English Language Arts Standards » Anchor Standards » College and Career Readiness Anchor Standards for Reading

The grades 6–12 standards on the following pages define what students should understand and be able to do by the end of each grade span. They correspond to the College and Career Readiness (CCR) anchor standards below by number. The CCR and grade-specific standards are necessary complements—the former providing broad standards, the latter providing additional specificity—that together define the skills and understandings that all students must demonstrate.

Key Ideas and Details

• 1. Read closely to determine what the text says explicitly and to make logical inferences from it; cite specific textual evidence when writing or speaking to support conclusions drawn from the text.

  Suggested tag: cc-6-12e-hst-r-ccr-1

• 2. Determine central ideas or themes of a text and analyze their development; summarize the key supporting details and ideas.

  Suggested tag: cc-6-12e-hst-r-ccr-2

• 3. Analyze how and why individuals, events, or ideas develop and interact over the course of a text.

  Suggested tag: cc-6-12e-hst-r-ccr-3

Craft and Structure

• 4. Interpret words and phrases as they are used in a text, including determining technical, connotative, and figurative meanings, and analyze how specific word choices shape meaning or tone.

  Suggested tag: cc-6-12e-hst-r-ccr-4

• 5. Analyze the structure of texts, including how specific sentences, paragraphs, and larger portions of the text (e.g., a section, chapter, scene, or stanza) relate to each other and the whole.

  Suggested tag: cc-6-12e-hst-r-ccr-5

• 6. Assess how point of view or purpose shapes the content and style of a text.

  Suggested tag: cc-6-12e-hst-r-ccr-6

Integration of Knowledge and Ideas

• 7. Integrate and evaluate content presented in diverse formats and media, including visually and quantitatively, as well as in words.¹

  Suggested tag: cc-6-12e-hst-r-ccr-7

• 8. Delineate and evaluate the argument and specific claims in a text, including the validity of the reasoning as well as the relevance and sufficiency of the evidence.

  Suggested tag: cc-6-12e-hst-r-ccr-8

• 9. Analyze how two or more texts address similar themes or topics in order to build knowledge or to compare the approaches the authors take.

  Suggested tag: cc-6-12e-hst-r-ccr-9

Range of Reading and Level of Text Complexity

• 10. Read and comprehend complex literary and informational texts independently and proficiently.

  Suggested tag: cc-6-12e-hst-r-ccr-10

Note on range and content of student reading

Reading is critical to building knowledge in history/social studies as well as in science and technical subjects. College and career ready reading in these fields requires an appreciation of the norms and conventions of each discipline, such as the kinds of evidence used in history and science; an understanding of domain-specific words and phrases; an attention to precise details; and the capacity to evaluate intricate arguments, synthesize complex information, and follow detailed descriptions of events and concepts. In history/social studies, for example, students need to be able to analyze, evaluate, and differentiate primary and secondary sources. When reading scientific and technical texts, students need to be able to gain knowledge from challenging texts that often make extensive use of elaborate diagrams and data to convey information and illustrate concepts. Students must be able to read complex informational texts in these fields with independence and confidence because the vast majority of reading in college and workforce training programs will be sophisticated nonfiction. It is important to note that these Reading standards are meant to complement the specific content demands of the disciplines, not replace them.