Search the California Content Standards

Standard:
Distinguish how different words with related meanings (e.g., fun versus thrilling, possibly versus certainly) and figurative language (e.g., the stream slithered through the parched land) produce shades of meaning and different effects on the audience.

Standard:
Combine clauses in a wide variety of ways (e.g., creating compound and complex sentences) to make connections between and join ideas, for example, to express cause/effect (e.g., The deer ran because the mountain lion approached them), to make a concession (e.g., She studied all night even though she wasn’t feeling well), to link two ideas that happen at the same time (e.g., The cubs played while their mother hunted), or to provide reasons to support ideas (e.g., The author persuades the reader by _________ ).

Standard:
Explain how phrasing, different words with similar meaning (e.g., stingy, economical, frugal, thrifty), or figurative language (e.g., The room was depressed and gloomy. The room was like a dank cave, littered with food wrappers, soda cans, and piles of laundry) produce shades of meaning, nuances, and different effects on the audience.

Standard:
Combine clauses in a wide variety of ways (e.g., creating compound and complex sentences) to make connections between and join ideas, for example, to express a reason (e.g., He stayed at home on Sunday because he had an exam on Monday), to make a concession (e.g., She studied all night even though she wasn’t feeling well), or to link two ideas that happen at the same time (e.g., The students worked in groups while their teacher walked around the room).

Standard:
Explain how phrasing, different words with similar meaning (e.g., refined-respectful-polite-diplomatic), or figurative language (e.g., The wind whispered through the night) produce shades of meaning, nuances, and different effects on the audience.

Standard:
Combine clauses in a wide variety of ways (e.g., creating compound, complex, and compound–complex sentences) to make connections between and join ideas, for example, to show the relationship between multiple events or ideas (e.g., After eating lunch, the students worked in groups while their teacher walked around the room) or to evaluate an argument (e.g., The author claims X, although there is a lack of evidence to support this claim).

Standard:
Explain how phrasing or different words with similar meanings (e.g., cunning versus smart, stammer versus say) or figurative language (e.g., Let me throw some light onto the topic) produce shades of meaning, nuances, and different effects on the audience.

Standard:
Combine clauses in a wide variety of ways (e.g., creating compound and complex sentences, and compound-complex sentences) to make connections between and join ideas, for example, to show the relationship between multiple events or ideas (e.g., After eating lunch, the students worked in groups while their teacher walked around the room) or to evaluate an argument (e.g., The author claims X, although there is a lack of evidence to support this claim).

Standard:
Explain how a writer’s or speaker’s choice of a variety of different types of phrasing or words (e.g., hyperbole, varying connotations, the cumulative impact of word choices) produces nuances and different effects on the audience.

Standard:
Combine clauses in a variety of ways to create compound and complex sentences that make connections between and link concrete and abstract ideas, for example, to make a concession (e.g., While both characters strive for success, they each take different approaches through which to reach their goals.), or to establish cause (e.g., Women’s lives were changed forever after World War II as a result of joining the workforce).