepen comprehension of increasingly complex texts.
1.6(A)
With an adult's help, set a reason for reading a book, assigned or picked, like finding out how bees make honey.
Official wording
establish purpose for reading assigned and self-selected texts with adult assistance;
1.6(B)
With an adult's help, ask questions before, during and after reading to learn more, like wondering why the frog left the pond.
Official wording
generate questions about text before, during, and after reading to deepen understanding and gain information with adult assistance;
1.6(C)
With an adult's help, predict what comes next using headings, pictures and the kind of book it is, then check and change the guess while reading.
Official wording
make and correct or confirm predictions using text features, characteristics of genre, and structures with adult assistance;
1.6(D)
With an adult's help, picture scenes and facts in the mind while reading, like imagining a whale's huge size, to understand more.
Official wording
create mental images to deepen understanding with adult assistance;
1.6(E)
With an adult's help, connect a book to personal experiences, other books and the world, like a story about moving and a family's own move.
Official wording
make connections to personal experiences, ideas in other texts, and society with adult assistance;
1.6(F)
With an adult's help, work out ideas a book only hints at and point to the clues that show it, like footprints that mean someone visited.
Official wording
make inferences and use evidence to support understanding with adult assistance;
1.6(G)
With an adult's help, weigh a book's details to pick out the most important ones, like the facts that explain how a seed grows.
Official wording
evaluate details to determine what is most important with adult assistance;
1.6(H)
With an adult's help, pull ideas together from different parts of a text to understand something new, like how all the clues solve the mystery.
Official wording
synthesize information to create new understanding with adult assistance; and
1.6(I)
Notice when reading stops making sense and fix it by rereading, thinking about what is already known, looking at pictures or asking questions.
Official wording
monitor comprehension and make adjustments such as re-reading, using background knowledge, checking for visual cues, and asking questions when understanding breaks down.

Response skills: listening, speaking, reading, writing, and thinking using multiple texts

6 standards
The student responds to an increasingly challenging variety of sources that are read, heard, or viewed.
1.7(A)
Explain how stories, articles, songs or shows link to personal life, like a book about camping and a family trip to the lake.
Official wording
describe personal connections to a variety of sources;
1.7(B)
Write a few short sentences reacting to a story or fact book, like I liked it when the pig built a strong house.
Official wording
write brief comments on literary or informational texts;
1.7(C)
Support an answer about a text by pointing to the words or pictures that prove it, like the line showing the fox was tricky.
Official wording
use text evidence to support an appropriate response;
1.7(D)
Retell a story or fact book in your own words without changing what it means, like retelling The Little Red Hen in order.
Official wording
retell texts in ways that maintain meaning;
1.7(E)
Respond to books and other sources by drawing scenes, labeling pictures or writing about favorite parts.
Official wording
interact with sources in meaningful ways such as illustrating or writing; and
1.7(F)
Use new words learned from reading when talking or writing about a text, like describing a character as curious.
Official wording
respond using newly acquired vocabulary as appropriate.

Multiple genres: listening, speaking, reading, writing, and thinking using multiple texts--literary elements

4 standards
The student recognizes and analyzes literary elements within and across increasingly complex traditional, contemporary, classical, and diverse literary texts.
1.8(A)
With an adult's help, talk about a story's topic and figure out its lesson, like working together helps, using details from the story as proof.
Official wording
discuss topics and determine theme using text evidence with adult assistance;
1.8(B)
Describe the main characters and explain why they do what they do, like why the boy gives away his lunch.
Official wording
describe the main character(s) and the reason(s) for their actions;
1.8(C)
Tell the key events, the problem and how it is solved in stories heard aloud and stories read alone.
Official wording
describe plot elements, including the main events, the problem, and the resolution, for texts read aloud and independently; and
1.8(D)
Describe where and when a story takes place, like a busy city street in winter or a forest at night.
Official wording
describe the setting.

Multiple genres: listening, speaking, reading, writing, and thinking using multiple texts--genres

6 standards
The student recognizes and analyzes genre-specific characteristics, structures, and purposes within and across increasingly complex traditional, contemporary, classical, and diverse texts.
1.9(A)
Recognize the marks of well-known children's stories, like talking animals and a lesson in a fable or magic and a happy ending in a fairy tale.
Official wording
demonstrate knowledge of distinguishing characteristics of well-known children's literature such as folktales, fables, fairy tales, and nursery rhymes;
1.9(B)
Talk about rhymes, beat, repeated lines and words that start with the same sound in poems, like silly snakes slide slowly.
Official wording
discuss rhyme, rhythm, repetition, and alliteration in a variety of poems;
1.9(C)
Talk about the parts of a play, like who the characters are and where and when the action happens.
Official wording
discuss elements of drama such as characters and setting;
1.9(D)
With help, find a fact text's main idea and supporting facts, use headings and simple charts to find facts, and tell whether it goes in time order or describes.
Official wording
recognize characteristics and structures of informational text, including:ithe central idea and supporting evidence with adult assistance;iifeatures and simple graphics to locate or gain information; andiiiorganizational patterns such as chronological order and description with adult assistance;
1.9(E)
With an adult's help, recognize writing meant to persuade and tell what the author wants readers to think or do, like adopt a shelter pet.
Official wording
recognize characteristics of persuasive text with adult assistance and state what the author is trying to persuade the reader to think or do; and
1.9(F)
Recognize what makes texts that blend words, images, sound or links work, like a class website or a picture book app.
Official wording
recognize characteristics of multimodal and digital texts.

Author's purpose and craft: listening, speaking, reading, writing, and thinking using multiple texts

5 standards
The student uses critical inquiry to analyze the authors' choices and how they influence and communicate meaning within a variety of texts. The student analyzes and applies author's craft purposefully in order to develop his or her own products and performances.
1.10(A)
Talk about why an author wrote a text, like to explain how volcanoes work or to share a funny tale.
Official wording
discuss the author's purpose for writing text;
1.10(B)
Talk about how a text's organization helps the author's goal, like a story told in order from beginning to end.
Official wording
discuss how the use of text structure contributes to the author's purpose;
1.10(C)
With an adult's help, talk about why an author uses bold words, captions, labels and diagrams, like a caption that explains a photo.
Official wording
discuss with adult assistance the author's use of print and graphic features to achieve specific purposes;
1.10(D)
Talk about the vivid words an author chooses so readers can picture things, like a creaky old door or a crunchy red apple.
Official wording
discuss how the author uses words that help the reader visualize; and
1.10(E)
Listen to and enjoy books narrated by a character who says I and books narrated by someone outside the story.
Official wording
listen to and experience first- and third-person texts.

Composition: listening, speaking, reading, writing, and thinking using multiple texts--writing process

5 standards
The student uses the writing process recursively to compose multiple texts that are legible and uses appropriate conventions.
1.11(A)
Plan a first try at a piece by sketching pictures and brainstorming ideas, like a list of fun weekend moments.
Official wording
plan a first draft by generating ideas for writing such as by drawing and brainstorming;
1.11(B)
Build a draft by talking, drawing or writing, giving it a clear beginning, middle and end and adding specific details that fit the idea.
Official wording
develop drafts in oral, pictorial, or written form by:iorganizing with structure; andiideveloping an idea with specific and relevant details;
1.11(C)
Improve a draft by adding details in words or drawings, like naming the color of the kite or how high it flew.
Official wording
revise drafts by adding details in pictures or words;
1.11(D)
Edit a draft for full sentences, past and present verbs, nouns, pronouns, capitals on first words and I, the right end marks, and spelling with an adult's help.
Official wording
edit drafts using standard English conventions, including:icomplete sentences with subject-verb agreement;iipast and present verb tense;iiisingular, plural, common, and proper nouns;ivadjectives, including articles;vadverbs that convey time;viprepositions;viipronouns, including subjective, objective, and possessive cases;viiicapitalization for the beginning of sentences and the pronoun "I";ixpunctuation marks at the end of declarative, exclamatory, and interrogative sentences; andxcorrect spelling of words with grade-appropriate orthographic patterns and rules and high-frequency words with adult assistance; and
1.11(E)
Make a final, clean copy of a piece and share it, like reading it aloud or adding it to the class library.
Official wording
publish and share writing.

Composition: listening, speaking, reading, writing, and thinking using multiple texts--genres

3 standards
The student uses genre characteristics and craft to compose multiple texts that are meaningful.
1.12(A)
Write or dictate stories, including true stories about the student's own life, and poems, like a short poem about rain.
Official wording
dictate or compose literary texts, including personal narratives and poetry;
1.12(B)
Write or dictate pieces that teach facts, including how-to steps, like how to make a peanut butter sandwich.
Official wording
dictate or compose informational texts, including procedural texts; and
1.12(C)
Write or dictate notes and letters to people, like a thank-you card to a school helper.
Official wording
dictate or compose correspondence such as thank you notes or letters.

Inquiry and research: listening, speaking, reading, writing, and thinking using multiple texts

5 standards
The student engages in both short-term and sustained recursive inquiry processes for a variety of purposes.
1.13(A)
With an adult's help, come up with questions to research, for a class study or personal curiosity, like how bats find food at night.
Official wording
generate questions for formal and informal inquiry with adult assistance;
1.13(B)
With an adult's help, map out the steps for answering a research question, like which books to check first, and stick to the plan.
Official wording
develop and follow a research plan with adult assistance;
1.13(C)
With an adult's help, pick sources that fit the question and collect useful facts from them, like a library book on bats.
Official wording
identify and gather relevant sources and information to answer the questions with adult assistance;
1.13(D)
With an adult's help, show understanding of the facts collected, like explaining them to a partner or sorting them into groups.
Official wording
demonstrate understanding of information gathered with adult assistance; and
1.13(E)
Present what the research found in a way that fits, like writing a short report, giving a talk, or making a slideshow with pictures.
Official wording
use an appropriate mode of delivery, whether written, oral, or multimodal, to present results.

The official Texas documents

Texas Essential Knowledge and Skills for English Language Arts and Reading, 19 Texas Administrative Code Chapter 110, adopted by the Texas State Board of Education.

The plain-English lines are EMStudio's own explanations, shown beside the official wording. They are not part of the standards.