• Quick retrieval from earlier learning (Command of evidence (SAT/ACT); Counterclaims and rebuttals in arguments). Students answer on mini whiteboards.
• Show answers together and note who needs support in the main task.

1. Is the proposed answer correct? Claim: "Cities should plant more trees." Counterclaim: "Trees are expensive to maintain." Which is the best rebuttal? → Studies show city trees save more in cooling and flood costs than they cost to look after. (yes, it is correct / no, it is not correct) → yes, it is correctPrompt: A counterclaim states the opposing view; a rebuttal answers it.
2. A student claims that the poet viewed nature as indifferent to human concerns. A: "The river ran on, not caring whose names were carved upon its banks." B: "The meadow welcomed us with open arms." C: "We picnicked by the gentle stream." D: "The birds sang just for me." Which quotation most effectively illustrates the claim? (A / B / C / D) → APrompt: First decide what the answer to the question is.
3. Is the proposed answer correct? Claim: "Our town should build a skate park." Which sentence is a COUNTERCLAIM? → Some residents worry that a skate park would bring noise late at night. (yes, it is correct / no, it is not correct) → yes, it is correctPrompt: A counterclaim states the opposing view; a rebuttal answers it.

• Read the first lines of a short text aloud and ask what students predict will happen and why.
• Share the objective: Which finding would weaken (or strengthen) a claim?. Read the success criteria together.

• Work through the example out loud, saying why you do each step, not just what you do.
• Example: An economist argues that a city's new metro line caused local shops to earn more. Which finding would most directly WEAKEN this argument?
• Step 1: Evidence strengthens a claim when it shows the predicted result in a fair comparison, and weakens it when the result appears without the proposed cause.
• Step 2: If distant shops did equally well, the metro probably isn't the cause.
• Step 3: So the answer is: Shops far from any metro station saw the same rise in earnings during the same period.
• Answer: Shops far from any metro station saw the same rise in earnings during the same period.
• Pause after each step and ask a student to say what comes next.

• Do these together. Students try each step on whiteboards before you reveal it.
• Use the hints as prompts rather than giving the answer.

1. Is the proposed answer correct? A school claims that its new reading programme raised pupils' reading scores. Which finding would most directly WEAKEN this claim? → Teachers received training for the programme. (yes, it is correct / no, it is not correct) → no, it is not correctPrompt: Restate the claim exactly. What would have to be true if it were right?
2. A historian argues that a medieval town grew rich mainly through the wool trade. Which finding would most directly WEAKEN this argument? (Wool was traded in many medieval towns. / The town had several large churches. / Tax records show that wool made up less than 5% of the town's trade income. / Sheep were kept on nearby farms.) → Tax records show that wool made up less than 5% of the town's trade income.Prompt: Restate the claim exactly. What would have to be true if it were right?

• Students work on the student sheet. Circulate and check the first two answers of every student early.
• Students who finish: write a question of their own for a partner, with the answer.

The 8 questions are on the student sheet below, with answers in the key.

• Two questions on their own. Sort answers into got it / nearly / not yet to plan the next lesson.

1. Scientists propose that a species of bird uses Earth's magnetic field to navigate. Which finding would most directly SUPPORT this proposal? (Birds became disoriented when small magnets were attached to them, but not when non-magnetic weights were attached. / The birds travel over 5,000 kilometres. / The birds eat insects during migration. / The birds fly mostly at night.) → Birds became disoriented when small magnets were attached to them, but not when non-magnetic weights were attached.Prompt: Restate the claim exactly. What would have to be true if it were right?
2. Is the proposed answer correct? A researcher claims that a new fertiliser causes tomato plants to produce more fruit. Which finding would most directly WEAKEN this claim? → Tomatoes are popular in many countries. (yes, it is correct / no, it is not correct) → no, it is not correctPrompt: Restate the claim exactly. What would have to be true if it were right?

Free online practice with hints and printable worksheets for this skill: eurekami.com/english/grade-11.