SL.8.6: Adapting Speech to Context and Task, with Command of Formal English
In plain English: SL.8.6 is the Common Core grade 8 ELA standard that asks students to adapt their speech to a variety of contexts and tasks and to show command of formal English when it is indicated or appropriate. Following L.8.1 and L.8.3, formal speech in grade 8 means using verbals correctly and choosing active or passive voice and verb mood on purpose, with no shifts. It builds on SL.7.6.
Adapt speech to a variety of contexts and tasks, demonstrating command of formal English when indicated or appropriate.
Common Core State Standards for English Language Arts & Literacy · Domain: Speaking and Listening Standards · Cluster: Presentation of Knowledge and Ideas · Official standard
Eighth graders already know that people talk differently to a friend than to a board. SL.8.6 asks them to do it on purpose: to adapt their speech to the context (who is listening, where and when) and to the task (what the speech has to do, such as persuade, give directions, report, request or answer questions), and to show command of formal English when the situation calls for it. The full official standard points teachers to the grade 8 Language standards for what formal English means at this grade. From L.8.1, speakers use verbals (gerunds, participles and infinitives) correctly, form verbs in the active and passive voice and in five moods, and avoid inappropriate shifts in voice and mood. From L.8.3, they choose voice and mood for an effect, such as emphasizing the actor or the action, or describing something contrary to fact.
The anchor is a transcript written for this page in which an eighth grader who volunteers at a senior center talks with a friend, teaches members to join a video call and reports to the center's advisory board. Students then repair spoken lines from a phone call, fix voice and mood errors in sentence strips and deliver the same news in three rooms. In Independent Practice they judge a rehearsal of a speech to a town committee and a short conversation after the meeting. Casual speech is not treated as wrong: the goal is to choose the register, or level of formality, that fits.
Learning Objectives
By the end of this lesson, students will be able to:
Identify the listener, setting and task of a speaking situation and decide whether formal English is indicated
Adapt word choice, sentence length and verb mood to a task, such as the imperative for directions and the subjunctive for a formal request
Choose active or passive voice in formal speech to emphasize the actor or the action, and avoid passives that hide responsibility
Recognize and correct shifts in voice and mood, misplaced participle phrases and incorrect conditional and subjunctive forms in spoken lines
Prior Knowledge Required
Students should already be comfortable with:
Adapting speech to contexts and tasks with command of formal English SL.7.6
Choosing sentence types and placing phrases and clauses, and fixing misplaced and dangling modifiers L.7.1
Forming the perfect verb tenses and correcting inappropriate shifts in verb tense L.5.1
"You borrowed a neighbor's ladder and bent one of its steps. Say out loud how you would tell (1) your best friend and (2) the neighbor, at the door. What changed besides the words?"
List the changes on the board in two columns, Words and Sentences and verbs. Students usually notice slang, greetings and apologies. Push for the verbs: with the neighbor, many students switch from "I messed up your ladder" to "I'm sorry. One of the steps was bent while I was using it," and some add a condition, such as "If you'd like, I will pay for the repair." Point out that the passive version hides who bent the step, which a neighbor may notice. That is SL.8.6: adapting speech to the listener and the task, and using formal English, including verb choices, when the situation calls for it.
Direct Instruction20 minutes
Part 1: The words of the standard. The full official standard points teachers to the grade 8 Language standards for what formal English means at this grade. From L.8.1, speakers use verbals, voice and mood correctly and avoid shifts; from L.8.3, they choose voice and mood on purpose, for an effect. Give students the table below to keep.
The words of SL.8.6
Term
What it means
Example
Context
The situation you speak in: who is listening, where you are and what is going on
A five-minute report at a board meeting
Task
The job your speech has to do, such as persuade, explain, give directions, report, request or answer questions
Teaching someone to join a video call
Register
How formal or casual your speech is
"Hey, guys" is casual; "Good afternoon" is formal
Formal English
Careful, standard English for meetings, presentations, interviews and adults you don't know well: no slang, complete sentences and grammar that follows L.8.1 and L.8.3
"Thank you for having me."
Verbal
A verb form used as another part of speech. A gerund (-ing) acts as a noun; a participle (-ing or -ed) acts as an adjective; an infinitive (to + verb) acts as a noun, adjective or adverb
"Tapping the red button ends the call." (gerund as the subject)
Active voice
The subject does the action
"Four student volunteers have taught Saturday classes."
Passive voice
The subject receives the action: a form of "be" plus a past participle; the doer can be left out
"41 members have been taught to make a video call."
Mood
The form of a verb that shows the speaker's attitude: indicative (states a fact), imperative (gives a command or direction), interrogative (asks), conditional (says what would happen under a condition) and subjunctive (a wish, a request or something contrary to fact)
"Take your time." (imperative)
Shift
An unneeded switch in voice or mood inside a sentence or a passage, which makes speech harder to follow
Switching from giving directions to describing what "you should" do
Part 2: One volunteer, three contexts. Read Transcript 1 aloud with student volunteers as Leo, Mrs. Alvarez and Mr. Lindqvist, and yourself as Nadia. Ask: "What stays the same across the three scenes, and what changes?" Then use Diagram 1 to compare the contexts and Diagram 2 to look closely at two sentences from her report.
1[Saturday morning. Nadia walks to the Linden Street Senior Center with her friend Leo.]
2Leo: Wait, so what do you even do there?
3Nadia: I teach people how to video call their grandkids. It's honestly so fun. You should totally come next week. It's like two hours, and Mr. Dobbs brings cookies.
4Leo: I'm kind of awkward with adults I don't know, though.
5Nadia: You're not awkward with anybody. Just be patient. They ask really good questions.
6[At 10:00, Nadia stands at the front of the computer room. Four members sit at tables, each with a tablet, and two more wait on chairs by the wall.]
7Nadia: Good morning, everyone. Today you will learn to join a video call, so that you can see your family while you talk. Holding the tablet with both hands, find the green button with a camera on it and tap it once. Next, wait until you see your own face on the screen. Then tap the word "Join." If your family cannot hear you, tap the picture of a microphone. Take your time; there is no rush.
8Mrs. Alvarez: What if I press the wrong thing?
9Nadia: That is a great question. Nothing will break. Tapping the red button ends the call, and you can always start again.
10[On Tuesday afternoon, Nadia reports to the center's advisory board, which has given her five minutes on its agenda.]
11Nadia: Good afternoon, and thank you for having me. My name is Nadia Okafor, and I am an eighth grader at Ridge Middle School. Since January, four student volunteers have taught Saturday classes here. In those twelve weeks, 41 members have been taught to make a video call, and many of them now call family every week. We have only four tablets, however, so members often wait two weeks for a turn. If the center bought four more tablets, we could teach twice as many members each Saturday. I request that the board approve the purchase at its next meeting.
12Mr. Lindqvist (a board member): Who would keep track of the tablets?
13Nadia: The front desk would sign them out each Saturday, and the volunteers would return them by noon. If it were up to me, every member would have a tablet at home, but four more tablets here would be a strong start.
14Mr. Lindqvist: Thank you. We will discuss it next month.
15Nadia: Thank you for your time.
Written for this page (the students, members, board, center, school and numbers are invented), Video Calls for Beginners (Transcript 1: one eighth grader with a friend, a class of senior center members and the center's advisory board). Original passage written for this page.
Casual speech that fits the context (paragraphs 3 and 5)
Nadia says "honestly so fun," "totally" and "like two hours" to Leo. Is that a problem?
Result: No. Leo is a friend, they are walking together, and the task is to persuade him quickly. Friendly words, a short joke about cookies and the command "Just be patient" fit that context, and formal English is not indicated. Adapting does not mean always being formal; it means choosing the register that fits.
The imperative mood for a directions task (paragraph 7)
How does Nadia shape her sentences when her task changes to giving directions?
Result: She uses the imperative mood, commands with an understood "you," in the order the members will act: "find the green button," "wait until you see your own face," "tap the word 'Join.'" She never shifts to "you should" or "you will want to," so each step sounds like a step. The participle phrase "Holding the tablet with both hands" describes the understood "you," the person holding the tablet, so it is placed correctly. Her register is formal but warm: "Good morning, everyone" and "Take your time."
A gerund in an on-the-spot answer (paragraphs 8-9)
Mrs. Alvarez asks a question Nadia did not plan for. How does Nadia answer clearly?
Result: She thanks her for the question, then gives the most important fact first: "Nothing will break." Her next sentence uses a gerund phrase as its subject, "Tapping the red button ends the call," which names an action as if it were a thing. The answer is short, calm and complete, which suits a nervous beginner.
Active and passive voice chosen for an effect (paragraph 11 and Diagram 2)
Why does Nadia use the active voice in one sentence of her report and the passive in the next?
Result: "Four student volunteers have taught Saturday classes here" is active, so the volunteers, the doers, get credit. "41 members have been taught to make a video call" is passive, so the members, who received the teaching, are the subject, and the board hears the result first. Each voice puts a different group in the spotlight, and both are clear. This is the L.8.3 idea of using voice to emphasize the actor or the action.
The conditional and subjunctive moods in a request (paragraphs 11-13)
Which verb forms help Nadia make her request and answer the board politely?
Result: "If the center bought four more tablets, we could teach twice as many members" is conditional: it says what would happen under a condition that has not happened yet. "I request that the board approve the purchase" uses the subjunctive after a request, so the verb is "approve," not "approves." "If it were up to me" is subjunctive too, for something contrary to fact: it is not up to her. These forms let her ask firmly without sounding like she is giving the board orders.
Part 3: Four questions for any context. Before speaking, ask: Who is listening? What is my task? Where am I? Is formal English indicated? Point out that Nadia is clear with all three audiences. Her grammar is correct in every scene; what changes is her word choice, her sentence length and the verb forms that fit each task.
Show Diagram 1 now, and ask students to add one more context to it, such as a phone call to a member's daughter, and place it on the line.
Guided Practice15 minutes
Formal English tune-up. An eighth grader practiced a phone call to the manager of the Riverside Ice Rink to ask about a group rate for the eighth-grade class outing. A call to a business manager is a formal task. Pairs cover the right-hand columns, say each line aloud, decide whether it follows formal English, fix it if needed and name the rule. Then uncover the columns and compare.
Formal English tune-up: six spoken lines from a phone call to a rink manager
Spoken line
Formal English
Rule
"Yo, is this the rink? It's Kiara."
"Good afternoon. My name is Kiara Bell, and I am an eighth grader at Ridge Middle School."
Register: greet the listener and say who you are (SL.8.6)
"Our class voted for the rink, and a date was chosen by our teacher."
"Our class voted for the rink, and our teacher chose a date."
Inappropriate shift from active to passive voice; keep the doers as subjects (L.8.1d)
"We'd like to come on March 6. Could you tell me the group rate, and you should also tell me if skates are included."
"We would like to come on March 6. Could you tell me the group rate and whether skates are included?"
Shift from the interrogative to a "you should" statement inside one request; keep one mood (L.8.1d)
"If our school was closer to the rink, we could walk there."
"If our school were closer to the rink, we could walk there."
Subjunctive "were" for a situation contrary to fact: the school is not close (L.8.1c, L.8.3a)
"Our teacher asks that each student brings a signed permission form."
"Our teacher asks that each student bring a signed permission form."
Subjunctive after "asks that": the base form "bring" (L.8.1c)
"Thanks, bye!"
"Thank you for your help. I will email the forms to you by Friday."
Register: close by thanking the listener and stating the next step (SL.8.6)
Debrief. Ask: "Which lines would be fine if Kiara were telling a friend about the trip?" Students usually say the greeting and "Thanks, bye!" would pass with a friend. Then point out that the shifts in voice and mood would confuse any listener, formal or not, because listeners hear a sentence only once. Have pairs say the fixed lines aloud, since formal English here is a speaking skill, not only a writing one.
Independent Practice15 minutes
Students read two transcripts from one student's life: a rehearsal of a speech he will give to a town committee, and a short conversation after the meeting. They mark each paragraph of Transcript 2 as ready or needs work for its context, then work alone on the quiz. Questions 1-10 and 15 are about Transcript 2, questions 11 and 12 are about Transcript 3, question 16 compares them, question 20 is about Transcript 1, and the rest ask students to use the standard in new situations.
1[Rafael Nunez rehearses in his social studies classroom. His teacher, Ms. Brandt, plays the chair of the town's historic preservation committee. At next week's public meeting, he will have three minutes to ask the committee for money.]
2Rafael: Hey, everybody. So, I'm Rafael, and I'm here about the clock.
3The clock on the Grange Hall was built in 1911. The town records do not say who built it, but it kept time over Main Street for more than a hundred years. It stopped in 2019, and it has not run since.
4Volunteers from the historical society cleaned the clock face last spring, and the broken hands were replaced by them too.
5If the clock was working, everyone downtown would know the time at a glance.
6Anyone can help. First, visit the front desk at the library, and then you should fill out a pledge card.
7If the committee would have approved the repair money last year, the clock would be running now.
8Honestly, the clock is lowkey the coolest thing in town, no cap.
9Walking down Main Street, the clock is the first thing you see.
10To keep the clock running, the town would need a small repair fund. I ask that the committee sets aside $4,800 for the repair this year.
11Ms. Brandt (as the chair): Who would take care of the clock after it is fixed?
12Rafael: Uh, I dunno. Like, maybe the hardware store guy? Okay, that's it. Bye!
Written for this page (the student, teacher, committee, town, clock, dates and amount are invented), Start the Grange Hall Clock Again (Transcript 2: an eighth grader rehearses a speech to a town historic preservation committee). Original passage written for this page.
1[A week later, Rafael walks out of the town meeting with his friend Sam.]
2Sam: So? Did they go for it?
3Rafael: Kind of! They didn't say yes yet, but they want a full repair plan by May. And the chair said my speech was "very well prepared."
4Sam: Look at you, all official.
5Rafael: I practiced like ten times. If I were on that committee, I'd vote yes tomorrow.
6Sam: Obviously. Want to get pizza?
7Rafael: Yes. I'm starving.
Written for this page (the students and the meeting are invented), After the Meeting (Transcript 3: the same student talks with a friend). Original passage written for this page.
Closure5 minutes
Exit ticket: "Name one place this month where formal English is indicated for you. Write one sentence you might say there that uses the conditional or the subjunctive mood, and underline the verb."
Teacher note. All the students, adults, schools, organizations, places, dates and numbers in the transcripts and the notes are invented. Treat home languages and dialects with respect: SL.8.6 is about choosing a register that fits a context, not about one way of speaking being better than another. Words like "lowkey" and "no cap" in Transcript 2 are fine among friends; they are a poor fit for a town committee. Some grammar books call "could teach" and "would know" the conditional mood and others treat them as modal verbs; the grade 8 Language standards list the conditional as a mood, and this page follows them.
Homework. Students use the Situation Notes below to prepare the same information for three listeners and tasks, then deliver one version aloud. Show them the directions and the rubric before they leave.
1Situation Notes for the homework (invented). The Hillcrest Public Library is opening a seed library, a cabinet of free vegetable and flower seeds that families can "check out," plant and then return seeds from their own gardens.
2Opening day: Saturday, April 18, from 10:00 a.m. to noon, in the library's community room. Your eighth-grade club is helping.
3What the club needs: four more volunteers to pack seeds into envelopes on Thursday, April 16, from 3:30 to 5:00 p.m., and 500 small paper envelopes.
4On opening day: a volunteer will show a group of second graders how to choose a packet, fill out the sign-out card and plant the seeds at home.
5Your request: Green Thumb Nursery, a plant store on Oak Avenue, has donated supplies to the library before. You will call the owner, Ms. Park, to ask whether the store could donate the 500 envelopes and send someone to answer gardening questions on opening day.
Written for this page (the library, store, people, dates and numbers are invented), The Hillcrest Seed Library (Situation Notes for the homework). Original passage written for this page.
Differentiation Strategies
For Struggling Students
Give a context card with four blanks, "Who is listening? What is my task? Where am I? Formal or casual?", to fill in before speaking
Start with two moods only, the imperative for directions and the subjunctive after "I request that," and practice each with three sentence frames
Pair the sentence strips in Activity 1 with a color key: one color for voice problems and one for mood problems
For Advanced Students
Rewrite Rafael's whole speech in Transcript 2 as a polished three-minute version, then label every passive and every subjunctive and explain why each one is there
Write two versions of a public apology for a club's mistake, one that uses the passive to hide responsibility and one that takes it, and explain the difference in effect
Preview SL.9-10.6: record the same announcement for a formal and an informal audience and compare your sentence structure, not only your words
Assessment Guidance
What to Look For
Look for students who can name the listener, setting and task before they speak and explain why formal English is or is not indicated. Strong formal speech greets and closes appropriately, stays in one mood for a set of directions, uses the passive only when it serves the listener, uses the subjunctive after verbs of requesting and for situations contrary to fact, and places participle phrases next to the word they describe. Strong casual speech is still clear. Watch for students who think formal means long or stiff, who drop formal English when they get a question they did not plan for, or who switch from commands to "you should" in the middle of directions.
02
Classroom Activities
3 Activities
1
Voice and Mood Repair Shop
12 minPairs
Pairs get 8 sentence strips, each a line a student might say in a formal setting. They decide whether each line is correct, fix the ones that are not, say the fixed line aloud and name the rule.
The 8 Sentence Strips
1: "Our team painted the benches, and the fence was fixed by us on Sunday." (to a neighborhood association)
2: "If I was the mayor, I would open the pool earlier." (at a youth town hall)
3: "Please sign in at the door, and then you should take a name tag." (welcoming families to a concert)
4: "The winners will be announced at noon." (a formal announcement at a science fair)
5: "We recommend that the school adds more lunch tables." (to the site council)
6: "If you had told me sooner, I would have saved you a seat." (to a guest at a ceremony)
7: "Hoping for a good turnout, the flyers were posted everywhere." (a report to the student council)
8: "Mistakes were made with the ticket count." (the student who counted the tickets, reporting to the teacher)
Procedure
Read each strip aloud and sort it: correct as it is, or needs a fix
Fix each line that needs it, then say the fixed version aloud in a formal voice
Name the rule: shift in voice, shift in mood, subjunctive, conditional, verbal (a misplaced participle phrase) or passive used to hide the doer
Compare with another pair; if you disagree, each pair explains its choice in one sentence
Answer Key for the Teacher
Correct as written: strips 4 (passive fits, because the action matters more than who announces) and 6 (a correct past conditional). Fix: 1 (voice shift: "and we fixed the fence on Sunday"), 2 ("If I were the mayor"), 3 (mood shift: "and then take a name tag"), 5 ("that the school add"), 7 (the flyers are not hoping: "Hoping for a good turnout, we posted flyers everywhere") and 8 (the passive hides the doer; an honest formal report says "I made mistakes with the ticket count").
Discussion Questions
Strips 4 and 8 both use the passive voice. Why does it fit one context and not the other?
Which fixes would matter even with a friend, and which matter mainly in formal settings?
2
Same News, Three Rooms
15 minGroups of 3
Each group gets one piece of news and delivers it three times, to three listeners and for three tasks. Each version must use a verb tool that fits its task.
The News (invented)
The spring concert has moved from the school gym to the high school auditorium on the same date, May 14, because the stage lights in the gym failed. Families should enter through the auditorium's east doors, and the start time is still 7:00 p.m.
The Three Rooms
Room 1: Tell a friend in the band at lunch (casual; task: share the news fast)
Room 2: Give directions to families over the school's phone message (formal; task: give directions; use the imperative mood with no shifts)
Room 3: Answer the PTA president, who asks at a meeting why the concert moved and whether it could move back (formal; task: explain and answer; use the passive once to emphasize an action and the conditional once)
Procedure
Each group member takes one room and writes the version in 1-3 minutes
Say all three versions aloud to the group, in order from most casual to most formal
Listeners hold up a card for the verb tool they hear (imperative, passive, conditional) and point out any shift
Revise one line together and say it again
Modification for Large Classes
Give half the groups a second piece of news: the eighth-grade yearbook photos have moved from Tuesday to Thursday because the photographer's van broke down. Groups with different news pair up and present to each other.
3
Register Switch Relay
15 minWhole class, in teams of 4
Students draw a context card, a task card and a verb tool card, then speak for 30 seconds. Teammates guess the context from how the speaker sounds.
The Cards
Context cards: a younger cousin at a birthday party; a teammate in the locker room; a librarian you have never met; the school board at a public meeting; a customer at a bake sale table; a reporter from the town newspaper
Task cards: give directions; request something; explain a problem; thank someone; answer a question you did not expect
Verb tool cards: imperative mood; passive voice for effect; conditional mood; subjunctive after "I request that" or "I recommend that"; a gerund phrase as a subject
Procedure
The speaker draws one card of each kind, thinks for 20 seconds and speaks for 30 seconds without showing the cards
Teammates write the context they think it was and the verb tool they heard
The speaker reveals the cards; the team earns one point for the right context and one for the right verb tool
If the tool does not fit the context (for example, a subjunctive request to a younger cousin), the team says why and the speaker tries a better-fitting tool
Variation for Online Classes
The teacher sends each speaker the three cards by private message. Teammates type their guesses in the chat before the speaker reveals the cards.
03
Diagrams & Visual Aids
2 diagrams
Diagram 1: One Volunteer, Three Contexts
Transcript 1 on a line from casual to formal. For each context, the diagram shows the listener, the setting, the task, one line Nadia says and the language she chooses. Use it in Direct Instruction.
Diagram 2: Active or Passive, Who Gets the Spotlight?
Two sentences from Nadia's report in paragraph 11 of Transcript 1. The outlined box is the subject of each sentence, the part listeners hear first. Use it in Direct Instruction.
04
Homework Assignment
~30 min
SL.8.6 Homework: One Seed Library, Three Listeners
Directions: Read the Situation Notes for the Hillcrest Seed Library in the Closure phase of the lesson plan. You will prepare the same information for three different listeners and tasks, then deliver one version aloud. Write your answers in complete sentences.
Part 1: Read the Context (Problems 1-2)
For each listener, write who is listening, what your task is and whether formal English is indicated: (a) a friend you want to volunteer on Thursday, (b) a group of second graders on opening day, whom you will show how to check out seeds, and (c) Ms. Park, the owner of Green Thumb Nursery, whom you will call with a request.
Choose which facts from the notes each listener needs and which to leave out. Explain one choice for each listener.
Part 2: Adapt Your Speech (Problems 3-4)
Write what you would say to your friend (casual, clear and short, 3-5 sentences). Then write your directions for the second graders (4-6 steps in the imperative mood, with simple words). Check that no step shifts to "you should" or "you will."
Write your phone call to Ms. Park in formal English, 6-8 sentences, with a greeting, who you are, the request, the details the store needs and a thank-you. Include one conditional sentence, one subjunctive clause after a verb like "request" or "ask," and one sentence in the passive voice used for an effect. Underline each one and label it.
Part 3: Deliver and Check (Problems 5-6)
Deliver your phone call aloud to a family member playing Ms. Park. Ask your listener to name any sentence that was confusing or did not sound formal, and to ask you one question you did not plan for. Write down their comments, their question and how you answered.
In four or five sentences, reflect: what changed most between your three versions? Show one sentence from your call before and after you revised it, and name the rule you used (voice, mood, a shift or a verbal).
Rubric
Criterion
Full Credit (2 pts)
Partial Credit (1 pt)
No Credit (0 pts)
Reading the Context
Listener, task and register named correctly for all three, with a reason for each fact kept or cut
Two of the three contexts analyzed, or reasons missing
Contexts not analyzed
Adapting to the Task
Three versions that clearly differ in words and length; directions stay in the imperative with no shifts
Versions differ only a little, or directions shift mood
One version only
Formal English
The call uses a correct conditional, subjunctive and passive, each labeled and each fitting its purpose, with no slang
One or two of the three forms missing or incorrect
Call not in formal English
Delivery and Reflection
Call delivered, listener's comments and question recorded, answer given in formal English, specific revision shown
Call delivered, reflection general
Not delivered
05
Quiz: 20 Questions
Interactive, with answers
Instructions
Questions 1-10 and 15 are about Transcript 2, and questions 11 and 12 are about Transcript 3, both in the Independent Practice phase of the lesson plan. Question 16 compares them, and question 20 is about Transcript 1 in the Direct Instruction phase. The other questions ask you to use the standard in new situations. The students, places and events are invented. Your score updates as you answer, and Reset quiz clears everything so you or your students can try again.
Multiple choice: pick an option to check it. Short answer: write your answer, then reveal the model answer.
0 of 20 answered · 0 correct
Question 1 of 20 · Multiple Choice
In Transcript 2, why is formal English indicated for Rafael's speech?
Answer: C
The listeners are a town committee he does not know well, the setting is a public meeting, and the task is a request for money in three minutes (paragraph 1). All three point to formal English. Choice A confuses the rehearsal room with the real context. Choice B misreads the transcript: his teacher plays the chair, and formal English is not about big words. Choice D makes the topic decide the register, but people can talk about old buildings casually with friends.
Question 2 of 20 · Multiple Choice
Which opening would fit Rafael's context best in place of paragraph 2?
Answer: B
A formal opening greets the listeners, gives his full name and states the purpose in one clear sentence. Choice A keeps the casual greeting and adds "trust me," which does not fit a committee. Choice C is full of fillers ("um," "basically," "I guess") that make him sound unsure. Choice D overcorrects: stiff, wordy phrases are not the same as formal English and waste his three minutes.
Question 3 of 20 · Multiple Choice
In paragraph 3, why is the passive voice a good choice in "The clock on the Grange Hall was built in 1911"?
Answer: D
Rafael says that "the town records do not say who built it," so there is no doer to name, and the passive puts the clock first, where the committee's attention should be. This is the L.8.3 idea of using the passive to emphasize the action or its receiver. Choice A overgeneralizes; formal speech uses both voices. Choice B describes a dishonest use of the passive, but nothing is being hidden here. Choice C invents a rule.
Question 4 of 20 · Multiple Choice
What is the problem with the sentence in paragraph 4?
Answer: A
The first clause is active ("Volunteers ... cleaned the clock face"), but the second switches to the passive ("the broken hands were replaced by them"), even though the same people did both actions. That is an inappropriate shift in voice (L.8.1d). A fix: "Volunteers from the historical society cleaned the clock face last spring and replaced the broken hands." Choice B is wrong: both clauses state facts in the indicative. Choice C describes a different error; there is no participle phrase here. Choice D is wrong: the sentence has no subjunctive.
Question 5 of 20 · Multiple Choice
Which revision of paragraph 5 is correct formal English?
Answer: C
The clock is not working, so the condition is contrary to fact, and formal English uses the subjunctive "were" with "would" in the result (L.8.1c, L.8.3a). Choice A mixes a present-tense condition with "would." Choice B keeps "was" and switches the result to "will," which makes the condition sound possible. Choice D puts "would" in the if-clause, a common error in speech.
Question 6 of 20 · Multiple Choice
What is wrong with the directions in paragraph 6?
Answer: B
The first step is a command, "visit the front desk," but the second becomes a statement about what "you should" do. That is an inappropriate shift in mood (L.8.1d), and it makes the second step sound optional. A fix: "First, visit the front desk at the library, and then fill out a pledge card." Choice A invents a rule and would make the steps harder to follow. Choice C is wrong: there is no condition. Choice D is wrong: there is no infinitive in these directions.
Question 7 of 20 · Multiple Choice
Which revision of paragraph 7 is correct formal English?
Answer: A
The condition is about the past and did not happen, so formal English uses "had approved" in the if-clause, with "would" in the result (L.8.1c). Choice B uses the present tense for a past event. Choice C keeps "would" in the if-clause and switches the result to "will." Choice D says the clock is running, which is false, and "has approved" does not fit "last year."
Question 8 of 20 · Multiple Choice
What is wrong with the sentence in paragraph 9, "Walking down Main Street, the clock is the first thing you see"?
Answer: D
A participle phrase at the start of a sentence describes the subject that comes right after it, so this sentence says the clock is walking. A fix: "Walking down Main Street, you see the clock first." The walker, "you," now comes right after the phrase (L.8.1a). Choice A is wrong: the sentence is active. Choice B is wrong: it is a statement in the indicative mood. Choice C is wrong: "is" and "see" are verbs, and nothing is missing.
Question 9 of 20 · Multiple Choice
Which verb correctly completes Rafael's request in formal English? I ask that the committee ___ aside $4,800 for the repair this year.
Answer: A
After a verb of requesting such as "ask," "request" or "recommend" followed by "that," formal English uses the subjunctive, which is the base form of the verb: "that the committee set aside" (L.8.1c). Choice B, which Rafael says in paragraph 10, is the ordinary present tense. Choices C and D state what will happen or is happening instead of making a request.
Question 10 of 20 · Multiple Choice
The chair asks, "Who would take care of the clock after it is fixed?" Which answer fits the context best?
Answer: C
A formal answer thanks the questioner, answers in a complete sentence and gives a specific plan. It would also need to be true, so Rafael should confirm the offer before the meeting. Choice A keeps the fillers and the guess from paragraph 12. Choice B is rude to the committee and dodges the question. Choice D is formal in tone but false, and it would hurt his credibility.
Question 11 of 20 · Multiple Choice
Why does casual speech fit Transcript 3?
Answer: A
The listener is a friend, the setting is the walk out of the meeting, and the task is to share news quickly, so formal English is not indicated. Choice B overgeneralizes: he will need formal English again, for example for the repair plan due in May. Choice C invents a rule. Choice D is not in the transcript.
Question 12 of 20 · Multiple Choice
In Transcript 3, Rafael says, "If I were on that committee, I'd vote yes tomorrow." What does this sentence show?
Answer: B
Rafael is not on the committee, so "If I were" is the subjunctive for a situation contrary to fact, and "I'd vote" is the conditional result. Casual speech changes the words and sentence length, as with "like ten times" and "Look at you, all official," but correct grammar is never out of place. Choice A gets the rule backward. Choice C is wrong: both parts are active. Choice D is wrong: the sentence is a statement about what he would do, not a command.
Question 13 of 20 · Multiple Choice
A student will read a formal announcement at a school assembly. The custodians refinished the gym floor, but the student wants listeners to focus on what happened to the gym. Which sentence fits best?
Answer: D
The passive "has been refinished" makes the gym floor the subject, which is what the student wants listeners to focus on, and the imperative that follows gives a clear direction (L.8.3a). Choice A makes the custodians the focus and shifts voice within the sentence. Choice B turns the news into a command to the audience, then shifts mood. Choice C turns a fact into an uncertain condition, so listeners cannot tell whether the floor was refinished, and "you would wear" is not a clear direction.
Question 14 of 20 · Multiple Choice
In the sentence To keep the clock running, the town would need a small repair fund, what is the job of the phrase To keep the clock running?
Answer: C
"To keep" is an infinitive (to + a verb), and the phrase tells the purpose of the fund: why the town would need it (L.8.1a). Choice A is wrong: the subject is "the town," and a gerund ends in -ing and acts as a noun. Choice B is wrong: the phrase does not describe the town; a participle phrase would be something like "Keeping the clock running." Choice D is wrong: an imperative would be "Keep the clock running."
Question 15 of 20 · Short Answer
Rewrite paragraphs 8 and 12 of Transcript 2 in formal English. Then name two changes you made and explain why each one fits the context.
Model answer: Paragraph 8: "To many people in town, the Grange Hall clock is a landmark worth saving." Paragraph 12: "That is an important question. I would ask the historical society volunteers, who cleaned the clock face last spring, whether they could check it each month. Thank you for your time." Changes: (1) I replaced the slang "lowkey" and "no cap" with plain, precise words, because a committee expects standard English and may not know the slang. (2) I cut the fillers "Uh," "I dunno" and "Like" and answered in complete sentences with a real plan, because a public request needs to sound prepared, and I ended by thanking the committee instead of saying "Bye!" Rubric: full credit for both paragraphs in formal English and two changes, each with a reason tied to the context; partial credit for one paragraph or reasons missing; no credit if slang or fillers remain.
Question 16 of 20 · Short Answer
Transcripts 2 and 3 show the same student in two contexts. Describe two differences in how Rafael speaks, quoting each transcript, and explain why each difference fits its context and task.
Model answer: First, his greetings and endings change. In Transcript 2 he needs a formal opening and close for a committee, and his rehearsal shows why: "Hey, everybody" and "Bye!" do not fit a public meeting. In Transcript 3, with Sam, he opens with "Kind of!" and ends with "Yes. I'm starving," which fits a friend on the walk home. Second, his word choice changes: in the meeting he needs precise words such as "$4,800 for the repair," but with Sam he says "I practiced like ten times," which is casual and fine for sharing news. In both contexts his grammar can be correct, as "If I were on that committee" shows. Rubric: full credit for two differences, each quoted from both transcripts and tied to the listener and task; partial credit for one difference or missing quotations; no credit otherwise.
Question 17 of 20 · Short Answer
Find the three verbals in this sentence and name each one as a gerund, a participle or an infinitive. Then explain the job each one does in the sentence: Hoping to reach more members, the volunteers plan to open a second class, and teaching it will take two more tablets.
Model answer: "Hoping" (in the phrase "Hoping to reach more members") is a participle; the phrase acts as an adjective describing "the volunteers." "To reach" and "to open" are infinitives: "to reach more members" is the object of "Hoping," and "to open a second class" is the object of "plan," so both act as nouns. "Teaching" (in "teaching it") is a gerund; the phrase acts as a noun and is the subject of "will take." Rubric: full credit for identifying the participle, the gerund and at least one infinitive with a correct job for each; partial credit for two correct; no credit otherwise. (Students who list both infinitives earn full credit as long as the participle and gerund are also correct.)
Question 18 of 20 · Short Answer
You left your science fair poster on the school bus. Write what you would say (a) to your older sister, asking her to drive you to the bus garage, and (b) on the phone to the bus garage office, asking whether the poster was found. For (b), use one sentence in the passive voice and one conditional sentence, and label them.
Model answer: (a) "Can you drive me to the bus garage after dinner? I left my science poster on the bus, and it's due tomorrow. I'll do the dishes for you, deal?" (b) "Good afternoon. My name is Omar Haddad, and I ride Bus 12 to Ridge Middle School. This morning I left a large science fair poster on the bus, in a blue tube. Has a poster been turned in today? (passive: the finder does not matter) If it was found, could I pick it up at 4:30 this afternoon? (conditional) Thank you for your help." Rubric: full credit for two versions that clearly differ in register and a formal call with a greeting, the details, a correct passive and a correct conditional, both labeled; partial credit if one form is missing or the versions barely differ; no credit otherwise. ("If it was found" is correct here, because the speaker does not know whether it was found; "were" is for conditions that are contrary to fact.)
Question 19 of 20 · Short Answer
Write a three- or four-sentence formal request to your principal asking the school to add a water bottle filling station to the gym. Use the subjunctive after "request" or "recommend," one conditional sentence and one sentence in the passive voice that emphasizes an action. Label each one.
Model answer: "Good morning, Dr. Evans. Last week, 64 empty plastic bottles were collected from the gym bleachers after one game. (passive: the action and the bottles matter more than who collected them) If the gym had a filling station, students could refill their own bottles during practice. (conditional) I recommend that the school add one before the fall season. (subjunctive)" Rubric: full credit for a formal request with a correct, labeled subjunctive, conditional and passive, each fitting its purpose; partial credit for two of the three; no credit if the request is casual or the forms are missing.
Question 20 of 20 · Short Answer
In paragraphs 12 and 13 of Transcript 1, Mr. Lindqvist asks who would keep track of the tablets, and Nadia answers, "The front desk would sign them out each Saturday, and the volunteers would return them by noon." Name the mood and the voice of her answer. Then explain why each choice fits this question and this listener, and how the answer would sound if she said "The front desk signs them out each Saturday."
Model answer: Her answer is in the conditional mood ("would sign," "would return") and the active voice. The conditional fits because the plan depends on something that has not happened: the board has not approved the tablets yet, so she describes what would happen without assuming the answer. The active voice fits because Mr. Lindqvist asked who, and each clause names the people responsible, the front desk and the volunteers, as its subject. If she said "The front desk signs them out," the indicative would state the plan as a fact already decided, which could sound as if she were making the board's decision for it. Rubric: full credit for naming the conditional mood and the active voice and explaining the effect of each on the board, plus the indicative contrast; partial credit for two of these; no credit otherwise.
0 of 20 answered · 0 correct
06
Frequently Asked Questions
10 Questions
What does SL.8.6 mean?
SL.8.6 means that eighth graders adapt how they speak to different contexts and tasks, and use formal English when the situation calls for it. "SL" stands for Speaking and Listening, and "6" is the sixth standard in that strand for grade 8.
What is formal English for an eighth grader?
It is careful, standard English for meetings, presentations, interviews and talks with adults you don't know well: no slang, complete sentences, precise words and correct verbs. The grade 8 Language standards add the verb skills: using verbals (gerunds, participles and infinitives), choosing active or passive voice, using the five moods and avoiding shifts in voice and mood.
How does SL.8.6 connect to L.8.1 and L.8.3?
The full official standard points teachers to the grade 8 Language standards 1 and 3 for what formal English means at this grade. L.8.1 covers verbals, active and passive voice, the five verb moods and shifts in voice and mood. L.8.3 asks students to choose voice and mood on purpose, for example the passive to emphasize an action or the subjunctive to describe something contrary to fact.
What are the five verb moods in grade 8?
Indicative states a fact ("The meeting starts at six"). Imperative gives a command or direction ("Sign in at the door"). Interrogative asks a question ("Could you tell me the rate?"). Conditional says what would happen under a condition ("We could come on Friday"). Subjunctive expresses a wish, a request or something contrary to fact ("I request that he attend"; "If I were you").
Is the passive voice wrong in formal speech?
No. The passive voice is a choice, and it is often the right one: when the action or the person or thing receiving it matters more than who did it, as in many formal announcements. It is a poor choice when it hides who is responsible, as in "Mistakes were made," or when it creates a shift in the middle of a sentence.
Does SL.8.6 say casual speech is wrong?
No. SL.8.6 asks students to adapt, and casual speech fits many contexts, such as talking with friends or family. The skill is choosing on purpose: casual when it fits, formal when it is indicated, and clear in both.
What does "when indicated or appropriate" mean in SL.8.6?
It means formal English is required in some situations and not others. It is indicated when someone asks for it or the setting clearly calls for it, such as a board meeting or a formal presentation. It is appropriate when the listener, the place or the task makes it the better choice, such as a phone call to a business.
How is SL.8.6 different from SL.7.6 and SL.9-10.6?
The wording of the standard is the same in grades 7 and 8, but the Language standards it points to change. In grade 7, formal English focuses on phrases, clauses, sentence types and placing modifiers. In grade 8, it adds verbals, voice and mood. In grades 9-10, SL.9-10.6 points to the grades 9-10 Language standards, such as parallel structure and the varied phrases and clauses in L.9-10.1.
How can teachers grade SL.8.6 fairly?
Grade the fit between the speech and the context, not one "correct" way of talking. Give students a clear context and task, and look for a register that fits, correct verb forms where formal English is indicated, and a calm, complete answer to an unplanned question. The homework rubric on this page is one way to score it.
How can parents help with SL.8.6 at home?
Give your child real practice: let them make a phone call to schedule an appointment or ask a store a question, and talk about it afterward. Ask which sentences sounded formal and which did not. Playing the listener while your child rehearses a speech, and asking one question they did not expect, helps too.
07
Related Standards
5 standards
These standards connect to SL.8.6: prerequisites to review first, parallel standards at the same level, and next steps that build on it.
Before this lesson
SL.7.6Prerequisite
Adapt speech to contexts and tasks, showing command of formal English (grade 7)
