Free teaching resource

Write an Evidence-Based Paragraph

Current teacher guidance: 2 November 2026. Student tasks retain their stated core editions. Use the current stage choices and matching guide below.

Changes in the current files · 2 November 2026

The teacher guide includes annotated fictional sound, partial and error responses, with concrete teaching actions and evidence to seek next.
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Recommended selection edition 0.1.2. Original source files retain their displayed editions.

These are selected activities. Use the matching guide to decide how they fit your teaching; do not assume that these files alone provide a complete teaching and follow-up sequence.

Current teacher guidance: 2 November 2026. Student tasks retain their stated core edition; use the matching current guide linked here. Earlier files are kept separately in the archive.

Audience / fit: Grade 6 ELA
Teaching or planning target: Write a focused paragraph with an answer, accurate evidence, and an explanation of the connection.
Essential prerequisites: Learners can read or listen to a short passage and locate a sentence or detail. No prior paragraph formula is required.
Preparation: About 5 minutes.
Use time: About 40 minutes. Planning estimate: opening 3 minutes, strategy 5, model 8, guided practice 10, independent writing 12, closure 2.
Materials: Learner pages in print or editable format. Pencil; a highlighter or two colored pencils are optional for marking claim, evidence, and explanation. Board or display for the model paragraph; optional.
What to print: Print the chosen activity. Follow the source or reveal instructions beside it.

Evidence to notice: Look for a focused claim, relevant evidence, an explanation of the connection and a clear ending that stays within the source.

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Student page 1: Model and guided practice — Actual student PDF page 1 of 5: Model and guided practice. This page belongs to the named task; a teaching stage may intentionally show a model. Keep the matching teacher answers and reserved tasks separate.

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Model and guided practice · PDF · 5 pages

Matching teacher guide and answers — keep separate: Matching teacher guide and answers · 15 pages.

Teaching pages, independent activities and editable copies

Teaching and guided practice

Model and guided practice · 5 pages
PDF · Editable Word · Read in browser

Independent responses

Independent response · 2 pages
PDF · Editable Word · Read in browser

Teacher files — separately

Matching teacher guide and answers · 15 pages · Teacher PDF · Editable teacher Word · Read in browser · teacher copy

Archived page guidance and source files · Write a local teaching plan

Archive: Additional formats, earlier editions and teaching guidance

Earlier guidance and source files are retained as historical records. For classroom teaching and printing, use the current stage files and matching guides above. Older guidance, timing and layouts are superseded; some retained browser/Word files have limited writing space or sparse extra pages. Keep historical student files with their historical keys and do not mix editions.

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Audience / fit: Grade 6 ELA
Teaching or planning target: Write a focused paragraph with an answer, accurate evidence, and an explanation of the connection.
Essential prerequisites: Learners can read or listen to a short passage and locate a sentence or detail. No prior paragraph formula is required.
Preparation: About 5 minutes.
Use time: About 40 minutes. Planning estimate: opening 3 minutes, strategy 5, model 8, guided practice 10, independent writing 12, closure 2.
Materials: Learner pages in print or editable format. Pencil; a highlighter or two colored pencils are optional for marking claim, evidence, and explanation. Board or display for the model paragraph; optional.
What to print: Use the stage-specific student choices below and the matching teacher guide. Give independent, new-evidence and later-assessment pages only at their intended stage.

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Model and guided practice · PDF (5 pages)

Independent response · PDF (2 pages)

Read the teacher guide and answers · PDF (12 pages)

Print model and guided practice first. Keep the independent response with the teacher until guided practice is complete. Use the complete teacher guide for the named task’s criteria and answers.

Editable Word, browser copies and other files

Print and adapt for your own planning and classroom use; printed copies may be shared within your classroom or school team, provided the source is not sold. Keep attribution and resource-specific notices. For redistribution and third-party materials, read the Terms of Use. Recommend this resource using its page link.

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In this estimated 40-minute lesson, learners write a focused paragraph that answers a text question, supports the answer with accurate details, explains how those details connect to the claim, and ends clearly. They keep claims within the passage and distinguish evidence from explanation.

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Who it is for: Grade 6 ELA
Preparation: About 5 minutes.
Teaching time: About 40 minutes. Planning estimate: opening 3 minutes, strategy 5, model 8, guided practice 10, independent writing 12, closure 2.
Teacher guidance: Separate teacher files include completed examples or answer and scoring guidance.

Materials

Learner pages in print or editable format.
Pencil; a highlighter or two colored pencils are optional for marking claim, evidence, and explanation.
Board or display for the model paragraph; optional.

Choose a stage and format

Give only the stage being used. Keep later tasks and all teacher keys with the teacher until needed.

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Complete reference files may include teaching, independent tasks, later evidence or teacher answers. Keep them with the teacher; use the separate stage selections above for handouts.

Read or download the complete resource

Keep teacher guidance and answers separate from student copies. Word files contain editable text; the PDF files are ready to print.

Support and adaptation

Chunk the story, reread directions aloud or use available text-to-speech, mark evidence and explanation in different ways, and offer the planner plus oral rehearsal or dictation if transcription is not the target. Preserve the independent claim-and-evidence task; record response mode and check individual access needs locally.

Extension

Write a second supported paragraph emphasizing a different revision, compare which evidence answers the same question most directly, and explain why one accurate but less relevant detail was left out.

Choose a next move

Choose a route that fits the response and your teaching goal. These are links to materials already supplied, not a prescribed sequence or a placement decision.

Evidence Paragraphs: Check, Respond and Revise — After teaching, distinguish supported writing from unclear expression using different passages and focused practice tasks.
Evidence Writing: Teach, Respond and Revise — Connect paragraph teaching, revision and the complete classroom package.
Choose Evidence That Answers the Question — If an answer lists details without explaining their relevance, use one of the two focused evidence routes.
Revise a Paragraph for Clarity and Coherence — When the evidence is sound but the paragraph is hard to follow, revise wording and order while preserving meaning.

Save follow-up passages until students are ready to try them on their own. Once a passage has been shown, modeled or practiced, use it for practice. Keep answer keys with the teacher and use each resource’s own learning target and criteria.

About the materials

Use the editable files to adapt the materials to your learners and local curriculum.

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