Week 1 — Citing Strong Textual Evidence

MCAP ELA 10 practice · Citing textual evidence · Download .docx

Objectives

Cite the specific evidence that most strongly supports what an informational text says directly.
Support an inference about a story, poem, or memoir with the details that best prove it.
Tell strong evidence from weak, partial, or off-topic evidence, including on two-part EBSR questions.

Key terms

Textual evidence: Exact words or details from the text that prove an answer.
Explicit: Stated directly on the page.
Inference: A logical conclusion built from text clues and reasoning.
Relevant: Connected to the exact claim, not just the topic.
Sufficient: Enough to prove the entire claim.
EBSR: A two-part item: Part A asks a question, Part B asks for the supporting evidence.
Paraphrase: The text's idea restated in your own words.

The concept

Why evidence matters

On MCAP ELA 10, almost every reading question is really asking the same thing: can you prove it from the text? A reader who remembers the general idea of a passage will often pick an answer that sounds right. A reader who goes back and checks the exact words will pick the answer that is right.

Explicit versus inferred

Some questions ask what the text says directly. The answer is on the page, sometimes in different words. Other questions ask you to infer, which means to figure out something the author suggests but does not state. If a story says a character slammed the door and refused dinner, the text never says she is angry, but the details prove it. Both kinds of answers need evidence.

Three tests for strong evidence

Specific: it points to a precise detail, not a vague summary. Relevant: it proves the exact claim in the question, not just something on the same topic. Sufficient: it proves the whole claim. If the claim is that a plan was expensive and unpopular, a line that shows only the cost is partial evidence.

How two-part questions work

An EBSR item has Part A, a question about the text, and Part B, which asks which evidence supports your Part A answer. Test makers write Part B choices that mention the same topic as the right answer but do not prove it. Others are real quotations that would prove a different, wrong Part A answer. Your job is to match the claim and the proof exactly.

A reliable routine

Read the question first so you know what you are hunting for. Return to the passage and find the part that answers it. Decide on your answer in your own words before you look at the choices. Then test each evidence choice by asking: if this were the only sentence I had, would it prove my answer?

Using evidence in writing

When you write a constructed response, set up each quotation with a phrase such as According to the article or When the narrator says. Quote accurately, keep quotations short, and always follow them with your own explanation of how the words prove your point.

Worked examples

Example 1: Passage: “Marcus checked the bus schedule three times before leaving, then checked it again at the stop. When the bus pulled up two minutes early, he let out a breath he had been holding since breakfast.” Question: What can you infer about Marcus? Step 1: Notice the repeated action, checking the schedule four times. Step 2: Notice the physical clue, a held breath released only when the bus arrives. Step 3: Combine the clues: Marcus is anxious about missing the bus. Step 4: Choose the strongest evidence. The line about holding a breath since breakfast is strongest, because it shows the worry lasted all morning and ended only when the bus came.

Example 2: Passage: “The county's new recycling carts hold twice as much as the old bins. In the first six months, the amount of recycling collected rose by 30 percent, while trash sent to the landfill fell by 12 percent.” Claim: The new carts changed residents' habits. Step 1: Identify what the claim needs: evidence of a change in behavior, not just a description of the carts. Step 2: Test the first sentence. It describes the carts but shows no change, so it is relevant but not sufficient. Step 3: Test the second sentence. It shows more recycling and less trash after the carts arrived, which is direct evidence of changed habits. Step 4: Cite the second sentence and explain that both numbers moved in the direction the claim predicts.

Common mistakes

Choosing evidence that is on the same topic but does not prove the claim. Fix it by restating the claim and asking whether the sentence alone would convince a skeptical reader.
Answering Part B first and letting the quotation decide Part A. Fix it by settling on your Part A answer in your own words, then searching Part B for the line that proves that exact idea.
Dropping a quotation into a paragraph with no explanation. Fix it by adding at least one sentence after every quotation that begins with words such as This shows that or This detail proves.

Self-check

Try each one before you look. A miss here costs nothing and tells you exactly what to reread.

1. A question asks for the evidence that best supports the claim that a new park is popular with teenagers. Which detail is strongest?

2. What is the difference between an explicit detail and an inference?

3. On an EBSR item, a student is sure of her Part A answer. What should she do next?

4. Which sentence best explains a quotation in a written response?

5. A claim says a character is both nervous and determined. A quotation shows only that she is nervous. How should you describe this evidence?

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