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A Speaker's Reasons and Evidence is a free printable Grade 4 English worksheet on identifying what supports a speaker's point, aligned to Common Core standard SL.4.3. It prints 2 questions with an answer key on its own sheet of paper, in 25 versions, 24 of them with different questions, so no two pupils in the class work from the same page. Print it from the browser or download it as a PDF — no account, no email.

Set 6 of 25 · the same problems every time you open this link.

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Set 1 has all 25 in a single PDF. 24 of these 25 sets ask different questions — this skill does not have 25 questions to give. The rest reorder them, so no two pupils have the same paper in front of them.

A Speaker's Reasons and Evidence

SL.4.3

NameDate

Read the text, then answer the questions.

1.Read the text, then answer the questions.

The Accidental Photograph

In 1895 Wilhelm Röntgen was working with a covered tube in a darkened room when he noticed a screen across the laboratory glowing. Something was passing through the cover and crossing the room. He did not know what it was, so he called it X — the unknown. He spent seven weeks alone in the laboratory testing it. He put wood, rubber and metal in the way. Metal stopped it; the rest did not. Then he asked his wife to put her hand between the tube and a photographic plate. The picture showed the bones of her hand and her wedding ring. Within a year, X-rays were being used in hospitals. Röntgen refused to patent them.

  1. 1. The text says Röntgen refused to patent X-rays. What does that suggest about him?
  2. 2. What is the author's purpose, and how do you know?
  3. 3. Quote the words that describe the first X-ray photograph.
2.Read the text, then answer the questions.

The Wolves and the Rivers

Wolves were shot out of Yellowstone by 1926. Fourteen were brought back in 1995. With no wolves, elk had grazed the valleys freely for seventy years. Young willow and aspen were eaten as soon as they grew. The wolves killed some elk. More importantly, they changed where elk would stand still. Open valley floors became dangerous, so the elk stopped lingering there. Willow and aspen grew back along the rivers. Beavers, which need willow, returned. Their dams made ponds. Roots held the banks. The rivers narrowed, deepened and moved less. Some researchers describe this as wolves changing the shape of rivers, though others argue the effect has been overstated.

  1. 1. The author reports a disagreement. What is it, and how is it presented?
  2. 2. What is the author's purpose, and how do you know?
  3. 3. Quote the words that explain the wolves' most important effect.

LessonPrint · SL.4.3 · Set 6 · free to copy for classroom use

Answer key — A Speaker's Reasons and Evidence

Set 6. Prints on its own sheet.

  1. 1.1. That he wanted them used freely rather than owned — it is stated as his choice. 2. To explain how an accident became a tool — the text follows the observation through testing to hospital use. 3. "The picture showed the bones of her hand and her wedding ring."
  2. 2.1. Some researchers credit wolves with reshaping rivers; others say the effect is overstated — both are reported without choosing. 2. To explain a chain of effects and be honest about the dispute — the last sentence gives both sides. 3. "More importantly, they changed where elk would stand still."

More practice for SL.4.3

Pick out a speaker's reasons and evidence for each point.

Teaching this next? A Speaker's Reasons and Evidence is the 40-minute plan for it, with the misconceptions to expect.

All Grade 4 worksheets

Last reviewed 2026-09-05. Aligned to SL.4.3 of the Common Core State Standards for English language arts.