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Updated 12/01/17
WčĆę ĆėĊ ęčĊ TčėĊĊ SčĎċęĘ Ďē TĊĆĈčĎēČ LĎęĊėĆĈĞ?
he Three Shifts:
In order to address the literacy development of the CCRSL, three shifts in
teaching are emphasized. These shifts are important to all curricular areas in that they support the
student’s acquisition of the knowledge of the course curriculums.
Each course will allow students to enhance their curricular knowledge and literacy skills by:
1. Building knowledge through content‐rich nonϐiction (about the subject studied and its connection
to the world)—through reading, writing, and speaking
a. Students must be immersed in information about the world around them if they are to develop the
strong general knowledge and vocabulary they need to become successful readers and be prepared
for college, career, and life.
b. It is vital for students to have extensive opportunities to build knowledge through texts so they can
learn independently.
2. Reading, writing, and speaking grounded in evidence from text, both literary and informational
(about the subject studied)—through reading, writing, and speaking
a. The standards emphasize using evidence from texts to present careful analysis, well‐defended
claims, and clear information.
b. Rather than asking students questions they can answer solely from their prior knowledge and expe‐
rience, the standards call for students to answer questions that depend on their having read the texts
with care.
c. Though the standards still expect narrative writing throughout the grades, they also expect a com‐
mand of sequence and detail that are essential for effective argumentative and informative writing.
3. Regular practice with complex text and its academic language (connected to the subject studied)
—through reading, writing, and speaking
a. The standards call for a staircase of increasing text complexity so that all students are ready for the
demands of college‐ and career‐level reading no later than the end of high school.
b. The standards call for students to grow their vocabularies through a mix of conversation, direct in‐
struction, and reading. They ask students to determine word meanings, appreciate the nuances of
words, and steadily expand their range of words and phrases (“Key Shifts in English Language Arts,”
Common Core State Standards Initiative).
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